Colca Canyon Trek - PICS!!

Two condors chillin'

We have returned from our Colca Canyon trek and it was AMAZING!! The views were beyond gorgeous and the weather was perfect. The hike in was pretty intense...it reminded me of the Bright Angel Trail in the Grand Canyon only a little shorter. On the first day, we stopped to see all the condors that live in the canyon. They were considered holy spirits or gods by the Incas, and after seeing them in person I can understand why! They were humongous and beautiful. We sat and watched a bunch of them fly around for awhile and then were on our way to begin the trek.

 

Beginning of the canyon and hike

Part of the trail with Jack

We bagan with a couple hours of hiking down into the canyon to the first village where we would stay for the night. It was a long way down! Luckily, we did the three day trip instead of the two day, so we stopped once we reached the first village. It was beyond gorgeous...we got to stay in little adobe-type huts on the edge of a cliff that overlooked the major river that runs through the canyon. It was almost like a jungle with so many plants growing and all types of neat fruits and veggies. There were also some beautiful animals....we have seen a lot of kitties with different colored eyes. This little beauty tried to eat our dinners the first night! And the second. And anytime there was food :)

The canyon has a lot of exports of fruits and veggies, but there are no real cars or roads down in the canyon. The only way in and out is by hiking what we hiked down into the canyon (and a similar trail out the other side). So often, you see people or mules carrying everything. Very impressive, seeing as I was a whiney mess with my teeny little daypack :)

Oasis!

The second day we stayed in a place called Paradiso Oasis. It was literally the most welcome site! Beautiful scenery and a pool as well as really nice adobe rooms. We got to rinse off and be lazy for a day, hanging out by candlelight at night and listening to the river outside. Pretty sweet! We enjoyed it while we could, because the next day we woke up at 4:30 and began the brutal hike out.








It was two and a half hours straight up to the top of the canyon. Literally. I was amazed my legs weren't complete jello by the end of it, because I have never used them so continuously and aggressively, I swear! That is probably a lie, but still. I am very proud of us! Now we are back in Cusco after an overnight 10 hour bus ride (Peruvian buses are BOMB by the way...like beds!). We are here for a few more day and then back to the states!

Me pointing to where we have to hike out...
the tiny little trees in the top left!

We did it! And a half hour quicker than we thought we would!

So the past few days have been... interesting. To make a long story short, I got an infection and possibly altitude sickness when we went to Puno to do the Lake Titicaca. Jack had to take me to the local emergency room  because apparently, hospitals in Puno are closed on Sunday?  We spent hours sitting there having people talk to me in Spanish, but some weird fast doctor Spanish that is impossible to understand. I had multiple people come in and tellme I had multiple things wrong when I knew it was an infection. a bunch of scary tests and poking later, a doctor comes in and makes the needle motion that I can only assume means " I'm about to stick needles in you and hurt you really badly".  apparently anesthetic in Peru consists only of the doctor saying "Tranquillo, no necessita tener miedo" or " chill out,  don't be a baby".  The medicine versio is much more effective for pain, TRUST ME.  now I'm on boat-loads of  antibiotics and attempting a trek through Colca Canyon in two days.  We missed or lake tour :(

Jack was basically my epic hero through everything!! He was absolutely  wonderful and did everything he could to make me feel good/get me meds/deal with my fear and anxiety. he truly is el hombre de mis suenos (man of my dreams). If you see him on the street, give him a hug, high five, or cookie. Gold stars work, too :)

Now we are in Arequipa  waiting for our next trip.  This city is huge and warm, which is awesome!

Schooooools out for summmmmmer!

After a week of Spanish classes, I am so ready for a vacation portion of our vacation. This past week has been great for reviewing my language skills from years past, but I am also realizing that I am SO DONE WITH CLASS. Sitting still and learning for four hours a day is brutal. I guess three years of graduate school will do that to you. Luckily I have had two field trips to museums, and who doesn´t love field trips?? I got to visit the coca museum and the chocolate museum (yum!). The chocolate museum gave factoids here and there about chocolate but is more of a restraurant and store. Don´t get me wrong, that is wonderful! I enjoyed the coca museum more because it had a lot on the history and uses of coca. For those of you who don´t know, coca is huge in Peru because it is used in practically everything. We use it primarily to combat altitude sickness by either drinking the tea or chewing the leaves. It also gives you a nice little jolt of energy, which makes sense since it is also the principle ingredient in cocaine! I also got to learn about its cultural uses, which we had a taste of during the Salkantay Trek. Our guide gave thanks with coca leaves to Pachamama (mother earth) for our safe passage. I think I even threw up a few desperate pleas to good ol´ Pachamama when Jack was so sick that first day.

Other than that, class was class. I am getting much more confident in my speaking, so that is a plus! And by more confident in my speaking, I just mean more willing to make a million mistakes and sound ridiculous. But you know, tomay-toe tomah-toe. (Get it??) There are about 20 students here and about a bajillion volunteers. Our school coordinates volunteer programs throughout the city, so we all get to hang out in the dorms and in the school common areas together. A majority of the kids here are pretty young...just coming into college or having only been through their freshman year. It is definitely making me realize I am closer to 30 than 20 haha...I  have started to joke with Jack about the age differences between myself and my classmates. I am literally a 4th grader older than half the people in our school. A FOURTH GRADER! That is how I have started equating years of age difference to make it more dramatic than just saying "10 years", although 10 years is pretty freaking dramatic, too. UGH. They stay out until 6am drinking all night and then come back screaming, bouncing off crap in the halls, and hacking up what I can only assume to be large pieces of their lungs because everyone here parties so hard, their bodies can´t keep up and they are most likely dying of tuberculosis. As I huddle in my bed trying to warm up the blankets and listen to their incoherent ramblings, I repeatedly tell myself "you were like this once, right?" in an attempt to not run out in the hall, screaming at them all "you crazy kids, get off my lawn" style. My, how the tides have turned.

In addition to referring to age in terms of small children, we have also started referring to the cost of thinks in Snickers bars. This is due to the fact that an adorable14 year old on our Salkantay Trek was obsessed with Snickers bars. Every time we would stop along the trail for water refills at local shops (yes, there are stores all over the trek where you have to buy your water), this kid would buy a bunch of Snickers bars. Whenever he would want something else, his mother would say "Well, that is worth about three Snickers bars,so you decide". Snickers won out EVERY TIME. So we now refer to costs in Snickers bar units and age differences using elementary school children. It happens. What gets you excited in life has also changed dramatically. For example, I bought 2 ponchos and an individual roll of toilet paper today for a total of 11 soles. That is SO EXCITING SLASH IMPRESSIVE. That is like, $4!! TOTAL! FOR ALL THREE THINGS! Plus, NOW WE HAVE TOILET PAPER FOR THE NEXT WEEK. I can´t stress enough how important that is in Peru. Adjusting back to the states will never be the same...

Tomorrow morning we leave bright and early for our next adventure to Lake Titicaca and Colca Canyon. The lake will be great, the canyon trek may kill us. And I am basing that solely on the various blogs I have read about how difficult it is. We have been climbing small mountains to and from basically everything for the past few weeks, so maybe it won´t be so bad? I know I exaggerate a lot in this blog, but when I say small mountains, I´m not kidding. In Cusco, everything is uphill...both ways. There isn´t even a word for hill that is used to describe streets around here. I´m not kidding...I asked my teacher and he looked at me like I was crazy. He was all "If we used that word here, we wouldn´t have streets, only hills". So yeah....thighs and calves of STEEL!

Pictures to come later, crap internet, same old story blahblahblah. Anywho, that is enough blabbing on for today. We will probably have no internet for the next week,so see you in 7 days!

Posting from my phone, ignore the mess...

Jack and his toys :)

This gnome  is  in a  local  place  we  like  to  go  and   has  had  a  a  really  rough time  of it, if  you  can't  tell  from  his  chain. We watched  multiple  children kick/punch him as we ate  lunch. poor dude.

It is so incredibly cold here!! I swear it is getting colder each day we stay here...which makes sense since it's the start of winter...it really makes me appreciate heaters. Like, a lot. I'm getting used to sleeping in socks, legwarmers, tights, two shirts, and a hat. And that's on a warm night! I've, been slowly investing in an outfit made of all alpaca to combat the cold. Really, it only consists of a hat and legwarmers so far...but more may be coming if it stays this freezing! I'm currently trying to warm up in a Starbucks...yeah yeah I know. Trust me, I have been to all the local coffee joints and they are good, but no heat. Plus a white mocha is a nice creature comfort after traveling/being homeless for a month! I can already feel it's hot sugary goodness spreading into my frozen toes.

Pardon the sloppiness of this post, I'm doing it in my phone which is insanely challenging for me. So if something is spelled wonky or out of place, blame Samsung. Now that I am without Jack in the mornings, I'm also without his computer. It will be interesting to spend my mornings alone in Cusco...I'm going to have to get creative...that or just read a lit. Comfortable with either. I'm hoping these classes jump start my Spanish brain...I did alright in the oral test but I can pretty much only speak in present tense...not incredibly helpful.

We had the doctors in the school clinic give us a speech on parasites and bacteria to watch out for, and I'm more convinced I have a parasite. Anyone that knows me should be in no way shocked by this revelation. I gave none of the symptoms, but just hearing about it totally freaked me out. I have been here for two weeks now and am just now worried? Faulty logic...anyway, thats all for now. my phone is obnoxious.