In Ipiales, Colombia (the border town) I bought a bus ticket to Medellin which I believe is the second largest city in Colombia. I once again got really lucky with my seating arragnement becuase I spent the entire 18 hour bus ride sitting with a Colombian guy (prolly in his 40´s because he was married with kids) who ended up being a wealth of information. He had lived all over Colombia and was very educated in a variety of subjects and thus turned out to be a huge help to me - just teaching me about the geography and politics and culture of the country. Lucky me. Medellin turned out to be a really beautiful and highly developed city. This is one of the things that really surprised me about Colombia - the high level of development and westernization (especially after so much time in Bolivia, Peru and Ecuador). Its such a shame that such bad stereotypes still exist about Colombia and its people becuase I haven´t found any of it to be true. The two most impressive things about Medellin were its public transportation system and the Mueseo de Antioquia. The transportation system was soooo clean (not at all like in BsAs) and it included busses, metro and ahhh I can´t remember what they are called in English . . . . gondolas I think. The museum consisted mostly of art by Fernando Botero. I recognized some of his works but I hadn´t heard his name before, and even though I´m not usually a big fan of art museums, this one I loved. I also discovered another artist that I really like - Luis Caballero. I don´t think I´ve ever been affected by a piece of art until I saw something by him.
Also in Medellin I did paragliding. Don´t think I would classify it as an extreme sport but it was really fun and the view of the city was breath-taking. After two nights in Medellin I headed north to the carribean coast of Colombia.
Monday, July 13, 2009
Northern Peru and Ecuador
Ok so I don´t have a lot to say about this part of my trip and honestly I´m getting kind of bored writing this. So I´ll do a quick summary. After Machu Pichhu I went back to Cusco for a few hours then took an overnight bus to Lima. Lima was kind of shocking for me because it was the first time I had been in such a developed, huge and westernized city since I left Buenos Aires. Just seeing all the new cars was weird. But I did get to go to Starbucks (I´m bad, I know). Only stayed one night in Lima then did a 18 hour bus ride to the border with Ecuador. Met a really nice Peruvian guy (but who had been living in Europe for the past 15 years) on the bus named Carlos. We helped each other out crossing the border (which is a bit tricky between Peru and Ecuador) and then decided to go to Cuenca together. Cuenca, Ecuador ended up being a small town reminiscent of Sucre, Bolivia. The best part was that there was some sort of festival going on so each evening the main square was filled to the brim with booths of people selling all kinds of sweets and chocolates. I was in heaven!! The street food was good too and on our last night there was a big fireworks show. From there we headed to Quito, Ecuador (the capital). I didn´t like Quito at all. For me it was just a big, dirty and unsafe city that didn´t hold any appeal. Here Carlos met up with a friend and I left the day after I arrived. From Quito I bussed to the Colombian border (in total it takes about 20 hours in bus to cross Ecuador).
Machu Picchu, Peru
So, like any traveler who finds themselves in Peru one of my biggest - if not THE biggest - goal was to see the Machu Picchu. For those of you that may not know, Machu Picchu is a site of Inca ruins located in southern Peru. It was only discovered in the early 20th century after being abandonded when the Spanish conquered South America in the 1600´s (I think . . .). Before going I heard all kinds of stories about what its like as well as got tons of advise on how I should get there, what I should do and so on (its a bit complicated of a process and can be very very expensive). Despite my best laid plans and efforts to save money and bus all the way there I only made it to the first town from which I couldn't´t find the next bus so I had to take the train the rest of the way. I arrived in Aguas Calientes which is a small tourist town and the base camp for people who are visiting the site. Ohh my, I have never in my life encountered a place so overpriced and tourism orientated. Ehhh I didn´t like it.
The next morning I woke up really early in order to get in line at 5am for the busses that go from Aguas Calientes to the entrance to Machu Picchu (if you walk its really far and really steep). As soon as I got into Machu Pichhu I had to make a bee line to the other end of the ruins to get my ticket to walk up Wanu Picchu (a mountain that is part of the site that they only let 400 people each day climb). After that I got to watch the sun rise over the mountains surrounding Machu Pichhu and it was absolutely breath-taking. Just to see the rays of the morning light breaking over these impressive mountains - my pictures are amazing but not even close to how it was to actually be there. Machu Pichhu itself is this aww inspiring place because the architecture is so well done, advanced and just impressive. Especially when you take the time to think that this place was built on the top of a mountain over 500 years ago. I still wonder how they actually did it. This question was even more present in my mind when I hiked Wanu Picchu because it is soo steep and tough to climb that I can´t imagine how they hauled up the stones to create the structures that are on the mountain. The hike is more than worth it though for the incredible view of Machu Picchu and all the surrounding area. So incredible.
Honestly, my description of all this fails miserably at capturing what its like. Seeing pictures you can kind of have an idea but really you have to be there. After spending all day in Machu Picchu I went back to Aguas Calientes and went to the natural hot springs (thus the reason for the name of the town) with a group of people I had met in the ruins. Also tried Pisco which is a Peruvian liquor. Dangerous stuff . . . The next morning I bussed and trained back to Cusco.
The next morning I woke up really early in order to get in line at 5am for the busses that go from Aguas Calientes to the entrance to Machu Picchu (if you walk its really far and really steep). As soon as I got into Machu Pichhu I had to make a bee line to the other end of the ruins to get my ticket to walk up Wanu Picchu (a mountain that is part of the site that they only let 400 people each day climb). After that I got to watch the sun rise over the mountains surrounding Machu Pichhu and it was absolutely breath-taking. Just to see the rays of the morning light breaking over these impressive mountains - my pictures are amazing but not even close to how it was to actually be there. Machu Pichhu itself is this aww inspiring place because the architecture is so well done, advanced and just impressive. Especially when you take the time to think that this place was built on the top of a mountain over 500 years ago. I still wonder how they actually did it. This question was even more present in my mind when I hiked Wanu Picchu because it is soo steep and tough to climb that I can´t imagine how they hauled up the stones to create the structures that are on the mountain. The hike is more than worth it though for the incredible view of Machu Picchu and all the surrounding area. So incredible.
Honestly, my description of all this fails miserably at capturing what its like. Seeing pictures you can kind of have an idea but really you have to be there. After spending all day in Machu Picchu I went back to Aguas Calientes and went to the natural hot springs (thus the reason for the name of the town) with a group of people I had met in the ruins. Also tried Pisco which is a Peruvian liquor. Dangerous stuff . . . The next morning I bussed and trained back to Cusco.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
I´m not so good at this apparently
So even though according to this blog I´m still in southern Peru I´m actually in northern Colombia. I´ve been here in Taganga - and around the town - for a little more than a week. Ahh I´m loving it so so so much. But tomorrow I head to Bogota and then back down to Lima for my flight back to BsAs. I promise to update it better and add more pics when I get back to BsAs. I have some good stories to tell . . . .
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
My Adventures in Cusco
I found that I really liked Cusco - the vibe, the city, the people - which worked out well because the whole Machu Picchu trip required me to spend a bit of time in Cusco figuring things out. I spent quite a bit of time with the Argentines shopping, exploring the city, eating and going out. I did eat at McDonalds which was quite tasty (better than in the US but same as BsAs). One of the nights we went out to a little french resturant in the barrio (neighborhood) of San Blas - kinda like San Telmo in BsAs. After we went out to a bar called 7 Angelitos (seven little angles). The owner was argentine (as were quite a few of the other drinkers when we arrived) and he made the most excellent mojitos. I don´t think I´ve ever had one as tasty as the ones he made. A bit later there was a punk/ska/rock band that played which ended up being really good. They played a good mix of covers (from US, Latin America and Europe) as well as their own stuff. Turned out to be a pretty big night out but it was so so fun.
The next day I went bungee jumping (not the best idea when you´re hung over but I survived). It was a place about 15 minutes outside Cusco. Basically they strapped my ankles into the bungee and also used attatchements around my waist and shoulders. Then I climbed into a yellow box cage thing and got hoisted about 105 meteres into the air. Going up I felt ok, just a little nervous. But to actually jump you have to walk out onto this little plank and then dive off. Ahhh for me it was way scarier than jumping out of a plane. I was kinda dissapointed tho cuz after the terrifying dive its just a short fall, a violent jerk and a little bit of bouncing around. But it was fun and exciting and I am glad I did it. Unfortunatly on the bumpy cab ride back to town my tummy was really unhappy with my drinking, eating and physical activities (but I kept it under control).
Other interesting things in Cusco were the market and the parades. The central market in Cusco was a lot like the one in Sucre. Fruit, veggies, meat, cheese, bread, sweets, furniture, meals and artisan things. For one meal I went there to try the Peruvian dish ceviche which is rice and salad and some kind of raw fish with lemon juice. Have to say I wasnt a big fan of it but maybe it would have been beter on the coast. Guess I will have to give it another go when I am in Lima. Also, I got to see a ton of parades. I cant remember the reasons for all of them but the best one I saw on my last day in Cusco. It was a celebration for the 100 year aniversary of a school and it proceeded from the school, around the Plaza Armanda and on to somewhere else. The best part was that all the little kids were dressed up and participating. There were older kids playing drums and other musical insturments as well as little adroable children dressed up in traditional dress dancing around with teachers trying to keep them focused on the parade. I loved it! Seriously tho, Bolivian and Peruvian babies and little kids are some of the cutest I think I have seen.
From Cusco I headed to the most famous place in Peru, the Inca ruins of Machu Picchu.
The next day I went bungee jumping (not the best idea when you´re hung over but I survived). It was a place about 15 minutes outside Cusco. Basically they strapped my ankles into the bungee and also used attatchements around my waist and shoulders. Then I climbed into a yellow box cage thing and got hoisted about 105 meteres into the air. Going up I felt ok, just a little nervous. But to actually jump you have to walk out onto this little plank and then dive off. Ahhh for me it was way scarier than jumping out of a plane. I was kinda dissapointed tho cuz after the terrifying dive its just a short fall, a violent jerk and a little bit of bouncing around. But it was fun and exciting and I am glad I did it. Unfortunatly on the bumpy cab ride back to town my tummy was really unhappy with my drinking, eating and physical activities (but I kept it under control).
Other interesting things in Cusco were the market and the parades. The central market in Cusco was a lot like the one in Sucre. Fruit, veggies, meat, cheese, bread, sweets, furniture, meals and artisan things. For one meal I went there to try the Peruvian dish ceviche which is rice and salad and some kind of raw fish with lemon juice. Have to say I wasnt a big fan of it but maybe it would have been beter on the coast. Guess I will have to give it another go when I am in Lima. Also, I got to see a ton of parades. I cant remember the reasons for all of them but the best one I saw on my last day in Cusco. It was a celebration for the 100 year aniversary of a school and it proceeded from the school, around the Plaza Armanda and on to somewhere else. The best part was that all the little kids were dressed up and participating. There were older kids playing drums and other musical insturments as well as little adroable children dressed up in traditional dress dancing around with teachers trying to keep them focused on the parade. I loved it! Seriously tho, Bolivian and Peruvian babies and little kids are some of the cutest I think I have seen.
From Cusco I headed to the most famous place in Peru, the Inca ruins of Machu Picchu.
Cusco, Peru
From Copacabana I bussed it with the Argentines to Cusco, Peru. First we took a small run-down bus from Bolivia, crossed the border (easiest border crossing I´ve experienced) then arrived in Puno, Peru about 3 hours later. Here we had a small break and then boarded a large normal long distance bus for the rest of the trip to Cusco. I decided that I really don´t like long bus trips during the day because they tend to be more uncomfortable and I feel like I´m wasting a lot of time. And night busses are great cuz I just watch a movie, taking a sleeping pill and then wake up in the next place. Plus I save money not paying for sleeping accomodations that night. Anyways, we got to Cusco in the evening and checked into a hostel called The Point, another larger party hostel (but this time I picked it). The hostel was really nice with a big screen tv, bar, outside area with hamnocks, amazing showers and comfortable beds. The first night we got dinner at a nicer resturant and even though it was a bit pricy it was worth it for the delicious tuna melt I had.
Cusco at night is absolutely beautiful. The main Plaza is called Plaza Armada and is surrounded by nice boutiques squished inbetween these massive anciant churches. The churches are very impressive and at night are lit up beautifully. In the center of the plaza is a grassy area with a big fountian, benches, flowers and lots of Cusco flags (they are striped with a bunch of colors - kind of like the gay pride flags). In addition to the botiques there are also a bunch of resturants and tourist offices. And each one has at least one person out front trying to convince you to come in and try this plate or take that trip. Also, there are a ton of ladies trying to sell massages and pedicures. Of course they are targeting the mainly English speaking tourists so its pretty funny how they use broken English to sell stuff. Ok maybe I shouldn´t laugh but wait til you hear an impression of them. Haha.
The rest of Cusco was similar to Sucre, lots of Spanish architecture, cobble stone streets and hills in every direction. The weird thing tho was the massive amount of tourists. Almost everyone comes to Peru to see Machu Picchu and almost everyone stays in Cusco before or after Machu Picchu. Especially around the main plaza it felt like there were as many tourists as locals. I noticed that there were two types of tourists. The young tourist about 20-30, traveling alone or in a group of 3 or 5, dressed in trekking shoes, striped pajama pants (purchased in Cusco) or jeans and a sweater made of Alpaca (plus maybe a hat of Alpaca or a bright/bag purse thing. Then there is the old tourist. Always white (mostly European) dressed in trekking shoes, kaki pants, neutral colored t-shirt, kaki safari vest, large hi-tech camera, walking stick and safari hat or ball cap. Always in large groups and generally with a guide. Part of me found it funny but the other part of me was really weirded out cuz I´ve never seen so many tourists in one place - let alone so many tourists that stick out as much as in Cusco. Of course, I must add that I definitely fit into the first category myself unfortunatly.
Cusco at night is absolutely beautiful. The main Plaza is called Plaza Armada and is surrounded by nice boutiques squished inbetween these massive anciant churches. The churches are very impressive and at night are lit up beautifully. In the center of the plaza is a grassy area with a big fountian, benches, flowers and lots of Cusco flags (they are striped with a bunch of colors - kind of like the gay pride flags). In addition to the botiques there are also a bunch of resturants and tourist offices. And each one has at least one person out front trying to convince you to come in and try this plate or take that trip. Also, there are a ton of ladies trying to sell massages and pedicures. Of course they are targeting the mainly English speaking tourists so its pretty funny how they use broken English to sell stuff. Ok maybe I shouldn´t laugh but wait til you hear an impression of them. Haha.
The rest of Cusco was similar to Sucre, lots of Spanish architecture, cobble stone streets and hills in every direction. The weird thing tho was the massive amount of tourists. Almost everyone comes to Peru to see Machu Picchu and almost everyone stays in Cusco before or after Machu Picchu. Especially around the main plaza it felt like there were as many tourists as locals. I noticed that there were two types of tourists. The young tourist about 20-30, traveling alone or in a group of 3 or 5, dressed in trekking shoes, striped pajama pants (purchased in Cusco) or jeans and a sweater made of Alpaca (plus maybe a hat of Alpaca or a bright/bag purse thing. Then there is the old tourist. Always white (mostly European) dressed in trekking shoes, kaki pants, neutral colored t-shirt, kaki safari vest, large hi-tech camera, walking stick and safari hat or ball cap. Always in large groups and generally with a guide. Part of me found it funny but the other part of me was really weirded out cuz I´ve never seen so many tourists in one place - let alone so many tourists that stick out as much as in Cusco. Of course, I must add that I definitely fit into the first category myself unfortunatly.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Copacabana, Bolivia
My last stop in Bolivia was the small town of Copacabana on Lake Titicaca. Lake Titicaca is a huge lake (about 80km by 100km) that sits on the border between Peru and Bolivia. The lake and its islands are important sites from the Inca civilization. Copacabana is a quaint little town that sits right on the edge of the lake. Besides the tourism which is pretty big there, Copacabana is known for its massive church which houses the famous Virgin of Copacabana (the Copacabana in Brazil is named after her). The church is surrounded by a huge plaza which is enclosed by a really tall wall. There are immense crosses inside the plaza as well as beautifully designed towers. Inside the church is decorated with amazing amounts of gold and statues and art. To see the virgin you walk through this dark and damp hall on the side of the church. The only light comes from candles that people have lit to pray with. At the end of the narrow hall there is a huge glass case in which the virgin is housed. All around the case are plaques and writings of thanks to the virgin.
The rest of the town is made up of one street that runs along the beach of the lake (mostly filled with nicer hotels) and a street that runs from the lake up towards the church that is filled with restaurants, tourist offices and street vendors. I stayed in a hostel about 10 minutes walking from the beach. It wasn’t anything fancy but the showers were hot and my double room cost me $3 per night. The only crappy part was that there wasn’t any heat and my room didn’t get any sunlight in the day so there were times when it was colder inside my room than outside.
I did a tour of the Isla del Sol in which I took a boat (along with a ton of other tourists) out to the island and then we walked around looking at ruins, learning about the Inca and current culture and just enjoying the views. The lake is seriously one of the most beautiful things I’ve seen. It goes on as far as the eye can see and is this amazing color of blue that looks even more spectacular next to the clear sky. It was quite a bit of trekking and I got really sunburned but it was an incredible experience.
Along the tour I met 3 Argentine guys and later we realized that we were on the same bus to Peru the following day. We ended up going out to dinner that night and I had this great Bolivian dish of french fries, sliced beef, egg, tomato, sausage and some sort of spicy sauce. Mmmmmm! Later we went out drinking - Fernet of course (a really typical Argentine drink) - and I ended up having this intense conversation with one of the guys about politics and dictatorships and the drug war. Sadly, I felt like it was the first intelligent conversation I’ve had in a while . . . While we were at the bar a few of the people I had met in Sucre showed up so we all ended up hanging out and drinking together. We stayed out pretty late and around 3 or 4 am when I tried to go back to my hostel I realized that it has a curfew . . . After about 5 minutes of knocking I gave up and went and stayed with the group I met in Sucre. Lesson: always check to see if hostels close up at a certain hour.
The next day I boarded a bus and headed for Peru with the Argentines.
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