Peruvian Adventure

we made it back, barely alive! i am so sore and bruised and scraped up, but that´s just the bad news. we started our adventure by staying in a friend of a friend´s extra room, christened the trash room because of a pile of trash in the corner. we then hung out with a new friend, raul, before leaving on our bus trip. we listened to music and talked about a million things. he and cass even salsa danced in the tiny room. then, it was off to the bus station in a crazy caravan of taxis. we waited forever, worried that our trip would be delayed again. finally, we were on the bus. the road, after awhile, was so bumpy that i came off my seat at least three times, there was no sleeping, even though it was around two in the morning by this time. then, the worst happened, our bus couldn´t make it up a hill, so we had to get out and walk in the cold and the dust. then, it was back on the bus, only to get off again and do the same thing. then, we all switched to another bus, where there was standing room only. we were all so tired and irritable by that time. it reminded me of what i had read about the trains taken in the holocaust, though our experience lasted only three hours. i tried to be tough, because it didn´t seem that bad, but there were the bodily smells of at least sixty people or more, trapped in a tight space, shoulder to shoulder. so many people were sick and our guide kept wiping alcohol over our faces to keep us from throwing up. at one point, i knew i was going to pass out, so our guide, abil, moved so i could sit on the arm of a chair near him and i sat like that for the rest of the trip. i was so tired though that i was resting my head against the seat in front of me, and i even snuggled on this poor peruano woman. then, abil let me sleep leaning on him, and we were finally there. we ate a quick breakfast at chivay of bread and mate de coca and then it was back on the bus until we made it to lunch at cobanaconde. after lunch, we started our trek. canyon de colca is the second deepest canyon in the world, and the second only by 163 meters. cass and i went with the spanish group, which included two girls from spain, a couple that consisted of a brazilian guy and a dutch girl, a dutch guy, two norwegians, a group from france, and us. we hiked the last part in the dark, and as i had stupidly forgotten my flashlight, i shared cass´s headlamp. we went through many wonderful little villages, and even got to go to one of the canyon schools and meet the students…hope my pictures turn out. abil was very informative. we crossed a suspension bridge, walked through several streams, and finally arrived at our hostel, where they had candles burning and dinner waiting. we ate by candle light in outdoor patios with palm leaf roofs. we shared a room with the two spanish girls, julia and suzanna, which was also lit by a single candle. i slept like the dead, but then it was up at six thirty to walk again. the whole trip consisted of standing aside as mules and indigenous people passed by on their business. we walked through desert landscapes and terraced farmlands where we saw chickens, pigs, cows, mules, and lots of dogs. we also saw two condors. the next day, we finally arrived at paraiso, or paradise, and oasis on the canyon floor. i forgot to mention that i ate it hard right by these gorgeous waterfalls and have some spectacular bruise memories to prove it. the oasis was incredible, bamboo and palm leaf shacks, alpaca, sheep dogs and mules everywhere and two cool green pools. we all took a dip and then ate a hurried lunch before climbing out of the canyon again. it was a rough trip that took me three hours, and i was in the slowest group. i walked amongst mules to the sound of scratchy peruvian music from one of the men´s radios. the canyon was spectacular. we were passed by a peruano woman and her son guiding a mule, a donkey, and a horse up the canyon. the woman got of her horse and left the four year old boy to ride alone, which he did, whipping the horse gently with a rope the whole time. when we arrived back to cobanaconde the whole city was dark and the street vendors had let their stands with candles. the restaurant, where we threw down some mate de coca, was also candlelit. after our tea, we went to the hostel, suffered through some freezing showers, and went back to enjoy dinner in our multinational company. we plan to go out with many of them tonight. much love, darcy

we are stuck in arequipa! however, i think we will get to leave tonight. as i mentioned a bit at the end of my last entry, there is a huge protest here with road blocks, processions, rock and bottle throwing, and a lot of flags and yelling. however, it is very safe. the protesters are frustrated with all of the stories that are not boycotting too, and for this they are throwing things at the stories that are open, so everyone is at the ready to pull down their metal door and close up when the parade comes by. however, it is not dangerous for the people in the streets, it is just frustrating because no one can get out and no goods can come in. however, we{ve had the most fascinating discussions with people about the political situation and have learned so much about the different types of people here, as well as a lot more spanish. a lot of you have asked more about numan (i knew i{d been spelling his name wrong). he was definitely the best find we{ve made here. not only did he provide us with a more entertaining ride from huacachina to nazca, he set up all of our plans in nazca, took us out at night, drove us to arequipa, and set up our trip here with friends of his, who have since given us a free place to stay, driven us around, taken us out, etc. we did pay him quite a bit, but he also gave us a lot of benefits and free things and took such good care of us. like so many people here, money is tight for him as he cares for his family, paying for their water, lights, and food each day. he has nine siblings, but they are all grown and he is the baby. so, he only takes care of his mom and niece, still it{s a huge job. anyhow, doing great and still having fun. cass is done, so i am too. love, darcy

once again, so much to write! our last night in nazca, we asked our guide to accompany us to arequipa. he was thrilled and the next day we were off in his car again. it was an ... [Continue reading this entry]

i have no idea how i am going to keep up with the experiences weve been having. also, i have to go without capital letters or apostrophes because i don{t understand the keyboards here. the bracket means an ... [Continue reading this entry]