Patrick had purchased the tickets on starperu.com but we were only charged a portion of the fare for "safety purposes". We couldn't find proof of purchase anywhere online, and the only evidence we had that we had actually bought anything was the screenshot he miraculously thought to grab when the order processed. So yeah, we were a but skeptical. But, low and behold all went smoothly.
Happy smile of relief.
Upon arrival in Cuzco, we were instructed to drink some coca tea (not too bad!) and rest for an hour or two to stave off the altitude sickness. We had read a few horror stories online and were a bit nervous, but we were fine.
After seeing our bed, I was LOVING my sleep sack purchase. I may be prepared to rough it on this trip, but that doesn't mean my body has to touch any of it!!
Next stop, the Cuzco market! We had seen it on No Reservations and were super excited to check it out.
Piña y naranja juga. Delicious! I can't get over all the fresh juices they have in Peru. I am not usually a juice fan, (because I am a snob and think it just tastes like sugar and fake crap) but the juice here is incredible. We were careful to make sure that it was pure juice, with no water added so that we would be safe from bacteria, but then a little too late, we saw the juicer, strainer and glasses in the bucket of local water. Oops. It's over 24 hrs later and still no issues so I'm pretty sure the coast is clear.
Wandering around the market was a total trip. Honestly, this was unlike anything we had ever seen before. We have both seen some pretty crazy butcher shops, but Cuzco takes the cake for SURE.
We got in trouble for taking pictures of people - in fact, I'm pretty sure someone cursed me but I gave her some soles so maybe it canceled itself out?
Cuzco is maybe the most interesting city I have ever seen. There is so much culture and they have preserved the foundation of the city extremely well.
They even make the fast food restaurants fit into the scenery - we didn't notice the McDonalds until we just about walked in accidentally!
Oh and another reason this town is endeared to me forever? Just look what we stumbled upon while wandering around!
How could I not love a city with cute little donut ladies!
We took a little tour around the town
which was really cool because we got to see a lot of the actual residences up in the hills.
The Andean people have crazy endurance, the hills are STEEP and they live pretty far from the center of town.
Walking to and from every day is not an easy task. Especially when they are carrying all their wares AND a baby(!) on their backs.
We stopped at the Cristo Blanco and snapped a few shots of the city at night.
We also did quite a but of shopping in cuzco which was a bit of a surprise because I rarely buy anything on vacations. Patrick didn't know what to do with me, he says he has never seen me like this before, haha. I was so drawn to their wares (and cute families), I even bought something for my someday baby! (couldn't resist).
For dinner we HAD to eat Cuy, better known as Guinea Pig to us. Patrick had tried to eat it while on his mission, but it's a little $$ for a missionary budget so we took advantage while we could.
Honestly, it tasted fine, but it definitely got my psychological creep-out going. I think it was the rubbery texture of the meat and skin, as well as the greyish undertones.
Not something I'd run out and eat every day. But I'm glad we got to try it!
A funny anecdote from the evening: as we were trying to find the restaurant, we were approached by some local "art students" who helped us figure out where we were going. They mentioned that they would come back to find us when the meal was over and see if we wanted to buy one of their paintings. So, after dinner, while listening to some typical Peruvian music, in comes the art student. Surprisingly, he doesn't seem to remember us, but whatevs, we'll look at his art, right? So Patrick ends up buying a painting from him, and we leave. As soon as we walk out of the restaurant, who are we approached by? The ACTUAL guy who had helped us find the restaurant. This is going to sound totally racist, but I swear it's true. Every 20-something Peruvian guy looks exactly the same. They all have the same haircut and are about the same height. Needless to say, he was pretty pissed off when we didn't buy something from him as well. Oops!
The night ended back at our somewhat scary "bed and breakfast" where we are 98% sure we were the only guests. After the worst nights sleep of our lives (paper thin walls and howling dogs makes for GREAT white noise), we awoke at 5 in order to make our train to Aguas Calientes. The staff never showed up for the "breakfast" portion or the check-out, so I am hoping we left the keys in the right place! Unfortunately, we are booked there again tomorrow night so I guess I will find out soon enough!
Ok enough with our day in Cuzco already! Next post, Aguas Calientes!
1 comment:
Cuzco looks great! What an interesting place. I'm sure Patrick has shown you some of the places he lived in. I'm thinking the B&B would have been the nicest digs he'd ever seen back in the day. Then again, the photos weren't exactly a panorama shot. Your posts are better than any travel book. Love you. HL
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