After my travel buddies and I met up with a French-speaking couple from New Catalonia, an island off the coast of Australia, we took a bus to Ollantaytambo, and from there arrived in Aguas Calientes via Peru Rail. When we arrived it was pouring down rain and there was a small Peruvian girl at the train station holding a sign that read, "John Roger" ... that's me, I guess.

It is slow season right now, so the city is only at about half capacity. The restaurant owners are all standing on the street spouting off Spanish and showing off their menus to get customers into their restaurants. On the first night we feasted for only $6. Free drinks included. I noticed lots of construction going on with many fancy hotels and restaurants being built. One had a sign telling of an open position for a manager. John moving to Peru? Tempting.

The next morning we woke up at 3:00AM to hit the trail and head to the ancient Inca village of Machu Picchu. Packs loaded and headlamps burning, we set off on the hour long hike. It was very difficult... more difficult than the Haiku Stairs in Hawaii, I would say. At last, we arrived at entrance to the city to be with all of the other fools at the wee hours of the morning. Pic below.

Once the gates opened we opted to hike to the summit of Huyana Picchu, which is the tall peak in the background of the picture of the village. Even at only 8,800' it is much more difficult to breath. Even the fittest of people were a bit sluggish on the stairs up.

Once we reached the top, it was like a multi-cultural party with people from all over the world singing Happy Birthday to their friends, snacking on granola bars, and basking in the sun.

As the legend goes, the High Priest of Machu Picchu village lived atop Huyana Picchu with the local virgins. Each morning he would make the trek into the village to signal the coming of a new day. A girl we were hiking with said, "I couldn't imagine living up here as a virgin..."

Once we returned to Aguas Calientes we anxiously took showers and signed up for a Peruvian massage (very inexpensive for 1 hr), followed by some nachos con wacamoles and cerveza.

Christina and I met up with our travel partners for dinner at a delicious little Italian spot. About half way through dinner, Meg, a girl in our travel group, shouted, "OH MY GOD!" ... I turned over my shoulder only to find a Peruvian woman´s maize boiler was engulfed in flames. Her face was on fire so she quickly ran into her shop, and while I ran half a block to throw some water on the flames there were several Blancos standing around watching. Good news: The fire was not an oil fire and I was able to put it out with a bottle of water. Bad news: The woman will likely not receive the treatment she needs, and will end up scarred for life.

Check out my next post for some awesome photos of the hike and the city.

Loading mentions Retweet

I arrived in Peru two days ago. I spent New Years Eve on an airplane and it was less exciting than I would have hoped for. It was a cramped flight from Miami to Lima, and the Peruvian woman next to me kept leaning on my shoulder as she fell asleep with her mouth open.

Once I arrived, I passed customs with ease and stepped outside to meet my ride. Apparently, I don't look like a Peruvian, so I was instantly assaulted by at least a dozen taxi drivers looking to hustle me for a few extra bucks. (Note: When in South America, don't tip the taxi drivers. They are most likely calling you a Gringo, and they've already hustled you for a tip by the time you are finished negotiating a price).

For my first dinner in the country, Christina and I went to a restaurant called Long Horn Steakhouse, that specializes in... guess what... Steak! We ordered the Meat Skillet for two, which included veal skewers, pork chops, steaks, chorizos and another type of sausage. This last one was the surprise.

Let me first start by adding this disclaimer: I did not knowingly eat blood... in the beginning.

I first cut into the sausage I noticed it was not the consistency of the typical sausage of bratwurst I have been used to eating. Sticking the fork in wasn't as easy, because the wurst was less rigid that typical. Once cut, subsequent cuts tended to squish the filling out onto the plate rather than cleanly slicing through it. It was a very dark filling, and was quite delicious.

Christina: Disculpame

Waiter: Si
Christina: ¿Cómo llaman eso? (pointing to the sausage)

Waiter: Morcilla cocida

Christina: Y señor, ¿de qué esta hecho?

Waiter: De sangre, señorita.

Morcilla cocida.... also known as black pudding, blood pudding, blood sausage, bloedworst, and a few others depending on where in the world you are dining. It is a type of sausage made by cooking blood or dried blood with a filler until it is thick enough to congeal when cooled. Pig or cattle blood is most often used, and typical fillers include meat, fat, suet, bread, sweet potato, barley and oatmeal.

By the time we knew what it was we were eating, we had already finished the first one. Then we found out. Then, I ate the second one. It was delicious!

Loading mentions Retweet

Along with leaving work behind comes leaving behind the good health benefits. Since leaving Strands I have purchased some basic short-term health insurance to cover any unexpected emergencies, but since my deductible will be higher with the new insurance I decided to have a routine physical exam before leaving the country.

Loading mentions Retweet

While I could have done much more planning for a 2.5 month trip to South America, I find a slight thrill in 'playing it by ear' (Sorry, C. It is what it is!). More important than planning, in my opinion, is being prepared for where ever the adventure leads. Below are some gear, thoughts, and services I have found most useful in planning my trip....

Loading mentions Retweet