Machu Picchu

Arriving in Cusco was such an exciting moment. I was finally going to hike Machu Picchu! Ever since my mom did it years before, it has been something I have only dreamed about. And now here I was, in Peru, in the city of Cusco about to embark on this wonderful journey!!! Not only was I about to do one of the most amazing treks in the world, but I was finally going to do a trek with friends! 

Now the tough part. Trying to get all 6 of us in the same tour group, for as cheap as possible!!! Arriving with no reservations during peak season for the machu picchu trek proved to make this task rather difficult! Knowing that the Inca Trail wouldn't be an option, seeing as they are booked 6 months in advance, we opted to do the Salkantay trek. Very similar in that we hike through the Cordillera Vilcabamba mountain range, but instead of continuing on the inca transport path, we hike up over the Salkantay mountain, to about 5000m above sea level, and down into the jungle. We spent an entire day running from one agency to another. Pushing our bartering skills to the MAX! It was exhausting, but we managed to get such an amazing deal! Feels almost as if we have cheated somehow? Oh well, no time to think, or even celebrate, we were leaving early the next morning on the Salkantay 5 day/4 night trek! 

Day 1: 

We were definitely the least prepared for this trek. Everyone else seemed to get the memo that we were to pack a small day pack as well as a night pack? And there was a weight restriction? Goodness! Already off to a rough start haha. Thankfully with a lot of readjusting and moving things around we managed to split all our things into the right weighted bags. And off our "night pack" went with the porters to camp while we continued on the trek for the day. Not to fret. We were here, we had each other, we had water, we would be fine! :) 

Well, just as luck would have it, a few hours into the trek it started to rain. And not just that nice warm rain, but that COLD to the BONE wet rain! I couldn't have been happier to finally get to our first camp site and see that we didn't have to pitch our tent OR cook the food! WHAT SERVICE! (I guess that is what you pay for right!?!) Now arriving at camp was such a relief, but what I had not realized was that climbing to a height of 5000m above sea level would mean…cold weather…but not just cold…SNOWY! And here I was with my little rain jacket and sweater, one pair of pants (which were now soaked from the rain) and little mesh "hiking" shoes. Going to sleep at the base of the snowcapped mountains knowing that tomorrow awaited a dreadfully cold and miserable 4 hour hike to the top of those mountains. GREAT! Not what I was expecting!!! 

And so it begins...

Our first nights camp at the bottom of the snowcapped mountains

About to embark on Day 2!

Day 2: 

This was by far the hardest day of the trek for me. Not because of the altitude (I don't seem to struggle much with this thankfully) BUT because of the cold. My feet were now trudging through ankle deep snow, and the feeling in my toes had now disappeared. All I kept thinking was "I've made it this far on my travels keeping all body limbs in tact…can't be losing any now!." I was dreading this would be the end of my little toes! Just looking down, one foot in front of the next talking to those little piggy toes…trying to wiggle them! I don't think I spoke to anyone the whole 4 hours (except my own little toes). Every now and then I would look up, take a deep breath and admire the magnificent view. Then it was right back to looking down, one foot in front of the next. There was a moment or two I thought "I can't do this, I won't make it, I don't want to do this, maybe I should turn around? give up!?" But as with everything in life, you must push through the hard times and good will come out the other side! Once at the top we spent a few minutes giving thanks to mother earth with a coca leaf ritual for safe travels and passage. This has become quite familiar with me actually. Both on my jungle trek in Bolivia and my Colca trek in Arequipa I took part in this ritual and really like the idea of giving thanks to mother earth! Now completely frozen from head to toe I couldn't wait to start our climb down the other side of the mountain! It was a 20 minute descend from the top of the snowy mountain into the jungle! I couldn't believe it! 4 hours UP and just a mere 20 minutes down! I couldn't be more happy. I sprinted down that mountain!! Sliding down the snowy slopes like I was surfing a wave and jumping over the puddles as the snow began to disappear! Jumping with glee as I was slowly surrounded by more and more green! I'm sure the real reason I was so full of energy was due to the altitude slowly reaching more manageable levels, but it could just as easily be the fact I could now feel my little toes again! :) Regardless, we had now reached our second camp and this time there were no snowy mountains in site!!!! Just breathtakingly beautiful rolling hills and mountains! So spectacular. And mind boggling at the same time. We were just at the top of a snowy mountain, and now we were in the jungle! Wow. 

Made it to the top! 

Goodbye snowy mountains! :)

Day 3:

The easiest of our trek days. We hiked a mere 16km or so, through the rest of the mountains and into a nearby village. There we had the opportunity to go visit some near by hot springs! FINALLY we could "bathe" in water. Not exactly the ideal image of a clean shower, since the water you clean yourself with is the same water hundreds of people have just been sitting in, but it was all we needed to feel fresh and revitalized again! Back at camp we joined with another group for "disco night." All this really entailed was a TINY little stall with some form of alcohol available for purchase, a fire and some music! WOOHOO! haha let the party begin!!! Tired from the past days, and still another day to get to Aguas Calientes, the party didn't last too long. But was nice to have a little break along the way! :) 

Day 4:

The (almost) final stretch! For the morning we were to hike to the town Hydroelectric, which is the last accessible town by car before reaching Aguas Calientes (which was only accessible by train or foot). So off we went, on the not so scenic trek, with our guide leading us in a haste (for who knows what reason) Either way, Clara (one of my friends I've been traveling with) and I fell behind…when we finally caught up to our leaders, we caught them CHEATING! The rest of the group had carried on ahead, unbeknown to them our guides were catching a BUS to the town! Even more furious…oh wait, I forgot to mention why we were mad in the first place! No one from our tour company seemed to inform anyone of the 18 group members that for the second half of the trip we were no longer to have a porter carry our things, and we were now to carry the rest of our stuff ourselves. I wasn't too fussed, since I literally only had my small bag with the clothes on my back haha but for the rest of the people they had a rough time! And regardless, it was the principle that they should have warned us about it! ANYWAYS, now we find out our guides are cheating…Great…and now Clara and I are so far behind the group!! All of a sudden a van pulls up and asks us if we want a ride! POR QUE NO!?! (why not!?!) We gladly joined this group of 4 boys who seemed to have paid a lot more for their tour, having a luxury tour bus take them to Hydroelectric as well as informative guides (which we now sneakily joined) What we hadn't realized was that now we were 3 hours early at the meeting point! But the rest of the way was pretty self explanatory…you just follow the railway tracks to Aguas Calientes! So we could either sit and wait for our group at the beginning of the tracks (which was NOTHING but that) or get to Aguas Calientes and meet them there…where at least there would be a town to explore! :) So that's what we did! 

Our sneaky upgraded tour group...

Day 5: 

After a good nights sleep (in a bed!!!) and a hot shower we were up EARLY so we could be the first through the gates entrance. Then it was a straight upward climb to the top of Machu Picchu! Normally the trek up is about an hour. Being the competitive group we were, we decided to race! Getting to the top in only about 40 minutes!!! EXHAUSTED, but we were FIRST! Entering the gates as the sun was rising was just spectacular. Here it was, the moment I had been anticipating for so long! And it was just as surreal and magical as I had expected. Words cannot describe how amazing it was to finally reach Machu Picchu! :)

For most this is where the trek ended. But not for us! In order to save money on our tour we decided we would hike back down the mountain and back to the town of Hydroelectric to catch a 7 hour bus ride back to Cusco. Definitely worth every penny! Returning back to Cusco with this accomplishment and fulfilment that left us exhausted and comatose for the next few days! Granted we were also all sick from our lack of preparedness and inadequate clothing options for snowy mountains and extreme climate change as well as exerting so much physical activity after our stint in Bolivia in which we nearly drank ourselves to death! But still, I wouldn't change a minute of it! It was such an amazing experience, and being able to spend it with a great group of friends made it just that much more enjoyable! Not just the 5 friends I had originally but almost our entire group! Solid "Super hiker family" (That was what we called ourselves!) These memories will last forever! :) 

"The most dangerous risk of all- the risk of spending your life not doing what you want on the bet you can buy yourself the freedom to do it later" - Randy Komisar 

Good Genes!

(June 2013)

Originally I thought I was just lucky to have scraped through Bolivia practically unscathed from the altitude sickness. But after reaching Peru, where altitudes are generally a lot lower, but still at the risk level of around 3000m above sea level, and seeing strong physically fit people cripple to the symptoms of altitude sickness, I have come to realize it wasn't a matter of luck but a matter of good strong genes! So thanks mom, and thanks dad!!! Don't know how anyone could survive this continent if they suffered from altitude sickness. I mean yes, there are ways to help with the symptoms, but ultimately it can really make all these treks miserable.

So my first stop in Peru was a cute little town, Arequipa, surrounded by volcanoes and other natural wonders. My main purpose for this stop was to hike through the Colca Canyon; one of the deepest canyons in the world, and to see the great Andean condors. And what a sight it was!!! With a depth of over 4000m, this canyon way exceeds the depth of the Grand Canyon in the United States by more then double! AND the CONDORS!!! I was so tempted to whip out my Avatar moves and try and ride one of these things. They were huge! The whole trek was definitely worth the 15 hour detoured bus route! However, it has definitely become apparent that no matter how amazing the trek your group really defines the memories for you. And man have I had some bad luck when it comes to these group treks. Thankfully I met a girl on the bus ride who decided to do the trek with me, so I had her for good company…but that was all. The two of us were stuck with (no offence) but old, anti-social, slow moving group members. Not to say they were bad people, not all, but after completing such an amazing days trek it would be nice to sit and chat, get to know everyone…I mean we have a few days in which we will be stuck together, we should make the most of it!! Not all go to bed before the sun even sets!! OH WELL…Claudine and I had a good time (Thank goodness she was there!!!!)

                       

                                                  

It was now time to head to one of the most anticipated cities in all of South America; Cusco. Not only was I finally going to hike Machu Pichu, but I was meeting up with a group of friends to do it! (Ensuring that I would at least have SOME awesome people to share this trek with!!!)

Bolivia

My initial impressions were terrible! Feeling like absolute shit after a 16 hour bus ride, walking across a sketchy border crossing (though definitely crossed worse) and arriving in a dirty, smelly, cold city. Not to mention really feeling the effects of the altitude! Not what I was expecting.

From the border town of Villazon, I headed straight to Uyuni. I was feeling as though I may just die from the cold, exhausted, and still feeling like I had the flu (due to the altitude, or lack of sleep, proper meals or not enough water over the past 3 days of travel...) This place SUCKS!!! I miss Argentina! :( 
Thankfully, after a good (but cold) nights rest, and finally adjusting to the altitude I was feeling a little bit more like myself, and good thing because I was off to do the Salar de Uyuni tour, the largest salt flats in the world.

Having such a horrible first impression of Bolivia my expectations for the tour weren´t very high. It wasn´t but a few hours outside of the city that we arived at the salt flats. Words can´t really explain how amazing this place was! As far as the eye can see, white salt flats with beautiful mountain ranges in the background! Definitely have never seen anything like this!!!! 
Mind blown! Bolivia has just moved up in my books!!!

Picturesque views of the Andes, Chilean volcanos, absolutely stunning lagoons, flamingos, hot springs, and geysers at over 5000m above sea level! It was all so breathtakingly beautiful, it is hard to believe it´s REAL! 

Railway to Chile

Lake Colorada

Freezing cold at over 5000m above sea level (Still smilig though!)

Geysers 

Hot springs!!!

Chasing Lamas! 

Having only a few scary moments where our jeep boke down in the desert and a small car fire, we finally were headed back to Uyuni after the most amazing 3 days! Driving back I was slightly confused as to why our guide kept stopping to chat to passing cars, but shrugged it off as nothing important. About an hour away from Uyuni our guide turns to us and says ¨Bolivia is in a state of war, but don´t worry, I am taking you to a safe place¨ and then turns the car around... (mind you he spoke very little english so perhaps something was lost in translation?) BUT WAR!?!?! WHAT!?! 
Unbeknown to us it wasn´t war (thankfully) but strikes/protests. Apparently very common here. We were forced to spend the night in a village near by, hoping that tomorow we will be able to pass through the blockade. The next day we all crossed our fingers, toes and held our breath as we drove for hours in the desert trying to find a passing (otherwise we would be forced to spend another 2 days stuck!) About 5 hours later we made it!!!! Nothing like a little drama to make this a memorable experience! :)

Now originally my plan was to make my way to Potosi (the highest city in the world) and slowly on to La Paz. However, now with all these blockades I was risking getting stuck alone in towns with not much to do! So quick switch, I was headed to Copacabana, on Lake Titicaca. At least if I got stuck I was near Peru and with friends. Much better option! 

Arriving in Copacabana was such a relief! Four days on the Salar tour followed by an 18 hour bus trip, I never wanted a shower and bed so badly! (Actually I probably have said that a lot...but it was true, I was dirty, cold and exhausted!) 
Copacabana was a beautiful, quiet little island town. It reminded me a bit of Pai in Thailand. A hippie town. Perfect place to relax! Easy to stay here forever, especially when there is good food and everything is so CHEAP!!!!! 

Pigs trying to steal my apples!

Our impromptu fishing trip!

My friend Ed and I on the Isla de Sol

After a bit of relaxation I was ready to head to La Paz. A place I have been warned sucks you in! I was only planning to spend a few days there, don´t think i´ll get sucked in...

I was wrong...a week flew by and all I can say I accomplished was cycling the death road. (Which, however, was quite the accomplishment considering I am NOT a biker, and I was lucky to have RAIN! YAY added DANGER!!!) Otherwise, I was far too hungover to manage anything else. Eventually my friends and I dragged our semi-permanent drunk selves onto a bus to head to the jungle! 

Most sane people fly from La Paz to Rurrenabaque but we refused this expensive luxury and instead chose the much cheaper, much more exciting option. A 22 hour bus ride descending over 4000m on none other then the DEATH ROAD! Having survived it once already why not try our chances at it a second time!?
Definitely ranked up there with most scary bus rides of my life, but I am happy to report we all made it, shaken but alive! And now we were finally at a lower altitude (can breathe easy again!) and warmer weather!!! 

The jungle trek was amazing. Lucky us we seem to bring the rain with us, so we were extra dirty, trekking through the jungle in mud knee deep, crossing rivers balancing on logs, oh and did I mention we do this while carrying all our stuff, sleeping gear, food, etc! Big accomplishment for me was when I held a giant tarantula! Nearly had a heart attack BUT I did it...and unfortunately I am still terrified of spiders...damn. 
So when I said before that I never wanted a shower more in Copacabana I was wrong. NOW I NEEDED a shower. I was literally covered from head to toe in mud and smelt pretty bad. Thankfully so did everyone else! Loving it!!! :)

Back to La Paz and onto Peru. And what better way then round 3 on the death road. This time was actually a breeze. 22 hours flew by and before we knew it we were home. To the city where breathing is a challenge and living a vampire lifestyle is a necessity, where you consume more alcohol then food and where missing your bus OUT happens often. La Paz IS a trap! What was supposed to be a quick stop over turned into days...

I finally managed to get out. Took me just less then a week this time! (yay me!) And now it´s off to Peru! I already miss Bolivia. A country I hated when I first arrived, but now has become one of my favourites I´ve visited in all my travels! I look forward to my next visit here. There is still so much I need to see and do!!! Perhaps I may be back sooner then you think...I hear Peru is expensive :S