Day 0: The Trip Begins...

Saturday, November 22nd, 2008


Around 4:10pm we left Mira Mesa!! We took the toll road and hit some traffic around the 10, but we got to slove's around 6:15, parked le Fusion, petted Bowie the Bulldog and were off to C&O's Italian in Venice for dinner. We lucked out and didn't have to wait for a table and sat down instantly for some killer garlic rolls (which get 2 thumbs up). Ryan's shirt has a tiger on it, but I ask if its a bobcat, but apparently this is silly because bobcat's don't have long tails and Ryan makes a nub motion which turns into quite the joke about nubbins.

Once outside we walk down the block to settle the 15ish killer garlic rolls we each consumed and a homeless man asks Shirlene for her leftovers. We end up at Cabo's Cantina to waste time with a drink. The waitresses have bad outfits but there is a cool fire pit upstairs. Ryan and I do a shot of Patron, ugh, and he ends up with 2 Dos Equis because they don't have amber and I don't like the regular. Shirlene drives us to LAX and after 2 laps we discover Terminal 6 is ours. But oops we're on the baggage level not departures! Oh well, we say goodbye to Slove and head up the escalater to find the COPA counter.

Mayhem. It is extremley disorganized and I wonder if our luggage will make the flight. The man zipties it closed so apparently its not getting opened through security. He answers his cell phone while helping us, has no luggage tags, but does manage to get us seats together, and in an exit row which I like since there's more leg room.

We make our way to security which is absolutely dead, there are more TSA workers than people flying! And then to gate 66. The terminal is old and very 1970s wood and bad carpet and we're using a United gate even though we're the only flight there. It's freezing, 11:00, and we hve 2.25 hours before take off. We get some napping in, wonder why they board one hour before departure, and listen to a devil child wreck havoc on his parents down the row from us. Ryan runs to buy a bottle of water, scares me to death upon his return as I'm sleeping, and he fully plops down into his seat next to me, and we discover why COPA boards so early. They are extremely inefficient! But we make it aboard, and promptly fall asleep after a take-off that seems to last forever! I kept wondering if we were in the air yet or not!

Day One: From LAX to Lima

Sunday, November 23rd, 2008

We're flying somewhere between LA and Panama when I wake up. It's about 6:15? our time and I feel better but still tired. Ryan's already awake next to me and people are hunched over throughout the cabin sleeping. The sun is up already but Ryan saw the sunrise and reports that it was pretty. We're served breakfast which is good because I'm getting pretty hungry. Another COPA failure, they are slow at getting food out! We overhear there is a choice between waffles or eggs. After a discussion over the cons of each entree, I choose eggs (yes they could be cold or dry and Ryan chooses waffles (potentially cold or soggy). My eggs look more like a yellow circle of egg product with mushy salsa on top served next to 3 soggy tator tots and a questionable piece of sausage. Its not too bad though, and there is a roll and coffee. Ryan's waffles are definently sog-riffic and come next to 2 pieces of limp hopefully cooked bacon. I hope the syrup made the waffles better, I refrained from trying them or my sausage. Oh, and there was a small dish of honeydew and canteloupe too.

By this time we can see ocean and some islands out the window. I feel like we must be getting close. As we start to descend into Panama City you can see a whole downtown with skyscrapers out the left and an immensley shallow beach that seems to go on forever until it hits a solid wall of jungle to our right. In the row next to us the hippy girl with a guitar and British man seem to have become friends. But the poor woman ahead of Ryan is stuck getting chubby hair guy's belly in her face as he scrounges around in the overhead for a pen. Once we land and are in the jetway I realize how hot and humid Panama is. The view around the airport is jungle with mountains in the background sticking out and reaching up into the clouds.

There isn't much time before our next flight since COPA boards an hour early. They're already boarding when we land but we search for a bathroom. It's only men's so I leave Ryan and come across 2 more men's before I find a women's. The line is out the door, there are only 3 stalls inside. I hear the intercom announcing our flight and I'm still 7-8 people back in line so I give up and go meet Ryan. On the way to the gate we pass the devil child and his parents and they recognize us.

We board right away. The plane is not too small, not a prop plane but a jet at least so we're happy. There is a man in my seat but he needs Ryan to help him lift his bag into the overhead. Ryan is nice and helpful and obliges. We are across the aisle from each other and Ryan is sitting next to an old lady who asks him if he is traveling to Peru (aren't all of us on this plane going to Peru?) but he misunderstands and tells her he is from the US. We both fall asleep before the plane takes off and feel much better when we wake up just in time for lunch.

There is a choice between chicken and rice with fried plantain or spaghetti with meat sauce. I go for the spaghetti and Ryan gets the chicken. Both get good reviews. OUr meals come with mini-oreos that are vanilla on the outside and chocolate on the inside. Ryan takes my trash onto his tray so I can start this journal. I forgot alcohol is free on international flights, the man next to me is drinking red wine and sleeping intermitedly.

The steward hands out custom forms so we fill those out and wait to land in Lima. And use the bathroom.

We made it to our hotel. It's not the hotel we thought we were staying at so I'm glad we paid for the airport transfer because we would've ended up at the wrong place! So we land in Lima and make it off the plane fine. Guitar-girl is brushing her teeth in the bathrom and there are only 2 stalls. I guess they aren't into large bathrooms. We make it through immigration and get our baggage just fine. Also slow, though. I withdraw 300 soles from an ATM but Ryan's card wasn't recognized so we'll have to figure that out tonight. Our taxi driver was waiting with a sighn with our names, although it said ANDREW M GABRIELLE G and Ryan seemed peturbed they got his name wrong. Maybe I'll call him Andrew and see what he things. Probably not, though.

The drive was nutttttty. There are police/military all along the streets in camo with guns and riot shields (later we learn there is the APEC conference in Lima and all the presidents and first ladies are in town still). There was also a woman officer in realy tight pants. The cars have different names here but we did see a Chili's, Burger King, KFC, Adidas, Papa John's, and a place called Beer Chicken. Weird.

We end up at this other hotel which seems nice, to find out our group meeting is tonight at 6:30 and our ride to the airport leaves tomorrow at 3am!! That's midnight our time! Sleeping tonight will be interesting.



On the flight there weren't enough pillows so only the women were offered them, the taxi driver carried my bags, and I get to go first for things. In the US its all the same. Our room is orange. I mean really orange. The walls, drapes, beds. You walk in and you're like whoa, orange. And musty smelling.


We walked down the street from the hotel and found a gas station to buy bottled water. Only 1 sole for a bottle! It was next to a Dunkin' Donuts, too! We walked around near the hotel an a little before meeting at 6:30. There's a gas station down the middle of the street. Like, along the median.


Not all the group was there, but we met 10/16. There are 3 from Miami: David, Stephanie, and Sebastian. Kim and Katharine from Toronto are moms, Chenine from Denver is 28, Tom from the UK is 25 and Sylgie his girlfriend is Norwegian and 30. After the meeting we went to dinner, on a street called Pizza Ave, which was an entire alley of pizza restaurants. We chose by picking one with free drinks that looked the busiest.


It was fun to get to know some of the group. Chenine is also going to the Amazon. I wonder if we'll meet up with others after the Inca Trail portion of the trip? I guess we'll find out. IN the center of Miraflores (the part of Lima where the hotel was located) we saw a large church, rows of easels with artists selling paintings down the street and a craft market and a concert - and the biggest McDonald's I've ever seen. We meet at 9 in the morning to catch our flight to Cusco (the original warning of 3am was a false alarm!) So for now we're off to watch the one movie in English on TV and sleep!

Day 2: From Lima to Cusco

Monday, November 24th, 2008

We woke up in Lima about 6:30 and did nothing but lounge in bed and listen to traffic. We got up and showered - the hot and cold knobs were interesting and there was not shower curtain, and the toilet paper had to go in the trash can. We ate breakfast at the hotel: meat, cheese, some bacon that looked uncooked, melon, and tiny pancakes that were really sweet. WE walked down the street to the same gas station where we bought water yesterday and Ryan used the ATM. Next door we got coffee and chocolate glaze donuts at Dunkin' Donuts! Yes, I had to travel all the way to Lima for them! We ran back to the hotel got our bags and had time to use the internet to email our moms that we had arrived. Ryan checked his fantasy football to find out he won so that was exciting - and we loaded the tour bus for the airport.

We met the rest of our group, Jill from WI, Franzesca who is Swiss but lives in NY, Betina and Martine from Norway who are on a 4 month trip around the world, Bernie and David from the UK but Bernie is Irish. Once at the airport we checked our baggage and our GAP rep took our boarding passes to pay our departure tax. Tom and Sylgie also tried Dunkin' Donuts! We went through secutrity and waited at the gate while we chatted with Jill and Franzesca.



They made friends with an older woman who was on a tour group trip around the world. Our plane was an Airbus Jet but we had to walk outside and upstairs to get on board. I fell asleep right away but Ryan woke me up for the snack which was a triangle of pita bread and a triangle of sweet bread/cake. We landed, walked down stairs outside and into the airport. Cusco was warmer than I thought it would be!



I was already kind of sweaty wearing jeans and a sweater. Landing was fairly turbulent. It was cloudy and mountainy. Cusco is much smaller than Lima, you can see the whole city in the valley. 11,000 feet high and 600,000 people. We got our bags, I used the bathroom and we met the GAP rep. Our luggage went ontop of the van that transported us to the hotel. Drivers are still nutty, and the roades are all made of stone. Tom bought coca leaves for 1 sole and they chewed them, apparently its gross like grass. But, they had to wait until the hotel to spit it out.



We sat at a big table in the lobby and went over details, filled out paperwork for the hotel and got our room keys. Walking our bags to the 3rd floor was rough! I was so out of breath! We also tried coca tea which to me tasted just like green tea. We settled in and left right away for sightseeing in the city. We walked to the main street, Avenida el Sol, and took that to the Plaza de Armas. We took pictures and tried to find somewhere for lunch. We struck out at the first location, it was closed for construction, and ended up at a restaraunt called el Piccolo. We wanted alpaca and cuye but there was no chef so we had to choose from sandwiches and pizza. I had a beef stir fry sandwich and Ryan had a chicken salad croissant. We had a great view of the square, and were the only people in the place. We payed with a 100 sole bill and I' m pretty sure the serve had to run to a bank to get change because he was gone forever! After lunch we paid 25 soles each to enter La Catedral, the main cathedral in Cusco. It was huge!




Very ornate with gold and silver leafing and carved wood. The vaulted ceilings were amazing and there were amazing and there were catacombs you could go in but even I had to duck on the stairs they were so low. We ran into Toronto + Denver but they were looking for dinner so we kept walking around. We walked past the San Fransisco church, the La Merced church, Plaza Regocijo, Plaza San Fransisco, Santa Clara Church, Arco Santa Clara, San Pedro Church and the Machu Picchu train station! We passed a huge market called Mercado Central. We made our way back to Avenida el Sol and looked for some sunglasses for Ryan because he left his in the Fusion! We found some for 50 soles at an optical shop, bought some bottled water, and headed back to the hotel. I'm sure our hotel is in some sort of mattress district because there are stores full of mattresses and they're outside leaning against buildings. We also passed a store with an entire pig head just lying dead on a table. I'm pretty sure we saw guinea pigs in cages for sale, too.

We met our Inca Trail guide, Cesar, and he answered questions about the next few days. He gave us our duffel bags and we are only allowed to pack 6 kilos in them. We met up with the Miami 3, Norway 2, Tom and Sylgie, Jill and Franzesca and headed back to Plaza de Armas to find some dinner. We took pictures in the square, and chose a little cafe to eat at. I think our group overwhelmed them! We wanted guinea pig and seviche buy they were out. We drank dark beer and had alpaca on kababs with mashed potatoes instead! I think they took our drink order and then had to run to a market to buy it!




It was a slow dinner but fun to hang out and the food was good. After dinner we headed back, packed and weighed our duffels, Ryan picked his nose so he could breathe better and we watched a movie in English called Setinel (side note* there's one channel that only plays US tv shows, and there's this damn commercial on every 10 minutes with Jennifer Love Hewitt in a bra and Ryan stares at her boobs every time its on and I throw pillows at him. I'm so glad to be away from that commercial!!). Our departure time for the Sacred Valley is 7am...so we're getting up at 5:30 to shower, pack, and eat breakfast!

Day 3: The Sacred Valley and Ollantaytambo

Tuesday, November 25th, 2008.

Today was a pretty easy morning except neither Ryan or I slept very well. The pillows were really thick and hard and I threw one off the bed in the middle of the night and tried another but it was no better. We woke up and my head hurt but Ryan felt much better. We got dressed and packed our 6 kilos in our duffels, brought our regular suitcases down and checked them into storage much like a coat check, and had breakfast at the hotel.

There wasn't much but I had some coca tea and some Andean granola which was like sugar puffs. I also had a roll with butter and some mysterious marmalade that was tasty. A serve asked if we wanted any scrambled eggs so we both said yes (we needed some protein! although Ryan had some ham and cheese already) and I stayed with the table and Ryan went to the room to gather the rest of our stuff. He managed to carry both duffels, his pack, my camelback, my water bottle, 2 prs of sunglasses, and both fleeces plus his camera in one trip!



We had our eggs, rechecked the weight of our bags, and loaded onto the mercedes. This time the duffels were stored in the bus instead of on top! We drove out of Cusco and had a great view of the entire city. We saw 2 people running up the switchbacks, crazy in that altitude! We didn't get out, but stopped at some ruins that are in the shape of a Puma. Pumas are a symbol of power in Peru. The Spanish used teh stones of the ruines to build their homes and churches in Cusco, but the Incas buildt so well there are still tons of huge stones in place today!



From there we drove to a living Inca museum. There were llamas and alpacas so we could see the difference between the two. Cesar picked up a llama and let some people hold it, but I settled for petting one's neck instead. It's fur was really soft. The llamas look more snooty, or aristocratic to me. I was worried one would spit on me but I seemed to make it through spit free! We saw a wild relative of the llama, the vicunya, which hair costs a lot since its wild, about $1200 for a sweater! and we also saw a wild chinchilla too! Next they had women and children in tradition Peruvian dress demonstrating how to spin alpaca wool into yard, and how they weave. They also showed us the natural things they use to dye the wool into bright colors. The gift shop had water to buy and a bathroom we could use.




Next we drove to an overlook point for the Sacred Valley and the Urubamba River, got out and took some pictures . The river is one of the main rivers that eventually empties into the Amazon! The weather was on our side as it was partly cloudy and made shadows across the mountains which I love! From there we drove down to the valley floor, crossed the Urubamba River, and arrived at the town/Inca ruins of Pisaq. We left the bus and sat down in the ruins while Cesar spoke in general about the beginnings of the Incan civilization and culture.



These ruins really showed the amazing engineering of terraces into the mountainside. We got our first hint of Incan stair hiking as we went up the ruins and through a tunnel, then down more stairs! They definitely make you catch your breath. On the back side was the temple with more intricate stonework.



Only holy places that very spiritual Incas lived had the perfected stonework the rest of the civilization had more scattered rock structures. We got a chance to explore the ruins and we heard water running so we went and looked for it and found an aqueduct through the ruins that still carryed water. There was a hill we could climb to take pictures and then we met back up with the group. All the Peruvians were taking pictures with Martine and Betina because they were so tall and white and blond, which was funny.



We hiked back to the starting place where the bus was. Most people did all right but I think there will be a few who have problems hiking. After Pisaq we continued our drive through the valley to our lunch destination in the town of Urubamba. It was a buffet style of PEruvian food and we drank coca tea again. The tea was included in the buffet so when the waitress took our order we all said tea and she rolled her eyes - we were supposed to help ourselves but she brought it out for us anyway. There was guacomole, potato salad, chicken, soup, rice, and desserts.

The men's restroom was a trough urinal, but the women's was fine. From there we went to the final stop of the day, the village of Ollantaytambo. It is very small, and much less touristy than Cusco or Lima. The streets are still cobblestone but many are barely narrow enough for a single car or bus to pass through at once. We arrived at the ruins and took our packs with us as we climbed to the top of the stairs. The wind was fierce and Cesar had wrapped a scarf around his neck to cover his face from the blowing dirt - we were not so prepared. We sat down and listened as he told a story of how the Incas and the Spanish battled.



Farther along the ruins we learned how they used the rocks to the the date using the sun and bumps that stick out of the rocks, where they sat to see the summer and winter solstices, and how they build the structures to be earthquake proof. In the distance (10k) we could see the quarry where the stones came from and learned how the Incas diverted the river to move the rocks across. We also saw abandoned rocks on a ramp to Ollantaytambo which shows how it was never finished. The INcas built around existing temples of other cultures rather than remove them as the Spanish did with the Incan temples. We walked across the ruins to see where grains and beans were stored, the Incas were rich with planning and foresight rather than the gold as the Spaniards believed. We also saw a temple where water was honored on June 21st. Sun would come through a window and hit the water on this day. The temple was built regular stone style and made smooth with a llama hair plaster mixture. We thought it seemed like a short cut!



We then walked to our hotel, collected our duffel bags and found out we're leaving at 8 for the Inca trail! Ryan and I settled in and then went to explore Ollantaytambo a bit. We walked back towards theruins to a market but didn't find anything to buy, so we walked to the town square, found a bench and people/stray dog watched.



A boy begged us for money and when we said no he took his baby sister over to us and tried to make her cha cha. We still didn't give him any money. An old man sat next to Ryan and maybe asked him if he was oriental? But Ryan didn't understand. The man seemed nervous, maybe we were on his bench? After Ryan tried to tell him that he didn't understand and was actually telling the man that he didn't speak Spanish, not that Ryan didn't speak spanish, we headed back to the hotel. We bought some water and slept a little. Ryan took a shower (which was hot, good! and filled his water for the morning and I journaled. We wet up with most of the group to go and eat dinner.



It had started pouring rain so I got a change to use my rain jacket and it worked great! We went into almost the first place we saw but it was totally cute! There was a fire and candlelight and there was room for the entire group. I ate alpaca ravioli that came in a spicy cream sauce and Ryan ate trout stuffed with sweet potatoes that had orange peel in it. It was gourmet Peruvian food! Tom ordered coca beer and it was awful, Ryan finished it but ugh, no one else would.


After dinner it was still raining, but not as much so we walked back to our room to find the bathroom and floor had flooded and water was seeping throught the walls. I asked for a new room so the hotel people hleped us move our things and the new room was fine. I journaled a bit and went to bed. There were 2 twin beds so we used one to put our stuff on and we squished into the other. The beds are made very tightly at the bottem and Ryan didn't care much for that. Some of the group stayed up and we could hear them laughing. There was also a dog that would run down the hall when he heard other dogs barking.

Day Four: We Start the Inca Trail

Wednesday, November 26th, 2008


We woke up early around 5:30 and I took a shower. The water took a long time to get warm so for awhile I thought I'd be taking an icy shower, but it got hot eventually. We packed our bags and left for the Ollantaytambo ruins again. We went in right when they opened at 7am and there were only 2 other people there. We climbed to the top and explored past where we went the day before. On the other side we could see mountains topped with snow that were beautiful. We took some pictures and headed back down to the hotel. Ryan bought some new batteries for his GPS before the ruins opened, so we were ready to go. We ate breakfast but there wasn't much, just some rolls, butter, and jelly.

We waited for the bus, met our second guide, Fernando, and loaded up for the beginning of the trail. The bus ride was fairly short, so we arrived at the beginning of the trail pretty soon. We showed our passports and had them stamped, and we were on our way. We took a group pictures and then walked about 5 minutes and stopped for Cesar to pray to the mountains with coca leaves and we all learned how to chew them. The trail was mostly flat for awhile, and dirt We passed some homes and eventually the trail started rising.





We crossed a river and slowly made our way up a steep hill. At the top there was a great view and another set of ruins, the Llaqtapata ruins. After a break there we headed downhill along a valley to a spot where our porters had set up lunch for us. There were 2 tents, one for a kitchen and one with a table and stools for us to eat at. It was set with real silverware, napkins (they made the napkins into different shapes at each meal, and tablecloths. The porters greeted us by clapping as we arrived, and had soap and bowls of water for us to wash our hands. They gave us glassses of sugary lemon water and we rested until lunch was ready. It was corn chowder, followed by rice and trout. After lunch we rested again and then continued on the hike.




We passed a small village and traveled uphill to campsite 15 where we stopped at our campsite. The porters had all our duffel bags on a tarp and all the tents set up so we grabbed a tent and set up our stuff while the porters brought around warm dishes of water to wash with. The zipper to our tent sucked, and we broke it trying to get out so we had to use the back door (we got this same tent the next night too, but avoided it on the 3rd night!) The toilet was just a hole in the ground with some sticks to stand on and some tarps draped around it. There was a roll of toilet paper on a string and a plastic bag to throw it in when you were done.


We had tea about 5 with biscuits and honey and popcorn, then stood around talking and trying not to get biten by mosquitos until dinner was ready. FOr dinner there was a noodle soup, chicken, rice and potatoes. Afterwards we stayed up talking for awhile drinking tea. We noticed a light coming from Tom and Sylgie's tent. Tom went to investigate and Kim and Katherine had crawled into the wrong tent and were climbing into their sleeping bags! It was hilarious. Cesar told us a story about him being drunk and kissing another guy which was also pretty funny. Bernie and Stephanie were afraid of the hole for a toilet and made their David's take them.


After dinner we looked at the stars for awhile which were sooo bright, then we went to bed around 8. Ryan woke up around 10 and it was raining, but I slept all night. Apparenty he woke up and thought a critter was trying to break into his pack and eat his CLIF bars, but it was just me snoring...oops!

Day 5: Thanksgiving!

Thursday, November 27th, 2008

We woke up about 4:30 and got dressed. Fernando woke us up about 5 and the porters arrived at our tents with coca tea or coffee for us to drink. They also brought more hot water to wash in. We packed up our stuff and were off to hike without breakfast. We were the last out of camp but quickly caught up with the pack. Fernando and a porter had to take Katherine back to the beginning because she was sick, but she'll spend another night in Ollantaytambo and one in Agua Calientes and meet us at Machu Picchu on Saturday. Ryan, Me, Franzesca and Chenine broke away from the group and were hiking ahead. At our first break Ryan went ahead on his own. Today's hike was almost all uphill. We were in the cloud forest, which was full of waterfalls, streams, llamas, and trees.




The hike was hard and we finally saw a campsite, but it was a false alarm for our breakfast stop. Luckily, the next stop was the breakfast point, because we were tired. We arrived only a couple of minutes behind Ryan, at 7:24. As soon as we stopped we were freezing as our sweat cooled and the clouds rolled in. Not above us, because we were high enough we were in the clouds! Ryan took off his shirts and only wore his fleece, but I layered with everything I had.


We had to wait about 20 minutes for Tom, Sylgie, Miami, and Betina. David, Bernie, and Martine showed up after that and we washed up and sat down for breakfast. There was hot water for tea, although this time I had 3 scoops of chocolate powder and one of instant coffee. It was like a camping mocha! Ryan had coca tea and we ate thick break that tasted like Hawaiian bread, or pound cake only not as sweet. It was really good if you spread honey on it. Next was porridge with apples and then pancakes! I had warm caramel on mine. We used a toilet that was a porcelain hole in the ground, and then were on our way up to Dead Woman's Pass at 4200m!






This section we stayed closer to the group, with a slower pace and more breaks, it was very very steep! The 4 of us still ended up out front! I was the first to the top of the pass, it was freezing as the clouds and wind came pouring over the top. We sat and rested and waited for the group. When Kim and Cesar got close , Ryan and Chenine went down to encourage her the rest of the way. She started crying when they got there! Everyone started singing "She's a Lady" when she reached the top. After Kim rested Cesar pulled us into a circle on the top of the pass, congratulated us for making it and said he had a present for us. He pulled out a bottle of whiskey, poured a capful, and blessed the mountains and the places we'd been. Then he went around the circle and poured some into each of our mouths! Sebastian got several mouthfuls since it was his birthday. Ryan wiped his chin on Cesar's back, and we took a group pictures in front of the marker on the top of the pass. We gathered our stuff and headed down the other side of the mountain. It was steep and tocky stairs, but not too long so we made it to camp in a few hours.




I ran immediately to use the bathroom - which had toilets that flushed! And sat down at camp, which was relaxing. I changed into my long underwear and then it was time for lunch. The porter's served us hot tea, coup, then mashed potatoes, a peruvian grain that is like cous cous but isn't, and steak in a red sauce and salad.

After lunch most people went back to their tents to sleep but Ryan and I just rested. He fell asleep for about 1 minutes then he tickle-war'ed me and steamrolled over me in the tent! He heard Sebastian out frolicking with wine so he went outside and went with him and Tom to look through the other camps for British girls. It was rainging though so I stayed in the tent, and no one was out. The rain stopped after awhile and I ventured out to the bathroom and it was time for tea. More biscuits with jam and honey, which prompted a discussion over the usage of the words biscuit/cookie/cracker, etc. There were also things like fried wontons with cheese or apple filling inside. After tea the group was standing around talking and we decided to play limbo for Sebastian's birthday. We used a hiking pole and on the second round we convinced 2 porters to play with us! David had a great running start technique, Sebastian looked goofy, Tom almost broke his back and Betina looked like she was gumby! I won the first round and Sebastian and I made it to the finals of the second. After that was dinner, more tea sounp and spaghetti noodles with meat and a sauce that looked like stroganoff. There was dessert! The porter chef baked Sebastian a birthday cake and used the caramel sauce from the pancakes for frosting! All the porters came down and we sang Happy Birthday in English and Spanish. There was also chocolate pudding. Ryan thought he was getting a migraine but some chocolate, coffee, and ibuprofen headed it off.


It was colder than the first night so Ryan and I took a trip to the bathroom using his headlamp. It was slightly scary scrossing the wet wooden bridge across the creek made by the waterfall. Then we snuggled into our sleeping bags but it started raining and we were worried about the tent leaking because the sides were wet, but the porters tied the side of the tent to another tent so at least my side stayed dry. When we woke up in the morning only Ryan's hat really got wet so it wasn't too bad.

Day 6: Lots of Ruins on the Inca Trail

Friday, November 28th, 2008

I woke up about 4:10 and layed in the sleeping back until about 4:30 when Ryan got up to use the bathroom. I got dressed, packed up our things, and we were off for day 3 of hiking. Kim left a few minutes before us, but we soon caught up. (Breakfast was an omelet!) Out of camp the trail was straight up stairs to the 2nd pass! Ryan went ahead on his own, while I hiked with Franzisca and Betina and Chenine. We stopped for breaks along the way, and as the sun rose you could see snow mountains before the clouds started to cover their peaks. Along the trail there were ruins called Runkuraqay, that used to be a watchtower overlooking the valley.



After we started to hike again Cesar came up behind us and scared us, then hiked with us until our next break. We probably reached the top about 7? Ryan was already there, and we climbed a muddy hill to a great overlook for pictures. We had to wait about 50 minutes for the rest of the group, and then we headed out. The trail winded down into another valley, and there were snow capped mountain ranges along the horizon.




At the base of the trail there was another set of ruins, Sayaqmarka. We left our bags at the bottom of 100 steps with a porter, and climbed up to listen to Cesar explain more about the Incas. These ruins had grooves in the rocks at hand height, that meant old Incas used them to climb steps! There were also holes in the corners of rocks that used to rope off areas so animals couldn't enter.


The trail gradually climbed to the third pass from here, but it didn't go over the mountain as much as it scooted around the mountain. We stopped at a campsite with bathrooms where other group's porters were setting up lunch, but we kept on. We stopped for a break to listen to Cesar talk about nature and wildlife native to the region.


This section of trail had orchids, bigger trees, and more bird. We could see and hear a large waterfall across the valley. It was very clear and sunny so we had great views. We even went through 2 tunnels that were of original Incan construction!


At the top of the 3rd pass you could see our lunch tents set up like they were in the clouds! The view was amazing, we could see the Urubamba River valley, the town of Aguas Calientes, and finally Machu Picchu mountain! We were so hungry and distracted by the view that we didn't even realize we were near another set of ruins!


Lunch was chicken stuffed with cheese and peppers, vegetables, fried rice, and soup. We didn't take a break after, but walked down to the Phuyupatmarka ruins and sat there while we learned it was a ceremonial spot where Incas journeyed to pray to water, sun, and earth. We saw an eagle feeding its babies in a nest on a cliff, and more interesting flowers.


From here on the trail was all downhill steps. I think from the 3rd pass to the last campsite there are something like 3200 steps down! We took a break at another Incan building that some people used as a bathroom, and another right before the Winay Wayna campground. We could see the Intipata ruins as we hiked they are pretty recently uncovered, and are concave terraces, but the Winay Wayna ruins were just downhill from the campground and turned out to be my favorite of the entire trip. (They are convex terraces).

We were flying during the last section of trail, hiking at porter pace! We found our camp, and Jill, Franzesca and I bolted for the showers, the cost 5 soles but were warm and clean. No one was there when we went in but when I came out they asked me for our tickets, oops. I ran back in and got soles to pay. I went back to camp and dried my hair with the hand towel I brought and put on my last clean clothes. They felt great!


Ryan and I headed to the bar where were were meeting the group at 4, and sat outside drinking a beer! We wanted to buy 2 more to drink at the ruins, but the cashier couldn't break 100 bill. The ruins were less than a 5 minute walk and on the way we taught Martine what "that's what she said" means!






The ruins were amazing, everyone I talked to liked them the most, even more than Machu Picchu. It was serene and peaceful there. We sat on a terrace and learned how the place was used as a greenhouse for domesticating seeds. The ruins overlooked the Urubamba River valley. We walked down to a room Cesar called the balcony, and sat on a stone bench outside the ruins overlooking the mountains. We then invented Inca jumping. There are cylinders of rock sticking out near the roods that were used to tie the thatched roofing down with llama leather. We held onto 2 cylinders and threw ourselves into the air. The pictures midair were hilarious.



After some more time at the ruins we climbed back up from the bottom (more steps = killer!) and headed back to camp for tea. I really learned to love biscuits with honey! The porters needed to set up for dinner so we grabbed our chairs and formed a circle around a box of popcorn outside the tent until dinner. Sebastian broke out a glo-stick, and dinner was ready around 7. Dinner was excellent as usual, I only ate half my soup course, and dinner was lomas saltado. After dinner we had red jello for dessert, and put together a tip for the porters. Cesar called all the porters over and introduced them all to us, and our names and where we were from to them, we gave tips to the cook, the assistant cook, and head porter, and all the porters.


Then went in a circle and shook hands with them all. Some of them smelled bad but I think they were grateful we were appreciative. Most of them are farmers from the same village. After the little ceremony some people went to the bar, but I wanted to be rested to finally see Machu Picchu!