Road Block - Peruvian style!

Back in Cusco

Just to say that we arrived back in Cusco safe and sound.

I'm now catching up on sleep, getting laundry done and spending some time relaxing - last night was spent watching the latest Harry Potter (pirated of course!) and this morning I did my Christmas shopping too. Tomorrow in the evening we plan to go to the theatre. I'll be back at Amantaní next week.

So that is me for now, and then I'll be back in Bermuda. Man the time has flown!!!!!!

Rounding off our trip in Puno

Sadly our trip is coming to an end already. Having felt we had already had enough sun, we decided we didn't need more time on the coast, so last night we took a 12 hour bus to Puno, on Lake Titicaca. We arrived here at 8 in the morning, so after buying our bus tickets back to Cusco this evening, we were free for the day.

We found a yummy jugeria (juicing stand) in the market (the stands were all on a balcony overlooking the meat counters below - not so yummy!). A banana and milk juice is certainly substaining, so we went out to look for a taxi to take us to Sillustani.


Sillistani is a place with Inca built towers marking burial sites. They were interesting to see and the view from there iver the lake was so beautiful.


We had lunch and have spent the afternoon on the pier where the boats to the islands in Lake Titicaca leave from. Relaxing!

Now we have just have our last half hour of our trip here, some of us (not me thankfully) trying not to be tantalised by things to buy as they have no money left and others trying to calm dicty stomachs before getting on the bus!

Change

O how I want change, need change, dream of change, wish for change, o how I desire change!

Coins that is!!!

The bank ATMs here only spit out 100 sol notes, and if you are lucky a 50 sol too. BUt how many little breakfast panarias, taxi drivers, drinks and cookie vendors, market stalls can handle that size note?? I can tell you - absolutely none!!! Forever I have plenty of money and can't spend a single luca nor pay my way for anything. Eventually today I went out and bought a decent pair of shoes that ate a third of my note, but at least I had change to pay back everyone I owed. And guess what, when it comes to tomorrow, I will be back in the same starting place with a new 100 sol note!

O how I want change, need change, wish for change, o how I desire change!

¡Vamos a la playa!

We spent yesterday and the previous afternoon enjoying the Peruvian Pacific beaches in a tiny town called 'Boca del Rio'. Though the others went to the first session of their symposium, they also found some friends there, who were going to go to their beach house. Which sounded a much more fun idea!

Lots of beach, lots of shells and starfish, lots of water, and lots of sun!! But man how we're paying for that last part now! Today, now that we are back in Tacna, has been spent lying practically naked on the beds watching TV with tons of moisturiser everywhere! Last night we treated ourselves to a hostel room, rather than camping out on hard tile floors with friends! I wasn't the worst off either - one girl couldn't even stand up until lunch time . (We had to bring back food from breakfast!) We're looking like the camarones (river shrimp) we ate the other day!

But hopefully we will be able to move enough to get ourselves to Puno tomorrow! But sitting for a long time without needing to move is sounding like a good idea right now!

Tortillas de Camarones

If my souvenir from Cusco-Arequipa was a piece of shattered glass, my souvenirs from Arequipa to Tacna, which we travelled yesterday, 30th Nov, is a grease covered lap on my trousers! We passed through an area apparently known for its delicacy of Tortillas de Camarones, and thought we better try them. They are interesting to say the least!

Camerones are a type of river shrimp. The tortilla is made from a sort of flour batter. The batter and shrimps, with shells, eyes and all (supposedly adds crunch- personally I kept finding legs between my teeth!), are deep fried and then passed straight to you through the window of the bus, dripping the grease everywhere. When we arrived in Tacna and told our host that we had tried these tortillas, he said he would call an ambulance right away, as we would surely drop dead of a heart attack any moment now!

Cusco-Arequipa

The four of us setting off: Violeta, Sandy, Karen and Me

First leg of our journey complete, still with all legs and heads attached!

We decided to take an overnight bus from Cusco, leaving at 9pm, which would arrive at about 6.30 the next morning. Despite being the locals bus (some were clearly marked 'Turistic'), is all seemed very comfortable and efficient, like an aeroplane flight, with the 'pilots' being introduced by a stewardess. Even about an hour into the ride a snack pack was brought around!

Though there were a couple things that made us realise where we were - still on the ground (luckily)! First at about midnight a stone got chucked at the bus, smashing the window to pieces right behind me. I found some fragments of glass among my things this morning as souvenirs! Then this morning, at about 5, just as it was getting light and we stopped again, on the side of a deep ravine. It turned out the driver had got out to freshen and water the flowers on a roadside grave memorial! There was a suspiciously long list of names on the cross! And we had even tried to pick a bus that didn't have a reputation for overturning.

But we did manage to arrive all in one piece (the people on this particular bus at least!) just a bit after schedule, but we've had the whole morning to explore the town centre of Arequipa, which is pretty with lots of historical architecture.

Me in the Plaza de Armas

After a rest this afternoon (buses aren't very sleep condusive) we'll go out again, and then have tomorrow morning here as well. Tomorrow afternoon we'll be off to Tacna.

Me and the Babes

Me with a few of the babies one Thursday morning after morning snack. This is Ingrid. Alejandro and Ariana are on the right.

Already I am saying good bye to the children at Amantaní, though I'm please I could say 'But I´ll be back!'. I took a whole bunch of photos on Friday, particularily of the babies. Imagine how much they will have changed by January!

In fact I am leaving Amantaní a couple weeks earlier than I had planned, but for an exciting reason! With Sandy, and some of her friends, we're going to go on a circle of southern Peru - the locals way. Local buses, hostels, sleeping bags and backpacks, all on 25 soles ($7.50) a day!

We'll start in Cusco, go south to Arequipa, then a bit west and south to Ilo on the coast, then more south and now east to Tacna, then north and more east towards Puno, stopping on the way in another town, and from Puno back east to Cusco. That is the plan for now at least!

If the rest of Peru is anything like Cusco for their internet café's, I will be able to keep a live diary!

Gaviotas

One weekend we went to a local school's dance recital. Each group showcased a dance from a different area of Peru. This pair was performing a dance from the coast, imitating sea gulls - 'Gaviotas' in courtship. So beautiful!!

Proof against Darwin´s Survival of the Fittest

Previously, everything that I had learnt about Darwin's theories of evolution of species, survival of the fittest etc etc had made sense and I was a believer in apes being our ancestors. However that was before I observed the dogs of Peruvian roads. They are the stupidist animals and just keep breeding! It isn't even as if they don't have road sense, it seems they actually have a gene that forces them into traffic and then change speed or change direction of do something else completely unpredictable. They have obviously been to some hockey training sessions, as they are demonstrating very good examples of 'confuse the opponent tactics', though unfortunately for them this is real life, not a game! (Yes Mr Hermann-Smith, a game!) However I am yet to see a road kill. I don't understand it!!

An introduction to Peruvian slang

Mosca (fly) = fast person (physically and or mentally)

Lenteja (lentil) = slow person (opposite to mosca)

Trucha (trout) = intelligent person

Flaco (thin person) = guy, for example what you might call to get a waiter's attention

Cuero (leather) = hot guy

Cuero duro (tough leather) = old man

Fresco (fresh) = a rude child

Pata (foot/paw or female duck) = friend

Gordito (chubby) = toddler

Lata (can) = pain in the neck

Latear (to can) = to meander along slowly, as though you are dragging cans

Hablar ajos y cebollas (to talk garlics and onions) = to swear

Huevo (egg) = testicales

Foca de chicharia (light bulb in a shop selling chicha -a cheap maize liquior) = freckly face

Seco (dry) = Dead asleep

Luca = 1 sol (Peru's currency)

Quina (type of bark for herbal teas) = 0.5 soles

Plata (silver) = money

Chela = beer

Rubia (blonde) = lager

Malta (Malt) = stout

Chao = Bye

Nos vemos (we see each other) = See you later

This list is of course growing slowly with time!

Step 1: Just add paint...

Want some toys? ´Just add paint´ should be the Peruvian slogan!

Paint flattened bottle caps. (then string on round piece of wire) = musical intrument

Paint evaporated milk tins = building blocks
(with string) stilts
(with or without pebbles inserted through convenitently located holes on the top) = musical instrument

(My favourite) Paint cross sectional slices of bones = beads.
Advice for interesting beads: Get hold of a spine, and also thiegh bones. These dye in duotone as the spongy type bone on the inside absorbs more paint.

Of course this isn´t to say that they don´t have all the barbies, legos and puzzles too!

"A taste of home" - ???

Last night I spent a fun evening out on the town with Sandy, my hermana, her friends and later a few Gringo friends from the language school. We had already been sampling the night scene, all abuzzing with people, live shows, and dancing.

The comment in question came about one particular disco when one guy commented that ´I can imagine this place as one of those small clubs in London´ and another said it ´Finally gives a taste of home´.

A taste of home? I beg to differ! This was just one of tens or hundreds of clubs in Cusco, yet it is by far better than anything in Bermuda, a supposedly rich, hip modern culture. Compare this one place, Caos, to anywhere in Bermuda:

• It has space
• It has a thermostat that works
• It has a) modern light system and b)cool, sensibly designed glass floors
• It has live bands that are fully appreciated, unlike any groups in Bermuda, save perhaps at The PO.
• It has bathrooms that were designed as a work of art in themselves, unlike many place unmentionble for their less than desirable situation.
• It has a whole cross-section of disco goers, Peruvian, other Latinos, Gringos, old, young. Compare this to any club in Bermuda, whether it be Swinging Doors or the Splash.

A taste of home? I wish!

Potatoes

Reading a news article posted by the BBC news on 4th October 2005, claiming they could just now confirm that the original potato was dometicated from a potato in Peru, made me laugh. Certainly within a short time (a few hours at most!) in Peru I´d learnt that this was not a theory to dispute, it simply has always been fact.

Peru is definitely is the center of the potato world! I think they now have something like over 4000 different species. Today there are whole organisations devoted to keeping the strains seperate. Each type of potato has a specific use, some only for soups, some only for frying, some only for frying for the toppings on soups, some just for baking, some just for baking with chicken, some just for baking with red meat, some that get freeze dried during winter and others that are really purple or really yellow and are for decoration!!

Unfortunately I´m not a huge fan of potatoes myself, but it is still interesting to see, with huge sections of markets taken over just for potatoes!

My first one!

Hola!!
I realise I should hve started this when I first began my adventure here in Peru, but better late than never! My life here is still unfolding. I have just finished my time at the Spanish school here in Cusco, so on Monday, life as a volunteer will really start for real.

So far I´ve spent the afternoons at Hogar Amantani, a home for abandoned children, so I´ve got to know a some fo the children well, but now I´m looking forward to working with even more of them. Whatever their age they are all so happy and caring children. Sometimes (actually often) I think how much Western children could learn from them! Although they all have a sad or traumatic background, they hardly show it and are definitely appreciating the work that Pilar, Oscar and Maria have given them with the home.

That´s all for now, stories of life in Peru will follow...