Lake Titicaca, ALMOST Bolivia & French Fry Soup!

So, who knows if this is the highest, navigable lake in the world, and who cares really? It´s beautiful...even when riding on a boat that moves slower than you can swim ( I guess sometimes it pays to do what tourists do and buy a tour- the tour boats were blowing past us out on the water). Our "motor boat," and I use that term loosely, stopped at the floating reed islands of the Uros for a quick explanation of how the natives live off the reeds. The reeds, which grow in the shallows of the lake, are used for building homes, boats, toys, fuel for cooking and are even eaten. After a short visit on these islands, our captain guided the boat on the long 4.5 hour journey to Isla Amantani, where we´d spend the night in a local´s guest room. Pam was ecstatic to hear that the islanders are vegetarians, for the most part, since meat and fish are only eaten on very special occassions. Our hostess, Olga, prepared lunch for us upon our arrival- a bowl of quinoa soup and a plate of rice, boiled potatoes, boiled carrots and fried cheese (what healthy vegetarians!). We roamed the rock footpaths of the island for a bit before heading back for dinner- a bowl of quinoa soup and a plate of rice, potatoes, carrots and tomatoes (we enjoyed the slight change on the plate). After dinner we were asked to put on some of Olga´s clothes to attend the party in the square...we somehow got out of dressing as locals. Danielle and Pam had to represent us at the party, as I wasn´t feeling well. Being the only two wearing "western clothing," they didn´t stay too long. The next morning our boat headed across the choppy water for Taquile Island, where Pam did all the exploring on her own and Danielle and I waited out the departure time at the dock with a few games of cards...we couldn´t wait to get back onto firm land. Our celebration of New Year´s consisted of a mini-bar crawl to some of Puno´s finest watering holes and a great game of Jenga. As the sun came up, we had our goodbyes with Danielle, as she left to catch her flight(s) back to NYC. Pam and I decided to get it together and head to Bolivia. Packs full and bus tickets purchased, we signed the "customs" form and boarded the bus headed for Copacabana, Bolivia. About 20 minutes into the ride we were informed that as US citizens, we each had to pay fee of $136 to enter the country, little did we know! As you might assume,

there are no ATMs at the border and with about 40 bucks on us, we were let off on the side of the road to catch a collectivo back to Puno. Back at the bus terminal, we begged for our money back from the bus company, no luck there, but the lady did give us 10 of her "very own" nuevo soles as compensation (that´s about 3 bucks). In planning our next move, we decided on an overnight bus to Chile (which was cut out of the plan due to how expensive it is there). After a dinner of french fry soup and laughing at the day´s experience, we boarded a very comfy bus to Tacna, Peru where we´d arrive in the AM to cross the border to Arica, Chile.

And so, the adventure continues...

FOOOOOOD

You know the food is pretty awesome when we find ourselves longing for Japanese food. If you know us, you know how we feel about Japanese food.

These are the greatest meals we´ve seen thus far...

1) Deep fried guinea pig, teeth and all

2) Hot Dog Spaghetti Soup with beef chunks

3) ¨Lasagna¨ (some sort of mushed vegetables with one uncooked noodle baked on top)

4) Deep fried vegetable omelette

5) A platter of rice, spaghetti, and potatoes

6) Plate of beans and rice with cabbage salad bigger than my head

7) And tonight´s bus station specialty: French fry soup.

Buen Provecho!

(BTW, we really don´t like Japanese food.)

Machu Picchu!

After scooping up Danielle at the airport and celebrating Pam´s 27th and Christmas in Cuzco, we headed out to Aguas Calientes via bus & train. The weather wasn´t looking great upon our arrival which worried us a bit for Machu Picchu, but the Inca gods must´ve known we were coming because we couldn´t ask for a better day to tour the Inca site. Views of the Urubamba river valley and of the Inca site from atop Huayna Picchu were amazing. We woke early to ensure an entry ticket to climb Huayna Picchu, where only 400 visitors a day are allowed entry, then joined our tour guide for some history of the site. After an interesting tour of the grounds, we began our ascent of Huayna Picchu. Climbing hundreds upon hundreds of steep, slippery rock steps just makes you think of what kind of shape the Incas were in...and to be able to transport these rocks and boulders to build on top of Huayna Picchu, insane! The views from above were spectacular to say the least. The descent was just as difficult as the ascent, leaving our muscles aching for days...but well worth the pain! Our photos are uploaded and ready for viewing, of course we took tons, so grab a cup o´joe and enjoy.

Feliz Navidad! Happy Hannukah! Que Tengas Un Buen Año Nuevo!

It´s been awhile...

For all you avid blog readers, let me fill you in a bit. M recovered and is now 100%, like she never lost her gall at all. So we decided it was really time to leave Ecuador. We hopped on a flight from Guayaquil to Lima, Peru and said goodbye to our first country. And to our neighbors with another tearful goodbye. Lima was a pretty crazy place. Kind of like Quito, but bigger, badder, and dirtier. So after one day, we left. But not before seeing Juno in the theaters, again. Rather than sitting through a 24 hour bus ride headed toward Cusco, we took the slow route down the coast before heading inland. Pisco was our first stop. There was a 7.9 earthquake in Pisco about a year and half ago that destroyed most of the town, little did we know. So needless to say, Pisco was not a very happening place. But we did have the chance to check out Isla Bellistas, another ¨Poor Man´s Galapagos¨as they say. We had some great wildlife sightings including penguins and sea lions. The rest of the day was spent touring Paracas Peninsula which is a coastal desert. Check out the pictures. We then headed inland towards Ayacucho, a small ¨city¨right smack in the center of Peru. M and I were possibly the only foreigners there making it a really authentic experience. Ayacucho was a sleepy, laid back city with plenty of artists. And purses. Um yes, that is actually a purse. Or is it a dead animal? Good question.

M and I got the special tour of a carpet weaving gallery. We learned about the indigenous way of carpet weaving from wrapping the alpaca wool to making natural dyes. The whole process takes about 25 days. Pretty crazy. Speaking of indigenous, man can they party! Seriously, M and I were in shock when we heard thumping and stomping and screaming above us for half the night in our hotel last night. We took an overnight bus to Anduhuaylas, our next stop en route to Cusco and did not sleep a wink. May I suggest not taking the route we took if you ever travel from Lima to Cusco. The road was pretty scary and damn bumpy. We were exhausted last night and annoyed with the party above us. We walked upstairs to see what on earth was going on and we walked right into a happening indigenous party. Don´t let the outfits, babies, llamas, and impossible loads on their backs fool you, they are party animals! We did get to catch up on some sleep on the 10 hour bus ride to Cusco today, where we are now. We´ll be here for about a week as we await our guests! Yes, Ateka, Danielle, and Darryl bought spur of the moment tickets to Peru and will be here in a few days. We can´t even control our excitement. Well maybe M can a little better than I can. But wow, we really can´t wait! Will update with stories and adventures from Cusco and Machu Picchu as they come. Until then, Happy Hanukkah, Christmas, New Year!