Before talking about Cusco, I want to talk about the bus ride TO Cusco.
At the bus terminal in Lima, I noticed that when I traded in my printed-out ticket voucher for my actual ticket, the woman had crossed out "economico" and written in "econociva", which seemed like an upgrade even though I hadn't paid any extra money for an upgrade. (Not going to complain, just interesting...) So then, she leads me over to a taxi, along with a man and a couple other women, who both had young children (one with a 3-year-old girl, the other with a 2-year-old boy), and tells all of us to put our luggage in the back and then get in the taxi, informing us that we were upgraded and this will be much better. I was a little suspicious -- a part of me wasn't sure if they were taking us to another bus terminal or if we were going to be riding in a taxi for 22 hours, and sharing the back of a taxi with three adults and two kids did not seem like an upgrade. Thankfully, we were taken to another bus station and the bus was AWESOME. It had huge seats, blankets, pillows, privacy curtains between the seats, TVs that showed movies nonstop -- it was lovely. The 22 hour ride honestly didn't feel any longer than 6 hours.
The woman with the 2-year-old son sat next to me, and we laughed together a ton playing peek-a-boo with the curtain that separated my seat from his and his mom's. I actually don't know if she was amused or not (I couldn't see her reaction because of the curtain), but hopefully it was all right. Later on, the kid puked and some of it got on me, so I think we're good, all things considered.
Driving through the mountains was really lovely, and I'm glad I took the bus instead of flying. Here's a shot from the bus window about 15 hours into the ride:
High Altitude + No Caffeine + Solo traveler burnout = Bed + Netflix + Chinese food
I arrived in Cusco on Saturday, and so far, I have been experiencing the misfortune of being in the middle of my favorite city so far, with the least amount of energy. I don't know if it's the altitude, lack of caffeine (I'm not allowed to consume caffeine, alcohol, chocolate, or spicy food for a week before my 7-day ayahuasca retreat), or I'm just tired from traveling for six weeks or what, but I wake up past 10:00am every day, and then I spend a tremendous amount of time in my room, in bed, eating Chinese takeout and watching Netflix. I am not sad or lonely or bored, exactly; there would be plenty for me to do if I just went out and did it, as evinced by the MANY tour guide agencies around. I just don't have the energy or motivation right now.
My AirBNB host, Di, recommended that I check out the Rainbow Mountain and get a "boleto turistico" (only $25 for students) which would give me entry to 16 sites, like museums and Incan ruins (other than Machu Picchu). I want to do all these things (and I still have Wed, Thurs, Fri, and Sat to do it), but a part of me is kind of concerned that I will spend money to do those things and then just experience them all sleepy and not be able to appreciate it. Also, I wonder how much I would appreciate seeing ancient ruins without having much historical context for them. I wish I had the context, because it's such a rare opportunity to be able to see the remains of such old civilizations, but I need to be very honest with myself about whether that's something I'm really going to enjoy as much as, say, a trip to Manu National Park or the Rainbow Mountain.
I did end up buying a ticket to Rainbow Mountain (the bus leaves at 3:00am tomorrow morning -- yeesh!), and declining the Boleto Turistico once I found out that the student discount only applies if you are 25 or younger. As if 30-year-old students don't need some financial slack too. *smh*
I feel like I'm burning out, you guys. I'm only a month and a half into an 8-month travel adventure and I'm already burning out! I assume levels of energy and enthusiasm wax and wane like everything else, so I'm not going to worry about it too much, but here's hoping the next wave of energy comes soon, because Cusco really is fantastic and I don't want to miss it just because the timing coincided with an energy dip. That would be pretty tragic.
LLAMAS!
My first day here I saw two indigenous women carrying baby llamas and I wanted to pet them and take photos sooooo bad! I know it's not cool to snap photos of people without asking, but I heard that it is okay if you ask first, and you pay them after. So I knew I would have to try that approach the next time I saw someone with a baby llama, because they. are. the. cutest. And I did it! (Also, I love how colorful the indigenous clothing is. I wish I had room in my backpack for a colorful alpaca poncho or something, but I really can't fit anything more without tossing something out first.)
A different indigenous woman with a medium-sized llama friend:
This guy was just roaming free in a market courtyard. Surprisingly, the only white guy with dreadlocks I've seen here so far.
Sunday: Exploring Cusco with Moises
On Sunday, as I was walking around, I met a 23 year old guy named Moises. He has been living in Cusco for about a month, originally from Bogota, Colombia. He doesn't speak much English, so hanging out with him was really great Spanish practice for me. We got along pretty well at first -- he showed me where to get a meal for $1, and then he walked with me around Cusco a bit. We climbed up stairs to get to a good lookout point over the city, and he pointed out buildings that had incorporated Incan ruins in their foundations. For example, These large blocks are hallmarks of Incan architecture, the way they aren't stacked on top of each other in lines, but rather, fit together like puzzle pieces (which makes them much stronger). Even more impressive, the stones would be arranged so that they created figures in the walls, such as this puma. (Can you see it?? It was hard to get the full length of it in one shot, but hopefully you can at last make out the head and torso...)
At around 10:30, we went to a bar/lounge called Ukukus that was going to have a band -- supposedly the music was going to be very Inca-like and spiritual, and I was looking forward to it. The music started around 11:00, and it wasn't quite what I had expected, but it was good. However, I was tired, my brain couldn't keep up with Spanish anymore, and Moises had smoked some pot and become a bit irritating, so I left around 11:30.
The next day, I took it really easy -- low energy and all -- and stayed in on Monday night to watch the presidential debate online. (And yes, I do plan to vote still -- I am working on figuring out how to vote from abroad).
Meeting New People
I apologize for the fact that this blog post doesn't have many stories. I am so tired, and I just haven't been doing anything really worth talking about. The highlights of my day are hearing from people back home; I honestly don't know how I'm going to handle being away from all of you for another 6.5 months. There is so much that I wish I could be sharing with you, not just because I think you'd get a kick out of it, but also because I miss being with people who know me, people who I have an already-established connection with. I know there are wonderful, lovely people all around, and if I put a little more effort in, I could probably get to know them and enjoy some great company during my travels. However, I feel pretty socially lazy, so I end up just hanging out with the people who initiate an interaction on the street, and that has had some mixed results...
Tonight, I shall go down the uncomfortable ladder to get to the AirBNB house common space and socialize with the other people who live here.
Where I'm Staying
This is the uncomfortable ladder I'm talking about. My room is on the top floor (3rd floor), and this ladder connects the 2nd and 1st floors, but the 1st floor is more like a basement.
To get to the place I'm staying, you enter from the street through a pathway (the pathway is under those stairs in the middle of the photo) to get to this courtyard. Then, you turn right, and go up a stone stairway to the second floor. Then, you walk down the deck to the blue door.
Once inside, I go up these stairs...
...and into this hallway, where my door is the first on the left....
...and then into my room:
I've come to appreciate having my own room SO much. I think the ideal lodging situation is to have a private room in a building where there is a common space to meet other people, but that is not always the most economic option. It's great when there's an inviting kitchen to use, and a hot shower is never expecting but always a huge bonus. Also, I've learned that paying a couple extra dollars a night for a place that includes breakfast may end up saying me money (I'm definitely a breakfast person, so if I don't eat at the hostel/AirBNB, I'll be paying for that meal elsewhere anyhow).
Where to Next??
Ok, that's it for now. If any of you have recommendations for where in Peru I should explore after my ayahuasca retreat, please let me know! I'm trying to decide right now between Huaraz, Iquitos, and Arequipa...