So back from Peru and pretty much adjusted back to living in a place where I can flush toilet paper, eat fruit and veggies and drink tap water.  It was a fun and fulfilling trip regardless of my altitude sickness and subsequent “3-days cleanse”.  The big question that everyone asks is: Would I go back? At this point no – not only is there a lot of other stuff to see in the world, but I love my fruit and veggies!!

Day 1: We fly out of Miami at around 5pm (est), arrive in Lima around 10pm (cst), get to the hotel (about 1 hr away – an appropriate distance to be from an airport), and go to sleep. Tomorrow starts the fun stuff.

Day 2: We arrive in Lima, Peru. We got some money exchanged, visited a cat park (yes a whole park dedicated to stray cats!!!), and had a nice dinner out. This dinner was my first taste of Causa which is basically a potato roulade. It was amazing, I pretty much ate it every chance I got.  Lima was like any other big city except it was very foggy due to little wind. It was nice weather though, about 70*.

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  Peruvian Money

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  Ocean Fog

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  Lee in the Cat Park

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  Cat enjoying a sunny day in a tree

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  Napping among the flowers

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  Cattin' about

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  Stopping to smell the flowers

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  There is a Starbucks in Lima, Peru!

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  Oldest bar in Lima, Peru

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  me and The Other in a park

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  Folk Dancers during dinner

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  My delicious dinner

Day 3: We fly to Cuzco today and its our first day at altitude.  I was feeling good getting off the plane except a bit dizzy – almost like being drunk.  We bought some Coca leaves from the airport and Lee got some Coca candy.  The candy was the better choice.  In my altitude drunkeness I chewed the leaves and they were bitter and got stuck in your teeth.  I also acquired Axel today – who you will see much more during the trip.   We had a 4 hour drive to our hotel that night but stopped for lunch in a small village where we ate with some locals and then they put on a weaving demonstration.  It was here that I ate some Guinea Pig! It had a strong gamey flavor but the real issue was all the tiny bones.  It wasn’t bad tasting but the bones made it off putting.  I also drank a bunch of Coca tea which although made from leave was much better then chewing them straight out.  After lunch we headed to Ollantaytambo – our first Incan ruins. After that we stopped at a local pottery shop who is using traditional methods to create ceramics.  We then finished our drive and arrived at our hotel, checked in, and then went to a local restaurant for food.  It was delicious and I had the trout which is a local specialty.  This was the first night I started to get an idea of what was to come…

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  Axel, the poco llama (you will see him again)

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  Coca Tea

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  Guinea Pig (dark meat, upper right hand corner)

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  Natural dyes

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  locals

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  weaving demonstration

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  guinea pig farm

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  Axel picking out dinner

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  water without gas...

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  Ollantaytambo

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  enjoying the sites

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  someday this will all be yours

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  farmland near the ruins

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  best seats in the house

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  pottery demonstration

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  ready for dinner and pisco sours

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  Axel loves carbs

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  coca leaves

Day 4: I woke up today with a bit of heartburn but nothing terrible.  I was really excited about today because we were going to the salt pans.  It was early in the season though so the salt pans weren’t as amazing as I had seen in images.  I did get a chance to do some #yogaanywhere and learned that in Peru mountain grafitti is a big thing. I’m not sure how the kids do it but they clear a section of the mountain to represent their school or team or whatever – its all over the country.  We also had a lot of fun at the Moray crop circles (literally circles for growing crops and acclimating them to different altitudes and climates) Throughout the day I started to get worse and worse stomach pains – like someone had a knife in my gut and was twisting it. Luckily it was a lot of time on the bus so I would sleep while I could and always woke up feeling a bit better for the next activity. However by the time we hit the last stop I couldn’t get off the bus. (I sent The Other out to take pictures of the mountain graffiti). Once I hit the hotel I realized that I would have to miss the evening activity (dinner with a local family) if I wanted to be in shape for Machu Picchu the next day.  I stayed behind and had a relaxing evening eating saltines, drinking powerade, and pooping.

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  Moray rings

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  Moray Rings

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  Gary, Axel and Cletus

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  damn it feels good to be a llama

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  #yogaanywhere Moray

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  travel group

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  Maras salt pans

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  Julio, our guide, explaining the salt pans

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  taste testing the salty river

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  #yogaanywhere Maras

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  inappropriate pipes for sale at the salt pans

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  mountain graffiti

Day 5: Today was a full day at Machu Picchu. I still felt bad but I was glad I was healthy enough to see this – since its kinda what the whole trip was about.  We took a train (the bathroom on the train was very nice) and then spent the day exploring the ruins.

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  Train to Machu Piccu

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  Bathroom on the train

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  City below Machu Piccu

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  Me and The Other!

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  Our other guide, Percy, with Machu Piccu in the background

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  Axel

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  #yogaanywhere Machu Piccu

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  Planning for highrise condos

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  Oops - Axel had to go!

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  A freaky snail with little eye stalks and everything!

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  MachuPiccu

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  #yogaanywhere Machu Piccu

Day 6: Today was a full day in Cuzco. We started the morning with an option tour to visit a local shaman who performed a healing ritual (it didn’t help me…). After that we headed to the local market to see how they do things Peruvian style.  It was a big market, almost flea market style. There was food (meat, vegetables, chocolate, coffee, etc) but also trinkets and necessities.  Like a farmers market and a walgreens in one.  After the market we went to a local cemetery where people pay yearly to keep their loved ones (even after they die) and if you don’t pay they put your name on a blacklist out front and eventally remove the remains!!  The plots were mostly built into a wall with little “viewing” boxes up front for the family to put trinkets and such that the person liked while they were living. Apparetley the families visit often, even holding picnics and dancing outside of the grave.  And if you don’t visit often enough (dried or no flowers) your neighbors will call and harass you to see whats up! I don’t even like to talk to my parents while I’m alive, I certainly don’t want them in my business after I die.  After that we went to a local restaurant where a chef made the local specialty “Causa”, which is basically a potato roulade but is so delicious that when I was eating, I was eating that. I have even had The Other make it for me since we have been back home!  Our afternoon was free and The Other and I did some shopping. Dinner was another folk show, but it wasn’t as good as the first one.

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  Shaman

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  yup...

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  the open air market

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  vendor booth

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  getting the guinea pigs ready for sale

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  blacklist

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  plots

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  Causa

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  pisco sour toast

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  Axel enjoying some dessert (he couldn't find any strudel in Peru, this was the closest he got)

Day 7: Today was mostly spent on the bus – it was an 8 hour drive from Cuzco to Puno. I’m still not feeling well at this point so I slept as much as I could. We got off the bus here and there for bathroom breaks and to look at more ruins.  Honestly at this point in the trip I’m kinda done with ruins so you will start seeing a lot more of Axel…

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  Gary wants to go home

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  Incas can build round shapes?!?

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  Axel enjoying some spring flowers

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  Sheep meeting Axel for the first time

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  Axel is such a ham!

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  "Hot water" shower in a public restroom

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  trying out merchandise but not buying it

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  Bri's so brave!

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  snow capped mountains (this is a big deal in Peru)

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  Cletus and Axel riding the bus

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  Pulling into Puno (Lake Titicaca in the background)

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  Police vehicle in town to deal with labor riots

Day 8:  Today was Lake Titicaca and the Uros Islands. They are man made islands of reed and pretty much smell how you think wet, rotting vegetation would smell. They also aren’t very sturdy as standing in one place too long opens up the ground so the water from the lake comes through.  We did get to ride on a straw boat which looked pretty cool. The girls on the islands wear these pom-poms in their hair which I set out as my mission to get some for myself.  Also I saw a kitty on one of the islands so the day wasn’t a total waste 🙂  The rest of the day we wandered around Puno.  We did try Alcapca while we were here, it was good, tasted like lamb.

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  Floating Islands

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  On the island

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  Straw Boat

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  Island Kitty!

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  hair pom poms

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  they made a giant trout out of reeds

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  Axel on Lake Titicaca

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  I look like I belong in a hostel

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  my next car

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  Tuk Tuk - the preferred method of travel in Peru

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  man-powered Tuk Tuks

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  creepy artwork in the restaurant

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  creepy artwork in the hotel

Day 9: Today we got up early to fly back to Lima.  Our flight wasn’t that early, but the ride from Puno to the airport was about 2 hours and there was a threat that the labor riots could close the road.  When it was realized that we were on time we stopped for some more ruin/market site seeing and even then got to the airport 2 hours early.  The airport is in Juliaca, Peru which is a crazy corrupt city.  For example, you only get taxed on a building when you finish building it so every building (including the airport) is unfinished. The roads are mostly unpaved because the town says there isn’t enough business, but most of the town does business from 3am to 8am in the morning so when the census takers come to see how business is they don’t see any. There are more examples like this but it was the only airport in the area so we had no choice.  At least I don’t feel so bad living in Chicago now…  Back in Lima we had our farewell dinner with our tour group – everyone was feeling a lot better to be back at lower altitudes so it was definitely festive!

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  Axel on some Quinoa

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  Private college in Juilaca - the nicest building by far

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  Axel on a pre-Incan hut

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  I'm not sure who that sexy guy on the poster is but they were all over Juilaca

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  Juiaca Airport

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  Gates at airport

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  yay, found my hair pom poms!

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  Axel and Gary

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  Axel trying the food

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  a bag of Ketchup

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  getting into the wine

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  Peru donuts

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  Axel is thirsty

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  Axel telling Gary a secret

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  "artwork" in the restaurant

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  Axel and our guide, Julio

Day 10: This was an early day and consisted of flying back to Miami. Its was good to be back although you can see some of our customs shocked Axel. The next day was another early morning and flight back to Chicago. Since I have been back I can’t get enough fruits and vegetables! You don’t realize how much you miss them.

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  Axel and Cletus flying to Miami

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  No! You can't drink tap water!

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  No! You can't flush toilet paper!

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  Cletus up early to fly back to Chicago

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  Axel enjoying a true American Starbucks

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  No! You can't eat raw vegetables!