Friday, January 16, 2009

peru

Its freaking -25 deg celsius but I can't tell at all being all snug and wrapped up in my hidden blanket at home. I'm so bored. It's been Day 6 since my return and I haven't done anything productive at all. Everyday I get up at 11.30am and bum around till lunch time; after which I usually catch a few dumb TV programs and then continue bumming around till dinner time. I feel so useless right now :(

(trying to redeem myself by blogging about my trip to Peru).


We spent out first night in Lima, which is the capital city of Peru. It reminded me of a very crowded KL with crazy pedestrians and crazier drivers (worse than NYC) and I keep having the impression that we were going to be mugged in a dark alley or something. Thankfully, the only people who really got us robbed were those taxi drivers who always made us overpay for cab fares due to the fact that we stuck out as Japanese tourists who didn't speak Spanish.

The next day, we took a flight out to Cusco, which was the city where all of the Machu Picchu magic begins. Along the way we were woah-ed by the Andes and snow-capped glaciers out of the aeroplane window. It may look pretty and breathtaking but moving from sea level to a town elevated by 3,000m meant less oxygen and thinner air. Alot of times we were hee-hawing just from climbing up stairs in Cusco. Haha.

I really like Cusco a lot, even though sometimes it was really touristy. (to the extent that when you start photographing kids on the streets, they would run up to you with their hands outstretched for money and touts plying you into their restaurants/agency). The entire area around the main square had cobbled tiles so that was this nice colonial feel to it. And it felt so much safer than Lima; I wasn't so paranoid and we could go out late at night without feeling that someone was tailing us. The food in Cusco was definitely one of the best things about the town. Given that things in Peru are extremely cheap, we could get a more than decent meal for both of us for only about 10 USD when we would have to pay at least 30USD / person in the states. So we ate good stuff everyday; checking out the guide book for all the recommended resturants with stars and good reviews.

And I was happy that we managed to take some snapshots of touristy llamas :D

We explored the city throughout our time there (which was meant for acclimatizing to the high altitude) before we did the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. While we were at it, we also did the Sacred Valley tour which was supposed to be like a warm up to the Inca Trail which involved alot of hiking and ruins-sightseeing too.


I know it may seem like nothing (and in retrospect, it isn't really supposed to be a big deal), but climbing all those stone steps cut into the slopes really scared me when I was doing it.

(to be continued...)

ilovetotwirl at 2:45 PM

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Tuesday, January 13, 2009

reset

I'm finally back from my long trip at Peru & Ecuador and after an internet overdose over the past 2 days, lots of grocery shopping trips and unpacking, cleaning and more scrubbing, I'm finally done with everything that should be done and am in the phase of boredom. And that's how I can glue myself to the seat for awhile to take a deep breath and slowly recall my entire holiday before the hectic school life takes over this bummer-ish lifestyle.

The trip to Peru/Ecuador has been one of the best holidays I've ever had. I still remember the night before I left when I felt not so excited about being whisked off to a 3rd world country, having to trek through jungles, wear tom-boyish clothings, and live the budget lifestyle in South America especially when I hadn't had time to fully enjoy my pampered lifestyle in Ithaca immediately after my finals.

But I turned out to be so wrong.

I'm in love with South America and I do want to go back again sometime in the future. (even though my holiday schedules till June are already booked and I have no idea how that will be possible). I loved doing the un-touristy things of strolling down the markets where locals visit and eating all the cheap andean food throughout the entire trip.

Ceviches (raw fish...my all time favorite dish which reminded me of yu sheng), Choclos (huge ass corn cobs), Quy (guinea pig :S) and Empandas (spanish curry puff!)

I'm still trying to figure out the best way to blog about my 3 weeks in S.A. and my 937 photos. Until then, happy belated new year (seems like 2009 has creeped up upon us) and hopefully I start getting things done soon. Been procrastinating for too long about responsibilities and the grand plan for my final semester at Cornell. Hopefully when I wake up tomorrow, I'll be able to tick off more things on my to-do list.

ilovetotwirl at 4:08 PM

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