Im having a blast!

Just a quick note...

Im having a fabulous time! I spent the weekend in Arequipa, Peru. (my new favorite south american city) I just arrived to Cuzco this morning and had a packed day of walking around, ruins visiting and searching for a tour to Machu Picchu.

I found one! I am off to hike for 5 days to Machu Picchu on the Salkantay Trail. I will have lots to share when I get back!

I am safe and (almost well from my terrible cough-thanks to my email Dr. Michelle)

Love to all!
r.

Some rest time in the mountains!

I have just spent a very relaxing 5 days (Until wednesday) in the Cordillera Blanca of the Peruvian Andes! It was wonderful and phenomenally beautiful! I did a few day hikes but no serious trekking. It was great for reading, reflecting and enjoying nature!

I also got to visit a Peruvian Peace Corps Volunteer living in a tiny village (30 families) in the mountains outside of Yungay. I got to meet her host family, see her community and eat some delicious home cooking! It was very interesting comparing PC-Paraguay and PC-Peru.

Flight to the past...

This was the size plane I rode in....and the reason I got a little woozie!

This morning I took a flight into the past...
I arrived mid-morning in Nazca, Peru - Home of the Nazca Lines. The Nazca lines are these crazy drawings in the desert. No one really knows why they are there or how they got there. There are many theories explaining their exsistance ranging from alien landing pads to underground irrigation ditch markings. But there is no general theory of explination that is agreed upon. So, I (and you) get to think whatever we want about why they are there!

This morning we took about a half-hour flight to see the images outside of Nazca (there are also lines in Palpa). And they were just as amazing and incredible as you might imagine. They were a little smaller than I thought they would be, but still impressively large!

The plane did a lot of leaning to each side to give us the best view possible - but mostly just gave us all the tummy shakes. I was very glad to have seen them, but the motion-sickness didnt have me lining up for another flight opportunity!

Here are a few of the designs

The spider

The Monkey - my favorite!

For more information about the Nazca Lines - visit wikipedia.
These are also not my pictures, I will try to get mine up soon!

The most fun, I didnt plan to have...happened yesterday!

After my time in the mountains (Huras, Peru - about 8 hours north of Lima). I headed south - with the end goal of making it to Cuzco and Machu Picchu but with a few great stops along the way. I had heard of Huacachina, a desert oasis just a bit in from the Pacific Ocean coast. Its fame is spread over all Peru - thanks to its apperance on the back of the 50Soles bill. I almost decided mid-bus trip to pass it up and keep on the move to Nazca, but luckily I didnt change my mind.

Huacachina is about 2km from the town of Ica (which is an actual city). It is this crazy little oasis, the former playground for the Peruvian elite. Now it is just a tourist destination - pero CON RAZON!

My Lonely Planet had mentioned the sand dunes and the potential sandboarding. However I wasnt sure that it would be for me. Was I WRONG!!! I took a dune buggy tour, which turned out to be the thrill of a lifetime! It was like a roller-coaster but with the added adrenaline that there was actually nothing but gravity stopping us from tumbling/flipping down the dunes! It was crazy wonderful! I laughed and screamed harder than i have in a longtime!

And then if that was not enough of a thrill, we got to go sandboarding. It was like snowboarding - but on sand. I tried it standing up two or three times, but i was kind of a chicken so I went down on my stomach on the board (like sledding!)all of the rest of the times. But the crazy thing was, was that the hills were almost vertical drops. So I thought I might die...but luckily...i didnt!
It was SOOOO much fun! I now want to try snowboarding when i get home.

These are not my pictures. I wasnt able to download the pictures I took - but I will try to get them up soon!

Oruro, Bolivia

Still with a little sleep in my eyes - I arrived safely to Oruro via TRAIN!!

The mom from the family I stayed with came to meet me and went to the Aguas Termales to have a medicinal dip!

Uyuni, Bolivia

Check out those ups!

This cactus could be my twin - they grow about a cm a year!

Some of the cacti on the island are over a1,000 years old!

Salt of the earth?
Salty or sweet? Or together?
The only salt flat in the world viewable from space (not that I can verify that) is in Uyuni, Bolivia. And I was there yesterday!

It looks like a lot of snow! But it doesnt melt. 12,000kilometers squared....thats a lot of salt.
The flats were formed many many many moons ago when most of south american was still under water. A lake was formed as the continents rose leaving a salty lake. The water has over millions of years, evaporated! Leaving miles and miles of salt.

I got to spend a day taking in its beauty!

Potosi - Home to the world´s largest silver mine

When I arrived in Potosi, I headed to the center of town - up hill for the first time in all of Bolivia. Usually the center of town is at the bottom of the hill or in a valley. My first stop was the Casa de la Moneda (House of Money) where the silver from Cerro Rico (the mine) was manufactured into coins. It was a huge building, lots of old coins.

Cerro Rico was discovered to llorar lagrinmas de plata (cry tears silver) by an indigenous man (Inca, I believe)...and the story goes: Señor Inca was a sheep herder and had lost a sheep. He had to go up on to the hill to look for it, but he wasnt able to find it before nightfall. So he had to spend the night on the hill. He made a fire and was spooked by the shiny rocks. He ran down the hill and tell his friend who lives close to the bottom of the hill. They go see it together and realize that is plata (silver). For them plata does not have a monetary value, it is only used for decoration. When the Spanish white man came the friend of Señor Inca tells the Spanish that the Cerro cries plata as a peace offering. In about 1530 the spanish start to mine for silver. (By they I do not mean, the actual spanish men were doing the work!) They became the owners of themine and enslaved thoursands of indigenous and brought african slaves to work in the mine. The african slaves died within a day of working within the mine and were used then to work outside of the mine to process the minerals and manufacture the coins.

They say that you could build a bridge of silver from Potosi, Bolivia to Spain with the amount of silver that has been extracted. Btu they also say that you build a bridge from Potosi to Spain of bones because of the number of people who have been killed in the mine and with the processing of the silver. Terrible.

The mine continues to be mined to day. Now (during a slow period-when there isnt high demand for silver on the market andlarge pockets of the mineral arent being found) about 1,000-1,500 men are working in the mine everyday. In high times, there can be up to 5-6,000 men working in the mine. There are 3 shifts that are worked in the mine: 7am-1pm, 1pm-7pm and 7pm-11pm. (Sometimes, howeverthe men stay and sleep in the mine). Men (boys) start working the mine at age 12 or so. And then are only able to work until age 35 because their lungs are shot.

I heard varying details on how much the workers are paid, all depending on how much they extrat at any given time. It can be anywhere from 70Bolivians (1dollar) an hour to 70Bolivians (1dollar) a day.

Men and only men work in the mine, because the Cerro (hill/mine) is a woman and she gets jealous if other women are working in her. The men work for cooperatives, each cooperative cworks certain mine shafts (the mine has over 400 different shafts/tunnels). Most cooperatives provide no health care or respadtory mask.

Hard work, we are lucky that there are other typesof work in the world. And it makes me think twice about silver jewlrey.
The adventure of getting a mine tour was a story within its self. There are tons of tour companies offering certified safe tours. I found one offering a tour that afternoon which would work perfectly with my bus schedule. I was alone so the guiding company offered me a female guide so that I would feel comfortable. When I got to the office for the time of pick-up, the office was closed and locked with the worlds biggest padlock. Uh.o. So I waited a bit and the organizer showed up eventually but the guide hadnt comeout of the mine yet from her morning tour. It was now already 2:30pm...NOT a good sign. So it looked for a bit that there would be no mine tour. Bummer. But then I wouldnt have to force myself to do the scariest thing of my trip so far.

Deep breath, I thought I was free. I had given it a good go and could say I tried and goutten out easy.
Wrong.

They founda guide from another agency who could do it. A little more waiting and she arrived. Ceila Santos, la unica - (Celia, the one and only) she presented herself. I liked her from that first moment. A tiny woman, at least a head shorter than me, with a seriousness about guiding that put me at ease. She talked to the goofy tour organizer ike she knew her stuff which was encouraging. So we started out.

We started to head up the hill to the equipo (outfit) rental place (a butch shop named Hong Kong in the front, equipment rental in the back - normal...right?)

We bought water and cigarettes to give to the miners (and el tio) and headed into the mine. They didnt have coca leaves (to give as an offering to the tio) to buy but we decided to risk it and went in anyway. When we got about 75meters into the mine there was the tio. The guardian. The god of the mine. Miners make their offerings to him for protection, strength and a safe return out of the mine.
2 cigarettes - because tio smokes
Coca Leaves- for their scared value as an offering to el tio and to the La Pacha Mama (mother earth in Quechua) the giver of all things as an offering of thanks
Alcohol drops on the ground that they might find the mineral
Alcohol on his shoulders that they might have strength and not tire
Alcohol on his penis that they will be fertil and roduce offspring to continue to live in Potosi

All the time asking for a safe return out of the mine.
They take a wig of alcohol/whiskey and pass it around their compañeros. They do this when they can (not everyday, but often) We did as well. Minus the drinking alcohol part.

We walked into the mine. Pitch black, cool and damp. Having to bend a bit so not to hit our heads. We had to get out of the way 3 or 4 times to let the little train cart pass. We saw large holes in the wall where they had used dynamite to blast through the walls to extract the mineral. And tunnels to deeper shafts to bring the mineral up from lower levels.
The higher on the hill the cooler it is inside. The lower down, the hotter it gets.

A little shaky (only from the altitude of course, and maybe a bit from the mine) we walked deeper. There were some places where there was standing water almost to our ankles. Water that comes when it rains. There are drainage pipes so that it doesnt get to deep, but the water levels can get to be waist deep.

Possibly my favorite part of the tour was when Celia said ¨Bueno, solo hasta aqui - tenemos que regresar ahora¨ (Ok, only to here, we have to go back now).

I made it out safe and sound. A little shaken, but happy to have had the experience.
On our walk down the hill Celia and I started to talk more and realized we have lots in common. She wants to travel and tour guide in other places and loves studying cultures and peoples and wants to speak more english. I volunteered any english that I can teach via email and the deal was sealed.

We went to find api (the most amazing bolivian drink) Sweet, cinnamony corn drink. Wild but wonderful. WWe had our snack before my bus. She took me to pick up my things, and then to the bus stop and waited with me until I got on. I felt like I had founda kindered spirit. And she agreed to teach me some Quechua (it will have to be an online course, of course.)

Sucre -Bolivia´s Other Capital

Dinosaur footprints from about 75million years ago!

AHHHHH....Dinos!

El Mercado Central de Sucre
Lots of Fruit

Masks from around Bolivia

The Bolivian Declaration of Independance

Me in the Silver Expo

Bolivia - On the way to Cochabamba

I arrived in La Paz, Bolivia on September 4th. I didnt have any problems getting my Bolivian visa, all of the paper work was in order. It was just a matter of forking out 135$ to get through to customs. But I can now say that it was worth it!

I spent one day in La Paz, finding it surprisingly hard to walk and talk. The altitude did affect me luckily in some ways more than others. I had a bad headache but never had to see my lunch make a return apperance. I stuck around La Paz long enough to see one of the main plazas get a bite to eat and scope out the terminal for the upcoming trips.

Saturday morning I left La Paz (and the nausia behind) and headed east to Cochabamba. It was about a 7 hour bus trip but the scenary was spectacular! Deserts, hills, straight road, super curvy road, llamas, sheeps and lots of people with brightly colored clothing. I was riding in a double-decker bus and had the extreme pleasure of having the front seat of the bus!
It was wonderful!

Sunday, the day after I arrived was pedestrian day - no cars allowed. So Alvaro and I went on a bike tour of the city. It was the perfect way to get to know the city, breath some fresh air and ride a bike! It was perfect!

When I arrived in Cochabamba, I was greeted by Alvaro a good friend of a friend of mine from the PC.
Now, you may have heard of Latino hospitality, but I have been schooled in what it means to invite someone into your home and treat them as a long lost best friend. Alvaro, his mom and sister took phenomenal care of me for 5 days. I was able to rest, see the city, visit some museums, try many amazing new foods! learn to cook some new foods! (see the Sopa de Mani below). And just hangout with real Bolivians and not be a tourist, just a human.

The road to Cochabamba - the flat part

Some sights from Santiago

From the top of Cerro San Cristobal - I didnt know that there was something looking out for me while I was in Santiago!

The fountain at Santa Lucia Park

The reading room at the Santiago National Library! Since my time in Horqueta, I am drawn to bibliotecas!

The new me...

...with my mate.

Dad found this highly entertaining. It seems very normal to me.

Salto de Petrohue, Chile

me and my first travel buddy!

Los Saltos de Petrohue

loving it!

me...being a REI model

Casa Silva, Vineyard

Being a caballera

Our super fancy hotel room (ahh the difference of traveling with a parent)

Writing on one of the most comfortable couches in south america!

Courtyard

Our private resturaunt

Unfortunately, there are no pictures of the polo grounds.
how ridiculous!

The Pacific

Valparaiso, Chile

Because Valparaiso is built on bunches of hills, the roads are crazy steep!

Public art! That you can sit on!

Brightly colored houses are the trend in Valpo. I loved them!

Santiago, Chile

Me with dads snack, look at the cute powdered sugar fork

Me and La Señora Peche, she was teaching me to cook. And threatened my life if i didnt like cooked artichoke!

Cathedral on the Plaza de Armas

Parque del Cerro de Santa Lucia - beautiful!

some notes from santiago

I applied for my bolivian visa in paraguay about 2 months ago. and when i picked it up they told me that i could just get the actual visa at the airport, no problem. But sometimes when they say, ¨Ya esta todo¨ they dont really mean, everything is ready. So, since i had a little extra time, and i wanted to double check. I decided to head to the Bolivian Embassy to make sure that they would let me in to Bolivia. But it turned out to be not a quick trip. Mapquest made it look pretty easy to find and I figured i could ask for directions but it turned out the be ab bit of a crazy search for the bolivian embassy. i found it, but walked ALOT! It was a lovely walk, but i got off the metro about 4 stops too soon. so i was WAY out of the way. but didnt really know it. i was on the right street. But due to the funny numbering, I kinda keep thinking that it was just around the corner! it was eventually, just around the corner. They were very helpful and said i should have no problem getting my visa at the airport. (because neither in paraguay or chile do the embassies have visas to give out-how weird).

im staying in a really cute, hip hostel. I have meet some wonderful people and crazy travelers. I keep meeting Aussies who are on an around the world trip-for a year! i cant even imagine that! I think 2 months is a long time! I have had two very international dinners so far - that kind of sound like the beginning of a bad joke: so there are french guy, a chilean guy, a canadian guy, an australian gal and an american gal in a bar...
But it is making for great fun and wonderful convesation!

Being on vacation has a danger of forgetting what the date is and what day is what. I just realized that I get another day in Santiago! I thought i was to fly to bolivia on Thursday, but it turns out that its on friday! So a little more Chile time! Not half bad!

im staying in a really cute, hip hostel. I have meet some wonderful people and crazy travelers. I keep meeting Aussies who are on an around the world trip-for a year! i cant even imagine that! I think 2 months is a long time! I have had two very international dinners - that kind of sound like the beginning of a bad joke: so there is a french guy, a canadian guy, an australian gal and an american gal in a bar...
But it is making for great fun and wonderful convesation!

Being on vacation has a danger of forgetting what the date is and what day is what. I just realized that I get another day in Santiago! I thought i was to fly to bolivia on Thursday, but it turns out that its on friday! So a little more Chile time! Not half bad!

im going to read and journal this afternoon. i had a big walk around this morning so i dont really feel the need to go anywhere now.
I have made friends with the cleaning lady and the handyman that work here at the hostel. I got to eat lunch with them! and had my clothes washed!! HOW AMAZING! i turned them in at 1030 and they just came back clean and dried. amazing! i love technology!