A Lost City and a New City

So Sarah finished her last blog before our last day at Inti. The last day went just as any last day will when there is a mutual feeling of sadness about the departure. The day itself was pretty normal. The kids did homework, it rained, we finished up the posters, the kids ran around and tormented the dog, etc... Nicola and Jhinuk finished a hanging display for the garden that was really nice with Inti´s name in blue hanging letters and lots of beads and whatnot. We contributed with a simple but very nice sounding windchime, not much but something. At the end, we had to say our goodbyes to kids and staff. So we said our goodbyes, promised to write and refer other volunteers. What was very sad to see was that the kids who we kind of connected with stayed around after the others left just to spend a little more time with us. We took plenty of pictures, but it was sad to say goodbye. We were thinking and talking about what it must be like to have such a rotation of people that the kids become close with, only to never see again. It must be very hard for them and frustrating every time, but I still think that we helped where we could and accomplished at least something small in connecting with some of the kids despite language difficulties (on my part).

After work, we went home to rest up and then out with Nicola and Jhinuk to this place called 7 Angelitos with live music and very relaxed atmosphere. Then after Nicola called it a night, Jhinuk joined us for the club circuit to collect the free drinks. Tom was sick, so he couldn´t join us like last time, but he taught us well. The clubs here, like we said before, are hilarious. They have the most random mix of music and all offer free drinks. They are great. So it was a late night but we made it home without any problems.

Saturday was very relaxed, recovering from the clubbing madness of Friday and resting for the excursion to Machu Picchu. We met up with Jhinuk and Nicola to trade some photos and grab some food before calling it an early night. On Sunday, we woke up at 4 AM to catch the 6 AM train to Aguas Calientes, the jumping off town to Machu Picchu. After an absurdly early morning, and a four hour train ride, we arrived in the most tourist driven town I have ever seen in my life. This surpasses Kaosan Road in Bangkok, Siem Reap in Cambodia, and even Times Square in New York City. You can´t walk ten feet without someone trying to get you to eat at their restuarant, buy their souveniers, get a massage, etc... It is an ugly town that is only good for the bed it provides to get up early for Machu Picchu. The hostel we were at was a stuffy, humid room with no windows, or in other words, disappointing since we decided to book through one of the more expensive agencies in Cuzco. However, all the meals provided (eaten at the hotel) were quite delicious and the guy was very helpful in sorting out train ticket problems (we weren´t sitting together for the ride back according to our tickets). These facts somewhat redeemed the otherwise disappointing hostel.

For the afternoon, we decided to climb a nearby mountain that looks across the valley directly at Machu Picchu. Oh my lord, we were not ready for this. It was slightly drizzling on and off and a storm looked like it was approaching, but we decided to go anyway. This was so difficult. There is a clearly marked path up to the top, but it is essentially climbing a couple hundred meters by stairs. There were also ladders, one of which was 15 meters high, going up the mountain. By the time we made it to the top (1 1/2 hours), we were exhausted. It was totally worth it though for the perfect view of Machu Picchu. It was awesome and breathtaking and since we got there late in the afternoon, Machu Picchu was nearly empty of tourists. It made for great photos. Then it was another hour back down to the hotel. It was great but tiring and was good practice for the next day.

We went to bed right after dinner since we had to wake up again at 4 AM to get to Machu Picchu early. But again, it was so worth it. We didn´t think so at first, but as the place started filling up around 11 we knew that we did the right thing. We went with an English couple who booked through the same agency and three other people with a great guide through Machu Picchu. He explained everything and it was really nice to have him there rather than try to figure things out for ourselves. The place is beyond description, just the fact that it is there is a testament to the amazingness of the Incan empire. It is also so well preserved and Peru is doing a good job to keep it that way. After our tour ended, we were given a few options for hikes around the area. We chose the shortest since the day before was exhausting. It was out to an Inca bridge about 30 minutes away from the site and it was pretty cool. We walked along the edge of the mountain to this bridge, which was not the rope bridge as we hoped, but rather a bridge just of wood going over a small gap in the mountainside so that the trail could continue. We were not allowed to cross it, but it was still pretty cool. After that, we went back to Machu Picchu and took lost of photos with the llamas that live up there and just relaxed in the overwhelming magnificence that is Machu Picchu. Around noon, having spent 6 hours there, we decided to make our way down, by foot. There are stairs, but they are steep and tall and really do a number on the knees. We made it back to town, tired again. Overall, it was a great experience despite the bummer that is the town of Aguas Calientes. I definitely want to return to hike the Inca trail for a few days before arriving to Machu Picchu. Perhaps when I am older, have more money and book it far in advance. The Inca trail was full through part of November, so we couldn´t do it.

We arrived back in Cuzco around 10 pm and went straight to sleep. Tuesday was spent packing and running those last minute errands like confirming bus tickets, booking a hostel in Arequipa and finishing our paragraphs (in Spanish) for Inti. We gave our paragraphs to Nicola and said our goodbyes to her again. We ate our final lunch in Cuzco at our favorite restaurant called Jack´s which does a mean breakfast and an even better lunch. Then we finished packing, took some photos of new graffiti and got to the bus station for our night bus to Arequipa. The bus itself was pretty cool, we got the VIP seats that almost fully recline and are like first class seats in airplanes. We also got dinner but there were a few obnoxious things like a movie being played after the lights went out and everybody was already starting to fall asleep, or Bingo being played upstairs over the speakers when nobody downstairs wanted to play, etc... And since the roads are rather windy through the mountains it was hard to fall asleep always being jerked around. But eventually, I found a comfortable position, as did Sarah and we both slept soundly until the arrival at 6 this morning. It was good not to lose a day on the bus (10 hour ride), but we still needed more sleep. We checked into our hotel and promptly passed out until 9.

The hotel is quite nice, we seem to be the only ones there and we have a good clean room with a window and a good shower (what more can you ask for). Today we spent exploring Arequipa. The city is much more metropolitan than Cuzco, and thus not as beautiful, but it is still really nice. It has some amazing colonial architecture that has survived the centuries and most of it is built out of a white volcanic rock, giving Arequipa the nickname of "The White City." We checked out the two big churches, the Cathedral and La Compañia and well as the Santa Catalina monastary. The monastary only opened itself up to the public in 1970 after 391 years of exclusion and secrecy. It truly is a city within a city and it is very beautiful. We were told to check it out at night, but I don´t think that we will be able to make it. We also went to the Catholic University museum which houses Juanita and other Inca mummies that were offered as sacrifices on the mountain and volcano tops around Arequipa. It was awesome, it is amazing how well preserved these are, and just by chance unlike the Egyptian mummies. It is also cool how these mummies can offer more information on the Inca culture and rituals.

Tomorrow, we are getting up at 1 AM to go visit the Colca Canyon which is almost the deepest canyon in the world. Hopefully we will see some condors, but regardless, we are promised some amazing views that dwarf the Grand Canyon. We will write more about it soon. And we are going to Puno, on Lake Titicaca on Friday morning, so a lot of moving as we make our way to La Paz and then Buenos Aires.