Colombia...a summary :)

(Okay, this is a long post. So, if you like to scan rather than read, go to the bold...it's my favorite part :))

Before we got to Colombia everyone informed us of the country´s motto... El unico riesgo es que te quieras quedar (The only risk is that you will want to stay...). SO TRUE! I haven´t figured out what it is quite yet, but there is something about being here that makes you want to stay. Don´t worry, I´ll be back in the states come August 14th, but I will also be coming back to Colombia someday. Breanna and I arrived to Bogota this morning and have a flight early tomorrow morning to Leticia--a town on the border of Colombia, Peru, and Brazil. From Leticia, we´ll take a boat down the Amazon River through northern Peru to the jungle city of Iquitos. Here´s hoping that boats are actually leaving this weekend that that we aren´t stuck in Leticia. Ha. Here are some highlights/reflections on Colombia so far:

Border:
We were all a little on edge about the Ecuador-Colombia border crossing and Colombia in general. Everyone told us it was fine, but let´s face it: it´s got a reputation for bad stuff. The border crossing was so easy and without event.

Cali:
We spent our first week in Cali. We had so much fun relaxing, walking around the city, and just taking everything in. The zoo was impressive...it was clean and interactive and not sad at all, which is often the case in Latin America. We also took a day to drive out to a smaller town in the jungle where we tubed down a river, swam, saw some impressive landscapes, and got to experience another face of the country/region. Cali also prides itself on being the salsa capital of the world. Whether that´s accurate or not, I´m not sure, but we enjoyed some dancing too :)

Cartagena:
We managed to tear ourselves away from Cali and get on a 24 bus ride north to the Caribbean coast. According to the lady next to me on the bus from Cali, Cartagena is the 36th most spectacular city in the world. It strikes me as a humorous thing to know or to boast...I laughed on the inside. It was a sweet city nonetheless...it has an old city enclosed by a wall that goes along the coast. The streets in the old city are all gorgeous, the lighting is soft, there are horses and buggies all over...it´s got a magical feeling to it. The highlight was probably being there for their independence day and seeing the concerts and festivities that went along with it. We spend some time on the beach in Cartagena, but they weren´t the best beaches. We knew we could find better. So...

Taganga:
Arguably the best part of the trip so far...that means a lot. Just a 5 hour bus ride from Cartagena, we ended up in this small beach town known mostly for scuba diving. The beach is central with just the right amount of people; the water is warm, calm, and blue; you can walk everywhere (no taxis...sigh); the people are so warm and welcoming; and we met up with friends we´d met earlier in the trip. Overall, just wonderful. I learned how to scuba dive too, which was incredible. I didn´t have time to get certified (it´s like a 4 day commitment), but a mini-course of 5 hours was enough to get me hooked. There are some coral reefs that were so cool to explore. Anyone interested in a trip to Honduras or Australia to really learn? Or I´d be open to going back to Taganga...let me know :)

Medellin:
We almost all cried leaving Taganga, but wanted to see Medellin also. It was a pretty and modern city that we probably didn´t do justice, but here´s my favorite story from Medellin:

The 3 of us are sitting in the city center on the stairs watching the world pass us by (this is a common passtime for us...). A boy walks up to us with a piece of paper that he asks to translate. He has a letter that a girl wrote to him in English that he needed help translating. We translate the love letter and start talking with him. Here is his story: His name is Andrew and he´s 16 years old. He goes to school during the day and sells candy and cigarrettes in the street in the afternoon/evening. His mother died a month ago, his older brother has disappeared, so he lives alone with his 4 year old brother who he takes care of with the help of a friend. This is why we meet him as he´s selling candy out of a box. We chat for a long time on the stairs, and Miriam mentions that she wants to buy Cuban cigars for her dad. Andrew says that he knows where she can buy them, so they walk off together to get them. He asks Breanna and I to watch his box of candy in the meantime. So imagine this: the only two white girls in sight are sitting on the stairs dowtown Medellin with a box of candy on my lap. There are tons of people around. Soon enough, people are walking up to us and buying candy and cigarettes...keep in mind we don´t know the prices of anything, so have to take everyone´s word for it. I was practically peeing my pants laughing while frantically trying to remember everything we sold to be able to tell Andrew and pay him any extra in case people cheated us. Amazing. After 10-15 minutes Andrew and Miriam come back cigars in hand...the look on Andrew´s face was priceless when he saw his new American friends surrounded by people wanting to buy stuff...he said we sold more than normal :) I think we attracted a bit of attention. We continued to sell sitting on the stairs for awhile and Andrew really wanted to take us on the metro and on the cable car to see views of the city. So, we got on the metro with him for a mini-tour of the city. We separated with a hug a few pictures. He was one of the sweetest and kindest of all of people we´ve met so far, and definitely made an impression on me. Just amazing.

So, that leaves us here in Bogota...I´m not anticipating too much excitement (it´s cold and rainy right now), but the strangest things always happen at the strangest times...

Flying home two weeks from today! Time flew by...see you soon!

Ecuador and... COLOMBIA!

Ecuador was quick, but we should be back. After spending just a night in Guayaquil (not much for tourists), we headed to Montanita. Montanita was another beach town with a lot of tourists, but still really small. Unfortunately, it was cloudy the whole time we were there, but we managed to meet some fun people and enjoy being on the coast... We escaped Montanita for a day to Salinas, which is a beach town just an hour from Montanita more for Ecuadorian vacationers. There we enjoyed the sun that hid itself in Montanita, ate the best ceviche I've had so far, and rode on of those banana deals that was pulled behind a boat (and got a big 'ol bruise to prove it...).

From Montanita, we bused it back through to Guayaquil and straight north to Quito. If I were to move to anyu city we've been to, Quito would be it. I loved how it was built into the mountains. It seems like you can always go higher. We did a lot of wandering and played our new favorite game of jump in a random city bus, take it as far as we want, and get back. We picked a really good bus and got way up into the hills to get an amazing view of the city. We got to the market for lunch day 2 and caught a horrible movie at the theatre at night. In case you're wondering, don't bother seeing Women.

On Sunday, we headed further north from Quito to the Colombian border. We started the trip thinking that we would never have time for Colombia, but changed plans after so many people we've met (peruvians, ecuadorians, colombians, other travelers...) have RAVED (I mean seriously gushed) about how amazing Colombia is. It means a bigger commitment to spending time on buses, but it should be worth it. We're in Cali right now, which is supposedly the salsa capital of the world! The plan is to make it to Medellin and Cartagena (on the caribbean).

If you're still checking this, thanks for your commitment...hasta luego!

It´s been awhile...

Hey Everyone,

I've been seriously slacking on the blog front, but all is well. Here are some highlights since the last--after we FINALLY got to Cuzco:

• MACHU PICCHU! It was amazing...more than I expected. We took the road less traveled to get there which involved bus, car, mini-bus, walking, and a train...phew. The views along the way were unbelievable. Once we got to machu picchu we climbed Huayna Picchu which looks down over the ancient city. It felt like a vertical climb, but the view from the top was more than worth it.
• We FLEW back to Lima from Cuzco which was also worth the extra cash...no more road blocks, strikes for us...so satisfying to fly over all of it and the andes.
• Overnight ride from Lima to Mancora, where we stayed 3 days. Mancora is a beach town which was hyped up to us all along as a touristy trap (I was picturing puerto vallarta). In reality it was more of a dusty surfing/fishing town that was a perfect place to spend a few days. Hammocks, ceviche, dancing on the beach, sun and warmth, sandals...divine.
• We're now in Guayaquil, Ecuador. We've been here 15 hours, but I´ve loving a new country and finding all of the new cultural ins and outs. So far, I´m shocked at how different it feels from Peru. We won´t be in Guayaquil long, and will be heading to another beach town soon.

Hasta la proxima...

Cuzco or Bust

Hey friends,



Last time you heard from me we were waiting in Arequipa for word on when roads to Cuzco (Machu Picchu) would open up. Here is a summary on our adventure to Cuzco (keep in mind that we´ve arrived safely)...



First some background information: People throughout the southern part of Peru have banded together to fight for rights and against things the government is doing. I´ve heard a number of reasons they´re fighting...the most common of which is protecting their land from government takeover. Anyway, their way of negotiating with the government is blocking all roads to Cuzco (main destination of most tourists). I support their efforts, but sucks for us. Seriously. So certain towns between Arequipa and Cuzco and between Arequipa and Puno block roads with logs, boulders, glass, etc. If a bus dares to pass, the town people gather around the blockade and slingshot rocks at it. So, we wait until the town and the government come to some kind of agreement and they open the roads.



After waiting 5 or 6 days in Arequipa we woke up early Thursday morning to head to the bus station upon hearing the night before that roads might open up the next day. We got there around 6:30 and asked several companies if they were bringing people to Cuzco. Most said no, and one said they were bringing people to Sicuani (a smaller town on the way) where you would then catch a combi (minibus) to Cuzco. It was a daytime bus, so we said sure...let´s give it a shot. They told us 10 hours ´til Cuzco. 38 hours, we pulled into the Cuzco bus terminal. Here´s what happened:

8:30 AM- leave from Arequipa on bus. The idea is that we get to Sicuani by 3:30

3:30 PM- get to Juliaca where the roads are blocked. We wait around for an hour or so and they let us through. Their deal was that they let four vehicles through per hour. We made it through...no problem. Keep on trucking to Sicuani.

4:15 PM- Get to a second road block in Ayaviri. They tell us that they may open it up tonight or they may not...probably not.

4:30 PM- Bus is still there. Options: 1. sit and hope it opens and potentially sleep in the bus or 2. walk into Ayaviri, look for a hostel, and hope to get a bus they next day.

4:45 PM- Went with option 2...grabbed our packs, and walked maybe a mile into this town with a little girl and a señora that told me about Jesus the whole way in :)

5:30 PM- Found a hostel that cost 6 dollars for a room for four of us! Crazy cheap. We got what we paid for...beds that were so sunken in the middle that they practically touched the floor, no windows, and no water in the morning. Ha.

6:30 PM- Walked around town looking for dinner. Since the whole town was on strike, finding a restaurant was difficult. We found one...the meal cost like 70 cents and was soup, rice, meat, and coffee. Dirt cheap and tasty enough.

7:30 PM- back to hostel, fell asleep at 8:00...LONG day...

FRIDAY
8:30 AM- wake up and proceed on a wild goose chase throughout this town searching for answers about when A bus MIGHT leave. We eventually find our same bus from last night at a different location waiting for the block to open...they said it would at noon.

9:30 AM- Quickly get our packs, some food, and take a guy with a bike takes me and another girl we met along the way up to the bus...i thought he might die of a heart attack on the way.

10:30 AM- Arrive at bus to wait for the block to open. We walk up to see the process...probably 500 people standing around with logs, rocks, and glass in the road. Lots of men and women standing in a circle discussing what they will do. They decide to open it and march back to the town.

12:00 PM- BUS LEAVES Ayaviri!

12:15 PM- Bus drives by a man on the side of the road fallen off a motorcycle. Bus stops to help the man and bring him on the bus. He apparently had an accident, the person he hit took his motorcycle and left him on the side of the road hurt...our good samaritan bus drivers took him in and took care of him.

1:00 PM- Hit another road block in Santa Rosa--bigger than before...tons of people.

4:00 PM- Santa Rosa opens the block and we get through. Amen, Hallelujah. Feeling optimistic that we´ll someday make it to Cuzco...still not sure it´ll be today.

6:00- Make it to Sicuani...one more town down. They switch us buses and we´re off to Cuzco.

10:00- Pull into Cuzco...it feels like the promised land by now. Awesome.

38 hours later, we made it! It was exhausting and a little stressful, but so fascinating. Others we´ve talked to had to walk up to 30 km during the whole thing...turns out we got lucky. Seeing everything we saw was priceless.

Another long post...I´ll try not to make this a habit :)

So, plans change...

Second post in a day...whew. Trying to catch up a little bit. So, when planning (i use that term very loosely) our trip we didn´t plan on spending more than a night in Arequipa and weren´t even sure we´d venture to the Colca Canyon. We´re now going into our sixth day here. A few days in Arequipa, some time in Chivay getting to the Canyon, and a little town called Cabanaconde to see the endangered Condors flying in the canyon. There´s too much to tell, but here´s a glimpse into Chivay:

• population of 4600 people
• stuck in the mountains...cold, cold moutains
• there were no cars, what we think of as restaurants, or buses until 20 years ago
• women wear these traditional, colorful dresses, skirts, and hats everyday. I´m still amazed that it´s daily dress for them...it´s really like the guide books.

Our experience in Chivay:

• got there Saturday night to an empty bus station.
• find out that it´s empty because the ENTIRE town is at a party in the center for the town´s 184th anniversary.
• find a hostel and put on every single piece of clothing i brought with me to the town--seriously, so cold.
• walk down to the center to the party: traditional dances going on in the plaza, probably 5 bonfires in the middle of the streets burnuing evergreen-like trees, people passing around homemade bottles of pisco (traditional Peruvian alcohol- like Mexico´s tequila), and people literally wrapped in wool blankets because it´s so cold (did i say it was cold?).
• dance for awhile still wearing 17 layers and chacos with wool socks
• meet a tour guide who offers to bring us on a tour to the canyon the next day--we agree on a price and to meet him at 7:00 the next morning to leave.
• Sleep...it´s loud, and cold.
• wake up at 6:30 to meet said tour guide dude.
• the dude never shows...shouldn´t be shocked.
• Meet a better tour guide who will go with us on the public bus and will prove to be reliable and SO helpful.
• He says we´ll meet at 2:00 to take the 2:30 bus to the canyon.
• We meet him to find out the the 2:30 bus was cancelled because the driver apparently had too much fun at the fiesta the night before...we´re in Latin America, folks.
• With the extra time, we go to a bull fight which was basically a bunch of normal guys teasing some bulls in a ring...too funny.
• Finally get to the bus station around 5 to go to the canyon...

Okay, I´m getting long winded...sorry. One more thing though. This bus experience was amazing:

We got to the bus station a half hour early, and our guide (thank God we had him...) told us we were going to have to stand in line. Everyone was just chilling waiting for the bus and all of sudden everyone stood up and ran to make a line. Everyone just knew to do it at a certain time. We then stood in this line for maybe 20 minutes. The bus came, practically plowed into the line and everyone literally rushed the bus. We were pushed so tight and this crowd literally pushed us into the bus. At one point, I realized that I was pushed against a BABY on her mother´s back...poor thing. Once on the bus the pushing continued...we stood for the couple of hours it took to get to the canyon town. Crazy, but so amazing...

I´ll stop for now. If you made it to the end of that, I appreciate your perseverance :)

Right now we´re back in Arequipa waiting for roads to open up to Cuzco/Machu Picchu...there´s some unrest and a whole bunch of travelers waiting around to get where they want to go. There are definitely worst places than Arequipa, so no complaints here.

Hasta pronto.

Peruvian Jonas Brothers

So, I´m seriously back tracking here, but internet has been less than fast or reliable lately. This was a moment that sticks out so far, so I´ve been waiting to blog about it. Transport yourself back to last Friday evening...

We´re in Arequipa--a pretty city with fountains, moutains, adorable little courtyards, and quite a few tourists. We arrive in Arequipa Friday morning, wander the city during the day and go out for Mexican food that night. Walking back to our hostel, we notice a group of maybe 75 hysterical pubescent girls screaming at a second story window. Our dialogue goes something like this.. ¨should we see what´s going on? It´s probably nothing... oh well, let´s just see.¨ We walk down toward the increasingly animated group and see them throwing anything that they have up at four guys standing at the second story window. We learn that the guys are part of a boy band called Adammo and these girls are serious fans throwing stuff up at them to get autographed.

We stand on the other side of the street observing with amusement and curiousity and start waving up at them too just because it seemed normal and acceptable :) Before we know it, a guy comes over and introduces himself as the group´s manager. Apparently this group is getting pretty big in Peru...the week before they opened for the Backstreet Boys in Lima and have made appearances on Latin MTV. In conversation with the manager, he invites us up to meet this group of boys who we´ve grown accustomed to calling the Jonas Brothers.

We follow him up and hang out with these guys who are so star-struck and humble. We stayed for maybe 15 minutes, got a CD, became facebook friends with one of them, and moved on. But seriously...so funny. We hung out with the Jonas Brothers of Peru. Ha. I´m still laughing about it.

First Bus ride down

Hey friends,

My consistency so far is surprising even to me :) The 16 hour bus last night was amazing. Let me give you an idea. Imagine this...

You arrive at the bus station, which they warned you about as being dirty and unsafe. I would have eaten off those floors and felt so safe. You go to BAGGAGE check...yep, they don´t just throw it under the bus. It´s like a freaking airport. Then you get on this double decker bus with seats that lean back to be practically beds. As you settle in thinking you´ve got it pretty good, the intro video comes on and explains that you get blankets, pillows, two meals, and Wi Fi. Seriously. Amazing. To top it all off, after dinner and before the movie, the steward of sorts hands you a BINGO card and whole top half of the bus plays BINGO for a free return ticket. You don´t win, but who really cares. You played BINGO on a bus in Peru. They then put on a violent French movie and you wake up with breakfast (ham and cheese sandwich and a brownie...double ha.) and watched Marley and Me and Step Up. Overall, you had a pretty posh ride.

We´re in Arequipa now...more to come later, but it´s a beautiful city surrounded by volcanoes. I just sat on the hostel roof and read while looking at the volcano in the distant. Life is good :)

Hasta luego friends,
Michelle