A South American Sojourn

Trip Statistics

2006-06-22T10:32:00.000-04:00

Well, I've made it home! Its good to be back. Its taken me far too long to just sit down and finish this last blog entry, I've been procrastinating since I arrived home three weeks ago today. It involves numbers and statistics, not my favorite subject, but I wanted to put them together because I thought it would be interesting and possibly a good reference.

You may be curious, as was I, about how much a trip like this would cost. Below I have created a breakdown of roughly what I spent on the trip, and in each country. First, let's look at a few before and after shots. Here is my backpack before and after my trip. I doubled its weight, and had sent some souvenirs home via mail, but still managed to fit everything in one bag!:

Before, 3/8/2006:

After, 6/1/2006: The bag is taller and packed much more tightly, it came in at 19.6 kilos (about 45lbs)!

Now, let's see how my hair length and skin tone have "faired" (not the change I had hoped for):

I thought it would be warmer in places throughout my travels, but much of my time was spent in the highlands, which are cooler because of the high altitude. After that, we were moving further from the equator and into their fall and winter, so "beach days" were few and far between. Brazil was probably the warmest country, though if you asked them they'd say it was cold! Now, let's review some of the overall details of this trip:

TRIP STATISTICS
Time spent in South America: 84 days, 12 weeks, 3 months
Number of countries visited: 6 countries
Distance travelled by ground or air between Lima and Sao Paulo: 14,807 miles, or 23,830 km (this is an EXTREMELY rough estimate based on a ruler and a map - this is where I procrastinated until last night)
Closest Proximity to Antarctica: about 1,000 miles south from El Calafate, Patagonia
Number of overnight buses (10 - 17 hours): 5 overnight buses
Number of host families: 3 (though Carol's extended family could be counted as two more)
Most expensive accommodation: $20.00 per night (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
Least expensive accommodation: $1.20 per night (you remember this one, Copacabana, Bolivia)

So, how much did this trip cost??? I've been going through my bank statements and putting together some rough figures. I spent more than I thought I did while I was down there, but not more than I planned. Before I left I allotted myself about $50 per day, and was hoping to spend only $4,000, but allowed for $5,000 if needed. Here are the details:

TOTAL OVERALL SPENDING
Number of days in South America: 84 days
Total money spent during this time: $4,004.74 (a very approximate figure)
Overall average cost per day: $47.68 /day

COUNTRY BREAKDOWNS
PERU:
Number of days in Peru: 28 days
Total spent in Peru: $1,273.54
Average daily cost in Peru: $45.48 /day
Conversion rate while in Peru: $1.00 = $3.30 Soles

BOLIVIA:
Number of days in Bolivia: 9 days
Total spent in Bolivia: $127.29
Average daily cost in Bolivia: $14.14 /day
Conversion rate while in Bolivia: $1.00 = $8.00 Bolivianos

ARGENTINA:
Number of days in Argentina: 24 days
Total spent in Argentina: $1,486.86
Average daily cost in Argentina: $61.95 /day
Conversion rate while in Argentina: $1.00 = $3.00 Pesos

CHILE:
Number of days in Chile: 4 days
Total spent in Chile: $274.49
Average daily cost in Chile: $68.62 /day
Conversion rate while in Chile: $1.00 = $554.00 Pesos

URUGUAY:
Number of days in Uruguay: 4 days
Total spent in Uruguay: $127.54
Average daily cost in Uruguay: $31.89 /day
Conversion rate while in Uruguay: $1.00 = $23.00 Pesos

BRAZIL:
Number of days in Brazil: 15 days
Total spent in Brazil: $715.02
Average daily cost in Brazil: $47.67 /day
Conversion rate while in Brazil: $1.00 = $2.24 Reais

These numbers are not precisely reflective of actual averages or equivalencies. In certain countries, such as Argentina and Peru, I did a lot of tourist activities which brought my spending up quite a bit. I also took three plane flights in Argentina. In Brazil I spent a lot less than I should have because I stayed with friends. It's all relative, but its interesting nonetheless!!!

Travel Secrets: I planned this trip far in advance, and did what I could to make it as affordable and easy as possible. Here were some of my strategies:

-My flight was free, aside from taxes - I had built up enough frequent flyer miles with United between flights and credit card points to earn a free flight to South America.
-With only a backpack and wanting to buy a lot of souvenirs, I mailed some home. I began my trip in an area of Peru known for their artisans and craftspeople, so I figured there was no better place to buy gifts. I stocked up and shipped them home from my volunteer program in Huancayo before heading out on the road. It kept my pack light and with space for other things I knew would come along. Ironically, the shipment cost more than the souvenirs ($60)!

Alas, one adventure has ended, but new adventures are beginning. As you now know, I will be leaving for the Dominican Republic in September to serve in the Peace Corps for 27 months. You better believe I'll have another blog for this one. Meanwhile, I'm enjoying my summer at home, trying to get by on my savings without working (money is going much faster than I am used to). I'll be taking another vacation beginning next week, joining my boyfriend Jeff in Manitoba, Canada for his friend's wedding before we head west to do some exploring of Canada and the United States. I'm taking advantage of opportunities while I am able!

Thank you all for reading, I'm glad you liked the blog. Hopefully it inspires some of you to take your own trip to South America, it is such an incredible place with so much to offer! If you need any suggestions, just let me know ; )

Sincerely,
Joan Perreault

My Peace Corps Assignment!

2006-06-07T12:01:00.000-04:00

After many months of hard work, waiting, frustration, and jumping through hoops, I have finally received my invitation to serve in the Peace Corps! As of September 5, 2006, I will leave to begin my orientation to serve as a Youth Development Promoter in the Dominican Republic! I am very excited about my placement. It encompasses the work and personal experiences I hope to gain while learning Spanish in a beautiful Caribbean country.

Dominican Republic shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti, occupying the eastern 2/3 of the island. DR lies southeast of Florida, west of Puerto Rico, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and is only a 4 hour flight from Boston! Dominican Republic is also known for such Red Sox greats as David Ortiz, Manny Ramirez, and Pedro Martinez. Maybe one of them will be my host family! ; ) My training will begin on Sept. 7th of this year and will continue for 11 weeks. I will then begin my two years of service on Nov. 22, 2006 continuing through Nov. 21, 2008.

Here are some facts about the country:

Capital and Largest City - Santo Domingo

Official Language - Spanish

Government - Republic

President - Leonel Fernandez

Independence - February 27, 1844 (from Haiti)

Area - 18,810 sq mi (48,730 sq km)

Population - 8,895,000 (July 2005)

Currency - Peso

Sugarcane Fields Forever

2006-05-29T19:09:00.000-04:00

Since my return from Rio, I have spent my remaining days in a place called Jaboticabal, the city where Carol and her family are from. Jaboticabal is a cute, small city surrounded by farms, about four hours from Sao Paulo city. Carol´s parents (Cristina and "Junior") own two sugarcane plantations nearby. I spent the weekend visiting their farms, enjoying the scenery and trying sugarcane for the first time! Its a pretty amazing plant, it is where we get our sugar, and it can also produce juice, fuel, and a few types of alcohol. There are a couple of larger farms nearby which are run entirely on sugarcane. They use the plant for energy without the need for electricity. They even make cars in Brazil which run on Alcool, a fuel derived from sugarcane. Driving through this area, all you see are fields of sugarcane everywhere you look! I liked the farms, they are a peaceful break from the cities. Here are scenes of Jaboticabal, the family farm, and sugarcane:

This weekend I met the woman who was my equivalent here in Brazil in regards to Carol´s exchange program in the US. She worked with Carol on this side during the application process, while I worked with her during her exchange in Massachusetts. Monica is the coordinators name; she is also the director of a language school here in Jaboticabal. I was unknowingly committed to visiting this school and meeting students, teachers, etc. I was not looking forward to this, and almost even backed out at the last minute. I´ve been tired lately and missing home, and volunteering in place with people I did not know at a time I did not commit to was one of the last things I wanted to do. I went anyway, figuring it wouldn´t last very long.

Monica showed me around the school and afterward had me join one of her English language classes. As soon as I met the class and started talking to them, I started to cheer up. These people were so happy to have a native English speaker to talk to, and my visit to their class was a special occasion. I ended up having a blast and got really into it - writing and drawing pictures on the board to teach them more vocabulary and illustrate points I was trying to make. They were so thankful for my help, and stayed after the class was over just to thank me and talk some more. One woman even gave me a gift of cookies! I was so touched. It reminded me of why I am here traveling in the first place - to make real human connections, to not only see the sights but to meet the people who live in these countries and get a picture of what life is like in different parts of the world. When I began my journey in Peru, I was living and working with local people, and I really enjoyed meeting new friends and experiencing a different way of life. As I continued through the months, I got caught up in seeing the sights and felt farther and farther away from the local culture as I moved. I am very glad I had this experience in Brazil to cap off my journey and keep me focused on what really makes these countries and cultures unique and special.

Tomorrow evening I will board the plane for home! I can´t believe three months is already over. Sometimes Peru and Bolivia seem like ages ago, yet hanging out at the Gulu Gulu Cafe in Lynn seems like yesterday. Overall I am excited to go home. What is the first thing I am going to do, you ask? Eat Thai food at Max´s place!!!

There´s more to come....

Joan

Rainy Rio and Returning Home Thoughts

2006-05-27T10:15:00.000-04:00

"The girl from Ipanema" - a few days ago, I was the girl from Ipanema! Or was it that, "her name is Rio and she dances on the sand!" My hostel in Ipanema was right down the street from the "COP-a....COP-a-ca-BAN-a". OK, so there have been a lot of songs written about Rio de Janeiro, and a few decades ago, this was really a place to sing about. Unfortunately, these days, crime and gang violence has taken over the city. Tourism is sliding, because it just isn´t safe to go out unless you are on a guided tour. Its such a shame that such a gorgeous city with so much to offer has been corrupted by so much....corruption. (Allow myself to repeat....myself.)

This beautiful beach city offers lots of outdoor sights and activities. To my disfortune, it poured rain the entire time I was there, so without the outdoor activities there really wasn´t much to do. Luckily for me, the rain cleared enough Wednesday morning for me to be able to visit the famous Christ statue who watches over the city from high up on a hill (apparently he´s not doing a very good job). I´m very glad I got to see this famous sight, no trip to Rio would be complete without it. There are great views of the city from the statue, and on a non-cloudy day you can see even more!

My sojourn is nearing its end. I am now within the last five days of my trip before boarding the plane back to Boston. There are things I will miss about South America, but even more that I look forward to returning home to. Here are some of them:

Things I will miss:

Dulce de leche, empanadas, people waving at buses, people being kind and helpful even when I give them an attitude, stylish mullets, making instant friends simply because they are foreign too, accommodations for $5, prescription meds over the counter, buying medicine by the pill, practicing my Spanish, dulce de leche ice cream, llamas, red rooves, scenic bus rides, palm trees.

Things I can´t wait to come home to:

Thai food, Japanese food, Vietnamese food, cereal, broccoli, the Simpsons in English, GOOD movies (none of this "Duplex" crap), buffalo wings, Seinfeld, salad dressing, not having to wear flip flops in the shower, cashiers having change for a $20; bathrooms with soap, toilet paper, AND paper towels all in one; throwing my toilet paper in the toilet rather than a trash can, being able to argue with customer service people in English, 88.9 WERS, not hearing "You´re Beautiful" by James Blunt every day (or is it still playing?), coffee ice cream, driving (wait...no more car!), different clothes, real towels, farenheit, refrigerated milk, pine trees.

Also, here are a few random observations I have noticed along the way:

There are BankBoston´s in every major city in Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, and Brazil. Do they realize that BankBOSTON doesn´t even exist in Boston anymore?

New York Yankees hats are in fashion down here, though I guarantee you they don´t even know what it means! I tried to counter this once, I´ll leave you with an excerpt from a conversation I had with a woman on a bus in Bolivia, wearing a Yankees hat:

"You know, you should get a new hat. A hat with a `B´ on it. This hat is no good."

"You mean, `B´ for Bolivia!"

"No, no, `B´ for Boston."

"Good idea, `B´ for Bolivia, thanks!"

"OK, it can be for Bolivia AND for Boston. The hat you have now is very bad."

"You´re funny."

Brazilian Beach Babe

2006-05-23T12:22:00.000-04:00

Brazilians seems to me one of the most visibly diverse populations I have even encountered. Brazilians are African. Brazilians are European. Brazilians are Asian. Brazilians are native. Though even with this seemingly balanced mix, they of course still crack racial jokes. Brazilians wear bright colors (especially green and yellow, colors of the flag), and are CRAZY about their soccer.

I arrived in Sao Paulo City, in the Sao Paulo state, and have been staying with Carol and her relatives - her aunt and uncle, and her grandmother, who both have beautiful apartments close to each other in the city center (see me with Carol, above, and with her family, below). As I mentioned, they have been feeding me, and the food here has been a dream come true. Vegetables, delicious beef (and I don´t even like beef!), and lots of fresh fruit. One fruit here called Kaki looks just like a tomato (yes, I know, tomatoes are supposedly fruits too). Only when you bite into it can you believe it is not really a tomato, it is like an optical illusion.
Sao Paulo is a huge city. With a population of around 17 million, it is one of the biggest in the world. Unlike some of my other stops, Sao Paulo is not a tourist destination. The foreigners in Sao Paulo are there for business only, this is a business town.

Upon arrival, Carol´s mother Cristina took me to the coast, about one hour away, to experience the infamous Brazilian beaches. Carol´s aunt and uncle have a beach house (apartment, there are not many real ¨houses¨ here) at a place called Riviera. After visiting some of the nearby cities, we spent the night and had the whole next day at the beach. On our way there, Cristina took me to a shop to buy a bathing suit. Now, bear in mind that Brazilian standards for ¨too small¨ in bikini talk are far different from our own. Cristina and the saleswoman kept handing me items to try on, and all I kept saying was ¨bigger, bigger, BIGGER!¨ In the end I left with a bikini in what was probably the largest size they had, a GG. Don´t get too excited guys, if you were here you´d be wearing a speedo ; )
Our day at the beach was nice and relaxing. The scenery was gorgeous - city meets beach meets hills - very nice. Being the off-season down here and heading into their winter, we had the beaches almost to ourselves. Cristina warned me not to go in the water because it is ¨too cold¨ this time of year. Cold ocean water to Brazilians turned out to be ocean on the warmest day in New England, so I had a blast swimming in the waves with no one in my way! Here is a shot of my ocean fun, this is the closest view you´ll get of my new bikini:

Desiring some more sights, I headed to the one and only Rio de Janeiro! I´m here now, though it is pouring rain so I´m not sure just how many ¨sights¨ I´ll see. I´ll will write about Rio soon.

Joan

Iguazú Falls and Argentina Superlatives

2006-05-20T16:10:00.000-04:00

Hello Everyone,

So, I´m writing from Sao Paulo, Brazil right now - a city with absolutely no public Internet access whatsoever. The only place you can use a computer is...get ready for this...McDonalds. That´s right, with the purchase of a Big Mac or Fries you can use a computer for 15 minutes. I think I will opt for the Fries.

Luckily, I am staying with some locals, so they are helping me out. As most of you know, I have worked with foreign exchange students for the past three years, so right now I am here visiting one of my former exchange students, Carolina Dossi! Carolina (or Carol) lived with the Tocco family in Gloucester, MA (hi Michele, Justin, and Bianca!). Her family in Sao Paulo is great and has been feeding me delicious food (the best in South America so far) and taking me to see the sights (which include the beaches, of course). More on Brazil later, I´ve got to catch up to having no Internet for 5 days...

So, during my last days in the wonderful Argentina, I visited one of the 7 natural wonders of the world (I think), Iguazú Falls. The waterfalls lie on the borders of Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay, and can be seen from two different countries (Argentina and Brazil). Not only is their size massive, but there are actually 300 separate waterfalls! You need to take a few different paths through this tropical park to see it all, and they are an amazing sight to see.

I had planned to see the Brazilian side the following day, but crossing the border turned out to be an all-day task. With an expired visa, I headed to the Brazilian Consulate in Iguazú and argued for two hours in Spanish to Portuguese-speakers, getting nowhere. Finally, I headed to the border anyway and quickly realized that they really don´t care, they just need to give me a hard time because the US gives a hard time to Brazilians entering our country! I guess that´s fair.

So, since I was one month in Argentina, here are a few simple SUPERLATIVES to sum things up:

Most Popular: Dulce de Leche - sweetened condensed milk turned to paste, this popular spread is found on all breakfast tables in Argentina, in all pasteries, and in anything else you could think of to put it on! It is quite delicious.

Best Looking: The Perito Moreno Glacier - gorgeous. Iguazú Falls is a close second.

Most Livable City: Mendoza - a fairly simple city, I just loved its charm and was never at a lack for things to do.

Least Livable City: San Miguel de Tucuman - I never even mentioned it before, now you know why.

Best Dancers: The Tango Dancers at Cafe Tortoni.

Worst Dancer: I´d say Canadian Jeff, as he is self-proclaimed, but he never actually danced to prove it!

Favorite Snack: Empanadas - yummy!!!

Best Hostel: The Hostel Inn at Iguazú Falls - more of a resort than a hostel, with a pool, restaurant and bar, ping pong, fuzball, pool, and free DVD´s! Its great watching The Motorcycle Diaries again, now that I´ve been to almost all of the places they visit!

Worst Hostel: Hostel Clan in Buenos Aires - there is nothing like being woken up in the middle of the night to two loud drunken Irish girls bringing a guy home. Ah, the joys of shared accommodations...

Best Bus Ride: Mendoza to Chile - across the desert and the Andes, so beautiful!

Worst Bus Ride: Puerto Montt, Chile to Bariloche, Argentina - I was the only one on the bus, and yet they didn´t let me choose which movies I would watch, so I was stuck with White Chicks and Taxi (with Queen Latifa and Jimmy Fallon). AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!

Buenos Aires is on Fire!

2006-05-13T23:14:00.000-04:00

Please restrain from calling the fire department, the city is not really burning, but its true that this place is HOT! (You have my permission to slap me if I ever get that cheesy again.) Buenos Aires is a ginormous city, though it still maintains a welcoming, comfortable feel. Known as the "Paris of the Americas", this city is filled with nice neighborhoods and European-style architecture, and there is no lack of things to do.

Buenos Aires has got a lifestyle all of its own, and they are on a completely different clock from the rest of us. To illustrate, here is an excerpt from a conversation I had last night with my hostel "roommate":
Roommate: "So, have you eaten yet tonight?"
Me: "Yes," I replied simply, though in my mind I´m thinking, ´Of course I´ve eaten, its 12:30am!´.
Roommate: "Alright, well I´m going out to eat now, I´ll see you later."
Me, thinking: ´As long as "see you later" means tomorrow morning and not later tonight, then yes, I´ll see you later.´

It is the culture here to take a siesta (nap) in the afternoon, eat a very late dinner (sometimes around 11:00pm), and THEN go out for the night. Also, this is not just reserved for weekends, it is like this here every night of the week. By now I´m probably really dating myself, because a few years ago I could have pulled all-nighters no problem, but now midnight is simply past my bedtime. Call me an old lady, I don´t mind. Though, it is a little embarrasing running into people in the hostel and having them ask, "What was the matter? Why didn´t you go out last night?" "Uh, I was sick". Luckily, this excuse was actually very true. I´ve had a bad cold since I got back from Uruguay, and its obvious to anyone who speaks to me, as I completely lost my voice. I sounded like a smoker of 25 years or more two days ago, and yesterday my voice disappeared completely. The good news is, I´m back with Amanda and Jeff! They took a different route to Buenos Aires, and were able to help me around since I couldn´t speak and I don´t know sign language. I also met a really cool girl named Gen in Uruguay, so the four of us were able to hang out together in the city.

Now to specifics. I had the good fortune of being able to attend a soccer (fútbol) game in Buenos Aires. Soccer here is not just a sport, it is a very important part of their culture, and they take it very seriously. Not only did I attend a soccer game, but it happened to be the quarter finals vs. Paraguay for the championship of South America. I got my ticket through a tour company at the hostel, and ended up in row 9, front and center! Argentinian soccer is known for its crazy and dedicated fans. (Think Red Sox vs. Yankees at Fenway) The energy in the stadium was intense, and the crowds never stopped singing, chanting, or waving their flags throughout the entire game, even when the other team scored! There were streamers and drums and confetti at every turn. The game was not as climactic as I´d hoped for, it unfortunately ended in a tie, 2-2. (Haven´t they heard of overtime? What is with these people!) I took a short video with my camera of the cheering fans, here is the link, I´ve never done video before so hopefully this works (you may need to give it a couple of minutes to load before you view it): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QS52m-FHHv8

Another cultural experience unique to Argentina, and Buenos Aires in particular, is the Tango. It is a very seductive, passionate dance, and is amazing to watch. Besides the tango dancers you sometimes find in the city streets, we wanted a true tango experience, so we made reservations at the oldest and most traditional tango club in town, Café Tortoni, to see a real tango show. With our table front and center (thanks Gen), I ate my chocolate mousse cake and enjoyed watching the live musicians, singers, of course dancers do what they do best. I´ve now headed north and have landed in Iguazú, known for some of the most spectacular water falls on the planet. These are my last few days in Argentina! Before I go, here are a few more comments:

NOTES ABOUT MATE:

A key component to life in Argentina, Uruguay, and southern Brazil is the Yerba Mate (pronounced mah-tay). When I was in Peru and Bolivia, "mate" simply referred to herbal tea. Here, however, "mate" is very specific to "yerba mate", a type of tea which is very strong and bitter, and contains caffeine. This tea is very much a part of daily life and culture these countries (similar to our coffee in the states). Everywhere you look, people are walking around with their mate cup and a thermous full of hot water to refill their beverage.

Drinking this tea is done in a very specific way. Mate cups are most commonly made from hollowed out gourds (gourd = mate in Spanish), and sometimes wood or metal. Loose tea is packed into the cup up to the rim, and the water is then poured into the cup. They drink through a metal straw (a bombilla) which contains a filter at the end (a great idea for herbal tea in general! I bought some...). Each cup is only a few sip-fulls, then the cup is refilled. When drinking mate in a social setting, the cup is filled with the tea and hot water and passed to the first person who drinks the whole thing. When they have finished, the cup is refilled and passed clockwise to the next person, who drinks it all and continues the process. I haven´t experienced this yet myself, I´m not crazy about the tea, but I hope to try it sometime.

Everywhere you look in Argentina and especially Uruguay, people are walking around with their mate cup in one hand and thermous in the other. There are even special bags made of leather which hold the thermous and cup so you can carry it like a purse. You can´t actually buy mate in restaurants, this drink is a homebound custom. Its an interesting and unique part of their culture.

Uruguay (no gay jokes, please)

2006-05-11T13:09:00.000-04:00

Colonia, Uruguay is in essence a visual definition of the word "quaint". The phrase, "Omigod, its so CUTE!" exited my mouth on numerous occasions in this town. Colonia is a mere three-hour boat ride from Buenos Aires, Argentina (only one hour on the high-speed ferry). A cute waterfront town along the Rio de la Plata, the river which separates Uruguay from Argentina, it comes equipped with colorful homes, beautiful colonial architecture and cobblestone streets. With its small size, you could see all of it in a matter of a few hours, depending on how much time you want to spend at the gift shops.
Since my hostel had bikes to use for free, I used one to ride around the small town after my nap in the early evening. I came upon a parade of motor bikes (not motorcycles, more like motor scooters). I thought, "what the hell," and joined in with them, cycling down the main street. It turns out I was protesting a new plan to require cyclists to wear bike helmets. Have you ever heard of such a thing? Good for them, freedom to choose! I grew up without wearing a hlemet adn im prefectlee oKay.

After one night in Colonia, I took a 2 1/2 hour bus ride to Montevideo, the capital city. Uruguay is one of the smallest countries in South America, so distances between cities are short and the road are good. Outside of the cities and along the bus route is endless farmland, marked with cattle and rolling hills.

Montevideo is a small city with some beaches and a nice port. There are many great beaches in Uruguay a bit further north, but this time of year is out of season for them, so there weren´t many tourists headed that way. I spent one full day and another morning and night walking around the city. I even visited a more wealthy neighborhood called Carrasco, which is the area the group was from in the movie "Alive", about the Uruguayan rugby team who´s plane crashed in the Andes in the 1970´s. They survived for 72 days in the snowy mountain winter before hiking out of the mountains to get help in "the green valleys of Chile". Here are scenes from Montevideo:
I was going to spend a night at a farm in Central Uruguay before I left, but with a bad cold and a hard time getting through to the farmers, I decided just to come back to Buenos Aires. I´m taking a rest day now and hanging out with the hostel cat, who is currently asleep on my bed (don´t tell Sam).

Only three weeks left : ( Hasta Luego!
Joan

Patagonia!!!

2006-05-06T21:05:00.000-04:00

So, all throughout this trip I´d been saying how much I wanted to go to Patagonia, but I wasn´t sure if I´d make it. After not making it to the jungle and as a result saving a week of time, I was much more hopeful. At (literally) the last minute, I lucked out a got a flight to my ultimate southern destination, El Calafate and the Perito Moreno glacier!

My Patagonian experience started in the north with the gorgeous town of Bariloche, located along a lake in the Nahuel Huapi National Park. This town seems like the North Conway of Argentina, a place where local families come for a vacation along with the foreign tourists. I swear I saw the Argentinian version of my family walking down the street, the guy even had the same coat as my dad! There are tons of outdoor activities to do here, lots of hiking, camping, and beautiful mountain and lake scenery. And of course, many cute, unique shops.
I wish I could have stayed longer in Bariloche, but when I went to the airline office to find out if there were any flights I could get to the south, my only option was at 2:00 that day! I took advantage of the opportunity and flew to El Calafate. This town is nothing to speak of in itself, it mainly exists for the tourists travelling to see the glaciers, which there are many of in the area. I managed to see the most famous of them all.

On our way to the Moreno glacier, we took a less-travelled road, along which you could see much wildlife. We saw many eagles, ostrich-like birds, black-neck swans, and other feathered creatures, all very big and distinctively different. (Plus, at the glacier itself, we saw a condor!). The Moreno glacier is the most famous and frequently visited glacier, as it is stable and does not progress from its location. The glacier itself actually moves from 30cm to 2 meters per day, though it also breaks off and tumbles into the water from the front, so it loses as much as it gains. It was progressing much further until the 1970´s, part of the reason for this decline in movement is global warming. Other glaciers are moving faster, and changing the landscape right before our eyes!

Seeing this massive natural formation was just incredible. As the glacier moves, it cracks like thunder, and if the echo reaches you in time you can see giant slabs of ice falling into the crystal blue water! Looks can be deceiving, its hard to fathom just how big the glacier is when you are looking at it. Moreno stands at 50 to 60 meters high above the water, and continues another 160 meters below the surface! It extends through the mountain valley for up to 30 kilometers.

On my way back north, I stopped in another Patagonian town called Trelew, which is home to a great Paleontology museum. There were lots of dinosaurs in this part of South America back in that period, and the MEF museum displays many great fossils found from this part of the world.

I wish I could have spent more time in Patagonia, it abounds with natural beauty that you just can´t imagine until you see it for yourself. Patagonia is worth three months in itself, its definitely a place I hope to return to someday.

CHILE - 4 days, 4 nights, 1 lousy post

2006-05-02T12:21:00.000-04:00

Four days in Chile, and I made the most of them. We arrived first in Viña del Mar, famous for its beautiful Pacific beaches, though the clouds and cold weather put a damper on our sunbathing plans. Without a whole lot else to do, we headed to the mall. To my disappointment, it was exactly like the malls back home, with some of the same stores and even two Dunkin´ Donuts´! In addition, Chile is very expensive compared to what we were used to, so prices were just like home, too. We made the best of it, eating some hard-to-find familiar food and going bowling.

Our alojamiento (rented apartment) was a nice treat, overlooking a canal and down to the ocean. We spent two nights and left the next day for the neighboring town of Valparaíso. By the time we got there it was sunny, so its a bit hard to compare the twin cities, but we loved Valparaíso. It was also on the water, though it is more of a port town with a lot of ship activity coming in and out of the harbor.
I was happy to learn that Valparaíso was also one of the home towns of the famous poet Pablo Neruda! Amanda and I went on a tour of his home, one of three in his home country of Chile. Pablo Neruda was known worldwide for his poetry during his life in the past century. If you are familiar with the film "Il Postino" (the Postman), Neruda is the poet featured in this movie. His home was very cool, with gorgeous views of the ocean and hillside homes, colorful rooms, and beautiful artistic furniture. Here is the man himself:
The streets of Valparaíso were very European in feel, with narrow, winding cobblestone streets and painted houses in a variety of colors. Our accommodations here were also different from usual, we stayed in an hospedaje, which is like renting a room in someone´s home. It was a really cool. Here is a street scene from Valparaíso:

I should mention that our night in Valparaíso was also my last night with Amanda and Jeff. We celebrated our time together by going to a bar that played only the best (which also means worst) of the 80´s, videos included (they LOVE their 80´s in South America, this has been a constant throughout the trip). I had a bit too much to drink and we all had a good time. Two broken glasses later, we went to bed to get up early the next day for our bus ride to Santiago, the capital of Chile.
We´d heard mixed reviews of Santiago, though probably more nay than yay for the city. We figured one full day there should be enough. I found the city surprisingly nice, considering my expectations were not that high. It definitely felt like a huge city, it was very fast-paced and there was far too much smog. One great aspect of the city was a beautiful park that was great for walking and viewing the city (and for the high school kids to make out). We also visited a pedestrian road with lots of shopping and street performances, though I had the misfortune of being pick-pocketed here, with someone taking my phone right from my bag, I assume while I was walking (I´m always very careful). I guess now I have my pick-pocket story.
I left Amanda and Jeff at the bus station that night with a sad good-bye (see ya later freaks! - kidding, I love you!). They spent more time in Chile while I headed out of the country which was creating a hole in my pocket. I took an overnight bus and spent a morning in another port town of Puerto Montt, along a bay of Chile further south. It was Sunday so everything was closed, but by walking around I found the town had a very quaint and somewhat New England feel. The bus ride from Puerto Montt definitely brought me through familiar New England-type woods.
I am writing now from Camden, Maine....or is it North Conway, NH? Wait, let me check my passport..... Bariloche, Argentina?!?! You could have fooled me. This town does in fact feel like a quaint New England destination, though with its own unique charm. It is nestled in a national park, with lots of hiking and other free outdoor activities. I took a stroll around the lake with a girl from Iowa named Jen I met in my hostel, and we met up with a nice Australian couple later for a not-so-nice dinner. The previous night, there was a tango festival, so I got to see live tango dancers! There are tons of nice shops here and lots to do. Bariloche is considered a gateway to Patagonia, as it is in the north of Patagonia. I really wanted to head south to view the most famous glacier of Patagonia, and this morning I learned that the only way I could still do this, given my tight schedule, was to leave Bariloche....right NOW. I am writing from the airport, waiting for my flight which is a bit delayed, but it is the only way I can get there and still go to the other places I want to visit....
(((((TIME LAPSE)))))
I´ve been on the go so much I can´t seem to finish this blog entry! I hopped the last-minute flight to El Calafate in the South of Patagonia to see the famous Moreno glacier. I actually made it! I´ll write more about Patagonia later.

Adventure Sports in Mendoza

2006-04-26T19:16:00.000-04:00

Argentina just keeps getting better. We´ve spent the last four days or so in Mendoza, a gorgeous and friendly city close to the border of Chile. We fell in love with the city immediately and decided we could all see ourselves living there. It is surrounded by desert, though there is a complex irrigation system that traces its way throughout the city, making it very lush and green. There are many beautiful parks, one that is quite large and reminded me a lot of Hyde Park in London, with a canal, a zoo, sports stadiums, a golf course (Jeff and Amanda went), etc. One thing that I just couldn´t get used to was the fall foliage in April. Trees are turning yellow and leaves are falling, and I can´t help but think that my birthday was two weeks ago.

We took advantage of a few of the many activities Mendoza has to offer. We of course had to visit some more wineries, as this region produces the majority of the wine that comes out of Argentina. Once again, Malbec was my favorite wine (I spelled it wrong in my last post), pick some up if you see it in a liquor store, very smooth. We also got to visit a plant that produces olive oil, which was very cool as I got to see olive trees for the first time.

Another first was paragliding! I know this may sound crazy, especially because I am afraid of heights, but for some reason I just really wanted to try it and I´m so glad I did. It was incredible! Here I am in flight:

It was really cool to just float above everything and see the city from a birds-eye view (in fact, the birds were below us). My guide even did a few swirls in the air which was really fun.

The next day, Amanda and I went horseback riding through a nature preserve. We got to gallop! ´Twas great fun... great fun indeed : )

If we had lots more time, we probably would have stayed in Mendoza for weeks or even months. But alas, we must move on. Today we hopped a bus and crossed the border into Chile. The road took us on another spectacular ride through the mountains, this time cutting right from one side of the Andes to the other. And when I say some of these mountain roads are windy, I am not kidding. This road made the Kancamangus Highway look like a wide open field:

We are now in Viña del Mar, Chile, right on the Pacific coast. We will be sharing our time here with the neighboring city of Valparaíso, before heading to Santiago for a night or so.

Also, I have been looking since I started this blog for a trackable map I could post to my site so you could get a visual picture of my route. Obviously, I never found a map I could use in this way, but here is an image and a link to maps of South America, if you wish to get a better feel for the areas I am travelling in:

http://www.lonelyplanet.com/worldguide/destinations/south-america

http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/reference_maps/south_america.html (same as image above but bigger)

Arizona Dreamin´ and Lots of Wine

2006-04-20T18:49:00.000-04:00

It`s official, I am in love with Northern Argentina. Incredibly gorgeous landscapes, quaint and friendly towns, I am so relaxed I feel like I could stay here for months and months. And somehow we fell right into the Argentinian daily routine - wake up late morning, have a BIG lunch, retire to the hostel for a siesta (nap), go out for a light dinner anytime after 8:30, drink too much wine and stay up late. Stores close at 1:00 and open again at 5:00, and restaurants close for the afternoon by 3:00, and don´t reopen any earlier than 8:30pm. The adjustment was almost instantaneous, must be something in the air...

We began our stay in Salta, which I just loved. Nothing particularly noteworthy, but it was a nice small city and I felt like I was at home. We even saw a movie at a Hoyts Cinema! That was weird...like stepping into a "matter transporter" back to the states. We made our way from Salta to Cafayete, a town known for its wineries. The route to Cafayete brings you through magnificent desert and mountain terrain. It reminded me a lot of Arizona, which is interesting because I´ve never been to Arizona, though I`ve heard I am accurate in my assumption. There are mountains covered in various minerals, which turn them all sorts of bright colors - red, blue, green, purple - it was a sight to see. On top of that there were various gorges and rock formations, I loved it as I had never seen anything like it before. Its been amazing to see the change in landscape from Peru to Argentina. There is so much diversity, and yet everywhere I´ve visited has been overwhelmingly beautiful (and I still haven´t even made it to Patagonia!).

Today was the day we dedicated to visiting the wineries. They afforded beautiful surroundings, though it was a little disappointing as we couldn´t just go there and hang out for a few hours and eat cheese, you pretty much just walked in, looked around, had a few sips of wine and either bought some or didn´t. The wine was very good, however. My favorites were from the Nanni winery, a red Melbec was delicious, as well as the regional specialty, a white Torrontés. We did make it to the the cheese factory too! Goat cheese - my favorite. Mmmmmm....

And get this - they have wine ice cream here! (Crystal, contain yourself...) Its not just wine-flavored ice cream, this is like one powerful glassful! I wish I had known that before I ordered the large...oops : )

Tomorrow we hop a bus to San Miguel de Tucuman, another town in the north which is suppose to be beautiful. Talk to you all soon!

Joan

1 Lake 2 Lake, Red Lake, Blue Lake

2006-04-15T12:46:00.000-04:00

Well, Bolivia really ended with a bang. We joined a three-day tour with two gals from Australia and a guy from Japan. We crossed salt-flats and desert over the next two days, and saw sights I have never seen before! The salt flats are literally miles and miles of flat plains made of salt. Some of this salt is processed by locals into what we use on our dinner tables! Years ago ocean water collected here, and when it dried up they were left with the plains that remain today. If felt weird driving across the plains, it was hard to convince myself that I wasn´t driving across a frozen lake! Here are some pictures, quite a phenomenon:

After a night in a fly-infested room (they didn´t move from the ceiling, only threatened), the next day was my birthday!!! Here are some "firsts" I experienced on my birthday:

Driving across a desert with snow capped peaks in the distanceSeeing flamingoes! (three different species)

Seeing a red lake (there were blue and green lakes, too)

Witnessed groups of vecuñas (wild llama/deer-like animals)

Our group had a great evening drinking wine, playing cards, and laughing our heads off! And to top it off, the next day we got up early in the morning to see geysers and bathe in natural hot springs! Covered in sulfur from the hot springs, we headed to the border of Chile where the tour ended. From there we caught a bus that was to take us to San Pedro, Chile, where we planned to spend the weekend before heading to Salta, Argentina. As we were getting our passports stamped in Chile, we saw a bus on the other side of the road heading to Salta. On a whim, we decided to skip San Pedro and hopped on that 10 hour bus ride to Salta! That made it three countries on one day : )

Entering Argentina has been quite a culture shock. I could tell as soon as we crossed the border that this country was different - the streets were paved (with white and yellow lines), there are guard rails on hairpin turns and they even have street lights! (FACT: only 5% of the roads in Bolivia are paved.) As we made our way further in it really started to remind me of home - neighborhoods, painted houses, trees, and no llamas! Now, walking on the streets of Salta is a very welcome surprise. I never realized how much I missed store-front window displays until now. And since I mistakenly sent our bathing suits and towels on the bus heading to Chile, we´re going to go shopping! In real stores with walls and windows! I can´t wait. Yesterday we had fresh milk for the first time, and even though I´m not a big beef eater, I can´t wait for a hamburger with real beef! We had a delicious Easter meal today, too, so much flavor! I´m in heaven. Can´t wait to head to the Argentine wine country later this week!

Keep the emails and comments coming, Happy Easter,
Joan

Welcome to Bolivia, jerk

2006-04-11T13:28:00.000-04:00

"Eight rolls of toilet paper, please," I said to the one-eyed woman in the wheelchair. In Bolivia, you need to provide your own toilet paper wherever you go. Don´t rely on restaurants or even hotels to provide it for you.
"Five Bolivianos, " she answered. A good deal, I thought. Less than one dollar for eight rolls!
"OK, that´s fine, I´ll take them." My stomach churned as the need for this toilet paper was serious and immediate.
"Those are white," she pointed to some different rolls of toilet paper on the other side of the store.
"OK that´s fine, eight white."
"But those are blue," she pointed back to the original eight, "and we have pink, too."
"Eight white will be just fine," I said through clenched teeth and cheeks.
She yelled something to another man who seemed to be her gopher, as from her wheelchair she seemed only capable of shouting orders and drawing out simple transactions.
"Five Bolivianos, correct?" I offered in my attempt to speed this transaction along, reaching into my pocket for the change.
"No, eight Bolivianos."
"I thought you said it was five?"
"No, those are five," she said, pointing to the blue and pink toilet paper.
"OK, fine, I´ll take the blue." I gave Amanda an annoyed and impatient look I hunched over in intestinal pain.
"Those are eight, too."
"Well what is five Bolivianos?!?!"
"Those," she motioned toward the maxi pads.
You can´t be serious. "I don´t need maxi pads for Christ´s sake, I have to go to the bathroom!" Amanda was trying not to laugh, but trust me, this was not funny.
"Fine." I picked up the eight rolls of blue paper in a plastic bag and put them in her lap. She called to her gopher to be her hands, and he started adding rolls to the bag.
"What are you doing?" she asked him.
"I thought she said nine rolls?"
"Oh for the love of God!!!" I pulled the extra roll out of the bag and threw the money into her hand, running across the street to the hotel just in the nick of time.
Now, we got a really good deal on this hotel - About $1.20 for the night. No kidding. This was a great find; something to write home about. However, when you´ve got explosive diarrhea, the last place on earth you really want to be is a $1 hotel in Bolivia.

Needless to say, it was a rough first day in Bolivia (Copacabana, to be specific). Since then, things really haven´t gotten much better. I started planning my trip to the jungle, which occupied my entire weekend plus Monday. I scheduled two flights to Rurrenabaque, the base town for jungle tours, both of which were cancelled. The landing strip for airplanes to this town is made of grass, so whenever it rains, flights are cancelled. And considering that this is the RAINforest, it happens quite often.

When I discovered the third flight I had scheduled for Monday would be cancelled or delayed, I threw in the towel. Amanda and Jeff couldn´t find a volunteer program, which they had planned to do while I was in the Amazon, so we all decided to just skip to the next step and leave the frustration behind us. We are now waiting for our train in Oruro, which will take us to Uyuni where we will leave tomorrow for a three-day tour of the Salt Flats! The landscapes are supposed to be amazing, with red and green lakes, hot springs, and a horizon where you can´t distinguish the land from the sky. The tour actually brings us to Chile! From there we will make our way to northern Argentina. I´ll write from there!

Joan

Island Hopping

2006-04-05T22:35:00.000-04:00

We left Cusco by train and spent the 11 hour journey watching beautiful scenery pass us by on the way. There were mountains along the whole route, and in places snow-capped peaks in the distance. We passed through much farmland and many small villages, where adults and children would wave to the train as we passed, it was very heartwarming.
We finally arrived, tired and cranky, to Puno. We thought we would possibly leave the following day or the day after to make up some of the time we lost in Cusco because of the train strike, but low and behold there was another strike, so the first day we could leave was Thursday. After I calmed down, we decided to take a two-day tour of some of the islands in Lake Titicaca, which ended up being marvelous. The first islands we visited were two of about 80 artificial islands, made entirely of reeds. They are floating islands, with only a few meters of reeds reaching down into the water and anchors to hold them in place. There are about 2,000 people who live on these islands. The people are decendent of natives who were looking to separate themselves from both the Spanish and the Incas, so they built these islands to live away from the land. They are quite a site to see, the reeds make up everything for these people - houses, boats, and even food. Here is a scene from one of the Uros islands:
We then moved on to a natural island called Amantaní, where we stayed with a local family! I was very excited about this, I´m hoping for as many opportunities like this as I can get. The families on this island live very simple lives. They are farmers and weavers first, and tourism is becoming a large source of income for them as well. The family Amanda, Jeff, and I stayed with were so sweet and funny. They were an older couple, with kids grown and out of the house. The house was very basic - no electricity or running water, mud walls and an outhouse. It was amazingly peaceful at their home, and I fell in love with it right away. The wife, Rufina, who didn´t speak any English or Spanish, only Quechua, let me try my hand at spinning yarn from wool, which apparently I wasn´t very good at because she was laughing hysterically the whole time! It was very cute. The family dressed us up later in the evening in typical clothes of the island, and we went to the local hall to have a dance party with the other tourists and their families! It was a lot of fun. Here are some pictures:
After our night on the island we continued on to another island in the lake as well. It was a nice two days, though I still feel like I´m swaying a bit from the boat ride : )

Tomorrow morning we leave for Copacabana, Bolivia! (No, not the same as the Barry Manilow song.) I´ll write soon.

Joan

Peru Superlatives

2006-04-02T14:12:00.000-04:00

Now that I´m in my last day here in Peru, I thought I´d put together a little "Best and Worst" list for Peru. Here goes:

Most Popular: The Alpaca (like a llama, makes the softest and warmest wool!)

Best Trait: The people are always friendly and ready to help
Worst Trait: Restaurants never serve your drinks until after you get your meal and leave you dying of thirst. Teach these people some smart business skills PLEASE!

Best Food: Avocado (delicious here and always ripe!)
Worst Food: Beef (the cows here don´t eat so well)

Best View: Views from Pisaq and Machu Picchu
Worst View: The slug on the bathroom floor in Huancayo

Best Weaver: Tino (my host dad)
Worst Weaver: The taxi driver from Ollantaytambo to Cusco

Best Music: Still waiting to find it, though a lot of the local stuff is fun to dance to.
Worst Music: Reggeaton (enough already!)

Biggest Pet Peeve: No one, no vendor or hotel or store worker, EVER has change. If you don´t have exact change for something its like they have no idea what to do, like they have never encountered this unusual situation before. AAAARRRRGGGGHHHH!!!!!
Runner-up Pet Peeve: The buses and trains keep deciding to strike on the exact days we want to use them!

Joking aside, its been a great month (yes, month!) here in Peru. We´re spending our last day here in Puno, a lake-side town near the border of Bolivia. We just visited some of the islands in Lake Titicaca. They were amazing! I´ll write about them soon, as long as I can remember to bring my camera to the Internet Cafe next time!

Thanks,
Joan

Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley

2006-04-02T13:25:00.000-04:00

We have arrived back in Cusco from Machu Picchu, and I must say it was all I´d hoped for. We lucked out with the weather, got up early and had a beautiful sunny morning at the top. I felt like I was in a post card, it was hard to believe I was actually there. Walking around the city on the mountain, you really get the sense of just how big this place actually was. There were streets and neighborhoods, these people had quite the society up there! Machu Picchu was so secluded that when the Spanish came through to invade the area, they missed Machu Picchu because they didn´t know it was there. The Incan´s eventually abandoned the city on their own, and the ruins remained unknown to the Western world until an explorer came upon them in 1911. Its hard to say that this man "discovered" Machu Picchu, since when he came to the area he asked a local the way to the nearest ruins and they showed him the way : ) An incredible site to see, a must for any visit to Peru. Here are some pictures:
Machu Picchu is actually 1,000 meters lower than Cusco! You travel down into the valley before heading back up to the site. The way to get to Machu Picchu is to go through Aguas Calientes (or Machu Picchu town), which is only reachable by train, there are no roads. We took the backpacker train, which is the cheapest way to get there, costing $44 and requiring a two nights stay in AC. The train leaves Ollantaytambo at 8:00 at night, and heads back two mornings later at 5:45am! It is nice to have the whole day to spend at Machu Picchu, many of the other tours and day trips arrive between the hours of 10 and 2:00, so to have the morning or afternoon with less crowds is a treat. Aguas Calientes means "Hot Waters" in Spanish, and for good reason - there are hot springs in the area, which I took advantage of after our long day of hiking to rest my tired legs. We hiked to Waynapicchu, the mountain in the background of the pictures above, where the ruins continue. Between that and the hike back to town, my legs had just about had it!

As I mentioned, in the days before we visited towns in the Sacred Valley - Pisaq (amazing), Urubamba (nothing special), and Ollantaytambo (pretty cool). Here are some pics:

PISAQ:
URUBAMBA:

OLLANTAYTAMBO:
Today is our recovery and blog-updating day, then tomorrow we take an all-day train to Puno on Lake Titicaca! (Go ahead and laugh, its OK.) Within the next few days we´ll be crossing the border into our next country, Bolivia!

Best wishes from below the equator,

Joan

Lessons for the day

2006-03-31T12:32:00.000-05:00

We are currently in the Sacred Valley in a town called Urubamba, making our way to Machu Picchu. Last night we stayed in another nearby town called Pisaq, and explored the ruins overlooking the city during the day. Views of the mountains and valley from the Pisaq ruins are so far the most breath-taking and beautiful sights I have seen on this trip, and perhaps ever. They say the ruins at Pisaq are second only to Machu Picchu, and if so I can´t wait to see what Machu Picchu is like (tomorrow!). If anyone is ever heading to the area, I would highly recomend spending some quality time in Pisaq. I wish I could post some pictures, but we`re travelling light these three days in the valley, so I don´t have my USB cord.

We stayed in a nice hostel last night in Pisaq, with my own private room for only $3! It is a new place and was very beautiful, though, once it started raining last night I discovered a leak in the ceiling as water dripped down directly onto my face! I still liked the place though, I guess you just get used to a different level of comfort. For example, an expression I have used often, and just used in a cafe today is, "Hey guys, the bathroom here has SOAP!". One bathroom I found in Huancayo even had paper towels too : )

Its a bit harder to practice my Spanish now that we´re out of Huancayo, since there I spoke everyday to the host family, and kids at the school and orphanage. Now, I could literally get away without speaking Spanish for the rest of the trip, if I wanted to....which I don´t. I am learning, however, that Spanish is in fact a very simple language. They don´t have countless meanings for the same things. For example:

Esta bien = It is good
Esta bien = OK
Esta bien = Fine
Esta bien = Sure
Esta bien = No problem

Claro = I understand
Claro = Of course
Claro = OK

Everything just seems more simpified here. It makes sense to me, and makes learning the language much easier!

Well, just wanted to post while I could. Pisaq definitely deserves a post of its own, and I´ll be posting more about Machu Picchu after we visit tomorrow as well!

Take care,
Joan

Just one question....

2006-03-29T19:00:00.000-05:00

...WHY???

We`re ruined!

2006-03-29T16:02:00.000-05:00

Hello There,

So, we arrived into Cusco on Sunday, and we were instantly in love with this city. From the plane into town we could see huge snow-capped mountain peaks out the left side of the plane. Of course, all I could think of was the move "Alive" (these are the Andes, you know), but I wasn`t worried, because at least if something happened I knew how to survive ; )

Cusco is a gorgeous city nestled in the mountains, with Inkan stone architecture as the foundation for many buildings, topped with the Spanish-influenced structures with red-topped roofs. Here are views of the city center (Plaza de Armas), Incan walls lining the narrow streets and red rooftops:

Of course, there are a few things that are a bit shocking in Cusco as well. Coming from Huancayo, not a very touristy area, we were overwhelmed by the number and aggressiveness of the street vendors here. It is impossible to look as we do without being mauled by children and locals trying to sell us things. They don`t give up, even if you say "no"! I`m learning to just ignore them entirely, that usually works. It is also a LOT more expensive here. Food and everything is much more expensive than Huancayo, and on top of that we`re going to Machu Picchu, which is the most expensive thing to do in Peru! (Well, it seems that way anyway.)

There has been a slight delay thrown into our plans - the trains and buses decided to strike on the two days we planned to use them to see Machu Picchu (today and tomorrow), so we`ve got to wait it out and won`t be able to leave for Machu Picchu until Friday. It sets me back two days, which I hope doesn`t prevent me from seeing more places down the line. Though, of any place to spend two extra days in, this is a great one.

We`re using our extra days to get to know the area a little better. Yesterday, Jeff, Amanda, and I took a cab to an area just outside the city, where we could take a few hours to walk to various ruin sites imporant in Inca times. Some sites were used as fortresses, others for summer homes or bathing areas for the elite. One of them is called "Sacsayhuaman", which when pronounced sounds exactly like "Sexy woman". All were cool, and afforded AMAZING views over Cusco and down the Sacred Valley. Here are some photos, I think they speak for themselves:

We`re planning to take a few days to get to and see Machu Picchu. If you don`t know what this is, I`m sure you`ve seen photos before, it is the ruins of an ancient Incan city that existed at the top of a mountain. Incan architecture is famous for being very precise in the way of its structure and relation to nature. Needless to say we`ll be sick of ruins by the end of this week!

The trip to Machu Picchu by nature takes a few days. There are day trips from Cusco, but they are very expensive and don`t give you much time at the site. We are going to leave tomorrow to stay in a town in the Sacred Valley, which is on the "Inca Trail" and where there are other ruin sites. We will stay in the closest town to the big site the night before, and get up early to go to the top of Machu Picchu and have most of the day there. To get the cheapest train ticket, we will stay one more night in Aguas Calientes (Machu Picchu town, the only reason to go there), then take an early train back to Cusco, by way of Ollantaytambo.

So, I won`t be able to post for a few more days, but when I do I should hopefully have some great new pictures!

We`ve already booked our way out of Cusco, we will head next Monday to Puno, a town in Peru on Lake Titicaca. From there its a short jaunt into Bolivia! We decided on the train as opposed to the shorter, cheaper bus, just so we can have the train experience! It is about 10 hours from Cusco to Puno, and they views are supposed to be spectacular.

Hope all is well, I`ll write soon!

Joan

Last Day in Huancayo

2006-03-24T12:19:00.000-05:00

So, it really just hit me that today is my last day here in Huancayo. I visited the girls at the orphanage for the last time, it was sad to leave them. They kindly gave me a hand-carved gift of a wooden pencil-holder, which I really wish they gave to me yesterday, because I just shipped my souvenirs home and it is really heavy! I´m not sure for how long I´ll be willing to carry it in my backpack. We brought them some fruit today as a going-away present. They performed a dance for us (something they made up to pop music), it was really cute. They tried to teach me after, I think I did pretty well if I do say so myself : )

Here I am with my favorite girl, Estefany. I know I shouldn´t pick favorites, but I can´t help it, she´s just so damn cool:

For the past two evenings we have gone on some interesting excursions. Tino is not used to having so many people in the program, so he is, shall I say, "working out the kinks" of how to show so many people a good time. Wednesday he took us to some ruins outside the city. Since everyone has such a busy schedule during the day, it wasn´t until 5:00 that we left on the one-hour drive, which means it was dark by the time we got there. So actually "seeing" the ruins proved to be difficult. To make matters worse, it was a long walk down a dark path back to the bus, and a few people got very lost. We had to send out a search party, and they were very upset when we finally found them! Lucky for me I have my headlamp - thanks Jeff! They were pre-Incan ruins of the original Huancayan people. Here is a picture with Huancayo in the background:
Not learning the valuable lesson from this night, the following night we went out at 6:00 to attempt to view a natural rock formation in the city, known as "Torre Torre" (Torre = tower). Walking on a narrow path along a steep slope toward rocks that were invisible in the darkness didn´t seem like a good idea to many of us, so after attempting the journey myself and some others turned around and had an early dinner. Though we did have fun taking some funny pictures in the dark!

As I mentioned, Tino is an award-winning weaver. Some of his weavings are on display at a local restaurant, so they let me go in yesterday and take some pictures. Aren´t these amazing?!?!

Yes, these are actually weavings. Marie showed me how they do it, they take a pinch of each color from a handful of wool (or whatever material they are using), and literally just put it together piece by piece. They are breathtaking to see. He told me he even made one for Princess Di!

Tonight we are having a going-away dinner, since 16 of the 21 people in the house are leaving tomorrow morning (13 are the college group, plus myself, Amanda, and Jeff). We will all actually be on the same bus back to Lima, and at the same hostel tomorrow night! I just sort of happened that way. On Sunday, myself, Amanda, and Jeff will fly to Cusco! It is going to be very exciting, though I´m sure a bit shocking as well, as it is very expensive compared to Huancayo! Cusco is the #1 tourist destination in Peru, so the prices are much higher than what I´m used to. I´ll write soon!

Joan

Shakin´ my groove thang

2006-03-20T21:57:00.000-05:00

Its week number two at the house in Huancayo and I must say I feel as I´ve settled into a routine. It is nice having a place to come home to that you are familiar with and where you know what to expect. I think I´m a bit spoiled right now, I´ve got my own private room with a key so I can just leave all of my things there and go out for the day with a few Soles (Peruvian currency) in my pocket and not have any worries. Its going to be a lot harder once I begin staying in hostels, it won´t be as easy to hang my hand-washed clothes accross the room if other people are there. They do have laundromats here (lavanderias), but the one time I went I specifically asked them not to dry certain things, and they did anyway and now my pants are at my ankles. I´ll hand wash as often as possible. Clothes dry in no time in the sun, but if it is raining or there is no sun for a few days, clothes take 3-4 days to dry!

This past Saturday all of the volunteers from the house, plus the 20-something family members, went out to a local bar. There were live local bands playing traditional Peruvian music. We entered the club (as a large group of white people), and I don´t think I´d ever felt so stared-at in all my life! We were definitely the only gringos in the place. These local middle-aged couples wanted to dance with the gringas (it seemed), so I started dancing and somehow really impressed everyone (including my friends)! The lady kept feeding me sangria, which I didn´t really want, but didn´t know if by turning it down I would be offending their culture! So, I did what I had to do, you know? The others joined in and we had a nice circle going, holding hands and making up steps to the local jives. I think we did pretty well, it was a ton of fun. Here are some pictures from the night:

Thirteen new people arrived yesterday from a college in florida, so now the house is packed and bathroom time is at a minimum. They just changed my schedule, so now I have one class at the Andean School, rather than two, which is MUCH better. Even though it wasn´t a whole lot of work, I was feeling pretty burned out and am thankful for the lighter load. Teaching is tough work! To Kara and all of the teachers out there, I give you a lot of credit.

I went to the weekly market on Sunday and bought lots of nice things to send home, gifts and souvenirs. Here is a picture of me with my new sweater. It is made of Alpaca wool, and cost about $8:

Here´s a picture of Angela, the youngest daughter, which I didn´t have for the last post. Isn´t she a cutie!

Also, I finished my weaving on Saturday! Here I am with my new blanket:

I´m so sick of rice and potatoes, I was hoping I´d last more than a week before I started craving other things. I´d been dying for cheese, so we went out for pizza on Sunday. It was supposedly some of the best pizza in Peru, which is disappointing. Also, all of the chocolate here has an underlying funky taste to it. And not the cool funk, like James Brown, but funk as in the way my dog smells after he´s been running in puddles. In fact, the whole town has this smell, like the smell of mud in everything, that starts to get to you after a while. I´m not complaining, just observing : )

Well, that will do it for today, I´ll write soon.

Joan

Biking through villages and lots of photos!

2006-03-16T19:31:00.000-05:00

I´m going to take advantage of this good Internet connection while I can. Here is a picture of one of the two youngest girls of my host family, Pili (I need to get a better picture of Angela, she`s got to be the cutest kid ever):
This is the outside of the house I am staying in:

Here is a view from the entrance to the orphanage:

Today some of the volunteers had the day off (I already needed it....pathetic!!!), and we went for a long bike tour through many of the surrounding villages. The scenery was gorgeous, and riding through some of the villages and fields was just so peaceful. We stopped at a restaurant and I had trucha, a local fresh-water fish. It was delicious. We got a large soup, and fish with rice and potatoes for only about $1.50! After we stopped at a shop that sells silver, which is produced in this region and sold at the lowest prices. I got a nice silver and copper ring for about $3.

Here are some pictures from our day:

Me with host dad Tino`s daughter Elizabeth, who is also a coordinator for the school and orphanage. She`s hilarious:

Amanda and Jeff:

Tomorrow is St. Paddy`s day! We`re going to do our best to celebrate without an Irish pub. From what I hear the effects of alcohol in this altitude are much stronger, so me and Amanda are planning to split one drink. That should be plenty!

Hope you are all well, I`ll write soon.

Joan

Juanita says....

2006-03-14T12:13:00.000-05:00

Well, its been a really busy week! First of all, I`ve been trying for more than three days to upload new pictures to this blog, and only now is it working. So, please pardon the long entry. I will post additional pictures in a separate entry.

Sunday I visited the weekly market and bought some really nice things for practically nothing, all hand-made. It was so cheap I didn´t even think of bargaining with them. In fact, it was so cheap I almost bought things I didn´t even want! Hand-woven blankets for less than $10, hand-knitted sweaters and hats, hand-carved gourds, it was amazing. Later that day I visited a nice park with a Gaudi-esque style, very cool. After that we visited a place to get local food, and I tried guinnea pig for the first time. And cow´s heart. As in, I ate them. The guinnea pig was tasty but hard as a rock and really hard to cut into, and there was practically no meat on it. I´ll pass on the cow´s heart next time.

I began my volunteer work and classes this week. In the mornings I visit a local orphanage for girls to spend time with them and teach them some basic English. Visiting the orphanage has been a very special experience. These girls come from serious physical and sexual abuse, or were abandoned. Two of the girls even have children - one from her own grandfather and the other of her father - and they are only 14 years old. It is EXTREMELY sad. However, the girls are so kind and loving. As soon as we entered through the gates on our first day the girls came running up to us with open arms and gave us lots of hugs and kisses. It was really touching. They don´t have much, but the organization that I am working for, Tinkuy Peru, is trying to help. Once I took out my camera they had a field day. Here are some photos of the children:

They don`t smile much for photos but trust me they are very upbeat and playful. We introduced ourselves on the first day, and by the second and third were teaching them ¨Head, shoulders, knees and toes¨and ¨Simon Says¨, which I renamed Juanita Says (Juanita se dice) ; )

I go home for lunch, then head in the afternoon for the Andean School where I teach two English classes at 4 and 5:00. My first class was ... well, hell. It is a group of very young kids with no attention span whatsoever, it was really hard to keep them under control. On the second day I brought them paper and markers to draw a picture of themselves and write Ï am a boy/girl¨and ¨My name is ___¨. It was SOOO much better. My second class is more advanced and easier to handle, though I still needed help, so a new girl named Yvonne from Australia is now joining me in these classes, which is great. She gives death stares, while I play good cop. Here is a picture of my first, younger class. They sure are cuties though:

My Spanish class is after this. I have a teacher named Miguel who wants to study in the States, I hope he can do it, its really hard for people here because they don´t have a lot of money and there are many restrictions for visa, etc.

I began my weaving class in the evenings, too. Wasn`t I trying to get away from such a busy schedule??? Its been a little hard to find the time to work on it, but by the end of this week I will have made a blanket!

Two new people arrived from Canada - Amanda and Jeff from Ottowa. They are really cool and are staying for the same time that I am, so we have already decided to travel together after Huancayo! We pretty much have the same route planned, so we will go together. I am psyched, we get along very well. They just booked our flight to Cusco after next week! We will take the bus back to Lima and fly to Cusco from there, to avoid the 30 bus rid we would have to take, had we decided to go that route.

Hasta luego for now!

Juanita

First Days in Huancayo

2006-03-12T11:47:00.000-05:00

Hello Friends and Fam!

I have made it to the city of Huancayo. I left yesterday morning on a bus from Lima. The bus was amazingly nice, better than most airlines in the states!!! We had comfortable seats, a movie, a meal, and they even had a game of bingo for the entire bus! (Take that US Airways!) The woman who won bingo was hysterical, she took the microphone and gave a thank you speech! (Or told a joke, I wasn´t sure exactly what was going on).

The ride was almost entirely through the mountains, which were breathtaking. We literally went straight up from sea-level to 5,000 meters (more than 15,000 feet) in about six hours. Needless to say, I was quite queasy by the end. I´m not sure if it was more from the windy mountain roads, or the shock of the high altitude, but I was not a happy camper when I arrived in Huancayo. And hell if they were going to make me think in Spanish at that point, all I wanted was a bed! To my dismay, my host family had an entourage of people to greet me at their house. It was nice and all, but with my headache and thinking I might puke at any minute, it was hard to make a good impression.

My host "mom" (six years older than me), Marie, gave me some tea to help settle my stomach - coca tea that is. Illegal in the US, I believe its where cocaine is derived from, no? Anywho, apparently at that altitude (now slightly lower, 4,200 meters) there are no strange side effects from it. It tasted pretty plain. I had a nice conversation with Marie (in Spanish, I´m doing well!!!), then took a much-needed nap. I met two other girls who are staying in the house with me - they are from Utah, and yes, they are Mormon. They are also 19-year-old hairdressers. We walked around a bit before dinner. Apparently there is a Mormon church in Huancayo, but not a Catholic church? (I must have misinterpereted that part). Four other girls arrived from Iceland late last night, also staying in the house.

The home I am in is very nice, and I like my room a lot. There is electricity and running water, and hot water in the shower (heated by an electric showerhead). They have a flat roof with great views of the mountains and surrounding homes, here are two views:

My host family is so nice. Marie and Tino are my host "parents" (Tino is a Peruvian award-winning weaver, I plan to take a weaving class with him next week), they have two adorable young daughters, I´ll post pictures as soon as I have some, they are too cute. Then there is the extended family who lives in the house as well - Tino´s grandmother, Marie´s brother Jesus (who is also a tour guide), and a housekeeper. Tino also has another daughter from another marriage.

Huancayo is definitely a city, not the most attractive but it has all I need and more. Internet cafe´s on every corner, nice restaurants, etc. I can´t wait to do some tours with Jesus around the city, there are many wonderful villages surrounding the area. Here are two views of downtown Huancayo:

I´ve been doing OK with the altitude, I was nauseous last night, but I´m not sure if it was more from the bus ride. My fingers and toes feel like they have pins and needles. Marie says its from the altitude and that it will go away in a few days.

That´s about all for now, I start classes tomorrow (teaching and learning), so I will let you know how that goes.

Spanish lesson for the day - Hasta Luego! (Until Later)

Joan

PS - My host family addresses me as Juanita, for some reason Joan is practically impossible for them to say ; )

Day -1

2006-03-10T20:07:00.000-05:00

A-HA! I have finally figured out how to load these pictures. It is much easier than I thought, I was making too difficult, when the USB ports are right on the front of the computer!

So, lets retrace my steps a bit. Here are pictures from BEFORE I left for Peru. Note the hair-length and skin color:

Yes, this is all of my luggage for three months. Couldn´t figure out how to flip this one:

And that one´s just plain goofy. I already have a sunburn, its pretty hot here in Lima. It will be much cooler in the mountains, I head for Huancayo tomorrow morning. I´m looking forward to seeing the countryside from the bus - its a 6-hour ride to the next city.

I´ll write from Huancayo!

Joan (Juanita)

Day 1 : Lima, Peru

2006-03-09T18:14:00.000-05:00

Hola Amigos!!!

So I have made it - south of the equator, to the undiscovered continent, to the land of Incas, to the other America. I arrived only this morning but I must say that it already feels like two or three days. Having not slept more than 2 hours in the past two days has accounted for the feeling of one really long day.

I left from Logan yesterday around 6:45pm. Trying to upload my ¨before¨ pictures is proving difficult, I´ll have to add them from another Internet cafe tomorrow.

I spent time walking around Lima today, the Miraflores part of town, which happens to be the nicest and safest. The sun was strong and it was hot, probably in the 80´s, and I´ve already got a sunburn! I´ve got a great hotel right near everything I´ll need; I´ll stay here for the next two nights before taking an early-morning bus on Saturday to Huancayo, the city where I will live, teach, and study for the next two weeks.

Check into my blog often, I´ll send periodic updates but it will likely be updated more often then I will remind you of.

A bus tour tomorrow will show me more of the city.

Sorry this isn´t a very exciting first entry, I´m still exhausted from the flight!

Hasta Luego!