At the top of the world

I used to think that I was relatively fit. Yesterday started off with a relatively simple idea - to explore the Incan ruins surrounding the city of Cusco. A 2 km hike to the first site seemed very do-able, but little did we know it would be an entirely uphill climb, starting at a city with an elevation of 3300 m.

Saqsaywaman (prounounced 'sexy woman') turned out to be a pretty cool place. Cucsco is laid out in the shape of a puma, with Saqsaywaman at the head. It was built in the 1400s, but only a fifth of the original structure remains today due to the Spaniard invasion a century later. The site was designed to protect the city from earthquakes and volcanic activity, a mission that they successfully accomplished since the structure is still standing today. Huge black limestone blocks are arranged in three tiered layers in a jagged formation. These were transported from a nearby quarry by rolling logs underneath, a huge undertaking that took 5-10 years each. The biggest blocks are at the bottom layer, some weighing over 300 tonnes, and each block fits together seamlessly with the next. Within the block structures are tunnels and intricate carvings of alpacas, guinea pigs, snakes and pumas, all which are important in Incan mythology.

We set off for the next ruin, Q'uenqo (which means labyrinth) when we encountered another traveller, a british guy named Michael... or should I say Legolas! This guy was a seasoned hiker, travel guide, and probably had elfish origins. After scrambling around the Q'uenqo ruins, we decided to accompany him to Pukupukara and Tambomachay, two other archaeological sites that were supposed to be closeby. This is probably the worst decision I have made in recent memory. We decided to take the scenic route, meaning following the supposed path in our friend's guidebook. It turned out to be an entirely uphill hike, and while Meghan and I struggled slowly along, Legolas led the way in front of us, leaping from rock to rock and surveying the path ahead. Each step for me was sheer agony, and the air kept getting thinner. We were surrounded by the gorgeous scenery of the surrounding Andean mountains, but all I could think about was whether the tightness in my chest meant an impending heart attack.

Michael, our guide


After what seemed like hours, I asked how much longer, and our adopted guide consulted his guidebook and said he wasn't too sure ; the map didn't look very detailed. I looked at the map, and - no joke - it looked like a drawing of Middle Earth. There were x's and dotted lines and pictures of horses. We were doomed. The sunny skies turned cloudy, and many, many times I contemplated not going on. You know what stopped me? Shame. I couldn't have a British guy think that Canadians quit when the going gets tough, especially after he assumed we were Americans. Also, setting off back to town by myself would have lead to me tumbling downhill to my death.

So, as the sun was setting, we finally reached Tambomachay. I can't really remember what it looks like though because I blacked out from exhaustion. The only thing that I'll exert myself doing today is eating overpriced Honeynut Cornflakes.

-V

The Day after Yesterday

Have you ever had a day that started off terribly and you just knew it was going to get from bad to worse? It finally happened to me, the eternal optimist. After the Galapagos, we decided it would be a fine idea to save cash and bus the 1200 km from Guayaquil to Lima. We had to make a stopover in the town of Piura, and getting there was horrendous, including forcing everyone out of the bus in the middle of the night, not once but twice, to declare our border crossing to the Ecuadorian and Peruvian authorities.

At 5 in the morning, we were herded out of the bus when we reached Piura. I groggily looked around and saw that we were trapped in some type of horribly dank and filthy holding cell. I heard a clanging noise and saw that a 5 m high iron-barred gate had slammed shut, locking us in. And then I realized that the worst had happened - we were being rounded up to become prisoners at a Peruvian forced labour camp. Or, almost as bad, we were stranded in a subpar bus terminal in South America. I looked for the exit, and then a guard approached me and said ´No señorita, it´s too dangerous to go out.´ He also informed me that the next bus to Lima wasn´t leaving until 3pm. Dear god! 10 hours trapped in this hellhole!

Eventually we learned that there were other bus terminals in town, and took a taxi to Flores, which wasn`t so bad because it had windows and MTV. We stood around awkwardly with our huge packs, pondering our next move. I guess the security guard there took pity on us because he suggested that we sit down and rest, and explained that we could leave our bags behind if we wanted to walk around town. Wander around a possibly dangerous unknown city with basic Spanish or sit and wait for hours? The choice was clear.

So we set off along the dusty, deserted streets of Piura in search of something to do. It started raining, of course. Eventually we came across a bustling family restaurant that smelled delecious, so we sat down for what turned out to be a satisfying breakfast. When it doubt, eat where the locals eat. Then we walked around and found a tourist information booth where they actually spoke English! A guide explained how to get around town and what sights to see. We went to the Museo del Vicus, which displays Incan artifacts. Little did we know that we would be the most interesting exhibits there...

In the museum, I sat down to study the city map. Then I heard giggling and a schoolgirl came up to and asked ´Español?` I told her I was Canadian and she went back to friends. Within seconds she came back and brought ten others who surrounded me and started asking me questions. I looked around, terrified... what did they want? My money? My bags? Meghan came back from the washroom and they pressed in around us, asking our names, why we were here, where were we from? We realized that they were kids on a school trip, just curious about these two huge Canadians visiting their town. Even the teacher emerged and shook our hands, asking if we like Piura. The girls produced notebooks - apparently they all wanted our email addresses? We signed them like celebrities giving autographs. Someone said they wanted to take pictures with them, so we posed with the entire class multiple times. Then it was time for them to leave and they all kissed and hugged us goodbye.

As the day unfolded, we managed to book flights to Cusco and back, found a decent pharmacy to buy anti-explosive-diarrhea pills and exchanged money for Peruvian nuevo sols. Our greatest find was the local shopping mall. It turns out it isn´t so hard to get your bearings and kill a day in a small town in South America. The weather turned out to be pretty terrific, too.

Conquered: Peru border crossing. Next stop: the jungle.

Eternally optimistic,
V

More Galapagos

Vanessa forgot some important Galapagos details. I don´t have time to write a full post, but here´s the point-form version.

• swimming with sea lions
• being tourists and pretending to sleep on a beach with sea lions
  
• swimming with sharks. Yes, sharks
• swimming with sea turtles
• convincing the crew to take us on a pirate mission to the National Geographic cruise ship to get ice cream from them
• living in the smallest room ever together and not killing each other
• eating constantly... as per usual

-Meghan

Galapa-happy-gos!

This is our last night of a whirlwind tour of the Galapagos Islands, and each day has been more incredible than the next. The crew, passengers and ship are more amazing than I ever could have hoped for. How Carlos the cook could have whipped up a delicious farewell cake for us during heavy sea swells is beyond me. In the past week we´ve travelled to six different islands, and my favourite expedition was to Seymour Island.

As soon as we stepped ashore, we were surrounded by shrieks, screeches and cries of frigates, terns and blue-footed boobies. Do you know what those sounds are? Baby-making. It´s mating season here. Blue-footed boobies are very distinctive animals, not just because of their name, but due to their curious nature and signature aqua-blue webbed feet. Like most other animals in the Galapagos, they have never known predators and show no fear of humans. I felt a bit pervy about it, but our guide Alphonso was adamant that we see the booby mating ritual upclose. It goes a little something like this:

Act I
The male booby circles the sky in search of his ideal mate. Spotting one from afar, he lands... and the show begins. In his efforts to impress the female, he fluffs his wings and walks around proudly with his chest thrust out, emitting trumpeting calls. It´s kind of like being at CIF.

Act II
After several minutes of this, the female appears vaguely interested and somewhat responds to the ritual so far. Efforts to attract the female intensifies as the male presents her with a series of gifts ranging from small sticks, grasses and then graduating to bigger sticks.

Act III
While the female peruses through her inventory of presents, the male feigns disinterest and walks away. This time the female follows. The mating ritually becomes an apparent success, and the male finally closes the deal. The pair will remain together for the rest of the mating season.

I think it´s a nice story... I´d like to turn it into a movie, possibly narrated by Morgan Freeman.

Epilogue
Weeks, later, 2-3 eggs hatch in their ground-level nest. Soon one of the hatchlings will emerge as the strongest, and will eliminate their siblings, as the parents only have the resources to raise one offspring. If this happened to humans, my sister Victoria would definitely win out. She was the biggest newborn.

Tomorrow we leave for the coastal city of Guayaquil, and then we´ll make our way to Cusco, Peru. We´ve opted to take the scenic 30-hr bus route instead of flying so we´ll hopefully cross the border in one piece.

-V

Horseback riding disasters / amazing adventures

Vho, Isabelle and I thought it would be a great idea to go horseback riding in Baños for 4 hours with a random Ecuadorian guy who was recommended by a woman who owns a restaurant and harassed us to write good things in her guest book. It started out well when our only instructions were left, right, stop, and vamos. My horse first decided to stop walking in order to eat garbage and then decided to stop in the middle of the street when trucks were coming at me from both directions...but, you know, you can´t expect things to go smoothly in South America. Apparently my horse and Isabelle´s horse didn´t get along too well, because any time they got close to each other they tried to bite each other and throw us off in the process. We probably should have been given helmets and riding lessons or something. Then we got to ride by amazing waterfalls and ended our trip up the side of a volcano, literally climbing up the remnants of the last lava flow. It was amazing!

meghan

Ecuador summarized so far

I´m going to be testing everyone on what we´ve done on our trip so far, so here are some handy Coles notes on Ecuador. Weekends are a really big deal here. I mean like Canada Day combined with long weekend celebrations. We were eating at an Argentinian restaurant on Saturday night when suddenly the streets exploded with fireworks, smoke and firecrackers. I´m typically a calm and composed person, so I dealt with it really well while Meghan was easily startled. Gosh. There were parades, marching bands, and crazy floats and tram rides filling the streets as well. When I asked what they were celebrating, someone replied ´its the weekend!´ Which is the way it should be, really, because I´m usually just happy that Meghan can sleep off her Phils hangover for a little longer.

Sundays are another story as well. In the streets of Baños we saw a long procession of people led by a priest carrying an enormous cross, followed by a sombre band of saxophonists (sp?) that were playing some kind of a bluesy New Orleans funeral music, and crowds of people behind them, all filing into the local church. The population of Baños doubles on Sundays as people flow in from all around the countrysides.

The majority of Ecuadorians live in poverty and unemployment is high. So high that many of them can´t pay the price of $1US beers. Or maybe they just have their priorities straight. Nonetheless, they´re a very hardworking people. We didn´t see any homeless people at all begging in the streets of Quito and even the beggars work hard for their money. For example one child was selling candy on the bus by singing a capella, and just tonight we saw someone asking for money by doing some kind of robotic Michael Jackson impression while weaving through traffic. Speaking of traffic, I really thinking car honking has lost all meaning in Ecuador. I have come up with the following reasons that warrant honking (insert colon... stupid South American keyboards)

• Passing fellow taxi drivers/trucks/buses
• When someone is in their way
• When someone is about to get in their way
• Passing pretty girls
• Passing ugly girls
• Dogs
• Boredom

We´ll see if this pattern continues in Peru, because tomorrow we´re heading out for the Galapagos, and probably won´t have time to blog while sunning ourselves and snorkeling. Is it okay if I use this blog as a platform for bragging? I don´t really know blogging ettiquette...

Happy belated May 24!

-V

Bye Bye Baños

The rain finally stopped in Baños this morning. We were enjoying a morning coffee on the rooftop terrace of our hostel when Isabelle suggested that we stay an extra night. I had to think about for about half a second before agreeing. I went downstairs to book the night for Meghan and I, when who did I run into but two of my friends from UW, Shaz and Ryan! Of all the hostels in all the cities in South America...

We spent the afternoon mountain biking down the side of the Tungurahua Volcano on the outskirts of town. The biking company trucked us up the mountain and dropped us off at the base of the volcano. When we got out the guide asked if we could hear a rumbling in the distance. Apparently the rumbling was coming from the still active volcano. We stood in awed silence before I asked what was faster - lava flow or mountain biking. There are several suggestions I would make before you decide to go biking in Ecuador, or anywhere in general. First make sure that the biking path isn´t entirely cobblestones and rocks. Then make sure that the shock absorbers on the bike aren´t totally fake. Watch out for dogs and cows too - they´re pretty spry. When you´re flying down the mountain absorbing the shock of a thousand rocks per second, you can take your mind off the agony by seeing how long you can go without pressing the handle brakes. My personal record is 3.5 seconds.

To reward ourselves after finishing the bike ride, we sat down for a delicious lunch in el centro of Baños. We ate at a restaurant that makes an Ecuadorian specialty called ´cuy.´ Do you know what cuy is? Guinea pig. I´ll never look at them the same way again.

Tomorrow we leave for Quito, and the next day we´re flying to the Galapagos Islands.

Ciao!
-V

Near Death Experience #1

As Vanessa mentioned, we went rafting yesterday near Baños. Obviously there were many warning signs like truck they brought us there in that didn´t have walls, the extreme rain in the morning, and the fact that it was only $25...but we prefer to turn a blind eye to those. So everything is going well until we get to the very end of our trip. I see the safety kayaker signal our guide from ahead and then hear our guide mutter something under his breath in Spanish. He tells us to get ready to paddle fast and then we hit these huge waves. We´re almost through it when the back of our raft goes under and myself and the guy behind me get thrown over. Apparently my years and years of lifeguard training were worth it, because I actually managed to stay calm while getting spun around at the bottom of a river of murky brown water. I even managed to hold on to my paddle. It took a lot of effort to stop myself from trying to swim while under water and just letting the pfd bring me to the top. Our raft came to rescue me and our tiny guide (like 5´3¨... maybe) suddenly became super human and launched me out of the water and into the boat. The only evidence of this near disaster is a giant bruise on my right arm.


Side note: my favourite Vho quote thus far is ¨but we don´t have accents, do we?¨ hahah!

-meghan

Saludos de Baños

So it turns out that we´re such efficient tourists, we´ve done everything we wanted to do in Quito within the span of three days. Now we´re in the town of Baños, a 3 hr bus ride away. It´s a beautiful but touristy town high in the Ecuadorian Andes, and we´re staying in the hostel Plantos y Blancos. Last night we went out with the people we´re currently travelling with, Andre and Isabelle, and encountered pretty much every single person in our hostel at the same bar. They played terrific Ecuadorian music like Bon Jovi, the Cranberries and Bob Marley. Because the bar prices are cheaper than Phils, we felt obliged to have several rounds of Mojitos and extra long Long Islands. The alcohol here does strange things such as making your Spanish worse. When I returned to the hostel I asked the security guard to take me to my room but instead he kept showing me the exit. I thought he was kicking me out for coming back so inebriated, but it turns out that I kept saying ´salida´instead of ´room.´ Salida means exit. Now I know.

We chose a really great exercise for curing hangovers this morning. It consists of waking up at 7 in the morning, taking a terrifying bus ride through the mountains, and squeezing into really flattering wetsuits... to go white water rafting. We also picked a really great expedition company that didn´t ask us about our swimming ability or rafting experience. But they were really nice and it only cost $25. So we rafted the Rio Pastaza for 10-15 kilometers and it was absolutely terrifying. The ride would have been shorter if it wasn´t for Meghan getting washed overboard with another rider, and since we spent so much time fishing them out of the water we missed our exit. These disastrous events took a turn for the better when we finally reached the next meeting point, where we found a woman and child stranded in the middle of the river. Apparently they had gone for a morning walk, but the river became so swollen with heavy rains that they couldn´t find their way back. So our guides became heroes and brought them back across the raging rapids. You can´t buy this kind of entertainment.

So far I would give Baños a 6/10 disaster rating, and 10/10 for breathtaking scenery.

Dias Una

Today was a day of firsts:

• First meal in South America: spanish omelette, cafe con leche y frutas (unlimited(
  
• First bus ride through the streets of Quito: think Mariokart but with less bananas
• First time I've stood in both the Northern and Southern Hemisphere at the same time: we went to el Mideo del Mundo or 'the middle of the world' at the equator in Ecuador

There was another Canadian travelling via Toronto-Miami-Quito with us yesterday who told us about a woman who had a guest visiting her in Quito for the first time. He went running through the streets with dogs without acclimatizing first, then collapsed and died. So we thought we would take it easy by navigating the streets of the city to reach the equator about 150 km away, with embarassingly little knowledge of Spanish. It helped a lot that we went with our hostel roommates; another Canadian, a Swiss and a German guy, all whom are seasoned travellers and fluent in Spanish. They pretty much took over in terms of acting as travel guides for us, and in turn we kept them up to date on Grey's anatomy and Desperate Housewives.

We're staying at a great hostel in Old Quito called The Secret Garden. It's a great atmosphere, everyone's super friendly and the accomodations are clean and cheerful. Yesterday we celebrated our disaster-free arrival by consuming enormous beers and chocolate menthe shots at the bar on the top-level terrace. When I inquired about the price he said he would just put it on my tab. This is going to be interesting...

Cheers!
-V

The Night Before Travels

It is 12:40 am on the eve of our South American Travels. We leave in 5 hours and our excitement is almost uncontrollable. Except that we need to get a decent amount of sleep so we'll have to find a way to harness the excitement.

Our goals for the trip are:
a) not dying
b) having a greater summer than any of you will ever experience
c) learning to eat spicy food
d) avoid getting explosive diarrhea
e) successfully communicating in Spanish

When asked why Meghan would be a great travelling partner, my first response was that 'she's a lifeguard, and knows CPR.' But also adding to that, she's probably one of my top three friends who are not crazy and I can get along with without having to fill the silences with nervous chatter. Also, she's probably taken care of me in more situations than I can count without complaints, and which will help accomplish our goals as listed above.

On my end, I think Vanessa will be an ideal travel-mate based primarily on the fact that she will keep me entertained. Otherwise, she's also one of my top non-crazy friends and is much more organized than I am. Yes, I realize that I have to make sure she doesn't die and bring me down with her, but that's a responsibility I'm willing to take on.

The goal of this journal is to keep everyone up to date on our travels, our disaster status and so on. So far we've managed to pick up Meghan from the train station, driving through treacherous rainstorms to reach Vanessa's house in Waterloo, so I think we're off to a great start. Tomorrow we'll have a delicious breakfast of cereals and apples - and after that, who knows?

We spoke of our lack of disasters too soon. Vanessa just dropped her camera.