Sunday, September 20, 1998
At 5:30, the dreaded alarm clock went off. Magnus, Annette, Paul and I headed to the airport for our 7:00 flight to Cusco. A relatively painless check-in process was made more fun only because I beat Paul in a Rock-Scissors-Paper match for the airport departure tax.
A
late, late, late night meant that despite the excellent window
seat, I was asleep even before the plane took off. I slept for
the first thirty minutes of the flight. When I awoke, I really
thought we were in final approach. But, no, it was just that the
plane was flying so close to the ground because the Andes are
somewhere near 20,000 feet on average. Being in a 747 weaving
through the mountain passes is not an experience to be missed.
Our arrival in Cusco was marked by an addition to the crowd. Paul and Magnus met an Aussie named Brett who is a professional photographer and had all the gear to match, including a tripod, digital video camera, super-huge lenses, etc. And I thought MY backpack was heavy! Anyway, we all headed to a hostel suggested by our taxi driver.
Hostel Siesta was fine, and the price was definitely right -- $5 a person a night. While walking into the main square, we ran into Robert, much to the delight of a red-cheeked Annette. Of course, he joined us for a quick breakfast. Then, a nap was a definite necessity for all. It turned into an all-out-sleep-catchup-fest. We awoke just in time for dinner.
After a fine chicken dinner, a few of us headed out for some live music and then Robert, Brett and I headed to the disco. A few Peruvian girls "loved" us, but nothing serious. I turned in relatively early around 2 -- Brett and Robert stayed out late, late, late.
Monday, September 21, 1998
The mission for the day was to book our trip on the Inca Trail. Hundreds of companies compete for the dollars, and it's almost impossible to know which ones are good and which are bad. We didn't have to go very far, however, because our hotel manager just happened to be an Inca Trail expert. We booked with him, $50 a person, and begged and pleaded for good food on the trip... He assured us all would be well.
It was at this time that I had an excellent idea. For only $30, we could hire an extra porter to carry gear. It seemed like a bargain, and I had just the right cargo in mind -- beer, an excellent bottle of scotch I bought, and some extra food just in case the food is as bad as was reported by other travellers. We booked the extra porter and congratulated ourselves for our brilliance.
Then, it was off to see some of the ruins around Cusco. We took a van about 10 kilometers away and then walked back while visiting each of several ruins pictured below. Brett, the Aussie pro photographer, lugged an unbelievable amount of gear and was very unhappy with the lighting. My pictures look fine, I think!
My favorite spot along the way was a huge statue that resembled me in a very strange way...
Before heading back to the hotel, I purchased an Alpaca wool poncho, wool gloves, and a wool hat. All for the low, low price of 50 soles, about $17. The poncho was incredibly soft -- and reversible as well! I was sure that I would be making quite the fashion statement on the Inca Trail. I turned in very early at around 9 and tried to think good thoughts of Brett who was making an incredible amount of noise and wouldn't allow me to turn off the light... Roommates!
Tomorrow, we'd start to hike the Inca Trail!