The Spirit of Peru

We waited at our generic-looking gate waiting to board our flight back to Lima. Ten minutes before boarding time, a flight attendant wheeled a "Star Perú" sign over to the gate, and whipped out what can only be described as a tiny amp with a microphone attached. He then began making announcements through his tiny amp and eventually we boarded the flight with our tickets, which were basically receipts that we were given at check in. It has been decided that Star Peru is the Spirit Airlines of this country.

 Once everyone was settled, a flight attendant did a head count of the passengers on board (yes that's right, head count...as if we are on a school field trip) and we are ready to go. Next stop: sand dunes in Paracas.

 Our driver, Fabio, picked us up at the airport. We booked him through a travel agent and we also met him the night we arrived, as he is the one who met us at the airport and brought us all of our vouchers and tickets for our stay. He took our bags from us and lead us to his car. Normally the taxis here are large white vans, and we were surprised when he led us to his tiny blue town car. "Normally we take van but since we driving three hours this car is much better," he said. And so we believed him. We buckled up and were ready to go. He backed out of the spot, turned the corner of the airport parking lot and we heard a loud CLUNK. Followed by a quieter clunk..clunk..clunk......clunk..........clunk. Annnnd the car stops. He gets out, looks at the car and says, "get out car is broken". We get out and watch as he pushes the car into a spot. So much for this car being good for a three hour drive. He tells us we will take a taxi to his house to get his van and we will then drive to the desert. Naturally, we agree to the taxi to Fabio's house and we are on our way.

 The driving here is unbelievable. Each road is a 2 way street, however if there is no oncoming traffic, it instantly becomes a 2-lane, one way street. That is, until another car shows up and everyone squeezes back into one lane just barely avoiding numerous head on collisions within seconds. We drove for miles like this passing nothing but sand and asparagus fields (if only we could snatch those up and bring them back with us. For now I will resort to paying $5.99 a bundle. Oh well.)

 When we finally arrived, we were picked up by a van of people who were also going sand boarding. Of course, we were the only ones in the whole group, including the guide, who spoke any English. Tali asked the guide how long the tour was and he kept saying "yes...four people in a car". So much for that. We arrived at the sand dunes and indeed we were instructed to put on goggles and move to the sand buggies...four per car. It should be noted that these buggies were really just metal car frames - no walls or anything of the sort. We got in and, without direction or warning, were buckled up and took off. We drove up, down, in and around the biggest sand dunes I have ever seen. There were some points that seemed as if we were going straight down a wall of sand at a 90 degree angle and at points it felt like an actual roller coaster. I wish I could describe how beautiful it actually was (or that I could upload a picture from this tiny mobile device that I am writing from) but since I can't you will have to wait for pictures later. You know what they say about patience. #itsavirtue

The guide stopped the car on top of one of the massive dunes and told us to take our shoes off and get out. The sand was so incredibly soft and clean and was an actual pleasure to walk on. We were then given sand boards and instructed to get on and slide down. We could sit, stand or lay on our bellies. We then had to hike back up the massive mound of sand to do it over again. (Try hiking up a hill of sand next time you see one..not a very easy task. Though its been nice having regular amounts of oxygen at our disposal).

All in all it was an incredible experience and it was most definitely worth the nauseating 6 hour round trip drive. We are now back in our cozy hotel which we'll be in for the next 2 nights. It is by far the best one yet, if not only for the fact that the hot water knob actually budges. Goodnight from Peru!

Trains, planes and world wonders

Woke up at the crack of dawn this morning to catch our train. Train stations and rides here are oddly similar to airports and flights elsewhere. We arrived with our previously purchased tickets, which had assigned seats. We waited until our train was boarding and we got on the train. Turns out there are four seats facing eachother, and we became friends very quickly with John and Bob, whom we would be facing in our seats for the next three hours. The train has windows in their usual locations, as well as skylights lining the ceiling. We listened to train music, which I can only describe as glorified elevator music with a South American twist for three hours straight. Flight attendants (train attendants?) walked the aisles offering drinks to us passengers, as we twisted through fields of corn and quinoa. We took the train to the last stop to catch a bus up to Machu Pichu. The bus zig zagged up a mountain and each turn that this bus made had to have been at a 359 degree angle. While on the bus, we realized that along with our correct names and passport numbers, our travel agent had written Tali and I down as 49 and 55 year old Israeli women, respectively. We were minorly concerned when we saw security actually verifying the information on these tickets but luckily they let us slide. We met our guide, Mr. Darwin, and the morning was beautiful as we hiked up and around Machu Pichu, - quite the site. Somewhere near the exact top of the mountain, the skies opened up and it started to pour insanely. Obviously everyone else on the tour had ponchos and raincoats, but I (#yoursmartfriendrach) brought a mere sweatshirt as a substitute. Which basically did nothing. It's was all worth it in the end for the alpaca sweater I was forced to buy myself. Yes it is made of alpaca and yes it is also embroider with pictures of llamas and alpaca. If you don't think that's cool don't hang out with me when I'm back, but you'd be missing out. On the way back there was a market, which is relativity similar to the shook in Israel. We went on our own to bargain down some belongings and caught our train ride back. We are now safe back in Cuzco and are gearing up for our super early star peru flight, another adventure tomorrow.

Welcome to Peru!

After a seriously long 48 hours of travel, we finally reached Cuzco, Peru and all is well! We started off our trip with a minor incident in the airport, where security thought there was a small bomb in my right shoe. Turns out it was just the Nike/iPod chip (which I had totally forgotten about and is classically my luck) so after some clarification we were on our way. 

Next on our list of things to do was find me one of those squishy neck pillows for the plane. We searched high and low and the only one that was available was an aggressively nerdy "I heart NY" pillow, with the classic I heart NY logo imprinted all over it. Well nerdiness has never stopped me, so I bought the pillow and off we went. 

12 hours and 2 flights later, we had landed in Lima, Peru and checked in to our hotel for the evening...only to wake up four hours later to catch our plane to Cuzco. We met an American who saw my neck pillow and inquired about our travel to New York. Oh, I'm from Connecticut...I just really love my neighboring state. A lot. 

We waited at the Star Peru 

 gate (yes that is actually the name of an airline here), which was so small that we would have to walk the tarmac to get to our plane. Our plane was obviously delayed and while we waited we heard the airline announce that another flight was boarding. We watched as around 30 men lined up with life jackets in their hands. We turned to each other and said "was this flight byofd (bring your own floatation device)...?" Turns out we didn't have to bring our own life jackets and that that plane was for a specific mission. 

Finally we took off and after some seriously rough air and flying rather close to some seriously high mountains, we made it to Cuzco. 

The altitude here is 11,000 feet above sea level and as a result, walking up even a short flight of stairs leaves us huffing and puffing as if we just ran a marathon. Yes, it's rather pathetic looking. We tried some of the local coca leaves, a plant known here for curing altitude sickness, but is illegal in the US due to the fact that it can be chemically altered into a strain of cocaine, if done properly. No need to fear we just chewed on a few of them, which was both gross and ineffective. 

We met our tour guide who lead us through 6 ancient landmarks and ruins, and after an exhausting day we are finally back in what can only be described as a two-story bamboo hut, gearing up for our big Machu Pichu adventure tomorrow. Stay tuned!

All My Theories: Confirmed.

Growing up, I had this theory. It was a theory about dinosaurs (and yes it was something I thought about often.) My thought process was the following: We have all this proof that dinosaurs existed at some point. All kinds of fossils and the like. But the thing is, we only have their insides. Nothing has been found that tells us what they looked like on the outside. All we really have are their bones.

So how could we ever know what they really looked like? We can't. It was then that I decided scientists are dull and text books can't actually be trusted. While you and the rest of the world pictured dinosaurs that were grey, and maybe even forest green or maroon, I knew that in reality they were yellow with hot pink polka dots and highlighter orange with lime stripes.

Of course, anyone I ever told this to thought I was just so "adorable" with my "wild imagination", and I quickly learned that they would never understand. I would have to keep my ingenious theories to myself and it would have to suffice that at least I knew the truth.

As I was flipping through the pages of my National Geographic this afternoon (bet you didn't see that coming), I suddenly let out a loud gasp. Those in the room looked up from their seats and asked what was wrong. "Oh nothing...just a new discovery confirming everything I ever thought to be true." They blinked a few times and continued on with their merry business.

What was that new discovery, you ask? A new type of dinosaur...covered WITH FEATHERS! Yes that is correct: Those huge beasts that you had always pictured as rough and dark, only this one is fluffy and cuddly. Of course their sketch was not neon in color, but you can't really blame them. One step at a time as they say.

Alright, so I exaggerated. Not all of my theories have been confirmed yet, but you just wait around and see. The point is that if dinosaurs could have feathers, who knows what else they could have had! The options are endless. And yes, I knew it all along.

For more evidence of my prodigy-like tendencies, visit http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/04/120404-yutyrannus-feathers-dinosaur-science-nature-biggest/

In Memory of my Grandma Susan

If I had to choose one word to describe you Grandma, it would be resilient. Resilient when you escaped Germany with the kinder-transport when you were only four years old. Resilient when you and your nine year old cousin traveled halfway across the world alone, to a country whose language you didn't even speak. You built a life for yourself here and started a family despite all of it. Resilient after suffering numerous heart attacks and various other illnesses that somehow never seemed to get in your way. You were so resilient in fact that numerous doctors knew who you were and of all the fights that you would put up for anyone who stood in the way of how you wanted things to go. It is this trait that has kept us going through all of our years and it is because of your resilience in particular that I am here today. 

You always loved to keep things new and exciting. Whether it was moving houses or redecorating your current house, making a new painting or playing a new song on the piano, you always had something new, fancy and fun to show us whenever we came over. And you never stopped. When I got to your house yesterday one of the first things I noticed was the palette of paint which was still wet, waiting for you to perfect the canvas next to it. 

Art is something that always connected us. You saw potential in me before anyone else did, and you always taught me new things when we were together. When we weren't together, you would save pictures, articles and books to show me the next time you saw me. From you I learned shading, perspective and to look at things in a different light - both literally and figuratively. When I turned 16 you took me out for driving lessons and when I got my license , you trusted me to let me borrow your car - probably just a little sooner than you should have. 

Growing up with you around was always an adventure. You were always up for anything and you never did anything half-heartedly. Even when we walked to the park which was basically next to your condo, we would never take the "normal" route. Instead we had to go the long way around, through the forest and over the creek balancing on tiny rocks to get across. Inevitably someone would end up with at least one soaking wet shoe but it didn't matter, it was always hilarious and we ended up laughing the whole way. We jumped on your bed while you, the "monster", tried to knock us down and you even let us paint the walls of your atrium as we transformed them from simple concrete into a jungle filled with wildlife. We played hide and seek with you and you were so good at it that to this day we still don't know if you actually didn't see us that time you checked the closet we were in three times while we stifled our giggles trying not to give ourselves away. When we wanted to see if we were good at tying knots, you let us hog tie you with our jump ropes - it turns out we weren't very good at it but I still can't believe you let us do that. Grandma, you were always up for everything and anything and you never let any obstacles get in your way. 

I will now have to continue my adventures through life without you physically in them, however the lessons that I have learned from you will forever be with me, and I will miss you.

*In loving memory of my Grandma Susan who passed away on September 9, 2012.

Hangin' in Belize

Papaya on the Beach

Today was a rather chilled out one. Woke up a little on the later side, grabbed some ice coffee (from a touristy place that actually knew what it was) and took a stroll around town. We then had fresh squeezed banana papaya juice on the beach until it was time for our water taxi ride back to the mainland. 

Our ferry back was significantly smoother than the last time, as we do not check our bags and decided to take them with us. When we arrived in Belize City, we caught a taxi to our hotel. The driver helped us in and closed the door for us. Instead of the usual sliding the van door shut, he closed it almost all the way but not completely. He then "secured" it shut with a lock that can only be described as a hook through a metal loop. The kind that you occasionally see in a not so fancy public bathroom. Comforting eh?

We thought we would maybe catch a movie tonight so we asked the cab driver if there was a movie theater nearby. After asking the same question 3 times, the driver did not understand what we were asking. Now this was not because of a language barrier (fun fact: Belize is actually the only  country in Central America where English is the official language), it was because he did not know what a movie theater was. It turns out that there are only 2 movie theaters in the whole country, and both of those theaters only have movies playing on the weekends. So there went that plan. 

Alternative plan: grabbing water from a local mini-mart and hanging out in our again not so five star hotel. And by not so five star I mean the kind where the bathroom walls do not fully reach the ceiling of the room. Aka we have a hotel room with a bathroom stall in the corner. But it has beds and an air conditioner which is more than we can ask for, and it is our new home until we are forced to say goodbye to Belize for now as we hop on our plane to Atlanta tomorrow morning. Farewell Belize and thank you for being a fantastic host to some of the craziest adventures I have experienced thus far.