Arequipa…still

Hola amigos y familia. We are still in Arequipa contemplataing if we want to still work at this crap hostel. As it has been a while since our last post, we can give you a quick breakdown of the highs and lows here. Well, we had a list anyway, but of course i can not remember it, so I{ll deliver random thoughts. First, on the low side, we actually saw a guy get hit by a passenger van and die ( these vans speed around cramming as many people as possible into them as fast as possible.  It is the locals cheap transit).  Actually, Kristen saw the hit, I heard it (two trees blocked my view) but we were in the middle of the aftermath. His helmet flew at least 20 feet, he was on a motorcyle and hit by one of these cabbie buses.   He was laying there on his side witha stream of blood coming out of his head.  It is strange to see how other countries, specifically second world, react to accidents. AT thome everyone has a phone, 911 within minutes, etc. Here, people were concerned but did nothing. We met a Peruvian hostel mate on the walk home minutes after it happened and he pretty much did not seem to care what happened.  Instead of acting concerned, he asked what we had for lunch!!  Needless to say WE were affected.

On lighter notes, we went whitewater rafting with some very, for lack of a better word, hot peruvian guys. We had such a good time, we went for 3 hours and got up to class 4 rapids, apparently. We are looking forward to cusco so we can go for 3 days. Sergio, if you read this somehow, we love you and will give you citizenship.

Finally, after a night of unforseen partying at the hostel last night, you can imagine my shock (Elisa) when I awoke to a bloke in our room taking a piss in the corner behind my bed, full trousers down. At first I was outraged he was hitting my clothes and such, but then i saw he hadn’t and enjoyed the moment laughing at him with his mate that is in the room as well. Then he tried to walk through the wall as if to exit, if you can picture that. His friend had to guide him out of this nook and take him to the baño while i ran and got some towels. It should be dually noted that KP had a look of content on her face as she slept through the whole fiasco with her glasses still on. Ha, her loss.

To top off the absurdity of our last few days, our cabbie tonight told us we were beautiful and he loved us. Really, probably the only words he knows in english. Everyone is shameless for a tip.

Oh and did we tell anyone about the earthquake we experienced in San Pedro? No? Oh, well, we did. It was just a tiny one, but we could feel our beds shaking. Do not worry mom and Joan!

Buenos Noches

E

Beautiful Arequipa

Let us start off by saying the weather here is sunny and about 80 everyday! It is absolutely amazing how perfect the weather is. Elisa and I found ourselves walking around the city the other day and stumbled upon this open air market that was huge. There were all sorts of tropical fruit stacked two stories high. The colors were amazing. There was a whole aisle dedicated to fish which were sitting out n the counters and a few five foot long sharks were laying out as well. The next aisle was chicken. Some were whole and some were split in half exposing their guts. The next aisle was the amazing fruit and then next to that were the beef and pork aisles. We saw some huge pig feet and Elisa really wanted one (at least she said she did ). Most importantly though we had the best Tamales ever!!! They were only one sole and came fresh from the steamer out of the husk. Everyone just stands around the little kiosk and eats their tamale. One lady assured me that these were the best tamales around. Everyone in the market was very friendly and reaching out trying to get you to sample their products. Great place for a really cheap lunch!!!

After we wandered back to the hostel and got ready for a night out with the staff. To start the night off we played “extreme jenga” which is quite dangerous. They have these huge jenga pieces and they stack the tower differently. There are extreme rules that go with this game as well such as; if you use two hands… you take a shot, if you use a stool to get your piece to the top… you take a shot (this was the most worrisome for Elisa because the tower gets really really tall), if your piece is too easy… you take a shot and the worst one was if you make it fall you take two shots! I personally took one that was too easy, used two hands, and made it fall. When it starts to get wobbly they give you a hard hat before you take your turn. Elisa had used two hands and then got stuck playing the next round because she was in the bathroom when it started. It goes without saying we are ever playing “extreme Jenga” again! WE had a good time out with the staff. I was part of a social experiment with a guy from Israel. He is studying how people interact and we analyzed a group of four people just watching how they interacted and what kind of relationship they had. When we had reached our hypothesis we walked over to the two couples and he asked them in Spanish if we were right and we were! Kinda fun. While I was doing this, Elisa and our new english friend Netti were getting Salsa lessons from a couple locals.

As, for what we did yesterday, NOTHING. It was really “well nice” in Netti,s words to just have a day off.

Oh Dios mio!!

The past few days have by far been the most trying for Elisa and I. We booked tours in San Pedro de Atacama and the geyser tour we booked was scheduled to pick us up at our hostel at 4am. Kinda early but we made it. It was absolutely freezing cold and neither Elisa or I packed a winter coat so we put on every layer we could fit into and braved it with the others who were wearing full on winter gear. So, the bus picks us up and there is no heat and not too far down the bumpy road we stop. There seems to be some kind of problem with the bus! Oh yay! Sitting there freezing in the middle of the desert is not fun. Finally a replacement bus comes to pick us up and we all pile in and head out for two hours of intense bumpy roads. Not exactly comfortable. Finally we got to the geysers where we tried to warm up by steaming pools of sulfur which didn’t work too well but once the sun came up it was much more tolerable. From the geysers we went to a hot spring fed pool where Elisa and I stripped down to our swimsuits (it was still only about 15 deg. f at the time) and we got into the pool with the other brave souls. Pretty good time. On the way back we were switch backing through the mountains and came upon a small city called Muchucua and Elisa and I indulged in Llama on a stick. That night we went out with some britts, a Kiwi and a Scott and had interesting discussions on politics of America (we told them we were from Canada as we often do because of the extreme hatred of americans).

The next morning we actually got to sleep in a little and we were headed out to a three hour horseback riding tour through La Valle de Muerte (Death Valley). It was absolutely beautiful. However, Both Elisa and I were a little nervous about the horses. Had I realized Elisa hadn’t{t ridden in ten years and was unsure of how to control the horse I would have briefed her…or the tour guide could have been more helpful as well. As we were going up a sand dune Elisa^s horse decided to take and alternative route and practically jump up a steep dune. She screamed and I think it kinda spooked the horses and they started running a little. Her horse and my horse were racing and I thought for sure my horse was going to brush me off in a rock wall but we managed to calm them down and took a bit easier path back. It was fun once the worst was over and still a good experience although I don{t know if Elisa would say the same.

Last night we caught a bus from SAn Pedro de Atacama to Arica and arrived there this morning. WE thought we could just buy tickets to Arequipa, Peru and when we got off the bus a man asked if we needed tickets to Arequipa. WE went to his established ticket counter and bought two tickets. He told us to wait as the bus would be there soon and after about fifteen minutes he flagged us over (calling out my name as Marie… actually now that I think of it he could have been calling over Elisa, or maybe he thought both our names were Marie. They tend to pick the easiest name to pronounce off of your passport) So we go over and he introduces us to a grandfather looking gentlemen and says this is your driver. He brings us out to a parking lot and shows us his car. Both us were immediately sketched out by this and turned him down and went back inside the terminal to try to find a different route. Then we saw some guys that were on our bus and had talked to the same travel agent. When they went to meet “their bus” we went with as they spoke spanish and we felt much safer with two men. Apparenlty, that is how it is done in Arica to get across the boarder so we went with the same original driver but with the two guys as well. We saw many other people who were doing the exact same thing and it all turned out to be very good. The driver went out of his way to help us and bring us to the correct bus terminal.

Peruvian buses are totally different. We got on and it stunk and they were older and apparently it is ok to yell at the bus driver. We made a few stops and the passengers would start yelling “Vamanos” and “directo” because it was supposed to be a direct bus. At all the stops vendors would get on and try to sell nuts and breads and these delicious potato things. Kinda strange but definately interesting. Oh yeah and can{t forget the movie we watched and when it ended the driver never bothered to turn it off so the theme song kept playing for over an hour. The same song, about 30 seconds long and horrible over and over and over and over again!!!! Ahhh!

Finally we arrived at the hostel and it seems pretty cool and there are other Americans which is nice for a change. We will be attempting to work here for a few weeks but have not solidified that plan yet.

Hola Chile

Buenos dias! We have arrived in Chile! How we got here was a bit interesting. Our alarm yesterday was the sound of one of the hostel staff in Salta passed out in our room snoring in his tighty whiteys. Loudly. The cats in the street were hissing and fighting loudly and our third roomate, an Argentinian guy from BA, was swearing about all the noise.

We made it to bus the bus in time after our cab was late. It was on South American time after all. After 8 hours on the bus, we got to San Pedro de Atacama, Chile. San Pedro is in the middle of nowhere in the Andes, but is beautiful. We were immediately nervous when we got off the bus because we had no hostel, and as previously mentioned, were in the middle of nowhere. This means no taxis, no obvious city center, not buildings more than a story, etc. After trekking around for a while with our packs we found hostels. However, paying in cash is the preferred method. Easy, find the ATM right? Oh no, they are empty. We learned from a local they are ment to be filled twice a day, which actually happens twice- weekly. You´ll be happy to learn we found a hostel which takes cards and we have been able to eat and sleep without too much hassle. We have been trekking out around the town all day and plan on a geyser tour and horse backriding before Wednesday.

Ciao

Traffic Advisory

Traffic here is quite amazing.  Yes, there are lines and lights and some stop signs but do you think that really means anything!  Crossing the street is like defying death every time you make it from one side to the other.  Elisa and I have gotten pretty good, but there is still a wooftah  every time we get to the other curb.  Many times we look to each other like “ok, here we go…” and then make a run for it.  The cars seem to swerve in and out of traffic making close calls with buses and other motorists.  Many of the cars here have taken a time warp from the 50´s and 60´s.  Its amazing that they are still running!  Though they do backfire quite often and sputter out clouds of thick dark smoke as they pass by.  Let it be noted that there is no maximum capacity for how many people you can fit in a car as well.  I have seen many small cars with upwards of 8 people in them.  We´re not talking large sedans either.  These aresmall cars that would normally be full at 4 people.  The other night I saw a car that had 7 adults in it and they were crammed against the windows.  They looked pretty happy though…  For the trump of all the passenger vehicles is the motor bike.  In Le Tigre I saw a family of four stacked on one small bike.  I still have no idea how they were all on there.  Just today Elisa and i saw a bike with the dad and two small children go by and the poor kids looked like they were holding on for dear life.  Another advisory is the dog poop everywhere.  I have never seen so many stray animals in my life.  They are cute dogs too and it is often hard to tell which dogs are strays and which ones are pets.  Anyway, aside from the dog poop every ten feet the tiles on the side walks are loose and/or missing and can be very dangerous.  Just walking around the city can be mentally exhausting.  Dodging buses, cars, mopeds, dog poop and missing tiles doesn´t really allow a person the ability to look up very often.  Its ok though.  Like I said, its a death defying journey every time you walk out of the hostel which can be very gratifying to know that “yes, I have defied the odds again!”

Salta and bus fun

Hola y buenos dias amigos!  Ha ha thats the extent of MY spanish at least.  Kristen and I left BA on Tuesday this week.  We took the bus for 20 hours from BA to Salta, in the North West not far from the Bolivian border.  Now twenty hours on a bus in South america sounds less then fun, yeah?  Well let us tell you, it was AMAZING!  First off, the seats fold  out completely 180 degrees, we stopped and had dinner at 11 and it was empanadas and roast chicken, including dessert.  We also gor breakfast and lunch and movies.  Its important to note Kristens favorite part was the soap on a stick in the bathrooms you had to use when washing. 

We got into salta and walked around in the afternoon, identifying necessary places like the town square, tourist info, market and bars.  We had dinner at a barbacue at the hostel where we met a bristish couple and guy from italy and the staff here at the hostel, who have been wonderful and very nice.  We had a lot of wine from Mendoza and stayed up til two chatting.

Today we hiked this mountain-hill thing here that has a gondola.  We could see all of Salta the surrounding mountains and a lot of smog.  we plan on staying til Sunday then probably go to chile.  Have a good day!

Fútbol is fun

Yesterday Elisa and I went to a fútbol game in La boca.  It was crazy.  We were on the tourist side so it was much safer and calmer. But, on the other side of the stadium the people didn´t stop jumping and singing the whole time.  We did some jumping and singing as well as the team we were rooting for the ¨boca Juniors¨ finished the game 3-0.  Pretty wild how they usher everyone into such a small space.  What we thought would be seats ended up just being concrete stairs where you stand the entire time.  A little uncomfortable but thankfully it was only about 65 degrees, otherwise we would have been far overheated.  We went with an organized tour which cost $150 argentinian pesos so about fifty US doloars and included the game ticket,¨food¨and transportation.  We thought it wasn´t such a bad price until we got on the bus and were brought to a garage that was set up with a table and they gave us Chorrizo sandwiches which were being grilled on the street out front.  Not much of a choice but to eat it.  Those sandwiches are worth about $3 pesos which is one dollar.  The tickets for the game were only $24 pesos or eight dollars.  Kind of a rip off but the good thing is that the area where the stadium is is the worst neighborhood in Buenos, so we had safety in numbers.  A couple people from our hostel went together and a man tried to steal a girl´s camera and she wouldn´t give it up and ended up on the ground I guess but otherwise unharmed and still with her camera (she must have been stupid to have it out at night after the game).  I thouroughly enjoyed the game with the singing and jumping (kinda scary to jump on stairs but you have to get into it!).  Elisa said she could do without going to another one again.  Last night we stayed in and chatted with some other hostel goers and made our own dinner. Kinda hard to cook with ancient gas stoves but managed to figure it out.  When I woke up this morning I wasn´t feeling  so well and ended up laying in bed all day.  Took some of my pills and I feel much better now.  Tomorrow we plan to leave for Salta, Argentina which is in the north and supposed to be very beautiful.  From there we will catch a bus to Potosi, Bolivia (We were told it is very safe, beautiful and cheap).  WE are avoiding all the big cities now because there is more crime and pollution and we´ve both had enough! WE´ll give you updates once we get settled into our hostel after our 20 hour bus ride!

Note for Nancy-

WE are staying at Corre Camino Hostel in Salta

these days

So we´vebeen busy littlewalkers here in the city.  Yesterday we walked around for 4 hours again and found this snazzy little walkers alley with lots of shops and street performers.  We sat and watched some muy guapo break dancers for about 30 minutes.  FYI Kristen used her whole sim card up, due to these lads.  It is important to note that she also spotted a Yacht Master II rolex just sitting there in a boutique window.  For those who are not time piece oficionados, that is the new all white gold Rolex.  Anyway.  Today I (Elisa) went to the Evita Museum and the giant flower thing.  Kristen saw a fair- carnival thing and went on a boat ride in le tigre.  She also continues to test the limits of her stomach and immune system by drinking the water and eating street meat hot dogs.  I hope for the sake of us all, she does not regret these decisions. Ciao!

A walk in Buenos Aires

We started of the day of walking around 1:30 this afternoon in the hopes to reach REcoletta cemetary.  Both of us thought it was much warmer today than yesterday so we dressed accordingly.  Well, that was stupid. The Argentinians were all bundled in winter coats and scarves and here we are in short sleeves.  People were continuously looking at us like we were crazy. After abut fifteen minutes of walking in the the cold wind we were frozen and I (Kristen) was on a mission to find a sweatshirt.  I think everytime we went into a store we got turned around, so what should have been a  half hour walk turned into about three hours.  Though we did stop and I found a sweatshirt and Elisa and I looked into getting tattoos (Elisa slightly more seriously).   Finally, we found the graveyard and Evita´s grave was slighlty lack lustre compared to the other tombs but the whole place is amazing.  There were cats everywhere and beautiful iron work and sculptures.  All in all, a good day.

One note…

Apparently in Buenos Aires the nightlife is a big deal and it doesn´t start until 2am. Needless to say Elisa and I were in bed by midnight. We were going to try to go out with a large group made up of britts, french, italian and austrian but after eating dinner at 11pm with them we were spent. Its crazy how late the nightlife starts here. Earplugs were definately our friends last night as the group arrived back to the hostel at 5am this morning. However, over breakfast this morning those same people who went out woke up at the same time as us and were telling us of their wonderful travels in Peru and Argentina. Elisa and I are very excited for the next leg of our journey!!