The Latest Late Fragments

I'm back.

At least for now.

I was meaning to write as soon as the fall semester ended but then before I knew it the holidays had come upon our home. There were choir and music programs, holiday parties and the we instituted a winter cleaning and re-arranging of the kid's bedrooms.  I almost had less time on my hands than I did during the semester. Now, with the kids back in school, I can exhale a little. First world problems, I know and I am NOT complaining.

The fall semester went by in a flash.  I am halfway through my graduate certificate program and I held down my full time teaching duties without being a terrible professor (well at least not too terrible, as I am still employed).

I was busy but it honed me to use my time wisely. Now, when I look back over the years at falling behind with my grading all while just having my familial and job duties, I just have to wonder....what was I doing with my time??

Hint: Youtube and the internet

And no, I am not capitalizing internet.

Here's the kid update. C was elected to the 5th grade student council and now plays the cello, E  (2nd grade) joined the school choir and has gotten a lot more mature this year (less fits, easier for her to soothe herself), H (age 4) played soccer and when he was playing attention, the best or second best player on the field, he is also OBSESSED with Pokemon.

Pokemon cards, Pokemon TV shows, trading cards, pretending we are Pokemon, saving up his pennies and talking about buying Pokemon, Pokemon, POKEMON POKEMON.


At work, I applied for promotion, which took hours and hours of getting my digital portfolio ready. Thankfully, some of the ground work had been done in the spring. I also hosted a Black Lives Matter speaker as well. I didn't need to have too many signs up as I was having 5-6 classes coming to the event, but I put a few up outside my office. We had to replenish the signs over 8 times. Yup, folks, racism is a alive and well in 2016. The event itself went well enough though with standing room only!

Every night before bed, even if I was behind with my graduate reading I would read The Name of the Rose. It was slow, kinda boring and comforting. If you like dense, going off on odd historical tangents, and books that are a tad boring books, I recommend it.

Since the break, I read though a bunch of old comics (yay),  A Smithsonian Book of Comic-Book Comic, The Man in the High Castle (because we love the show), and skimmed through What If? (by the xkcd comic author). I am reading a book about Confucianism now. It's great to just read.

I've booked most of my flights for my wife and I this summer. We will be visiting Dublin & Belfast (and parts many places between) and London. We have an old friend in London, so that's awesome when you have a local around to help.  Then, my love flies back home after a week and I go up to Ballycastle in northern, Northern Ireland for another two weeks for my capstone class. I heard it's class from sun-up to sun-down, but a former student (and friend who did this program last year) said they advised the program director to ease up and allow some free time. I can hope they heeded his advice.

Now, I've got to get busy planning a study abroad to India, becausel, what else am I going to do? When I turned 39, back in July, it really  gave me a sense of urgency in what I want to do with my career. I found a willing colleague, so why not? Life is short and the world is full of adventure.

I'll try to blog again before I am back at work as I really want to finish up my high school memories series before Father Time eats more memories. I might even check in from time to time before I leave for our trip. Then, I will definitely be updating the blog with all the nutty details of our travels.

Well, back to reality and time to sweep up. Whoever you are, I hope your holiday season was well and you are able to reflect on your life and be thankful for something, even if it's small.
 

Peru Fragments: Part VII: The End of the Road

In the summer of 2014, I taught a short-term study abroad in Peru. Here are the fragments. Part VII can be found here.

What would be my last meaningful leg of the journey was going to take us to Puno and Lake Titicaca. We loaded up at the bus station in Cuzco early in the morning and settled in for an all-day bus trip.

The bus was nice enough and they had an "active" itinerary for us. With 3-4 stops along the way to give us a chance to stretch our feet. I appreciated the intent, it gave us something to see, something to do, etc. but on the last stop at a tiny museum,  I was just ready to get to our destination.  Nonetheless here are few photos from some of the sites:

I dunno, a window of an ancient structure.  If you've followed the Peru series by now, you know I am pretty much obsessed with shots like this. 

I liked this green example of pareidolia, especially the eyes.

Some old church in some small town, somewhere in Peru.

We finally arrived in Puno after a 9 hours of traveling. Puno itself isn't much to look at. The main attraction is of course, the highest elevated navigable lake in the world (and one of the best named lakes in the world) Lake Titicaca. We drove straight to the hotel (Eco Inn) and had dinner at the hotel (pretty decent). After a decent breakfast, we were off to the dock to explore the lake.

The water of Lake Titicaca was the bluest blue I have ever seen.

The water was so calm, our slow motorboat trip was so peaceful, you could forget you were even on the water.

Our guide for the next few days was pretty tripin'. Up until this point our guides had been friendly but pretty standard fare. Our guide for Lake Titicaca was much more open than our other guides and was more personal with us. We found out how she occasionally washed her hair in her own urine. Later on she told us about how she found out her future from someone who read coca leaves for her. She also told us that to find out what was wrong with a health problem, she had a guinea pig lay on her while she slept (I guess it was in a container of some kind), and then in the morning, they killed it to "read" its guts and tell her what was wrong with her. She was the real deal.

Our first stop was to the Uros islands. These are man-made islands that people actually live on! They've lived there so long they have their own unique culture (one that now is dependent on tourists coming to take photos of their unique living circumstances). It was cool to be there but it felt a little too "touristy" for me. The actual island is made up from reeds that grow in the lake "tortas" and it felt a little mushy, but strong. Apparently, they have to slowly but constantly rebuild it as the reeds rot underwater. Cool, but in retrospect, it was cooler in my imagination.

Then we headed over to the Llachón peninsula. I thought our plan was to stay at a local family's home but it was more of a B-n-B that was locally owned.  There were 3-4 unheated rooms with 2 beds each and an outhouse-like bathroom. There was no shower or bath for visitors. It was close to the lake and very quiet. 

We had a home cooked fish lunch that hit the spot and then we were ready to party. 

Yes, party. 

Our guide let us know there was party going on in town celebrating one of the saint's days. We had been to a few events that were set-up just for tourist but this time, the celebration was authentic and that was nice for a change. We were the only tourists there and we made for quite a sight.  Before we had left our "hotel", our host and guide and encouraged us to dress in the traditional grab before we went to the fiesta. I found this a little silly like if you should wear a cowboy hat because you're visiting in Texas. 

I felt a little ridiculous, but whatever, when in Rome...I also felt so cheap and trendy with the record amounts of selfies I was taking at this point. My quarters were behind me to the left, right after the archway. 

 We watched a local dancing celebration for about an hour. Some of the show was quite humorous, while we found other aspects baffling but it was a good time. The locals pretty much stayed clear of us, I didn't know how exactly how to take that....

After the celebration, we took in sunset on the shores of Lake Titicaca. It was a pretty nice moment. It was a good to be alive. 

A female sheep herder brought her flock down to the shore for one last drink before the day was over. 

That night we had another solid home cooked dinner and our hosts (a mother and her son) sang some tunes with us. Then, came the main event. Because our students at inquired at the mention, our guide had found someone to "read" our fortunes or answer questions by reading coca leaves for us.  He was called (and forgive me but this is going to sound made up) a "ya titty". I tried googling this to no avail, but just saying "Ya Titty" got way too many chuckles and laughs from one of our students and I. 

Anyway, our "ya titty" was almost toothless and looked like he'd had a rough day. We sat around the dinner table and an actual hush came over the table. Even I felt like I needed to speak in hushed tones suddenly but remember our questions were going to be answered by an old man dropping and swirling coca leaves on a table. Two of our female students asked about their romantic relationships or partners (they actually asked for us to leave the room as privacy was offered and taken). Our new age hippie student, asked about what college he should be transferring to. When it came to my colleague, he asked if he should go to law school or more graduate school in philosophy. Surprisingly he didn't really answer the question but the ya titty did tell him he would have a daughter in the next year. This made both C and I laugh as our guide, some of students and definitely the ya titty didn't know that this was a very unlikely event to occur. My colleague, C is gay male and while he is in a long-term relationship, they are not looking to adopt any time soon.

I didn't want to partake at all. First of all, at least 4 of the 5 students, some what college-educated students (two of them actual "Adults")  were taking this "ceremony" way too seriously. They sat around really watching the leaves as if this was a real reading of their future. I had a hard time keeping my mouth shut as it was all so dreadfully stupid.  My colleague ended up talking me into asking a silly question about work (long story) but I didn't get the answer I was looking for either!

Later, we came to find out our female student's questions had gotten very negative answers. They actually seemed annoyed and bothered by it, but I told it them it was crazy b.s. and that they were in control of their own futures (as much as humanly possible) not some coca leaves.

It was time for bed and as we paired off to our rooms, our host gave us a heated water bottle. I was a little perplexed but our guide told us, this was to heat up our beds.  Our rooms were unheated and it was cold night on the shore of the lake. The water bottle was a life-saver and it kept the bed warm well into the night. I remember that night I felt like I had a deep sleep. Restful and ready for what I felt like anything. It was last restful night I had for a long time.

The next morning we got up and left for Taquile Island, which was about an hour away. First we had one last hike in Peru. This time it was about a 30 minute hike at a fast pace up a very steep hill face. I tried to keep up with our male student F (pictures below) but couldn't do it. One more challenge but the sight of the lake below and Bolivia made it worth it.

 

I had been told Taquile island wasn't authentic but on further review, I thought it kinda was. First thing you notice is the archway to the path and the archway right before town. It was built by the community, not contractors. Second, the agency takes you to the pre-determined location for lunch. It's determined by the island government, so that everyone partakes in the money from the tourists equally. It's not about competition and letting the free market reign but balance and fairness. That's as foreign as you get compared to America's values.

The restaurants have pretty much the same food. Notice the rococo peppers on the fish. This was a nice lunch. Later a kitty came by and some of my students fed it some of their fish. 

We did some minimal shopping but the prices were very high and I think all of us were tired of shopping at this point in the trip. We hiked back down the other side of the island. It was downhill but still a good work out.

If you've read any of this Peru series you know I love windows, doors and archways. The archways on Taquile were really cool because they had those heads on the ends. It reminded me of Gothic churches in Europe but a toned down, simple, Peruvian style. 

When I hiked I usually went at my own pace. It was great to sneak in alone time and have space for my own thoughts.  On the way down I discovered this little lost lamb bleating out for his mother. I tried to console him to no avail but he still followed me. Eventually, I saw his reunification with this mother. It was a nice moment.

Finally, we made the long trip back to Puno. It was a peaceful trip and at least half our crew slept in the warm boat but I couldn't sleep a wink. We got back to our hotel and cleaned up for dinner. We planned on going out to a nice place where they had dancers and finally get to eating some cuy again. The time before I had been feeling ill and only had one bite. I was looking forward to a nice night out. But that wasn't going to happen.

I was sharing a room with my colleague C and our student F. F was on his phone texting and while I was sending photos of our trip out from the lake to my wife. We had been offline for a few days and I was eager to check in on the fam.  C was in the shower getting ready for dinner. Then I received a series of texts from my wife that changed our lives forever.

My wife was on her way to visit her brother and his family in Austin. It was supposed to be an informal "pop in" visit for a few hours and then she was supposed to head home after a long trip with her family and the kids from Wisconsin.

When she texted me, she was outside of his house. Police cars were there and her dad who had been riding with her went in to see what was going on. They had found out on the way that her brother had stormed out of the house with a gun after a fight with his wife. He had been struggling with alcoholism for the past several years and today he had been drunk when he came home. She was in the car with all three of our kids, just waiting on pins and needles to find out what was happening.

Then she texted me the news. He was gone. He had killed himself two hours or so earlier. The pain was primal, almost physical. I hurt for my wife, his wife and two young sons and my in-laws. My worst fear from traveling had come true - I was hopelessly far away and something tragic had occurred.

I instantly started bawling and my poor student didn't know what was happening. He was a sweet kid about it, said the right things and largely staying silent. I imagine it was a pretty big shock to see his professor crying like a baby. I swore like a sailor, especially cursing guns and the gun industry that sells fear and paranoia but the stats tell us hand guns are much more likely to be used for suicide than any other use. More than homicide and more than defending your house against someone breaking in.
My colleague C stepped out of the shower to hear me crying. Both C and F were so great they offered to stay with me in the room the rest of the night but I just wanted to be alone. I told them to go to dinner and that I actually wanted to be alone to think through this.  I had many details to learn,  phone calls to make and tears to cry.  It was a nightmare and I felt guilty for being so far away from the love of my life in her darkest hour. I failed to be there for her and there was nothing I could do.

Our plane was leaving Puno at 6:00 the next morning to Lima.  The Puno airport was being renovated and somehow, they couldn't heat the airport. It was freezing cold inside the airport. It was an all-around horrible experience. Cold and sad. The original plan was for us to spend two days in Lima but I wanted to get home ASAP. After our arrival to Lima and a torturous phone call with United Airlines the best I could do was fly out at near midnight that evening. I would be arriving home a day early, so it was better than nothing.

That meant I still had to be in Lima the whole day just waiting to get home. It was a horrible day. We didn't do much, lunch at as sub par restaurant, went to a museum and went walking around town. It was a cloudy day and fit with my mood. I just wanted to go home. I said a hasty set of good byes to the students and my colleague got me a taxi to take me to the airport. He insisted on riding with us, just to ensure everything went well. He really didn't need to do that but he's a great guy and close friend. He insisted on paying for the taxi as well (it wasn't cheap).

It was odd coming home alone. It equally strange to come down from such an amazing high to the lowest of lows. A dream had come true and a nightmare had started. I suppose it's life in a nutshell. The healing process is still going on for our family but at least we have each other. That's all you can ask for.

So, those our my fragments from my study abroad to Peru. It will always linked to this tragedy and yet, I can't forget it was an amazing trip.

Peru Fragments: Part VI: Coming Back Down to Earth

In the summer of 2014, I taught a short-term study abroad in Peru. Here are the fragments. Part V can be found here.

It was the late afternoon when our bus descended from Machu Picchu and we finally came back down to earth. Some students wanted to do a little shopping near our hotel, while others wanted to grab a bite before we were to board the train in the early evening back to Ollantaytambo.

I didn't want to shop nor was I hungry but I hung out with my colleague and three other students. We actually played pool in a nearly deserted bar for about 20 minutes but people were hungry, so off we went. The restaurants on the main drag in Aguas Calientes look pretty much the same and most look to be serving the same exact food. Many offer a free drink just for stopping in. I wasn't hungry, so I let everyone else make the selection.

We sat down, everyone ordered (sans me) and one of our female students went to the restroom. When she came back she informed us, there was "poop on the wall", no toilet paper (of course that explained the poop on the wall) and no soap at the sink. My colleague (a male) decided he would check out the men's room. He reported there was no toilet paper and no soap either.

I said, "I sure hope they have soap in the back."

That soon started a discussion on if we should stay or go. It was all so panicked and quick because while they had taken our drink and food orders, nothing had been brought back yet. I simply stated I would do whatever they wanted to do, but that if it was me, I wouldn't eat there.  I remember saying that if we were going to jump ship, we ought to go "one or two at at time" but suddenly someone got up and the next thing you know, we were all standing up, heading for the door, fighting to not be the last one out.

We found ourselves running down different directions on the 45 degree slanted street, laughing as we ran.  Many of the other patrons and workers at the other restaurants were laughing and smiling as we made our escape. We had left in such a rush, we had made no plans on where we would meet up at. Eventually, we all made it back to the hotel, laughing and in high spirits. Thankfully, we didn't have to pass the restaurant on the way back to the train station. Some of us got snacks at the woeful train station snack bar, while I waited for a solid tomato and cheese sandwich on the train.

It had been a wonderful day and we were exhausted but still buzzing from a fruitful and fun day. After our short train ride, we quickly boarded a bus back to Cuzco. The next day was to be a "free" day for everyone. Some wanted to go white water rafting but it was an all day investment (9:00 AM or so to 7:00 PM) and I just wanted some downtime in Cuzco to do what I wanted. Besides, I am more interested in culture than adventure.

The next morning, one team went rafting while we the rest of us decided to go horseback riding in the early afternoon. This also appealed to me because it was cheaper and at age 36 I had yet to even ride a horse in life!

We got to the "farm" after being stuck in the rush hour traffic. I awkwardly climbed up onto the horse and thought of all the bad scenarios possible. The horse was going to take off and I was going to have no idea how to stop him. I was going to fall off and hit my head, etc. etc. As you'll find out, my thinking wasn't as far-fetched and paranoid as you might think.

At the start of our journey.

I have to admit, as silly as it sounds, it was cool riding a horse. Here I was, finally doing something that for much of human history was pretty much THE mode of transportation. So, this was what it was like, eh? My horse was trotting all up and down this insanely rocky path and I felt really bad for him. I was thinking, "Oh, watch out for that stone!"; "Ooh, that had to hurt!", etc. etc."  I couldn't tell if he was old or hurt or what, but boy was he slow. He would stop and occasionally graze on some stubby grass. I didn't mind at all because I figured he earned that little bit of stubby grass. The horses were obviously well traveled because the supervision for us was nil. They knew just where to go. What a boring life for the horse though. 

My only real picture of the horse. I still don't like him. 

When we got to the "halfway point" we got off our horses and allowed them a 15 minute break to eat and get some water. It was at this point where I made my mistake. You know in the US when they tell you way too much information and safety precautions? This was the one time it would have come in handy.

My horse was eating and I figured, why not pat him on the side as he ate? After all, we had bonded on our trip. Why not pat him, like, I'm an old cowpoke and this here, is my old horse taking me on one last journey.

My horse was not having it. I patted him and I could feel his whole body move. My Spidey-Sense went off. This is one of those moments I wish someone had been recording so I could watch this in super slo-mo. Using both arms, I shoved off of his body as he turned on me and kicked me in the chest. My shove had worked handily and his hooves only grazed my chest. It still packed quite a wallop though and knocked the wind out of me. Although my chest felt like it was on fire, I was okay. After that, all compassion for the horse went out the window. No more breaks for stubby grass, ya jerk.

After our horse ride, we grabbed a quick lunch, walked around town and went shopping for tourist stuff in a nearby market, near our hotel (Eco Inn on Av El Sol, which, by the way, was fabulous and it's right across from this pretty little park). The market was like a nice flea market and generally had good prices. It's called the "Handicraft Center" if you're interested. Just know, there are a billion places to find this stuff and it's all pretty much the same. If you see something unique though, grab it.  I really do think the best prices were in Cuzco but maybe that's where I did my most serious looking. 

I have pretty much have no recollection of what we did for dinner that night (Hmm..maybe waiting to write this a year later isn't such a great idea...??) Wait. It came back to me, it was snacks from my backpack. Later that night and I meet a few students for dinner at the hotel later that night and scammed some bread off the table and maybe had an appetizer of some sort.

The next day was another travel day to Puno. It was a 10 hour bus ride. Sure we stopped at a really old church somewhere, some ancient ruins somewhere else, stopped at another market and a tiny little museum and finally onto Puno. I didn't mind the stops but on the other hand, it felt a little frivolous and silly after coming from the heights of the Sacred Valley.

My next post should be the last post in my Peru series. Up until this point out trip had been about as perfect and dream-like as I could have imagined but little did I know how my trip would come to a soul-crushing and sad end.

Peru Fragments: Part V: The Dream That Came True

In the summer of 2014 I taught a short-term study abroad program to Peru. Here is my fourth post of fragments on the trip. Here was Part IV.

As we were driving down from Misminay, many in our group fell asleep. I usually can't sleep in cars and this was no exception. Just listened to a podcast and enjoyed the view driving down the mountainside.

We arrived back in Ollantanytambo to catch the train to Aguas Calenties, the small town at the base of Machu Picchu.  We checked into our hotel room and went out for dinner at a nice place (I forgot the name of it). I had a stuffed fried rococo pepper. It was awesome. We had a nice dinner where we actually had a pretty focused "class" discussion for a good while.

This was one of my favorite meals of the trip. Note the rococo sauce near the top right of my plate, which just gave it that extra spice kick that I love.  

According to the forecast on two different weather apps, there was an 80% chance of showers the next day. This chance of rain was really, really bumming me out. I couldn't believe my one day at Machu Picchu would be potentially ruined. I tried to convince myself that it wouldn't be that bad. I had a poncho and umbrella, and it couldn't rain the whole time we were there. Right?

We called it an early evening as our goal was to arrive at the peak just before sunrise. Our wake up time was 4:30 or something insane like. The streets of Aguas Calenties are packed with restaurants, bars and hotels. Our hotel was situated immediately next to a nice looking pub. It is no exaggeration to say the people in that bar sounded like they were having the time of their lives. I'm not even joking. It was a piano sing-along bar and it just sounded so fun. Any other time, I would have been up for having a drink and checking it out except for the fact that I was trying to get rest and wake up before dawn.  Eventually, the music didn't matter, because I was exhausted. I woke up sometime around 2:00 in the morning and discovered they were thankfully closed. I was additionally thankful that I fell right back asleep.

We got up on time but I felt like we couldn't move fast enough to get down to the bus site. The whole group seemed strangely more lethargic as we entered what I knew would be our peak experience.   Thankfully, there were some morning clouds but nothing looked menacing. As we stood in line for the bus, dawn approached. I was a little perturbed because the idea was to be up on the peak as the sun came up, but I had forgotten just because it was light outside, it didn't mean the sun had peaked over the mountains.

Traveling up the mountain.

You can see the first ray of sunshine just peaking over the ridge of mountains on the right. 

How do you feel when a dream comes true?  

I found myself in this very predicament atop one of the world's most beautiful places. 

I was restless and unable to really pay attention as much as I would have liked during our 1.5 hour tour. After the tour, I found myself walking around aimlessly alone, looking out upon the most breathtaking vistas imaginable.  Exploring the buildings I had wanted to explore as a kid. I felt overwhelmed and alone. My colleague was busy walking with with a student who almost never left his side, but I didn't really want to be around anyone either. Looking back, this was one of the times I missed my wife the most. I wanted to share this moment with my best friend. 

I tried to soak it all up, but whenever dreams come true, it always seems like focusing on the event itself, is the wrong way to do it. I usually find myself practicing mindfulness at least a few times a day but being at Machu Picchu the experience seemed hard to pin down. The hype I had given this moment (from age 11) couldn't possibly match reality, could it?

I think I'm a little tired at just the memory of climbing all those ancient steps. 

As you can see, there was no rain. I don't think American weather apps do well outside the US. 

Your intrepid blogger (he's the one wearing the hat) 

It was a truly amazing experience but did it or could it live up to my own personal hype?

Nope.

I think it was impossible with a few thousand people around me, but it came darn close. There were moments of clarity and mindfulness that I won't forget and for that, I am thankful. After lunch at the restaurant on site (good but expensive) we took a hike to the Sun Gate. After days of walking, hiking and climbing mountains, this hike was another killer for my tired legs but even still, great. The Sun Gate was nice and I can say I hiked some of the Inca Trail. I also peed on it, cause I had to (don't worry no one was looking and it was in the grass).  

Looking from the Sun Gate to the main site, the road below on the right is the road the bus takes to the top. 

We stayed at in the park until about 4:00 PM, meaning we where there for about 10 hours. We descended down back into Aguas Calenties to grab a bite to eat, pick up our luggage and catch the train back to Ollantanytambo. Before we would, there's another story to tell but I'll save that for the next entry.  One day I'll finish this blog series, but at least I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Peru Fragments: Part IV: Climbing the Dream

In the summer of 2014 I taught a short-term study abroad program to Peru. Here is my fourth post of fragments on the trip. Here was Part III.

After the wonderful dinner and star-gazing from the night before, we were all a little slow to rise. Plans were hatching that would split our crew up into two groups. One group wanted to go back to Cuzco and attempt to attend the Inti Reyma.  We had planned on this being a possibility but had not been able to score tickets. This is the annual event that celebrates the sun and it would be a great opportunity for all of us.

We were told that tickets to the event were sold out and that the cheapest ticket would have to be bought from scalpers at over a hundred bucks! Plus, we would have to take the hour-plus trip back to Cuzco.  I was torn but I really didn't want to pay money for an unknown. Even if we got tickets,  I had no idea what the seats would be with. Plus,sitting in the sun all day in large crowd sounded unappealing. I just had a bad feeling about the whole endeavor. Besides, I had an plan for us back in Ollantanytambo. I loved the "small town" atmosphere and knew we were going back to Cuzco later in the trip anyway.

After a nice quiet breakfast at the hotel, the two groups parted ways. The group that went back to Cuzco was comprised of only students. I am sure this broke a rule or violated some ethical study abroad guidelines, but hear me out. The three students that went were well equipped for their adventure. One was an 34-year old US military vet and a well-worn world traveler (she was unafraid of just about any situation) and another was a Spanish speaker. It seemed a perfect match.

Our group rode one of the motos down to the bus stop and took a taxi to back to Ollantanytambo. We planned going up the trail El Camino a Pinkuylluna. This was a path up the mountain that was opposite of the Sun Temple that we had been at the day before.  On the mountain there were several granaries that stored food for the Inca community. Because it was higher elevation and kept at a cooler temperature, the food was sure to last longer. Most of the store-houses were about the size of a small apartment or home but we made our goal of the day to make it to the largest structure on the mountain.

Our first problem was finding the path! The trail-head was extremely difficult to find and was not well-marked at all. Maybe we were just oblivious, but if you're looking for the entrance, keep your eyes open!  The travel book I had with me was unclear and even asking a few locals, we still couldn't find it (although we got a good tour of the city). After an hour, we finally found that we had walked right past it earlier in our journey! Doh!

This was the street that Pinkuylluna is on. Cool little cobblestone road.



Even though there was a skull and cross bones, that just made the whole climb feel more fun. I can't recommend this hike enough. It's free and you are free explore as you wish. I heard online some folks paid a guide and that's completely not necessary. Just start climbing, and have fun! At least on the day we went, it was pretty empty as well. One of these days, someone will do something stupid and they won't allow people to roam free on and around the ruins. It almost felt like you were getting away with something. 

One of our members was a little out of shape, while the rest of us were moderately "in shape". The climb starts pretty steep, so we had to watch our step and our hands. My colleague managed to get a cactus needle in his hand while he was trying to take a picture. After about 40-60 minutes into our climb, our out- of-shape student said we could move forward without her. While we encouraged her to come with us, I think we were all relieved about her decision. She hung out in one of the old granaries all by her lonesome, but at least she had a heck of a view of the valley. 

Every few minutes we would climb to a new ridge and find another granary to explore. There were multiple paths as well that offered too many choices. I instantly regretted the time we wasted finding the trail and thought it would have been even better to leave earlier in the morning to have more time to explore.  Something got into me as we made our ascent. During our climb I started climbing ahead of the other two, just climbing crazy, like a mad man. We had the trails pretty much to ourselves, so it just felt like my own mountain. It was great. 

This was about as high as I would go.  We decided to veer to our left (the photo's right) to get to the largest granary, plus we needed to plan for climbing back down, eating lunch and catching a ride back to Urubamba. 

Look, I'm getting all 21st century on ya with the first selfie of the blog!

This had been our goal, the largest granary on the mountain. Years ago, I had seen pictures of these very store house online in my early research of our program. I had even forgotten about it, until the path turned around the bend and there it was. It was other-worldly. 

The afternoon sun made the rocks gleam as if they were made of gold. I waited for C and the other student to arrive. I took it all in and enjoyed the moment alone. On a group trip like this, alone time is at a premium.  Having an ancient Incan ruin to yourself is pretty darn sweet.  

 I took a few pictures and then I  did something that while inappropriate, it was completely necessary inside the granary. Don't judge me! It wasn't a holy site and the granary afforded me the privacy that was necessary. Besides, it would be another two hours before I could find a proper bathroom. 

I find doorways without doors are pretty cool. 

After a short rest and more photography at this granary, we headed back down the mountain. We had some solid sandwiches at Hearts Cafe. I had the hummus and tomato sandwich- thumbs up for me. There is good food to be had at this little place and a nice second story to people watch in the town below. They also had wifi, and that's always nice.  It was one of those late lunches that only means you'll skip dinner and later be starving at 10 o'clock.

We caught a taxi back to Urabamba but for some crazy reason we walked from the bus station back to our hotel. We stopped by a local park and riverside and the river was nice - if you didn't look down at the trash.  We continued our walk but we realized how silly it was given how tired we were. We discussed hailing a taxi or moto but never did and it made less and less sense the closer we got. We stopped at a convenience store for ice cream and finally, after an hour of walking from the bust station, we came upon our hotel, exhausted.  

One of the motos in Ollanta.  Baby Jesus and Mary above the tiger with wings, inside a Bat-Man symbol, surrounded by reversed Nike swooshes.  Could this get any cooler? Also, Ying-Yang symbol on the mud flaps. Sweet. 

There was a bit of drama as we hadn't heard from the other team. But after a strange text and a short phone call, we found out they were on their way back. They arrived at 9 or 10 and we had "class" by exchanging stories of our day. Apparently, they had a great adventure as well and their tickets and seats were great! Our class time got a little heated, as C had them talking about peace and conflict and well, conflict happened. It was our first sign of strain on the group but it all worked out in the end.  

I think I snacked a little on my snack reserve, knowing I could enjoy a big breakfast at the hotel in the morning.  I had packed crackers, dried banana chips, Cliff bars, peanuts, etc. for just this kinda thing. Also in my backpack: AAA batteries, tissue, hand sanitizer, band aides and of course pens and pencils. Just call me a boy scout. 

One last look at our hotel. 

The next morning we had a nice leisurely breakfast before we were moving up in elevation once again. This time we drove to our highest peak of the Sacred Valley, (12,100 ft.), Misminay. It was a nice drive up sloping mountains and our drives were always quiet and relaxing.  Usually on these bus trips I would occasionally look down below and wonder, "Wow, if the driver had a brain aneurysm, we would all die".  

Misminay is a village that embraces tourism as a way to make their lives better. It was great. I had seen this quick BBC video clip about the village before we left for the trip.

I had mixed feelings soon after we arrived. They did they a little welcome as they did in the video above. It felt slightly forced and it felt slightly exploitative.  On the other hand, it was tourists like me that helped keep their way of life and beliefs intact (I hope) and allowed them to make their lives easier. I mean, I felt exploited later when they started to hawk their stuff. I dunno, capitalism....this is what it does.

Although some of it felt like a show, it felt like there were some "real" moments as well (???).  We shucked some corn with the villagers and then shared a blessing ceremony to Pachamama with coca leaves and chicha. The chicha is traditionally fermented with spit and I wondered if this was the case with this batch.  We were offered each a sip and I felt as thought I couldn't refuse. It wasn't as sweet as I was expecting but hey, I've never tasted corn juice fermented by spit.

Blessing and prayer to Pachamama

The village was an amazing display of the strength of the indigenous faith and belief system. I was under the impression that the mestizo culture and the Catholic Church had over-run or incorporated indigenous belief into it's own system. However, what I was finding out was that for many indigenous peoples, the belief systems weren't mixed. The two systems existed as two concurrent systems that didn't contradict one another but complimented one other. Offer a prayer and blessing to Pachamama, then go to church later that day. What seemed like contradiction to us, seemed logical to the people.

After the blessing, we had a home-cooked meal, which was pretty good with some serious, kick-ass chili peppers (it looked like pico de gallo but much spicier). Then the women of the village showed us how the women clean the wool, dye the wool and spin the wool of alpacas. Of course, when showtime was over, they started selling items.

After it was over, it was time to head back down to Ollantanytambo on a long bus ride back. We had a train to catch to a little place called Machu Picchu!!

Part V coming soon.....

Peru Fragements Part III: Feeling Small in Peru

In the summer of 2014 I taught a short term study abroad to Peru. Here are the fragments (Part I can be found here, Part II can be found here).

One thing I love about traveling is how your whole life feels longer. Because you are experiencing something new the whole day long, it feels like every day is at least 2 days long. It's like life-extension.

Our fifth day we headed deeper into the Sacred Valley, towards the fortress of Ollantaytambo.
Besides the trip to Machu Picchu, this was my favorite part of our travels. I was in the Sacred Valley for almost six days, and I never tired of the sights, sounds or flavors of Peru. Wow, that reads like a commercial.

Our first stop was at a llama petting zoo (Awana Kancha)  set up specifically for bus loads of tourists to interact with and to feed the llamas, alpacas and vicunas.  It was great because we were the only group there (and we were a small group at that!) it was also perfectly scheduled as we spent maybe an hour here. It didn't feel like we were wasting any more time than we needed to.

One of these llamas spit in the face of my student F, and our guide said it was an "Andean Baptism". All in all, if you've gone all the way to Peru, you should feed and pet some llamas.

After another 40 minutes we made another stop just to take photos. At every decent vista, there were women in traditional grab selling tourist junk. We never once got sick of getting off our bus to take photos. For the first time in my life, I was actually making frequent use of the panoramic feature on my camera.

This is F with his back turned (I figured I wouldn't have to ask permission if his face wasn't shown). F would often go right up to edges of high places and do silly stuff like this, do the Karate Kid pose or if he was feeling energetic, head-stand. If I was going along as a friend, whatever, no big deal. However, being "in charge" makes you a little more nervous about being responsible for someone who might plummet to their death doing something stupid. Some where along the trip F started calling me "Dad" as I was the only one encouraging people to be careful. Oh, and everyone had a family name in the group for F too - so I wasn't the only one.

Next up was the market at Chinchero. It was standard tourist Peruvian stuff.  However, the prices were better than in Lima and Puno and in some cases Cuzco, so I stocked up. Still, I think the best place for typical stuff was in Cuzo in the big in-door market.  However, if you ever find yourself in Chinchero, treat yourself to some homemade bread or empanadas right out of the stone stove. So good.....

On the road again, we stopped to watch some locals roasting some cuy. I was feeling sick when we had it the first time and as you will learn in coming posts, I missed my other opportunity later in the trip as well. I did have a bite though....it was okay...kinda like chicken.

After a few hours of shopping (got some jewelry for my love along with other items for the fam) we made our way to Urubamba.

There's really no reason to go to Urubamba except for a few restaurants set up specifically for tourists passing through. It's an ugly city with an amazing backdrop.  We went to a nice restaurant with a buffet lunch surrounded by beautiful landscaping and gardens. Like a little piece of paradise in an industrialized zone.  Of course there was cliché live Peruvian music (El Condor Pasa MUST DIE....whenever we heard the song, everyone would look me and start laughing as they knew of my distaste for the song). The food was solid and the buffet allowed me to try things like alpaca (very much a cross between beef and a pork chop) that I hadn't had a chance up until this point.

Then, it was on to our final destination, Ollantaytambo. Ollantaytambo was one of the few places where the Incans defeated the Spanish.  The main attraction is a great (unfinished) Sun temple even though people mistake this structure for a fortress. This was our second taste of Incan ruins and it was pure sweetness. I'm a tactile person, so touching the actual rocks was an experience all on its own.  





The first leg up is a little challenging, depending on how in or out of shape you are because of the elevation. However, with the right pacing it's no biggie. Plus at each turn you can have a rest and turn around to appreciate the view (seen below).  

This was from about half way up, looking into town.  Ollantaytambo is a tiny little town. What you see is basically the whole thing.  You can see the trails to Pinkuylluna on the mountain on the left (more on that in another post).
 

This was at the top looking on the "back" side - away from town.  Only a little bit of green as it was winter in June in Peru. Next time I come back, I would love to take my wife in the "Summer" time and see everything with more color!
 

Better view of Pinkuylluna's ruins (center of picture). As I was looking over at the ruins (I had no idea what they were called or what I was looking at), I could see people hiking up the trail. They looked like little ants from where we were and I was jealous. As great as the temple was, they seemed isolated and it seemed like a more authentic experience than what I was having up until this point in the trip.  Little did I know I would be in their position the very next day.



Walking away from the "temple" to exit a different staircase down.  

My fellow professor and I decided to race down this staircase. It was totally stupid but fun. Oh yeah, I won. Incidentally, that's our guide on the left at bottom of the staircase.

After our visit it was time for us to head back to our hotel in Urubamba (about 30 minutes away). Our hotel was a former monastery and still has a church on site (although I don't think it's open to the public). It's quite beautiful (although after checking online - not that cheap either).

San Agustin Hotel, Urubamba

Urubamba really has little to no amenities after dark so that meant that we were eating at the hotel's restaurant. The food was okay but the restaurant itself was beautiful. This was a night where the wine was flowing just a little more than usual (although those under 21 didn't have a drop). Our meal was winding down but we wanted to continue the conversation.

I would like to think it was my idea but truthfully, I don't remember who came up with the idea first. We decided to ask if we could start a little campfire out behind the hotel so we could view the stars. It was a cold and clear night, perfect for star gazing. Even better we were in an area not inundated with light pollution.  They said we could star a campfire and showed what we could use for fuel (corn husks). We asked if we could take the last of our wine bottle and glasses and they also said yes by telling C that "this was our hotel". Wow.

Once we got to the back and had our fire up and going, we noticed that the hotel had very bright lighting for the back sidewalks, so we decided to ask if they could be shut off. Then it was show time for the universe. Surrounded by the Andes we sat and talked and above the mountains, the jaw dropping beauty of the Milky Way.

No, of course this isn't mine. All my photos looked like crap on every setting I could try.

For the first time in my memory that I could actually see the Milky Way in its full glory, as it was meant to be seen. Wine, a campfire and the most beautiful starry night I had ever seen. The only way to make this better had been if my wife had been with me.

This was one of those moments where you want time to stop. 

I've always loved looking up at the stars but in the big city  I've been reduced to staring at about a hundred stars (which on a clear night are still quite lovely).  Making matters worse, every time we go camping it's cloudy and I can't see any stars. I couldn't stop staring up at the countless stars about my head and then it hit me.

This night sky helps explain why the Andean people of  today and yesterday are so spiritual. It's was staring right at me. Being surrounded by this would create wonder and awe in your daily life. Wonder and awe are in many ways prerequisites for feeling "spiritual". Surrounded by the mountains and stars make you constantly aware of your own insignificance. Your smallness was made explicitly clear everywhere you looked.  I have a theory about this. If we are reminded of our place in the universe, it creates awe and fosters a sense of humility that we need to embrace more often. It was a wonderful night but there were more wonderful adventures to come....Part IV coming soon....