I just sat here staring at the keyboard for a good 10 minutes, trying to think of how to start this entry (I figured once I got going it would snowball. That may not be the case.)
It's my last full night in Peru (I leave tomorrow at 11:10pm) and I'm attempting to put some kind of order to what I feel, or what I feel like I should be feeling, or something like that. I can tell already this is all going to be incredibly articulate ;)
I guess, firstly, I can say that I feel so, so, SO lucky. This has been such an amazing experience, and not only do I feel lucky that I was able to do something like this, but I also feel lucky that I am returning to so many people who love and support me and it kind of feels like have been with me all the way. There's one thing I can say about traveling: you meet lots of people, but it's really hard to get to KNOW them. It's a lot of instant friendships, and while that can be invigorating and exciting, it's also kind of sad-- you're always saying goodbye. It's going to be nice to say HELLO to everyone, and know that you all at home (or wherever in the world you are when you read this!) will be in my life for a while.
I feel as though this may be in danger of succumbing to corniness. So before we let ourselves go that route, let's do a list!
TOP FIVE BEST EXPERIENCES OF THE PAST THREE MONTHS (in no particular order):
- My host family. Never could I have asked for a better introduction to Peruvian culture or for a more generous, kind, and open group of people to take me into their home so gracefully.
- Making it to the top of that 15,000 foot pass: left me physically feeling like death but mentally like a super hero.
- Macchu Picchu. It may be an obvious choice, but I have never been so moved by a large pile of expertly cut rocks... ha. But really, what a spectacular and spiritual place.
- Annie Hughes having the perseverance (and of course, thanks to all of our supporters!) to make it to Buenos Aires. And of course, as a footnote to that, the gorgeous city itself.
- Being able to say that I have now eaten two frogs, a piraha, and a live worm.
(ok, after writing these I realize they kind of are in chronological order... so sue me).
Granted, these are all physical events. There were a lot of other things that went on that I'm not sure I can articulate. All of that good stuff like 'learning things about yourself' and 'the world' and 'other people' (Ew, I know. Who knew I would LEARN things?! What is this, school?!)
I really, really am excited to come home. But I have to be completely honest and say that I'm also sad. I think it might be a little hard to go back to 'real life' after having three months to travel, play, and, yes, learn. I'm even feeling a little sentimental towards Lima right now, a city which most people can't wait to get out of. At least there are pisco sours! One of which I am going to go have, right now.
Thanks to everyone for accompanying me on this grand adventure. See you soon.
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Welcome to the Jungle
I returned last night from my 4 day foray into the wilds of the Amazon Jungle. At last count, I had 57 mosquito bites, but I keep discovering new ones... I like to think of them as temporary souvenirs, ones which really constantly remind me of my adventures because they are SO ITCHY. Aghhhh.
However, other than that, the experience was fantastic. I stayed at Myuna Lodge, which is about a 3 hr speedboat trip down the river from the city of Iquitos. It's in the primary Amazon jungle, which means that there are no other lodges or people around, except for a small community called San Juan of about 25 inhabitants. The lodge itself was pretty luxorious (by my standards!)-- I got my own room (which was really a little hut on stilts, made of a wood frame, thatched roof, and screens on all sides) with a porch and a hammock, as well as a private bathroom! There was a large communal eating area where we all met for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and everything was set on the banks of a tributary of the Amazon, backed by jungle as far as the eye could see.
The lodge was peaceful in the loudest way; no human noise, but an orchestra of animals, insects, birds, frogs, and other things of nature, especially at night. I lay there in the dark and it sounded like an orchestra, with just a small screen separating me from the musicians. I never knew wildlife could even make so many sounds...
In terms of jungle animals, we got to see quite a few. We went on hikes or boat trips every morning and afternoon (and a couple of evenings) and the last night I went camping with our guide, which was terrible (so hot, so many mosquitos) but definitely an unforgettable experience!
Here's a list:
- Pink and grey dolphins! We also got to swim in the river with them, but none of them came close enough to touch.
- Pirahnas. Not only did I see them, I fished for them, caught them, and ate them. They didn't eat me, thank goodness!
- Millions of tree frogs, from the size of my fingernail to the size of my hand.
- Monkeys! A pygmy marmoset family, that climbed down the tree to have their photo taken from about a foot away, as well as spider monkeys and howler monkeys, which are the largest monkeys in the Americas and make the most bizarre sound.
- A sloth, which was very very far away in the top of a tree, but still awesome.
- Birds, birds, birds... parrots, macaws, cranes, and a million other kinds that I forget the names of. Birds were everywhere, all the time.
- Bugs! Fireflys, gigantic spiders (including tarantulas), fire ants, leaf cutter ants, and butterflies of every color and size, huge blue ones, little red and yellow ones, green ones, white ones. They were so beautiful.
- An emerald tree boa, which apparently is extremely rare and was GORGEOUS.
- Aaaaaaaaand, to add to my list of interesting culinary forays on this trip, I ATE AN ENTIRE LIVE BEETLE LARVAE. Ew. Ewwww. I don't know why I agree to these things, but I simply can't resist a challenge or a dare. Plus, our guide ate two, first. It was about an inch long and white, and slightly pulsating in a very larvae like way. Hahahahha.... So disgusting. But it actually tasted kind of like coconut, and had the texture of a gummy worm. So overall, not a terrible experience. Plus, how often can you say you've eaten a live worm in the Amazon Jungle?
Here's the weirdest part: I'm back in Iquitos (home of a million motorbikes, as there's no way to get here except for by boat and air. Sidenote: one of the other guys at the lodge said he had described it to someone as 10,000 neigbors mowing their lawns all at once from 7am to 2am every day. Pretty accurate.) today and tomorrow, I fly to Lima tomorrow night, and then I have Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday in Lima, before I catch a flight home on Wednesday night. I honestly can't really put anything into words about that... maybe in the next few days I'll have some time for relfection and can come up with something pithy and all encompassing about this trip, but who knows... This is my last 'event filled' entry, though, so if/when I write again it will have to be something thought provoking and intellectual ;) For now, though, see you all in about six days!
However, other than that, the experience was fantastic. I stayed at Myuna Lodge, which is about a 3 hr speedboat trip down the river from the city of Iquitos. It's in the primary Amazon jungle, which means that there are no other lodges or people around, except for a small community called San Juan of about 25 inhabitants. The lodge itself was pretty luxorious (by my standards!)-- I got my own room (which was really a little hut on stilts, made of a wood frame, thatched roof, and screens on all sides) with a porch and a hammock, as well as a private bathroom! There was a large communal eating area where we all met for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and everything was set on the banks of a tributary of the Amazon, backed by jungle as far as the eye could see.
The lodge was peaceful in the loudest way; no human noise, but an orchestra of animals, insects, birds, frogs, and other things of nature, especially at night. I lay there in the dark and it sounded like an orchestra, with just a small screen separating me from the musicians. I never knew wildlife could even make so many sounds...
In terms of jungle animals, we got to see quite a few. We went on hikes or boat trips every morning and afternoon (and a couple of evenings) and the last night I went camping with our guide, which was terrible (so hot, so many mosquitos) but definitely an unforgettable experience!
Here's a list:
- Pink and grey dolphins! We also got to swim in the river with them, but none of them came close enough to touch.
- Pirahnas. Not only did I see them, I fished for them, caught them, and ate them. They didn't eat me, thank goodness!
- Millions of tree frogs, from the size of my fingernail to the size of my hand.
- Monkeys! A pygmy marmoset family, that climbed down the tree to have their photo taken from about a foot away, as well as spider monkeys and howler monkeys, which are the largest monkeys in the Americas and make the most bizarre sound.
- A sloth, which was very very far away in the top of a tree, but still awesome.
- Birds, birds, birds... parrots, macaws, cranes, and a million other kinds that I forget the names of. Birds were everywhere, all the time.
- Bugs! Fireflys, gigantic spiders (including tarantulas), fire ants, leaf cutter ants, and butterflies of every color and size, huge blue ones, little red and yellow ones, green ones, white ones. They were so beautiful.
- An emerald tree boa, which apparently is extremely rare and was GORGEOUS.
- Aaaaaaaaand, to add to my list of interesting culinary forays on this trip, I ATE AN ENTIRE LIVE BEETLE LARVAE. Ew. Ewwww. I don't know why I agree to these things, but I simply can't resist a challenge or a dare. Plus, our guide ate two, first. It was about an inch long and white, and slightly pulsating in a very larvae like way. Hahahahha.... So disgusting. But it actually tasted kind of like coconut, and had the texture of a gummy worm. So overall, not a terrible experience. Plus, how often can you say you've eaten a live worm in the Amazon Jungle?
Here's the weirdest part: I'm back in Iquitos (home of a million motorbikes, as there's no way to get here except for by boat and air. Sidenote: one of the other guys at the lodge said he had described it to someone as 10,000 neigbors mowing their lawns all at once from 7am to 2am every day. Pretty accurate.) today and tomorrow, I fly to Lima tomorrow night, and then I have Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday in Lima, before I catch a flight home on Wednesday night. I honestly can't really put anything into words about that... maybe in the next few days I'll have some time for relfection and can come up with something pithy and all encompassing about this trip, but who knows... This is my last 'event filled' entry, though, so if/when I write again it will have to be something thought provoking and intellectual ;) For now, though, see you all in about six days!
Thursday, December 9, 2010
the top 5 in BA
Well, here I am at the end of my stay in another wonderful place, and feeling both sad to be moving on and excited for new adventures. It's a little harder being here for these last two days, though, as Annie left last night and I miss her already... However, before she headed back to the USA we made our list of the top 5 best things in Buenos Aires. So here, in no particular order, they are:
1. Steak at La Cabrera
2. The San Telmo Sunday market (streets upon streets jam packed with handicrafts, independant design, and leather goods. We spent way too much money and I walked away with a FANTASTIC new pair of funky leather shoes...)
3. Train ride to Tigre, a little town on the river delta that was quiet and full of big old trees and mansions.
4. Pastries at La Mariposa, the phenomenal panaderia and dulceria down the block from our hostel. I drooled and looked in the window every time we went by-- layers of handmade chocolates, cream filled flaky dough, fruit tarts of every variety and color, and gorgeous fluffy cakes. Not to mention, the empanadas... which we ate at least once a day.
5. And of course, the graffiti! The virtues of which I have already extolled (and taken hundreds of photos of...)
Other things of note: riding the subway (or Subte!), our favorite cafe La Poesia, where we ate 3 times and I'm going back to tonight with two friends from Vancouver BC who I met in Cusco, the dogs (and PUPPIES!) everywhere, live tango shows in the main squares, and the creepy, creepy Recoleta cemetary. Oh, and the daily dose of ice cream, of course.
So, onward I go, for what is (basically, excepting a few days at the end back in Lima) THE LAST STOP. Saturday I fly to Iquitos, in the heart of the Amazon basin, to spend a few days with the monkeys and parrots. And pirhanas. And then... home. In two weeks. Exactly. Woah.
1. Steak at La Cabrera
2. The San Telmo Sunday market (streets upon streets jam packed with handicrafts, independant design, and leather goods. We spent way too much money and I walked away with a FANTASTIC new pair of funky leather shoes...)
3. Train ride to Tigre, a little town on the river delta that was quiet and full of big old trees and mansions.
4. Pastries at La Mariposa, the phenomenal panaderia and dulceria down the block from our hostel. I drooled and looked in the window every time we went by-- layers of handmade chocolates, cream filled flaky dough, fruit tarts of every variety and color, and gorgeous fluffy cakes. Not to mention, the empanadas... which we ate at least once a day.
5. And of course, the graffiti! The virtues of which I have already extolled (and taken hundreds of photos of...)
Other things of note: riding the subway (or Subte!), our favorite cafe La Poesia, where we ate 3 times and I'm going back to tonight with two friends from Vancouver BC who I met in Cusco, the dogs (and PUPPIES!) everywhere, live tango shows in the main squares, and the creepy, creepy Recoleta cemetary. Oh, and the daily dose of ice cream, of course.
So, onward I go, for what is (basically, excepting a few days at the end back in Lima) THE LAST STOP. Saturday I fly to Iquitos, in the heart of the Amazon basin, to spend a few days with the monkeys and parrots. And pirhanas. And then... home. In two weeks. Exactly. Woah.
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Buenos Aires: The Food Edition
Yes, I'm still completely enamored of this city. And it's gotten even better since Annie joined me last Wednesday morning. It is so much fun and so, so relaxing to have someone to travel with, after being on my own for so long (special thanks to everyone who helped to get her here. I could not be more grateful). We have been absorbed in exploring every facet of BA, including the food. Which deserves its own entry. Because it is... AMAZING.
Firstly, the coffee. So, going out to coffee in Seattle is a pretty mundane affiar. You sit at a table and order something and they bring you that something. On occasion you get a little pot of looseleaf tea instead of a packet, and you might get a small pitcher of cream, or some cool latte art. In BA, however, going to coffee is quite possibly the most civilized thing I have ever experienced. The first time we went, I assumed it would be a kind of quick affair, like it is in the states. I ordered tea with milk, and Annie ordered a plain small coffee. The total price was probably equivalent to about USD $3. First, they brought out a TINY cup of coffee (espresso style) for Annie, with a perfect little silver dish of sugar cubes, and then they brought out my tea, an empty teacup with a selection of teabags on the side, and two small silver pitchers, one of hot water and one of hot milk. Then they put a little platter of cake in the middle of our table, and teeny tiny (so cute!) glasses of sparkling water on either side. There's something about the care with which they set the table, and the thoughfulness of all the additional things-- the cake, the water-- that just makes my heart fill with glee.
Secondly, the steak. Thanks to the friend of Miss Claire Mauksch (thanks!) I was recommeded what is, according to most, the best steak place in BA. So on Friday night we ventured out to La Cabrera, a restaruant in the Palermo neighborhood that doesn't take reservations, opens at 8:30, and usually has a one to two hour wait. We were smart and got there about half an hour early, so we were high up on the waiting list, but there was STILL a huge line when we left at about 11pm at night. However, waiting isn't so awful, as there is bottomless free champagne for those in line! Woo!!! It was probably the fanciest restaurant I have ever been to in my life, and compared to Peru was exorbitantly expensive. Which meant that in USD we paid approx $60 for our whole meal (including a bottle of some of the best wine I've ever had, called Marianne-- hi mom!) We each ordered different steaks, and we were kind of just expecting to get slabs of meat thrown on our plates. However, in addition to the (best) meat (I have ever eaten) each steak came with about 15 different side dishes in tiny silver bowls. Spinach with walnut cream sauce, pumpkin puree with nutmeg, whipped potatoes with dijon mustard, roasted garlic and carrots, tiny onions pickled in amaaaaazing balsamic vinager, sundried tomato compote, quail eggs with green beans, and delicious, buttery, fluffy salads. I was glad I had barely eaten all day, because it was a huge amount of food (we could have probably shared one meal, but we wouldn't have gotten such an assortment of side dishes!) and I wanted to eat it all. I have never been in such food heaven in my life, and it will be hard to recreate those incredible flavors ever again... heavenly.
We've been doing a lot of exploring, trying to tackle one neighborhood a day. The city is so gigantic that there's really no way to see it all, but we've been trying our best. Some highlights so far: the Recoleta cemetary, which is where Eva Peron is buried, among many other famous people. It's a creepy, creepy place with row after row of mausoleums filled with coffins (you can look through the glass doors and see them all!) and stray cats, as well as cobwebs and dust. Also, the Saturday craft market, where we almost bought out the mate gourd stand, and I got some awesome earrings made of Argentinian coins. The empanadas here are also GREAT, and there are incredible pastry stands on every corner rivaling those in Paris (I guess that should go in the food section). Annie is here for 4 more days, heading back to Seattle Wednesay night, and I'm here until Saturday morning, when I fly to THE RAINFOREST!!! and spend a week floating down the Amazon river.
Endnote: I am coming home in approx two weeks and 4 days. This is totally bizarre to me. I feel like I've been gone forever and also like I just got here. I am not looking forward to the cold weather. I am looking forward to being tanner than everyone. Bwahahahha.
Firstly, the coffee. So, going out to coffee in Seattle is a pretty mundane affiar. You sit at a table and order something and they bring you that something. On occasion you get a little pot of looseleaf tea instead of a packet, and you might get a small pitcher of cream, or some cool latte art. In BA, however, going to coffee is quite possibly the most civilized thing I have ever experienced. The first time we went, I assumed it would be a kind of quick affair, like it is in the states. I ordered tea with milk, and Annie ordered a plain small coffee. The total price was probably equivalent to about USD $3. First, they brought out a TINY cup of coffee (espresso style) for Annie, with a perfect little silver dish of sugar cubes, and then they brought out my tea, an empty teacup with a selection of teabags on the side, and two small silver pitchers, one of hot water and one of hot milk. Then they put a little platter of cake in the middle of our table, and teeny tiny (so cute!) glasses of sparkling water on either side. There's something about the care with which they set the table, and the thoughfulness of all the additional things-- the cake, the water-- that just makes my heart fill with glee.
Secondly, the steak. Thanks to the friend of Miss Claire Mauksch (thanks!) I was recommeded what is, according to most, the best steak place in BA. So on Friday night we ventured out to La Cabrera, a restaruant in the Palermo neighborhood that doesn't take reservations, opens at 8:30, and usually has a one to two hour wait. We were smart and got there about half an hour early, so we were high up on the waiting list, but there was STILL a huge line when we left at about 11pm at night. However, waiting isn't so awful, as there is bottomless free champagne for those in line! Woo!!! It was probably the fanciest restaurant I have ever been to in my life, and compared to Peru was exorbitantly expensive. Which meant that in USD we paid approx $60 for our whole meal (including a bottle of some of the best wine I've ever had, called Marianne-- hi mom!) We each ordered different steaks, and we were kind of just expecting to get slabs of meat thrown on our plates. However, in addition to the (best) meat (I have ever eaten) each steak came with about 15 different side dishes in tiny silver bowls. Spinach with walnut cream sauce, pumpkin puree with nutmeg, whipped potatoes with dijon mustard, roasted garlic and carrots, tiny onions pickled in amaaaaazing balsamic vinager, sundried tomato compote, quail eggs with green beans, and delicious, buttery, fluffy salads. I was glad I had barely eaten all day, because it was a huge amount of food (we could have probably shared one meal, but we wouldn't have gotten such an assortment of side dishes!) and I wanted to eat it all. I have never been in such food heaven in my life, and it will be hard to recreate those incredible flavors ever again... heavenly.
We've been doing a lot of exploring, trying to tackle one neighborhood a day. The city is so gigantic that there's really no way to see it all, but we've been trying our best. Some highlights so far: the Recoleta cemetary, which is where Eva Peron is buried, among many other famous people. It's a creepy, creepy place with row after row of mausoleums filled with coffins (you can look through the glass doors and see them all!) and stray cats, as well as cobwebs and dust. Also, the Saturday craft market, where we almost bought out the mate gourd stand, and I got some awesome earrings made of Argentinian coins. The empanadas here are also GREAT, and there are incredible pastry stands on every corner rivaling those in Paris (I guess that should go in the food section). Annie is here for 4 more days, heading back to Seattle Wednesay night, and I'm here until Saturday morning, when I fly to THE RAINFOREST!!! and spend a week floating down the Amazon river.
Endnote: I am coming home in approx two weeks and 4 days. This is totally bizarre to me. I feel like I've been gone forever and also like I just got here. I am not looking forward to the cold weather. I am looking forward to being tanner than everyone. Bwahahahha.
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