Randomosity and Ramblings

Some random notes (because I’m not feeling focused enough to write a cohesive narrative type thing):

• Ancient Incan ruins. They litter the Peruvian landscape, and for some odd reasons, lots of people love them. I’m not one of them. However, we did go to Machu Picchu, and that was pretty cool. The ruins are admittedly nice looking amidst a beautiful setting of mountains, river valleys, and some snow capped peaks in the distance. This cynic *can* appreciate some things…
• The Incans were great planners and builders. I don’t know if I would call them great engineers, though, since they didn’t have to deal with the most important issue that ALL engineers have to deal with — limited resources. If I had a huge population of slave labor to do my bidding, I bet I could make some pretty cool stuff too.
• There are two ways to descend from Machu Picchu: take a bus down a long winding road (US $4.50!), or take (a lot) of stairs. There is a tradition of local boys to dress up in traditional garb and wave goodbye to the departing bus of tourists at the top. Then, as the bus makes its way downward, a boy will race down the stairs and wave at the bus at every switchback. At the end of the trip, the boy gets on the bus and asks for tips. They make about 20 soles (US $6) per day for doing so.
• Yours truly decided to race with one of the boys, and so there I was, sprinting down this Incan staircase at top speed, hoping I didn’t turn an ankle and fall flat on my face and break all my teeth. We must have made a strange sight for the tourists, as a small (10 years old?) boy dressed in Incan clothes and a dirty looking sweaty gringo with a ridiculous hat on, waving at every turn. I was able to keep up with the little bugger, but now my legs are killing me.
• I would pay upwards of US $100 for the following: – a hot shower – a cold drink that is actually cold – a meal with American sized portions (no wonder Peruvians are so short!)
• The hostel where we are staying is interesting. The showers are typical of many in South America. There is a single tap for cold water. The shower head consists of an ELECTRICAL contraption that “heats” the water immediately before it falls on your body in a sprinkling of tepid (giardia infested) water. If you are not careful and accidentally touch something metal in the shower, like the knob that controls the water, you get mildly shocked. If this doesn’t seem wrong to you in some way, you have problems.
• Peruvian paradox #1: There are about a grillion stray dogs (and other animals) roaming the streets. Also, ANYONE who drives a car here is certifiably crazy, and as far as we can tell, there aren’t actually any traffic laws. Yet, we have seen ZERO instances of roadkill. The animals here have street smarts that the pampered pets in America lack.
• Përuvian paradox #2: The health and sanitation standards here are lax, to put it mildly. Like most places in South America, you can’t drink tap water. Yet, you will NEVER get chicken in the States as fresh and tasty as you can get in Peru. The livestock doesn’t get any funky weird growth horomones or antibiotics or other stuff common to USA poultry.
• Huzzah to the United States for making it to the quarter-finals of the World Cup. If you are not watching and supporting our boys, then you are missing out on the greatest sporting event EVER. The level of athleticism and competition in il copa mundial is simply at another level that steroid filled ludicrously rich thugs in the NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, etc. will NEVER reach. I promise.
• Our plans have changed, and we’re no longer going to be in Peru for our entire trip. I’m going down to Lake Titicaca (the source of constant hours of giggling for third grade boys all over the US) on Friday, and then we’re headed to Bolivia. From there, we’re not totally sure what we’re going to do, but visiting Argentina and/or Chile are possibilities.
• Alex’s Pet Peeve: traveler’s who say they’re going to “do” a country. Example: “Oh — we did Thailand and the rest of southeast Asia. After Peru, we’re going to do Ecuador and etc.” What the hell does that mean, anyway? “Doing” a country makes travel sound so cheap and tawdry.
• Long trip insight: going to a place with NO idea of what you’re going to do or when you’re going to leave is dangerous. You get bogged down by day to day living, and the feeling of boredom and quiet desperation that you’re not doing anything can be overwhelming. It’s ok not to have the details planned out, but you should still have a big picture in mind while out and about for a long period of time. Travelers need to be like sharks — constantly on the move, and thinking about the next thing to do. It sounds like it could be stressful, but to do otherwise is to languish slowly and miserably until you just want to go home.

Ok — enough drivel out of me for now. Cheers!