This past week and a bit has been mad, I think I suddnely realised I only had a little time left in Cuzco and made a mad dash to do everything that I had been planning on doing but thinking I had ages to do!
Oh yeah and it was birthday too, so thank you for all of your birthdays wishes and those of you who didn´t send me any your names have been noted!Last Saturday I went to Machu Picchu with another volunteer, Lisa, who very handily has a boyfriend who works for the train company that goes to and from Machu Picchu so cheaper tickets and free food and drink on the train, always good to know the right people!
a llama a machu picchu, you cant get more peruvian!
Unfortunately we only had about 4 hours to spend there sowe were unable to climb Wayña Picchu (the mountain that´s in all the postcards of Machu Picchu), maybe if I have energy after the inca trail!
Machu Picchu
The site itself is magnificent, when we arrived at the "postcard view" site, we were both speechless and I got goosebumps. How the incas stumble accross the site and though "ahh this would be a good place to build a city" I have no idea. The citadel perches ona small plateau between Wayña Picchu (young mountain in Quechua) and Machu Picchu (old mountain in Quechua) and there are steep drops to either side where they have managed to build agricultural terraces. I can´t imagine the amount of lives that must have been lost building this city attempting to move huge pieces of stone up and around the mountains is unimaginable.
There is so much to see in the site that I´m glad I get the chance to go back, especially since I´ll arrive before it´s open to the tour buses and I can take my time wandering round again and not having to wait for the countless tours given in almost every langauage (well maybe not quite every language!). It was very handy having Lisa there as she can speak 7 languages and was able to pick up bits for free from the tour guides!
Since I´ve visited Machu Picchu I´ve bee horse riding around Cuzco, and went to see a play/musical/dance show which was spectacular, and makes me miss the theatre company! Then I went away for a couple of days with my family in Cuzco for semana santa (holy week).
We went to a place called Mollepata where there are mosquitoes the size of blue bottles! So now I cant stpo scratching and my legs look very attractive with many swollen red bites! On Good friday we had "doce platos" which is 12 dishes, its a traditional thing for easter weekend. I only managed about 7 when I had to ask them to stop feeding which they found very funny!
The family have a hacienda in teh town so there were 23 of us staying there and 19 of us travelled there in a pick up truck. I ssat in the back and have now decided that it´s the best way to see the country, if a little cold and uncomfortable!It was also my last week at volunteering, it was very sad i hadn´t expected to be sad becuase I had been there for such a short time, but everyone was so nice and welcoming and the patients I worked with were great. I´ll be keeping in touch with Lisa as we might meet up in Arequipa if her plans to go there this weekend fall through.
Lisa, José and Me
I´ve found during my time at the health centre and in Cuzco that i have way more patience and tolerance that I thought I had. I see other travellers getting really worked up about things and I just sit there and think there´s nothing I can do to change it so why get upset! In the centre working with the patients and having so little langauge I´ve had to be creative in the way I worked with people, showing and decribing how to do things in a very different way. Although I hope when I come home I don´t run out of patience for my own clients and start comparing their lives to those of the people I work with here!
2 comments:
Hello! I never had a chance to visit Cuzco, etc... when I lived in Lima but your descriptions are so good that I feel as if I've been there! Thanks!
Hey there kirsty! how time flies - you're moving on already!!! the pictures are good, and your ramblings give a good sense of you there - I'm pleased to hear how tolerant you've become - good to know that we won't get any more temper tantrums, slammed doors, storming out, or hysterical screaming fits in the office when you get back!
Have a great time on your travels - you're missing some really cold weather (no snow to speak of though - at least not here - plenty down south I hear).
Asta la vista baby!
Nigel
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