Galapagos Island Pictures

BLUE FOOTED BOOBIE

SHARK!!

GALAPAGOS PENGUIN

I posted pictures of Peru down under the posts (see Lake Titicaca, Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, and Amazon) but decided to post pictures separately for Galapagos Islands...

Bonaire, Netherland Antilles

Day 1

I finally caught my plane to Bonaire the next morning. They charged me $84. This was the beginning of a very costly detour to Bonaire. I arrived and took a $10 taxi for 5 minutes to my hotel, which was nice however, I am used to hostal prices and Boanire is not cheap! Once I arrived, I set out to find a dive shop, which again, is very expensive. I tried a second dive shop for which I took an $8 cab ride for 3 minutes to find out that they didn't have any weight belts so therefore I couldn't go woth them. Instead of calling another cab, I hitchhiked (Mom - I was told it's perfectly safe!!!) Then I went to lunch, and found that you can't even buy a cheap meal for under $10. For dinner, I had a $9 bowl of soup and a $4 mini beer. It's interesting because while I understand that islands are more $ because of the transportation ot get things on and off the island, EVERYTHING is expensive. I was going to extend my stay for 2 days and cut Trinidad short but have decided against it. OK, enough complaining, I will get off the topic of money.

Bonaire is really beautiful It is part of Holland (a.k.a. the Netherlands). It is off the northern coast of Venezuela and on the Caribbean south of Panama. It's sister islands are Aruba and Curacao (the ABC Islands). While some of the people speak Spanish and are native, there are tons of Dutch people. (t is very different than the rest of my travels and not very rich in Culture in my opinion, but beautiful nonetheless). The water is very, very blue and it's a quiet little beach town that holds the title of best diving in all of the Caribbean. The best part is that most of the dive sites are from shore so you can just take your gear and dive all over free (except I came without gear and without a dive buddy so I had to go on a boat!). I found a place to dive and got on the boat for the following morning. That nite, the dive shop had a free tum and punch party that I went to and met some people.

Day 2

The next day I did two boat dives and a guided dive from shore in the afteroon (me and a divemaster) and the diving was really beautiful! Galapagos was more big fish and hardly any coral and Bonaire is all coral and smaller fish. I saw a spotted eagle ray, an octopus, a turtle, a seahorse, a large pufferfish, as well as tons of other sea life. After diving, I went back to the hotel and ended up just making it to happy hour. There I met these three Dutch guys, one of which used to live here for a year, that were visiting for a month. As always, I love meeting new people and we ended up going to dinner and hanging out all nite and I had a great time.

The next day, I was really regretting drinking the nite before. After the first dive, I started to get a really bad headache (it felt like a migraine might be coming on). Luckily another diver had some aspirin. After the second dive, I surfaced and it was really rough and I got sick overboard...It wasn't entirely the drinking but it definitely was a precipitating factor. There was this couple I had met the day before from San Diego, Paloma, and her husband Chad, who was a dive instructor. I invited myself to do some shore dives with them that afternoon (they were really cool and we got along well!). So, after the boat dives, we went back to their place, picked up ther truck, had a great lunch (I have been eating all seafood!) and then did two more shore dives. The first one was a wreck dive, which was a sunken drug boat...saw some huge fish, maybe sturgeons? And barracuda. The second dive I went with Chad alone because Paloma was tired. It was really great going with a dive instructor! I also learned a lot about beinga Divemaster and Instructor (which I was thinking might make a cool career, but it sounds like there is not much money in it).

Day 3

I decided I had spent enough on diving and you really should allow 24 hours before a flight due to pressure issues so I decided to drive around the island instead. I was going to rent a scooter (moped) but they told me they get stolen a lot and you can't get insurance so for $4, I got a a "special deal" on a jeep, that did not have a top. I had heard it wouldn't rain but even if it did (and it did!) it was no big deal because I had on my bathing suit and had my valuables in a waterproof bag. I decided to visit the donkey sanctuary first, and on my way, it started pouring! It was actually really fun driving in a jeep and getting rained on :)

The Donkey sanctaury was great! I arrived and heard about the ones they recently rescued. There was a pen with 3 orphans which the babies barelky made it and the mothers did not. They were all really sweet. I got the debriefing and almost cried right there. The islanders, including the government, have no compassion for animals. They have over 300 donkeys and have rescued so many from really abusive situations (I won't get into details but adults and kids alike try to hurt and kill them out of ignorance). Then I got to go into the pen with the baies and mons (including some that were pregnant and you could see the foals moving inside of them). Then I did the drive thru the rest of the sanctuary. The donkeys sure know that cars mean feeding time (I bought a bag of treats). I probably ran into all 300 on the drive and tried to make sure I fed each and every one. It was funny because a couple got really jealous and would grunt and kick the others out of the way. I really enjoyed the sanctuary and they are doing a really good thing there...

On the way back from the donkey sanctuary, I stopped by a lake to get pictures of flamingos. Of course, I stopped on this tiny little strip of land off the highway. Then when I tried to start the car, it wouldn't start (and it was raining again). I left the car (no one would stop to help)and walked to a car rental place and called the company, who came to swap batteries.

Then I found the local restuarant I had heard was really good (to far to walk but great if you have a car) and had lunch. Next, I drove up the northern coast which was amazingly beautiful with really blue water. I stopped for a swim and then drove thru a Lake which was a Flamingo Sanctuary. I also saw a few donkeys on the road which were NOT used to being treated well and tried to pet them but they would have none of it. I stopped at a place where there were some Indian Inscriptions (500 BC) as well as a cave with a hole that the "Christmas" star would shine thru over X-mas. I also some tons of goats and at one point saw a momma and baby and another baby just laying there. The mom and other baby went across the road, so I went over and picked up the baby goat and held him for awhile...it was beautiful. I had an awesome trip!!!

This is my last nite in Bonaire and I am really looking forward to flying to Trinidad tomorrow and Carnival!!!! There are two guys and a girl also staying at the house I am staying at (courtesy of COUCHSURFING.COM). The gril I am staying with wont even be there until Monday but says her family is so used to couchsurfing guests it is cool. She sounds great...even started her own volunteer organization recycling and picking up trash on the beach.

Guayaquil, Ecuador - Valetine´s Day

So I made it back to Guayaquil yesterday. I was feeling bad about the negativity I posted before I left the Galapagos, because I came to find out it is undergoing one of the biggest urban reviatlizatioon projects in South America and they have this great walk along the ocean that is one big park. So, I take back what I said (but as you will see later, it is too late! )

I took a long walk in the late afternoon along the Malecon 2000, which is a couple miles long(or I should say kilometers! I like metric so much more). It reminds me a little bit of the River walk along San Antonio, but it doesn´t have all the shops, as it is more of a park. There is a huge pond filled with koi and trees and gardens and the there are tons of spots fr children to play and a big open arena where they can have concerts. There were artists drawing pictures of people and palces and there was so much going on. They say it is Ecuador´s version of Central Park, and I guess it is a little. They also have an Imax (even Tucson doesn´t have that!) So, I walked along time just watching oeple. It was Valentine´s Day so there were so ma ny couples walking, holding balloons and flowers and people kissing off in corners. It was really great people-watching and you could feel all the romance in the air. :) At the end of one side of the Malecon, there was this little historic neighborhood called Las Penas. It has 500 steps up through all these little historical buildings, around fountains and curves, with little shops and restaurants and bars. As soon as I started to climb the stairs, there was a torrential downpour. It was so amazing because, as you can imagine, each step from the top had it´s waterflow, plus the flow from each step before it. So, there was this huge cascading waterfall all the way along from the top down! I get under some shelter but it turns out it was on someone´s patio. they were very nice and tried to get me to sit down, but i decided I really wanted to be in the rain, along with a bunch of other people. So I climbed a few hundred steps. I decided to stop for a beer and wait out the rain a bit when I passed this Rastafari Shop.I asked if there was any reggae music in town and he told me to go get a beer and come back and listen to some reggae at the shop with him and this other guy. I thanked him anyway and walked out and then went to the bar next door. When I got there, I wasn´t really into the atmosphere so I bought a beer to go and went back next door to the reggae shop. There I met Victor and his brother Edwin who was taking off on a bus to go surfing on a beach a few hours away. So, then it was me and Victor. He didn´t speak any English so we spent all our time talking in Spanish, which was great for me. We listened to a bunch of reggae music from Chile and Brasil and Ecuador and talked about music and surfing and all sorts of stuff. He and his brother own the shop and take turns running it while each of them travel. We ended up making lists for each other of good music so I have a bunch I need to find on the internet when I get back. I also bought a CD for $2 of some Ecuador music with lots of drums-percussion that was awesome. It was so random to stop there and have a beer but I had such a good time. Later on I went out to eat along the Malecon and had a few beers and watched some other bands play out in the squares (there were several areas to eat and drink along the walkway.

This morning, I woke up super early and got to the airport to find out out I missed my plane to Bonaire. Actually, I didn´t miss it, but I missed checking in an hour prior so they wouldn´t let me. I forgot to change my phone time back from Galapagos time! I was so upset and there was no one to talk to and the airport gate guty was not helpful at all. Eventually I resigned myself to going back to my hostal and trying to make the best of it. Things happen for a reason...On my way way to breakfast, I ran into Victor (and Guayaquil is a small city!) and told him waht happened. How random!

Anyway, Internet is closing. Caio for now!

The Galapagos Islands Part 2

So, I missed my flight to Bonaire today! I was so upset. I forgot to change my phone time back from Galapagos time. So, Here I am , stuck in Guayaquil. I think it is revenge for describing it as a cross between Nogales and Gauayaquil and not giving it a chance. However, I decided I do like it as I had a great time yesterday, but more on that later.

Here is a continuation of the Galapagos;

Day 4: San Cristobal Island
This is another island that is inhabited, although it is smaller than Santa Cruz. It has a nice walk along the ocean where they blocked off an area and made a pool with a waterslide for kids (maybe adults too!) In the morning, we took a walk from town to the Interpretation Center. This part was self-guided reading on 3 topics: Geology, History, and present conservation efforts. The Geology was pretty simple. The islands were formed from volcanoes, and some were actually land masses under the sea that rose up too. I believe on Isabella Island, there are still active volcanoes. I wish I had seen Isabella but it was part of the cruise to the north islands versus the south that I did. I guess I will just have to come back (maybe in May with Nik and Julie!). The history was very interesting. The Spanish conquistadors came over during the time they were conquering South America. Of course, once they came, they exploited the hell out of it. So, the Galapagos is not completely untouched like you would think. In fact, they killed all the tortoises off of Floreana so they are now extinct. Also, many of the convicts were went from the mainland to the Galapagos, similar to Australia. At one point, the treatment and brutality of the convicts was so bad that they revolted and killed the guy in charge of them. They also established a Sugar Factory and treated everyone pretty poorly there and they killed him as well. It also was interesting to read about all the other countries that tried to buy the Galapagos Islands. It is the perfect strategic point near the Panama Canal. However, when any country tried to buy it, the deal was sabotaged by other countries that wanted it. So, The Galapagos Islands still belongs to Ecuador (as it should). (As an aside, I learned a little more from the Brits about the war by Margaret Thatcher against Argentina for the Falcon Islands. It wasn´t that she wanted them so much as it was a way to unite the country and make them want to fight for their land over there, which it worked). Presently, there is a lot of conservation and they are trying to be completely green, with projects to go 100% solar and wind. The Galapagos has grown so much as well over the last 20 years or so and they are going to start limiting the tourists that come come as well as start charging twice the $100 fee they currently have to visit. I was very impressed with the conservation going on here and it really reinforces my desire to get back into the environmental field. As far as ecology, they really preserve that as well. For instance, the airport is on one island and there is a narrow channel between it and Santa Cruz and they decided against building a bridge because it may affect the island animal life. The guides are very adamant about not touching for feeding the animals too and it really seems like people respect that which is great! That is what amazed me so much about how the animals come right up to you, sea lions even sniffing you, but they do it out of lack of fear, not because they are being fed. I have never seen anything like that in my life. It goes back to how I was feeling in Peru about enslaving animals and the Galapagos is a utopia of sorts where people live among them and allow them to live wild.

In the afternoon, we went to Lobos Island, or Sea Lion Island (many have several names). Here again, we saw tons of sea lions, mostly females nursing their young. It was so beautiful to see 3 day old sea lions and older ones too nursing from their mothers. They make these really cute sucking noises while they go from nipple to nipple. Many of the baby sea lions that were days old were also left alone while their mothers went out in search of food. They make the cutest cries (compared to the older babies which bark). Sadly, I also saw dead baby sea lions. I found this to be the case on almost every island. This usually is the result of either the mother being killed while searching for food, or the older siblings taking all the milk so they younger ones starve. And other sea lions do not adopt them. That of course made me very sad, as you all know how much I love animals and have so much sympathy for them. However, that is reality and that is evolution and that is what the Galapagos is all about. It forces me to confront that. (And I am reading this really great thought provoking book I will tell you ,more about because it has affected me greatly on this trip). In addition to sea lions, we also saw the magnificent frigget, a black bird in which the male has this read thing hanging from him, like a rooster has but this is under the chin. When the males are wanting to mate, it blows up like a big red balloon. It was pretty cool to see. As we were leaving the dock in the panga, there were a bunch of baby sea lions and a male that was protecting them. Everytime we would try to get into the panga, he would come at us and snarl. It was really funny. One by one, we made a break for it until we were all in the panga. Later, we went snorkeling again and I while I was underwater, I watched this baby sea lion playing with a stick. He kept letting it go and twisting and turning and chasing it. It reminded me of how Cabo plays with his toys in the yard by himself.

Later that afternoon, I pulled out my ipod and sat on the deck listening to music. I have been so wrapped up in exploring and my own thoughts, I really hadn´t had time to listen to music. It really made me happy to listen and watch waves crash into the island. Later that nite, after having some beers with the British couple in town again, I brought out my poi and spun for awhile. I finally learned how to spin backwards, after so long of trying!!! So there I was, listening to my favorite music, spinning poi, on a boat, under the starts and full moon....




Day 5: Isla Sante Fe and Islas Plazas

We went for a hike in the morning on the island and saw a different type of land iguana (only in this island), more sea lions, and the island was covered in prickly pear cactus. The cactus is a little different than Arizona as the trunks are like trees with the prickly pear at the top. They even have goatheads!!! We also saw the Galapagos hawk which is pretty magnificent - it is the top dog on the food chain. After the hike, we went snorkeling and I saw a lobster, a huge sea turtle, sea lions, a huge stingray, and trumpetfish. Then...I got stung by a jellyfish! It really, really hurt (it was almost electric) and I was going to get out onto the boat and look for sympathy but I ended up giving it a few minutes and kept snorkeling. This was the last snorkeling we had while on the cruise...figures I would end it that way. :)

In the afternoon, we went to Islas Plazas. Here we saw a different type of land iguana, sea lions, and a bunch of different types f birds nesting...blue footed boobies, friggets, lava gulls, pelicans. It was also really cool because we saw two crabs pinched together and we watched for bit while the guide described that they were mating. Pretty soon one flipped on top of the other and they stayed like that and then they broke apart and the female laid the eggs in the water.

That night, we had farewell drinks with the crew which was really nice.

Day 6: Santa Cruz Island

In the morning, Maggie woke me up to tell me there were sharks out around the boat. I booked upstairs and sure enough, there were a bunch of them circling in the water. You could see their fins and then when they came near the boat, you could see the entire shark which were 6-8 feet long. It was a great start to the morning. After breakfast, we took the panga out to the mangroves in Black Turtle Bay. Here we got to see lots of black sea turtles and some of them were mating at the top of the water. It´s crazy because the male almost drowns the female while it´s happening. We also saw a bunch of fish jumping all around the mangrove area, as well as a bunch of birds: egrets, herrings, boobies, gulls, and pelicans. This was the last trip for us and they dropped us off near the airport, while I had to go all the way back to town.

When I arrived in town, I was looking for a cheap place to stay and was calling some places when this girl offered to bring me to the place she had for rent for $15. When I got there, I was greeted by two enormous, well taken care of dogs and then her sister or daughter (not sure which), introduced me to the kitten as well (my kind of place!). The room was huge and really nice and had a bathroom too. They had basically added a whole building with a couple rooms to rent out. It was a super nice place and I was very happy! So, I left my stuff and took a walk through town. I went back to the kioskas (where we had drinks with the firefighter from Winipeg) and had the plate of the day...soup, rice, plantains, shrimp, and coconut drink for $3. There, I met a couple who were going to live in Cusco, and their mother (one of theirs). Then she mentions that she is from Alaska. I ask where and low and behold...she is from Ketchikan (where I worked 4 summers). She then tells me about the owner´s grandson Shane that I knew and he died of a drug reaction-overdose a few years ago, which was sad. She also knew the superintendent of the school that my ex´s parents are great friends with. Small world! She also had just left Bonaire and told me how incredible it is, - you can scuba dive at the dock and its great!

After lunch, I hiked a few miles out to Tortuga Bay beach. It was all paved in stones and winds its way through this little park to two beaches. The first beach I got to was a surfing beach and I jumped right in. The waves were really great and I was so wishing I had a boogie board with me but I found out you had to rent them in town. So, I played and body surfed and watched all the surfers have fun. I stayed for awhile and then headed back so I could go visit Darwin Station, where they have breeding grounds for the Giant Galapagos Tortoises. On the way, I booked my scuba dive for the next morning and then I ran into a guy I met on the bus from the airport, Phil from Calgary, and told him and he booked the same dive shop.

Darwin Station: There wasn´t a whole lot there, but I did get to see the incubators for the bay tortoises and I also saw he adult enclosure. In there, I saw two male tortoises and I am not quite sure but I think they were going to fight, or were at least staring each other down and hissing. I also saw the infamous ¨Lonesome George¨ He is one of the last tortoises of his kind and when he dies, they will be extinct. Unfortunately, they have tried and he has not bred with any female tortoises (I didn´t pay for a guide so i didn´t get the full scoop) He is 90 now and they don´t think he ever will. Poor George! Pobrecito!

Later that nite, I went out for dinner at the kioskas again and had tuna in coconut sauce with rice and a big beer (our 40ozer). It was delicious. Then I was walking down by the port and they had this concert going on and there were tons of people dancing out in the park.

Day 7: Scuba Diving @ Gordon´s Rocks

Got up super early (such is the scuba life) to go scuba diving. As I was leaving, I did the one thing I was not supposed to do, I accidentally let the dogs out. The first one was so damn quick he pushed through me and bolted. Stunned, I went after him and the second one bolted. Luckily, the girl´s mother was there and said not to worry (they were back by the time I got home from diving). I was a little apprehensive fro diving only because I had heard that diving in the Galapagos is very difficult due to currents. In fact, the British guy on the cruise told me he didn´t think he had it in him to do 3 dives since he was exhausted from his 2, and we had 3 dives scheduled. Went out with the boat captain, 2 divemasters, who were both really cool, myself, Phil from Calgary, 4 Japanese people, and two swedish girls. We all had 7 mil wetsuits on and of course, I kept saying I didn´t want one but they made me wear it anyway (I was used to Caribbean diving, not the Pacific). The top of the water was nice, but soon we hit a thermocline and it was so,so very, very cold! However, we drifted in and out of the thermoclines so it got better. During the three dives we saw many sharks, even a few hammerheads, sea lions, turtles, big tangs, parrotfish, pufferfish, and manta rays. It was amazing! I had never seen sharks before like that and they just kept circling with the fish in this one large area. the diving was definitely difficult though. Several times we had to grab hold of rocks so we wouldn´t drift away from the group, as the visibility was not so good and we might have lost each other. Not fun to be diving into the abyss. There were times where we struggled against the currents to keep up with the divemaster and it was funny because I noticed none of us were moving any further forward against the current. At one point, the divemaster had us climb on the rocks, literally climbing from rock to rock to get where we needed to go. All in all, it was a fantastic day and a great diving experience. There were two diovemasters, Richard, and Maccaron, the owner. I asked them how long they ha been diving for and Macaroon proceeded to tell me he had been diving for 23 years, 8 of which were for spearfishing (which is illegal but he did it anyway). He then told me about the day, 15 years ago when he went to spear a jack and something flashed in its eyes and he couldn´t do it and never fished again. That´s when he became a scuba instructor. I though that was really cool!

Day 8: Leaving Galapgos

I was so sad to be leaving the Galapagos. That day there was supposed to be this huge party on the beach that everyone in the islands goes to. But I had to leave. At the bus station, I ran into the other divemaster, Richard. He was going to the airport to meet his friends co,ming from Switzerland. We spent a lot of time together until I left and He was such an interesting guy. He had been diving for 11 years (he´s young too!) and just got back to the Galapagos after spending a few years in Switzerland as well as studying to be a chef in Italy. He has been diving in Bonaire and the Yucatan too and did a lot of studies on hyperbaric chambers (where you go when you get the ¨bends¨which is nitrogen toxicity from diving - mostly fisherman get it because they don´t follow the rules. Anyway, I was really glad I ran into him again before I left.

So, that was my Galapagos trip. I will post pictures when I can. In the meantime, I posted some pictures of Lake Titicaca and the Inca Trail so scroll down below.

The Galapagos Islands - Part 1

Hola - it´s been awhile...been aboard a yacht for 6 days...Yate Floreana. It was a pretty small yacht (it holds 16 people in 8 cabins plus the crew) and I got a killer last minute deal on it (almost half off!). They ended up having a bunch of people cancel at the last minute so there were only 5 passengers (plus one of the workers was allowed to bring his wife and 2 kids since it was so empty). This included: Aika and Wolfgang, a German couple about 70 years old, and Maggie and Howard, a British couple maybe in their 40s, and yours truly, moi. Aika and Wolfgang were not stereotypical Germans at all (which the Brits commented on several times.) They had traveled all over Australia, New Zealand, and Africa, and were spending 2 weeks in the Galapagos. Aika loves to film on her video camera, and Wolfgang, well, he was the funniest, goofiest guy who did not speak any English at all but had become best friends with all the crew and somehow found a way to talk to them (mostly by making them laugh). As for Maggie and Howard, they were not very typical Brits either. They have traveled a bunch and were taking 3 mos in Ecuador and Venezuela and were my drinking buds on the trip. I thoroughly enjoyed them and we had the most interesting conversations. The crew was 6 people plus our guide, Pepe. The captain was Freddy and being that I was alone, the two couples sat at one table and I got to dine with the Captain every nite. I got a lot of interesting information from him (on politics and history, etc) and he kept begging me to stay on and teach him more English - he really enjoyed my company :). Oh, and this yacht was run by locals so I felt really good about that, as there is a lot on the internet about how the cruises tend to make money for people that don´t live in the Islands. I even booked directly with the yacht the day before I got there. I was a little hesitant about a cruise, but from everything I read, it is the way to see the most islands and since it was so small, it really was a good way to go.

Day 1: Arrival on Santa Cruz Island
For some reason, I had a first class seat on the plane which was a sweet way to start off this trip. And, like most Latin American airlines, a free drink (I had a beer). On my way off the plane, I met the owner and he made sure I got from the airport, on the bus, then on the ferry, then into the car that drove us to the port (and along the way we picked up a hitchhiker). I was surprised to see how dead the vegetation looked but then I remembered reading about it and the fact that it is very dry and still developing from lava stone. It reminded me of Arizona too, and even more so as time went on. Then finally we arrived in Porta Ayora, which is inhabited by about 5000 people, and the panga boat (small raft type boat) picked me up and took me to the yacht, where I met everyone and had lunch. I got a really good feeling and also was stoked to have a cabin all to myself...

Shortly after lunch, we got into the panga and met Pepe, our guide, who took us to the Highlands (mountains) to see the Galapagos tortoises and lava tubes on someone´s property. We also went over the rules...no flashes on cameras, no touching or making stupid kissing noises to the animals, and keep about a meter away to give them space. As soon as we started hiking the trail, we saw two HUGE tortoises, which were female (the males are even larger!). They didn´t even flinch when we came near them at all. We then hiked some more and got see male tortoises too! They are every bit as magnificent as you would think. Along the way, Pepe picked some passion fruit and gave it to me and Maggie to share (her husband went diving and the Germans to the beach instead). The highlands are not as dry as the rest of the island and there is also freshwater here that does not need to be trucked in like in town. We also saw a few finshes as well, one of which is the woodpecker finch. It actually picks twigs from the tree and uses it to pick out insects from the trees. Pepe explained that there are 13 different finches, with different bills (beaks) that all evolved from one species. These are what are referred to as ¨Darwin Finches¨.

After spending some time hiking, we took the bus to the lava tubes, which were really cool! What happens is that as the lava cools from the volcano on the outside, the inside is still magma and flowing and so it carves out a long tube, hundreds of meters, that is about 5 or so meters high and wide. They have motion lights inside so we could see. On the way out, I noticed some bones, and Pepe explained they were from Panchita. Evidently, the owner of the land had a cow, named Panchita. She disappeared one day and after a few days, he found her body where she had tumbled down into the lava tube, which is how he discovered the tubes in the first place. It was hard to tell the tube was even there, it was similar to the way the cenotes are in the Yucatan.

Later that nite, we got to spend some time in the port before our yacht took off. I went with the British couple to meet a firefighter from Winnipeg they had met and Howard had dove with that day. He was maybe in his 20s and was spending about a month traveling, first rock climbing in Quito (Ecuador), and then a week in the Galapagos, and then taking a cruise in the Bahamas I think. (Alisha - he said he hates Phoenix because they are modeling his department after yours...people hate change but usually its for the better - thought you might want to know.) He had found these great ¨kisoks¨ which were little BBQ cubbies that also had giant Ecuador beers. We had two big beers while we were there but didn´t eat as we had dinner on the boat. Had a great conversation on England´s change to the metric system. While it is good in a lot of ways, the Brits were saying how it is much more difficult to divide the 10 than the 12 (10 can be divided in half only for a hole number, whereas 12 can be divided by half, by thirds, and by quarters, and by six and still get whole numbers) Interesting perspective.

Went back to the yacht about 10 and then twirled poi (balls on chains that glow that I brought for a toy and to practice for those that don´t know what I am talking about). The kids thought it was really cool and so did some of the crew - they had never seen anything like it before.

Day 2: Floreana Island
Woke up an hour early this morning after hearing the bell go off that meant there was something up on top of the boat to see. Went up to the front with everyone and there a bunch of dolphins diving in and out of the water, which a few were riding the waves from the boat. It was a fantastic way to start off the day!

After breakfast we took the panga to Post Office Bay where we landed on the beach and took a short hike. Here, back in 1807 I think, they placed a barrel for people to leave mail that would then be hand delivered by others leaving the islands. The barrel is now covered in stickers and there is all sorts of wood with messages here. Now, you can leave postcards here and when people visit, they look through them and if they are addressed to their town, you take them with you and hand deliver them. I did not find any for Phoenix or Tucson, unfortunately. I also did not leave one as I forgot to buy one the nite before after drinking beer. :) We also saw a sea lion here as well as pelicans and friggets (sea birds that are endemic to the Galapagos) At Post Office bay, we went snorkeling where I saw a sea turtle and a stingray, but the water was really murky. We got back on board and ate lunch, and while on board, we saw sea turtles from the boat.

After lunch, I took a siesta (and did so every day of the cruise!). Then we went for a hike in Cormorant Point, which did not have Cormorants (flightless birds). Here we hiked a bit through mangroves on the shore of brackish water (salt and fresh mixed) where we saw 3 flamingos, but only off in the distance (you will see pick specks in my pics!). The mangroves were cool and you could actually see salt crystals on the leaves of the plants where they took in the brackish water and convert it to fresh and expel the salt. Over the hill we saw a great blue heron and some cool crabs (which I would see every day the rest of the trip but was really excited about). I also saw my first blue-footed booby! (A sea type bird with blue feet found endemic to the island!)

After the hike, we took a panga to Champion Island nearby where we snorkeled in deep water. This was the best snorkeling the whole trip. We got to snorkel with a bunch of sea lions, mostly babies (although i was told to be careful of the males which can be aggressive). They were playing all around in the water and would dive in and swim right toward you and then swerve at the last minute. Then...I saw my first shark!!!! It was probably 6 feet long and so amazing but I couldn´t get a picture (it was a black tipped shark). We also saw tangs, and really big blennies and parrotfish, and some barracuda.

At dinner, the captain told me the eerie story about Floreana Island. Evidently, back in maybe 1930 or so (if I remember correctly), there was a Baronessa that arrived from a Scandinavian country and brought with her 3 lovers (yes-three to herself!). She lived there with them for awhile but soon was causing problems with local women and their husbands and was found murdered, along with two of her lovers eventually murdered. Not sure if it was the local women or the remaining lover and it has been a mystery since. (It was cool because I saw the story later at a visitor center and it never even mentioned the local wives so I got more info from the Captain).

Day 3: Espanola Island
In the morning we went took the Panga to Punta Suarez, where we landed on a beach with hundreds of sea lions! Most of the sea lions were females and their babies, which many were nursing. With sea lions, the male can mate with many females and may mate 40 times in one year. There is one male only to a group of females and males patrol their territory to ensure other males do not come in to mate. Females can get pregnant every two months, while they are already pregnant. Each baby is in the womb for 10 months, so she can have up to 4 or 5 babies nursing at a time within any given year. I thought that was really cool to learn! We also saw marine iguana here, called Christmas iguanas. They are red and green due to the algae they eat and they are considered marine iguanas because they actaully dive in the ocean looking for and eating algae! They have evolved to have flat faces compared to most iguanas since they scrape the algae off the rocks for food. We also witnessed two male iguanas, coming out of a cave, one on top of the other. It turns out they were fighting for territory and clearly the one on top was winning. It was a little hard to watch but the top one was biting on and pulling on the iguanas neck spines and the bottom one was bleeding. Eventually it ran away. Pretty cool to see in real life (just like Discovery Channel!) We also saw some Blue footed boobies and Nazca boobies too, as well as some ¨lava lizards¨¨, both male and female which look very different from one another.

In the afternoon (after the siesta!) we went to Gardner Bay, where we saw a bunch more sea lions and then went snorkeling with them. I also saw a huge stingray and lots of fish.

That nite, we motored to San Cristobal Island and got off for a few hours in town. The town was a lot smaller and had a really cool walk down the waterfront. I went with the Brits to a bar and we had a few beers and more great conversations! (and listened to Tracy Chapman) They were telling me a lot about their trip to India and places they went. They also got news that their house in England was flooded and filled with mold (their daughter was checking it weekly). They didn´t seem too upset, they were such laid back people.

OK - It´s almost 9pm and I am hungry and going to go check out those kiosks again (I am back on Santa Cruz) Going diving in the morning with hammerheads and other sharks and rays!!!! Stay tuned for Part 2.

Attention all you anonymous people

I am new to the whole blog thing ... some of you told me you were anonymous and I didn´t realize that I had you blocked from commenting ... feel free to do so now

Free Roaming dogs, Shamans, Facebook, Ziplocks, and other random thoughts

Free Roaming Dogs: One of the things I really like about Cuzco is all the dogs roaming around. Some of them are definitely skinny but they are not as sick as I have seen in other places. I love watching them trot down the street and greet other dogs in the park. They are confident and own the city and I think overall, they are pretty happy. I just finished a book before I left, Merle´s Door, about a guy who has a dog in Wyoming and lives in a small town where all the dogs roam freely. They don´t bark at strangers, or fight each other, and essentially live as part of the community. They are really well socialized and it makes me think more and more that I wish we could let our dogs roam free. However, I guess in Tucson and most places, the streets are too dangerous. It´s amazing because in Cusco, drivers are so very aware of the dogs and the dogs of them. And it´s not just dogs, I saw Sheep, and cows, and llamas, and alpacas, all roaming in the countryside freely. Drivers are very concsientious about it. Of course, I also saw a lot of sickly skinny ones and that makes me sad, but such is life...Anyway- I have become even more aware of how we cage animals and imprison them to some degree and I am guilty with my own animals, but hopefully I treat them well, but it will never be the same as the wild. (Kelly...makes me think how you do about birds in cages)

Shamans: The day before I left for the Amazon, I toured a few ruins in Cusco. One was a church built on top of Inca Walls, which was really cool to see the mixture of architecture. After that I climbed to Saqsaywaman, which means ¨satisfied falcon¨, named after the falcons ate the flesh of hundreds of people thrown in the ruins by the Spanish Conquistadors. I did not hire a guide. Anyway, while hiking this ruin, I ended up meeting a shaman (or so he said) and he sent me to this place to take in the energy of the sun. Then he showd me around the rest of the ruins, which were built for the Sun and the Moon. In nearly each place, he found herbs and shook them around me and sang and did these rituals. I didn´t learn a lot of history about the ruins, but instead more about the Inca beliefs and the uses of the place, which was really pretty cool. I sat in sacred places in sacred positions (like the fetal position where they prayed). It was a pretty interesting perspective and I ended up giving him a tip (he did this all for free).

Facebook- almost everyone I met on this trip is on facebook. I love myspace, but I think I will finally break down and join facebook too so I can keep in touch with my new friends I have met.

Ziplocks: We are spoiled because the Swedish grils were telling me they don´t have ziplocks in Europe. While I like ziplock bags, I have learned that the quart size ones really suck, but the gallon freezer bags hold up much better. All the quart size ones I placed my liquids in have broken (mostly the first few days). I could not buy ziplocks in Cusco either so I have taken to recycling all the little plastic bags I have collected during this trip. I am doing good deeds.

Sacred Valley and Travellers: Yesterday I spent my last day in Cusco visiting the Sacred Valley, which is several Inca Ruin sites. It was OK, but it was with about 30 people so it was very touristy. I did meet a really cool girl named Marcia from Northern Italy and we had great talks about travel and love and all sorts of other things that you don´t usually get to discuss with strangers. It was kind of like we were meant to meet and have deep conversations that moved us forward in some way, or shed new light. I also spent some time on the bus talking to some students from Chile. I just absolutely love meeting new people and hearing about their lives and experiences. There is something really special about travellers. It is summer break for South America right now so I have met mostly people from here, mostly Argentina and Chile too.

Pisco: So, On my way out to Peru, I sat next to an American guy going to visit Lima to see his wife and kid (they came out ahead of him). He was really funny because he was getting pretty buzzed and loved talking up Peru. We had great cionversations and he told me so much about Peru, like the sauces they use, places to visit up North (where I did not go) , and the typical drink: Pisco Sour. So last nite, I had two. Didn´t like them at first but they grow on you. Especially with a touch of cinammon. We will need to have Peruvian Nite soon and eat great peruvian food and drink Pisco Sours (too bad we won´t be able to get Mate de Coca)

Peru: I absolutely love Peru! I think I could have spent my whole five weeks there and never have gotten bored. The culture and the people are very interesting and the nature and scenery is unbelievable. The people are all so friendly and have such good energy within them. And Peruvian food is so good (and cheap!) I really liked Cusco a lot as well. Last nite, I was walking by one of the 4 plazas and these kids were practicing a dance to drumming and flutes which was pretty cool to watch. The plazas here are so grea as there is so much going on (I also saw a brass band playing one nite and ran into people I met at the airport in Lima) I really want to come back again someday and spend more time. Peru is a magical place.

Guayaquil, Ecuador: I am now in Guayaquil, Ecuador. I am missing Cusco terribly. This city is dirty and the people don´t seem that friendly. Of course, I just got here, but I am glad I am not spending much time here. It reminds me of...Nogales and Jersey together. The people are so different here too - which is just odd that it is so close to Peru. Tomorrow morning I fly to the Galapagos Islands. I found a really good deal on a small yacht for 6 days touring the islands and then I will spend two days on the main island before coming back here to catch my flight to Bonaire. I hope I end up with cool people on the boat (16 people plus crew) and that I don´t get seasick. Hopefully I will get a day of scuba diving in as well. I am really excited as Galapagos has been a dream of mine for a long, long time.

Don´t know when I will have Internet access again but will write again when I do. Hope you are all doing well.

And for my music friends: Hope you are enjoying the Gem and Jam Show and all the other great music coming to town. Send me a note to tell me all about them! Anyone see Slightly Stoopid the other nite? Hope the 8 Minutes to Burn and Vampyros Bonobos shows go well too (of course they will!)! I haven´t seen any live music (except traditional, but not really danceable) so I am really jonesing to dance....maybe I will plug in my ipod and dance in my room a bit tonite :)

Ciao!

Amazon Rainforest Jungle

Just got back from the Amazon tonite. I have been jumping from one adventure to the next.

Manu National Park

Manu is a world heritage site and is one of the largest bioreserves in the world. This part of the Amazon is not technically on the Amazon River (it is way up north). However, there is a big river that runs through it. There are three zones. About 90% of it is off limits to anyone but scientists and it is really well protected. There are a few remote tribes (like the one they found in Brazil) in it, but they do little damage and the government lets them remain, as they should. There is another 5% that is open to tourists, but not this time of year, since it is the rainy season and it is a really dangerous road. I had a hard time finding any tours here at all because of it. The last part is the cultural zone, and that is what we visited. It is essentially populated, but hardly much at all.

Day 1: Got picked up at 5am along with the rest of the group: Two Swedish girls, Lina and Isabel, and an older retired couple from Denmark, Karen and Leif, along with our tour guide, rafting guide, and driver. It was a 10 hour ride and I tried to sleep most of the way, since it was around really sharp curves and along cliffs the entire way (I couldn´t bare to watch too much or I would get really nervous we would go over the cliff....) The scenery was amazing though. We traveled up into the Andes and through the cloudforest before heading down into the Amazon Basin.

Along the way, we stopped at in two small towns that had local markets going on (it was Sunday, a big day for the markets, as well as for rural girls to come to bigger towns to meet men). It is so interesting seeing all the food and goods people are selling. We also stopped at some ruins of tombs where they mummified bodies. It was really cool because they found some of the bodies mummified along with their dogs. I had just finished a book before I left that mentioned that this took place in a lot of cultures so it was cool to hear about it. Evidently, the dogs are taken with them to guide the way to heaven.

Up in the cloudforest, our Guide (YoYo, or Jojo?) was talking about the cows up on the hill and the Swedish girls and I gave each other funny looks because...they were horses! This pretty much clued us into the fact our guide was not the greatest...unfortunately, Marco on The Inca Trail really set the bar high. We laughed about the cows the entire trip! He did know his birds, etc., but he really just wasn´t into it, and seemed kind of lazy, and we were looking for lots of adventure.

Anyway, we finally arrived near our lodge and went to a viewing platform to see the ¨Cock of the Rock¨ , the official Peru bird. It is clack and white with a bright red head that is similar to a rooster (kind of). Anyway, there were a bunch of males, they are usually in a 10:1 ratio, not bad odds :). They come to this place to fight for the females - like a discoteque (per our guide). Afterwards, we went to our lodge, which was really rustic but nice (we had real toilets). We had electricity from 6-8. Slept really well that night, listening to the rain in the jungle.

Day 2: We got up about 6:30am and hiked about an hour down the road. Here we got to see a couple monkeys! Then we drove a couple hours and ended up making stops in a few small towns (I mean really small!) We made one stop at a bakery, and got to have some fresh rolls, they were so delicious! We then also made a stop to someone´s house where they had a coca plantation, as well as coffee, bananas, and papaya, as well as other stuff. Here we got the full rundown on Coca. It is legal in the Andes, but not the northern part of Peru. Supposedly it is not even technically legal but because the Andean people use it for their religion, the govt leaves them alone. However, it is not really found much outside of the Andes (or so our guide said).

After a couple hours, we got to the town where we began our rafting down the river. I had never done river rafting, but it was level 2-3 so it was easy rapids. I had a lot of fun. We rafted down the river for about an hour and then arrived in another small town, where we got on a boat to get to our next lodge, only accessible by boat. The motor on the boat ( a really long skinny boat)died and luckily we were headed downstream. They ended up pushing the boat by hand using a long pole, and also working with the rapids. There were several people that came along on this ride and we found our that a couple did the Canopy zip lines and a few were jungle guides.

The next lodge was cool because it was surrounded by jungle and had several paths to take. Lina and I (one of the swedish girls) went hiking by ourselves since our guide was being lazy. We hiked for about an hour and saw some really cool stuff. Tons of tropical plants, cool fungi and lichens everywhere, and crazy vines that were like ropes hanging from all the trees (like Indiana Jones!). We went back to the lodge and then the whole group went for hike, along with a few of the native guys that came along on the boat. We hiked a little different route this time and ended up seeing some really cool spiders and found out that one of the trees with several above ground roots was a walking palm. The palm grows new roots to leverage itself and move to where there is more light to grow. We ate dinner that nite and went to bed early, really exhausted, and having to get up at 5am the next day.

Day 3: We got up at 5am and took a short boat ride (they fixed the motor) to the Parrot Clay Lick. Essentially, it was a spot along the river with exposed clay (like maybe there had been a landslide at one point). Here we got to watch tons of birds flying around us and landing in the trees. The coolest were the Macaws, which flew in pairs (they mate for life). There were also a bunch of parakeets (but really small parrots) that also flew in pairs but in large groups instead of solo. I had never seen birds fly in pairs before. There were a bunch of other birds but since I am not an ornithologist, I don´t really remember what they were. We thought they would start flying down to eat clay (it helps their digestion), but soon they all left for further down the river and we saw why: There was a huge falcon that was sitting nearby, that preys on parrots. We got to see them further down the river eating clay though.

Went back for breakfast and I took a short nap and then we were off to the Canopy Tour on zip lines. We saw more monkeys on the way. It was just us girls (the older couple from Denmark weren´t into it) and even though I had done it before in Honduras, I was nervous. There is always that element of questioning whether they really know safety in third world countries. There were 4 lines, about 40 meters high in the tree canopies. The first one was 120 meters long as well. There were two guides with us and also a little 5 year old girl named Yasmine, who was so damn cute! (she was the daughter of the family that ran the lodge). This was her first time doing the zip lines and the guys shared turns holding her while they...zipped? (not sure what the term is). It was really fun, although the first time I braked too soon and had to turn around and pull myself along the line to the platform. All was well and good. At the end, we had to rappel down about 60 feet or so (I am so bad at judging distance), which was the first time I had to do something like that. It was pretty cool. All was well and good until the last guide came down with Yasmine. Just below the platform, she had gotten her hair stuck in the line (there was this hook thing that helped control the movement down the rope) The other guide was frantic, and Yasmine was screaming. He asked if we had a knife and no one did (and you would think they would have ...but that is part of the whole safety thing in 3rd world countries). So the other guide had to run to the beginning and zip down all 4 lines to get to them. All the while, we were trying to calm the girl down. The guy holding her did a pretty good job and got her stop crying a few times, but she may also just have been in shock. Once the other guy got there, me and another girl each held their ropes and helped move them to grab the platform and they finally got her hair free and came down. She was so brave but so exhausted as well. She fell asleep in their arms on the hike back. It was pretty scary, listening to her screaming and being so helpless. By the end of the day, she had forgotten all about it and was her happy sweet little self again.

We went back and had lunch and went swimming in the river and relaxed for bit. A little while later, the next group came, which included Andy and Greg, the two brothers I was hiking with on the Inca Trail (I told them about it but they had to leave a day later). They were there with their friend and also 3 German guys. We ended up playing soccer, with the 3 Germans and us 3 girls against 6 of the native guys. They won, but only by a point. I was a damn good goalie and I really had fun playing soccer again. Went swimming again and then got ready for the next hike.

We took a short boat to another part of the river and hiked about 45 mins to a Lake where there were tons of birds. We got on these log rafts and the two guides were were with used poles to push us around the lake. There were some crazy looking birds. On the way back, a dog I befriended (I befriend a lot of dogs when I travel bc I miss mine so much), walked back with us to the boat.

We got back and the German guys were drinking 40 ouncers and were drunk and singing - it was pretty funny. We had a few beers and played cards with Andy and Greg, and their guide and another dude. I learned an new game to teach everyone! Then we had dinner with the whole group, which was fun.

After dinner, our guide was going to take the three of us for a short nite walk, but the other guys wanted to go with us and their guide wanted to do a 3-4 hour nite hike, which were were totally down for. Our guide ended up staying behind (he was lazy), along with the Danish couple. We went with the rest of the people and a few of the guides. Two of the three drunk germans were somehow given machetes and were being really obnoxious and cutting everything in their path (and we were on a trail). The rest of us stayed far away. It was kind of funny because they were like little boys with new toys but it was kinda scary too since they were drunk and waving wildly, in pitch black. It was irritating me that they were killing so many plants too. Although, I must say that the jungle almost seems to grow back immediately, or at least it gives that feeling. We saw tons of insects: several species of wolf spiders, katydids, grasshoppers, walking sticks, and tree frogs. At one point, we tried to go around the river and the Germans were given a real task with the machete and they and the guides bushwacked a trail but it ended up going right back to the river. So, we backtracked and walked across several logs laying across the river. It was pretty slippery, so the guides took our hands and helped us across. (On a side note, I decided, I really like the way Latin men are so chivalrous with women. I could have tried to make it across by myself but it was nice to be helped instead) We finally finished the hike about midnite. When we got back, I took out my poi and played (I p0layed earlier for Yasmine as well) and then the one German guy who did not have the machete, picked up the poi and spun them like a natural. One of the guides also played guitar and another one was hanging out and we just sat and talked for awhile, which was really cool. I like talking to the locals and getting their perspective on things.

Day 4: Not much to say. We left on the boat to go back up the river around 8am. It was raining really hard, which reminded me that we had been so lucky not to have rain much at all except at nite when we were sleeping. We had a 12 hour ride back to Cusco. On the way, something happened to the car but they got it fixed and we were on our way.

So, that was my Amazon trip. It was pretty cool. Manu has one of the most biodiverse rainforests ion the world. Unfortunately, we were not in the thick of it due to the time of year, but all in all it was good.

Trekking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu

I am so overwhelmed by what a beautiful experience I had on this trip that I am unsure how much I can actually put into words. However, this has become my journal for me to remember my trip by as well as to share with you all, so I am going to try.

After being sick for nearly 3 weeks, with a chest cold, and struggling to hike the mountain in Lake Titicaca, I almost cancelled the 4 day hike for a shorter two day one in which the hiking was a lot easier. However, thanks to several people, including the guide, I was encouraged to go for it. The night before the group met with our guide and we talked about the hike. The people in my group were such wonderful poeple and the group dynamic was incredible. There was a couple from England and Wales (Clare and Simon), two brothers from San Francisco, Andy who was turning 30 the day we started the trek and his younger brother Greg, two friends from San Francisco, Debbie and Rebecca, and myself, along with our guide Marco. By the end of this trip, we all became very close and I truly believe half of what made the trip so special was how we all got along. Marco, the guide, was so funny and charismatic that you couldn´t help but love him. ¨He kept us laughing the entire time whether it was talking about knocking Chileans off cliffs or singing, he made the experience much different for us than the other groups. Also, it was just the 7 of us and not 16 like the other groups.

I also want to say something about the porters. I purposefully chose the company that I did due to the great treatment of the porters. Porters are the guys who carry all the food, tents, and equipment needed during the trip. We had 13 porters, one of which doubles as a chef. They each carry up to 60 kilos on their backs and these guys all stick together in a group and practically run ahead of us to set up everything. They were all so happy and the camaraderie with each other and us was amazing. I saw many other porters walking solo and from what I hear, they aren´t even given food most of the time. Our porters ate the same things we did each nite. As I tell you about the trek, you will understand how challenging it really was. What is amazing is that there are races between porters sometimes and one porter ran the entire trail (28.5 miles over 3 Andean Mountain passes, including lots of steps) in under 4 hours.

DAY 1: 6.5 hours; 2000ft elevation gain to 10,829ft
We boarded a bus at 5 am and drove 2 hours to Ollantaytabo, a small village in the Andes with Incan ruins which gave the first glimpse of what we were in store for. We ate breakfast here, bought coca leaves, and then boarded the bus and followed the river, Rio Urubamba, to kilometer 82, our starting point. The hike was up and down quite a bit (I wish I knew the total accumulated elevation gain which must have been a lot more. We followed along the river quite a bit, which had really great rapids. It was really hot that day and we all really wanted to swim but it was impossible due to the rapids. We also ran into a bunch of donkeys carrying things for the locals who lived in the remote area. Unfortunately, they were scared of our walking sticks due to the fact that the locals used sticks to hit them to force them to move forward (I won´t go into this but you all know how I feel about animals and I was so glad to see one donkey run away from a girl that had hit him and she could not catch up...sweet revenge). We came across a huge grassy field which overlooked the Llactapata Incan Ruins, where there were llama and alpaca grazing. Of course, I tried to pet them and got pretty close but not enough to pet. The ruins were quite beautiful and were built along the river. We didn´t go down to them but we got a full briefing of the history. As you will read later, Machu Picchu was a secret that very few people knew about. The ruins we were looking at was an administration site for the ruins to follow, including Machu Picchu.

After these ruins, we hiked some more and got to our luch site. The porters laid out bowls of warm water, soap, and towels, and tents for us to eat lunch in. We had soup, and trout with rice and veggies and the food was outstanding for camping! This was all pretty typical for every meal, which really just added to the entire experience. We then had mint tea (local herbs), to help with digestion and rested for a bit before continuing. We hiked a few hours more, saw another ruin site Wayllabamba, and finally ended up at our campsite. It was a beautiful spot nestled in the mountains. Again, water, soap, and towels ready for us. At 5pm, we had tea and snacks. We then all got into a circle, with the 13 porters, and introduced ourselves. It was really cool to listen to where each of the porters were from and how long they had been working. Then at 7pm, we had dinner. Debbie brought out a candy bar she had and we lit a match and celebrated Andy´s birthday. We hung out in the tent for a bit after dinner just talking and finally all were tired from getting up so early that morning and knowing we had to be up at 6am the next day for a 10 hour hike, the hardest day. When we left the tent, we could see thousands of stars out, it was really beautiful. Three in particular, probably planets, were lined horizantally between the mountains. We all slept like baby llamas that night (Marco´s favorite saying to us before we went to bed.

DAY 2: 11 hours; 3000ft elevation gain to 13,779ft
At 6am, the porters woke us up and brought us coca tea. We got ready and had breakfast, where the chef had baked a cake (we have no idea how) for Andy´s birthday! This was a great way to start the day! They gave us snacks and we were on our way. This part is pretty blurry for me...it was really difficult and hiking uphill, mostly up stairs, for about 4-5 hours. The rest of the group was a little ahead of me, and Marco came back and walked behind me for the duration. We met up with the group about every hours or so, where they cheered me on. My lungs were not in good shape and I was coughing a lot of the way. However, I kept thinking about the porters that carried 60lbs and ran up the hill, as well as all the donkeys and horses forced to carry loads uphill (they weren´t really this high up anymore but still ) and I trekked on. Finally, I made it to the top of the tallest peak, named Dead Woman´s Pass. And only about 20 minutes after everyone else did. There was an incredible sense of accomplishment and I knew at this point I could finish the trail!!! We then began a steep descent down 2000ft, mostly down stone stairs (all the stairs were stones laid by the Incans). It was really steep and long but finally at the bottom, we had lunch and rested.

After lunch, we began another steep climb up 1500ft to the second pass. The views throughout this trek are amazing. Plunging mountains and the river down below. There are also Ibncan ruins we visted along the way again as well (two more on this day). Marco is incredibly knowledgeable about then Incan empire and the theories surrounding the ruins and the people. The Incan people did not document much and so not a lot is known. JHe was great at drawing on the ground to demonstrate things we would see and explain and then he would erase it all so his rival guide wouldn´t use it (he was so funny about ragging on this other guide). Finally, we descended about 1300 feet down some more steps and ended up at our second campsite in Chaquicocha, which was in the cloudforest. It was really cloudy and started to rain, so we didn´t get a good view until the next morning. We had tea at 5 and dinner at 7 again and it was all delicious! We all were exhausted and went right to bed after dinner.

DAY 3: 5 hours; 3000ft elevation loss
We woke up early and had tea in bed in the tents and when we finally came out, we were astounded by the view. There were glaciers off in the top of the mountains evwerywhere. And huge gushing waterfalls coming off the mountain. It was the most magnificent site, I can´t wait until I can show off pictures. We hiked up the mountain a bit and then decscended down steps most of the way. (I had heard there were 2,000 steps during this part of the trek) I was surprised, but I wásn´t hurting nearly as bad as I thought I would. Maybe the scenery made it easier to forget. Or maybe, it´s like giving birth, you forget about the pain as your adrenaline kicks in, because if you remembered, you´d never do it again. (not that I have given birth...) Anyway, we wound around the mountain side with view after stunning view and climbed our way down through two caves, and two more ruin sites. We also began to descent into the Amazon forest and found beautiful orchids along the way, along with hundreds of other tropical plants, some of which are nearly extinct. We all agreed that this was the most beautiful hike of the three days. We ended up at our campsite somewhat early this day. We were all excited because there were showers here, but during the nite, there was a landslide and the water luine was broken so no showers. That also meant the toilets were out. By the next morning, you almost gagged going in there (kinda like some shows I have been to at the end). Around 4 we hiked to a nearby ruin that was truly incredible. It was a combination of past ruins we had seen, with many terraces and a fountain that ran down through the entire structure(s). There was a beautiful waterfall below and you could see the river way down below. There were some guys playing hackysack in the ruins and that was pretty cool. We then went back for tea and dinner and also said goodbye to the porters and gave them tips. We tried to go to bed early, but there was a tiny restuarant with about 60 Argentinians there getting drunk that kept everyone up all night.- One guy even fell off the walkway onto Rebecca while she was sleeping in her tent. We had to get up at 3:30am the next day to get to Sun Gate, within our first view of Machu Picchu at sunrise. None of us slept at all.

DAY 4: 2 hours to Machu Picchu
We got up super early and hiked a short distance to the entrance to the trail to Sun gate. Here we waited in line for about an hour in the rain. This one guy from another group had his ipod and played it for awhile...he had good music! Finally we hiked about an hour up to the ¨Killer Gringo¨steps, which was 50 steep steps. They were rough but not much more so than the last three days. We then climbed up to Sun Gate, where you can watch the sunrise over Machu Picchu, however, it was raining and cloudy and we ´caught barely a glimpse in the break in the clouds. So, we hiked about another hour and finally arrived at Machu Picchu. It is absolutely breathtaking!

The entire place was built as a dedication to the sun. In case you didn´t know, it was a very special place, and was kept a secret even among the Incans.- It was never fully finished and we could see evidence where they were still building from the quarry. The Spanish came at some point and destroyed most of the Incan buildings, but they never found Machu Picchu. In fact, it was virtually unknown until about 1906, when a famous archeaologist from Yale discovered it.

We spent about 4 hours here and heard about much of the history and theories surrounding it. At one piont, a condor flew abovbe which was pretty cool because condors are worshipped as the heavens above and there was a condor temple.

OK-Time to go, they are closing the Internet Cafe. I am off to the Amazon tomorrow...Caio!