Weekend Adventures

After a week of studying, lounging in cafes, and watching another fútbol game, we left with four other extranjeros for the hills. Friday night we raced to catch the last bus headed for Pisac and successfully grabbed the last seats to begin our journey. A friendly hostel owner met us at the bus stop and led us to our new home at the foot of the mountains.

On Saturday we arose to a breakfast of fresh fruit and bread then leaped onto another bus heading for the countryside. We got off at a small farm town (three buildings and about six people to mark the spot) and started climbing. Five hours later we made it to a small village with waterfalls, rock walls, and homes with grass roofs. Along the way we followed a path that led us along a river and by many llamas and locals. It rained for several hours of our climb and we reached over 4000 meters (a gain of 1000 meters) which made for an epic day. For our friends who recently came from sea level, it was especially challenging- and rewarding. Our littlest friend (Stephanie) is from New York City and has been traveling for about four months here in South America. The rest of our traveling companions are from Scotland, England, and Holland (Norman, Rebecca, and Vanessa respectively!)- we made a great weekend warrior team! After our return downward trek, we endulged in gourmet Peruvian cuisine (happily, for the price of a McDonald´s value meal!)... Cullen savored the flavor of alpaca ribs while I feasted my taste buds on alpaca raviolis in a passion fruit-white wine sauce.

We crashed early that night and woke up again to a fantastic breakfast and breathtaking hike. We meandered up and down steep trails to visit the several Inca ruins that overlook the valley. We came back down to another scrumptuous meal, shopped at the sprawling colorful outdoor market, then caught our bus home. The scenery and company made for an unforgettable couple of days...