BOLIVIA | Friday, 30 Nov 2007 | Views [1109]
We waited until this morning to buy our boat tickets to Isla del Sol, hoping for the cloudy, rainy weather to clear. It rained hard all night, so we thought for sure it would be sunny today. There's a bit of blue peeking through the clouds, so we decide ... Read more >
Tags: The Great Outdoors
BOLIVIA | Thursday, 29 Nov 2007 | Views [1072]
While they call many things in Bolivia as "the World's Highest..." this actually is not accurate for Lake Titicaca, as there are other lakes in Peru and Chile that are higher. But at 3800M, it's plenty high for us. Too high to kick our head ... Read more >
Tags: The Great Outdoors
BOLIVIA | Wednesday, 28 Nov 2007 | Views [948]
We take an early morning Colectur bus out of Puno this morning to begin our adventure into Bolivia. It's a three hour ride, winding through small altiplano towns and dusty villages that look like "ghost towns," until we get to the Peruvian ... Read more >
Tags: On the Road
PERU | Tuesday, 27 Nov 2007 | Views [1164]
Life in the high altitudes of the Andes is not easy. There are few crops that grow at this elevation, and the temperatures are harsh. Freezing temperatures, unforgiving winds and minimal shelter creates a situation of hard, impoverished lifestyles. ... Read more >
Tags: On the Road
PERU | Monday, 26 Nov 2007 | Views [1035]
We've opted to head out of Peru and toward Bolivia in one days time. Ever since our mugging in Ecuador, we haven't felt at ease, and Peru is one place where we're continually bombarded with stories about violent attacks on tourists. There are several ... Read more >
Tags: Adventures
PERU | Sunday, 25 Nov 2007 | Views [2439]
"Buenas dias," call out our porters as they hurry us from our tents to the breakfast dining lodge. They're on a mission to get us up and out so they can haul ass down the rocky trail to make their 6:00 a.m. train. Half asleep we do our best ... Read more >
Tags: Adventures
PERU | Saturday, 24 Nov 2007 | Views [1079]
We wake up to a valley full of clouds this morning, so thick we can't see our trail. After a warm porridge breakfast we hit the trail. Shortly into the trek it starts to downpour... welcome to the rainy season here in Peru. It stops briefly for us ... Read more >
Tags: Adventures
PERU | Friday, 23 Nov 2007 | Views [2893]
Making it to Dead Woman's Pass
Thankfully we awoke to Darrin feeling a little better. With hot mint tea delivered at 6:00 a.m. to the door of our tent, and a fresh batch of pancakes whipped up by our cook, along with the most amazing warm quinoa ... Read more >
Tags: The Great Outdoors
PERU | Thursday, 22 Nov 2007 | Views [1152]
We didn't know if we'd even make it to the starting line today. After having been so careful about what we chose to eat the four days before our trek, Darrin came down with a case of food poisoning around 11:00 p.m. last night, and was up all night. ... Read more >
Tags: The Great Outdoors
PERU | Wednesday, 21 Nov 2007 | Views [987]
We sent a bunch of warm trekking clothing home from Nepal to lighten our loads over the past seven months and are a bit light on things for our four day Inca Trail trek. The good thing is that we only need a few layers, as there are no showers, and ... Read more >
Tags: Packing & gadgets
PERU | Tuesday, 20 Nov 2007 | Views [1338]
The opportunities for importing Peruvian handicraft abounds here. While good, unique product here is not cheap, sourcing from local villages is a must. We perused the stalls and stores, snapping up a few samples and taking photos of really neat handicrafts ... Read more >
Tags: Markets
PERU | Monday, 19 Nov 2007 | Views [958]
Cusco is a pretty amazing city. The outskirts of the town rise up steep mountain slopes, cobblestone roads and Inca stone walls snake through the interior of the city, and tiny red mud-brick houses tower above the city center. Poverty abounds and ... Read more >
Tags: Sightseeing
PERU | Sunday, 18 Nov 2007 | Views [2883]
At 3600M we are happy we chose to stay a few days in Cusco before heading out on the Inca Trail, which reaches a maximum peak altitude of 4200M. One of the local remedies for overcoming the ills of altitude sickness (which kicks in for some people ... Read more >
Tags: Food & eating
PERU | Saturday, 17 Nov 2007 | Views [1085]
Our schedule in Peru is dictated now by our set date for our Inca Trail permits. We needed to book our trek a month in advance, and even an month in advance (during low season), the dates were extremely limited. Only 500 people including guides and ... Read more >
Tags: On the Road
PERU | Friday, 16 Nov 2007 | Views [866]
While Lima is a huge sprawling city with a few areas of safe refuge for the traveler, the area we're staying in, Mirflores, is pretty well patrolled by police, and relatively safe to walk around. It's like any big city, pockets of good and bad, rich ... Read more >
Tags: Party time
PERU | Thursday, 15 Nov 2007 | Views [1042]
pWe spent the bulk of our day in the airport today. Upon arrival, we are greeted with a long line of unhappy passengers and a five hour delay for our flight. The LAN Peru rep says that all flights into Lima have been delayed for weeks now, apparently ... Read more >
Tags: planes trains & automobiles
ECUADOR | Wednesday, 14 Nov 2007 | Views [1128]
We decide to take the bus back to Guayaquil tonight, to be sure we have no issues making our flight out the next day. We would have had to leave the beach on the 5:00 a.m. bus if we were to leave tomorrow, as there are only two busses that go direct, ... Read more >
Tags: On the Road
ECUADOR | Tuesday, 13 Nov 2007 | Views [1138]
We've spent several days just relaxing here in Punta Ayampe in "June gloom" weather. Windy conditions have given way to glassy morning surf sessions, yoga and meditation on the ocean view deck, and just chillin', taking the chance to catch ... Read more >
Tags: Beaches & sunshine
ECUADOR | Monday, 12 Nov 2007 | Views [1374]
To my dear surfer friends who have been religiously following our blog, we have a special gift for you. Punta Ayampe here in Ecuador is like Costa Rica 16 years ago. We have the whole beach break to ourselves, not just one peak, but kilometers of ... Read more >
Tags: Beaches & sunshine
ECUADOR | Saturday, 10 Nov 2007 | Views [2282]
You never think it will happen to you. Despite being overly paranoid and conscientious about the way we travel, we can never truly be safe, especially in South America. We've read the horror stories of others having been robbed, mugged and physically ... Read more >
Tags: scams & robberies
ECUADOR | Friday, 9 Nov 2007 | Views [1034]
We opt to kick it one more night in Baños, to allow my antibiotics some additional time to kick in. With limited days before our flight to Peru, we decide we don't have enough time for Cuenca and the beach. Given that Ecuador is probably the last spot ... Read more >
Tags: Food & eating
ECUADOR | Thursday, 8 Nov 2007 | Views [889]
The surrounding roadways into Baños are still in a state of disrepair from the late August 2006 eruption of Volcán Tungurahua, which destroyed some of the local villages and closed the road going south from Baños to Riobamba, causing people in Baños to ... Read more >
Tags: The Great Outdoors
ECUADOR | Wednesday, 7 Nov 2007 | Views [1145]
We have three busses/connections to make today, to get ourselves to Baños, our next destination (no, not bathrooms, the city of Baños!). The challenge of the Quilatola loop is getting there and back, as there are only a couple busses a day, and we're ... Read more >
Tags: On the Road
ECUADOR | Tuesday, 6 Nov 2007 | Views [1129]
We froze last night, despite having 6 wool blankets on our bed and having worn wool long johns, socks, hat and gloves to bed. It reminds us of Nepal here; beautiful mountain villages, gorgeous farming communities full of rugged, weathered locals working ... Read more >
Tags: Adventures
ECUADOR | Monday, 5 Nov 2007 | Views [1192]
I had been corresponding with a guy (Hemal) on Lonely Planet Thorn Tree, a great resource and networking internet site for travelers. He and his wife are also interested in doing a trek in the Quilotoa Loop. We decided to try to meet up at the bus station ... Read more >
Tags: People
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