Our Visit to Mantay

My mom goes on Thursday and Wednesday to a babysitting place called Mantay. Sometimes when we had school off we would go with her. The place has a circular hallway with alot of doors around it. In one of the rooms is the nursery where there are babies, new born to 3. Then they go to the place where the children have school.
My favorite baby was Kevin who is 6 months old. He is very cutte and when he laughed he only had two bottom teeth which made him cuter. There are many other babies at the nursery called: Marco, Darwin, Juan Carlos, Sergio, Leo, Leticia, Belinda, Marco Antonio, and a few new borns.
My least favorite part at Mantay was snack time. I fed Kevin and he was a very messy baby. They had bibs and Kevin had the cereal (that we were feeding them) all over his bib. After they ate they got changed and cleaned and then it was play time. Kevin and I read together, played together and alot of other things.
After lunch the babies go to sleep and at that time Mom usually leaves. We left Mantay on a bus and when we got home dinner was ready. Me and Meghan wanted to go back really soon but Mom said when we had school out we would go back.

Felipa's House

After our fifth weaving class with Felipa we went to her house in Chinchero. Like most Peruvian houses her house had an inside courtyard with all the rooms around it. The kitchen had a dirt floor where the guinea pigs run around. Let’s just say every little cooking mistake is a gift for Pachamama!
We got off the bus at Paradero Manantial which was right on the edge of town. We met Aldair (Felipa's son) and he took us to the house. There we met the whole family. Felipa’s older son's name was Estalinadn his wife Marleni. They also had a son named Yordano. We joked around calling him Llorando which means crying!
Helen and I started weaving right away sitting on the ground right next to Felipa. It doesn't sound too comfortable but it's really fun. I have got my weaving down and I love it. I am almost done with my belt and I think it looks pretty good! We had to get up every now and then so our legs didn't hurt too much. The time we were up we spent with Aldair and Yordano. Aldair (who was my age) had a funny habit of going to the second floor of the house overlooking the courtyard and throwing a ball down to hit someone on the head. You always had to be careful!
Felipa prepared us one of our favorite Peruvian meals 'Papa a la Huancaina' and we all ate together in the dining room next to the kitchen. The whole meal we could hear the guinea pigs fighting over the table scraps. It was so cut and the food was GREAT!!!
We went outside again and while I was weaving, Helen and Aldair were playing soccer and the grown-ups were looking at Felipa and Marleni's weavings. I got a new camera case, mom got a wallet because she lost hers and we got a tablecloth for when we go home. When we got on the road to catch the bus Felipa asked Helen a question in Quechwa. Helen said yes without knowing what the question was so Felipa picked her up and carried her across the road back to her house. They both waved to us from the doorway but Helen ran back to us and Felipa shut the door.

Inti Raymi - Festival of the Sun

Upon arriving in Cusco in February, when we told anyone that we were staying until July - they would inevitably mention Inti Raymi.  It's the biggest festival of the year here in Cusco and caps off a full month of parades, festivals and dance competitions.

The day begins at Qoricancha (Temple of the Sun) in downtown Cusco.  The dancers, musicians and actors perform there and then parade to the Plaza for a different production.  From the Plaza, they process up the mountain and complete their day with another 3 hour long performance in Sacsayhuaman.


We opted to hang with the South American Explorer's Club (SAE) who fixed us breakfast and would later set us up with a prime locale for watching the festival on the Plaza.  We missed the show at the Sun Temple but were right on the curb when the parade of all the performers past by.

The costumes were beautiful and the people in them were obviously very proud to have been selected to perform.  Meghan and were next to some proud parents who chased their daughter down the street to get a good photo of her in costume.  There were two litters bearing the Ccoya and Inca (Queen and King) and several servants who walked ahead of the litters throwing flower petals for the litter-bearers to walk on.  The whole production is very well done.  Check out my 20 second video of the Inca on his litter coming down the street in the parade here!



After the parade past us, we moved on with the throng of people to our perfect digs on the patio and balcony of Piskou (a 2nd floor restaurant right on the Plaza).  There we were able to order drinks, chat with the other festival goers and enjoy the show away from the large crowd of on-lookers.



When the show on the Plaza finished, we headed up the hill to Sacsayhuaman with the rest of the people. We arrived at the park and quickly realized there were more people there than there were decent views.  Mike and the girls cut out fairly early, in that the girls were unable to see anything unless they were being held above us.

I found a spot where I could see a bit and stood for a little over an hour before the heat and the crowd was really bothering me.  I returned to our SAE crew and sat for a few more minutes before we all picked up and headed back down the hill.

Dinner that night was early with our friends the Leonard-Rose's.  It was their last night in Cusco before they were setting out on their great South American Adventure.  Although we are already missing them, we are planning our meet-up back home - hopefully in the next few months.

It was a wonderful day and we are grateful to have been here for the big celebration!

Our Annual Huatia

The whole school participated Wednesday in our annual "Huatia" (potato cookout). When we got to school the adobe ovens were already made so we would be able to eat around noon. There were 11 ovens with about 40 potatoes each so everyone got as much as they wanted. We started the day with a hike that was in the woods right above the school. I was really suprised the little kids did it because there were some parts where the rain had eroded away the path and we had to go on our hands and knees to get to the stairs. We finally got up to the mirador where you could see almost all of Cusco. Our break was there and any snacks that people brought up were shared. We walked/ ran back down the hill because it didn't take any energy to run and you got there faster to be first for the food. They had dug up the potatoes and put them in two huge wheelbarrows. There was a line when we got there but we were allowed to get as many potatoes as we wanted so we didn't have to come back. We were supposed to bring our own sauces and mom thought it would be a goood idea to bring something that we ate a lot in the states. I brought Hunts barbeque sauce, it was a HUGE hit. The bottle was almost empty by the time we finished it. I ate six potatoes, all of them with different sauces. My friends tried to get me to eat the aji sauce which is really spicy and I'm glad I refused. The ones that did try mad the craziest faces when it touched their tongues. Everyone finishe eating early so there was a two hour recess before actually got out. It was the best Wednesday EVER!!!

Coylloriti - Snow Star Festival

I was honored to travel with Winn and friends Elder and Sandro from Ollantaytambo to the festival of Coyllority, the largest gathering of indigeonous people in S. America, and religious pilgramidge that for some takes more than several days by foot.  We took the easy route, leaving Cusco at 2am by taxi and driving 3 long hours on smooth but very windy mountainous roads to the beginning of our hike, about 30 minutes beyond the town of Ocongate.  A temporary city to welcome the more than 80,000 travelers offered us sopa de gallina (5am breakfast), a pack horse with and firewood.  The sun was just comming up as we started up the valley and it was cold, cold, cold - wearing every bit of clothing I brought, 3 layers on my legs, 4 on chest, 2 hats, gloves and a scarf and I was still cold.  Walking along side the locals in bare feet and tire sandals with their large bundles didn't make me feel warmer.  Luckily the hike wasn't that strenous because the altitude and lack of sleep was really taxing.  Twelve crosses were placed evenly along the 8km walk and there was always a good group gathered at each.  Along the way we were followed or led by dance troupes and musicians, performing the entire way.  At one point I looked up to a trail hundreds of feet above ours to the sound of a full brass band, hiking and playing - amazing.  By 8am the sun rose above the mountains and by 9am we arived in Coyllority, set in a tight valley with glaciers perched above.


 I have been to some large festivals but this one takes the cake.  In addition to the main route in, I could spot 4 other trails that funneled people from other directions and communties into the valley.  Since we were above the tree line (way above) everything was visible until erased by the distance, reminding me how large these mountains are and that my depth perception remains skewed.  This was the last full day of a six day event that would end tomorrow morning with a benediction, and everything was in full swing.  Temporary restaurants with indoor seating served everything from trout to llama, always with potatoes and hot tea.  Vendors were hawking trinkets, souvenirs and alasitas, miniatures of everything from cars, money, diplomas to real estate deeds.  Theses alasitas are then blessed during a small ceremony involving wine and fire crackers.  I couldn't help purchasing a mini briefcase full of money, visas and plane tickets - for future travel.
The music and dancing never stopped.  I wake often when camping on the ground and never was there a moment of respite for the many troupes, it sounded the same at 3am as it did at 3pm.  At 4am all of the troupes marched and danced to one of the 3 glaciers above the valley, returning in a spectacular procession to the cathedral at 10am the next morning for mass.  Shortly after, the benediction marked the end of the festivities and the packing, dismanteling and hiking down the valley began.  We hired another horse and joined the mass exodus.

La Huatia

On Sunday we were invited to a picnic with some of our friends. At noon we were picked up by our friend Elizabeth in her nice car. She drove us to her house to pick up some stuff that we would need for the huatia. "Eric's sister and her son live across the street and also Eric's mother" said Elizabeth. Eric soon turned up after that and he was with the Leonard-Rose's our friends from New York. Eric ran off to get his mother, sister and her son and while he was gone we greeted the Leonard-Roses and then Eric came acompanied by two women and a four year old boy that was named Fabricio. Isabel, Meghan and I rode in the trunk of the car so that everybody had room.

Finally we arived at the pice of land that we were going to have the huatia.  The land was grassy and it had alot of bushes.  While the grown-ups were talking we played with Fabricio's ball that he had brought.  Afterward we went down to the river.  We wanted to make a dam but it didn't work out so we decided to pick up litter. We filled three big bags full of the garbage from the creek.  We went to see the huatia before it was crushed.
Let me explain, a huatia is a pile of adobe bricks shaped like an igloo but much smaller.  You put fire in the entrance and wait almost an hour and then take it out again.  Then you make a hole out of the bricks and throw potatoes in.  Then you crush the hot bricks on top of the potatoes and wait another hour.  After the potatoes, we cooked some meat, chicken and beef.
Everything was delicious!  When everybody finished we started playing dodgeball, only a couple people wanted to play, Eric, Mariela, Meghan, Elizabeth, Isabel and me.  We played for a very long time until a very long turn and then nobody wanted to play anymore exept for me.  Shortly after that we went home because the sun was going down.  Isabel, Meghan and I rode in the trunk again and when it was Fabricio's stop we separated cars but the Leonard-Roses were going to walk home.  Eric and Elizabeth took us home with and we said goodbye.  The food was so good, so it only took a minute to go to sleep.

Big Horns and Bucking Broncos

After not feeling so great Saturday, on Sunday I felt well enough to go to the bull fight or bull dance as some people call it because they don’t hurt the bull like they do in Spain. We got there almost exactly when it started so we had to sit on the edge with the scary thought of the bull coming and eating our feet. There was a trumpet and cymbals band that played during the fight, a different band that played guitar and charango and the guy that announced everything. The first bull that they let out was the one that they kept letting out the whole fight.

I really don’t think they fed him much and he was pretty fed up when they let him out of his pen into the ring. The ring was full of sand which was nice because the bull had other interests than eating like the bull fight up in Marcacocha. There the whole ring was grass and the bulls did not want to fight. The other big difference was that the bull fighters were in nice outfits with tight pants and pink, purple and black leather vests with cowboy boots. They all looked very dressed up compared to the guys in Marcacocha who were wearing t-shirts and jeans.

The bull ran around to get his energy out and then one of the guys in the fancy outfits came and shook is pink and yellow ‘attract a bull’ cloth. He pawed the ground for a minute (which is definitely my favorite part) and charged with his head down. The goal for the bull fighter or ‘torero’ was to impress the guy with the microphone and make him say how well he was doing. So he dodged and got down on one knee with the cloth up in the air. Everyone applauded and that’s how it went the first time, without anything too scary (that was fine with me). The second bull was the same but a little lazier.
 After the second bull they brought out the horses and lassoed the one they thought was the craziest. Then they took off the lasso and used it as a bucking bronco. A guy who had an outfit like a cowboy climbed on it and the horse tried to get him off. It was really funny to watch. He held on to its mane without a saddle and showed off by only using one hand.

Two more bulls came and the funniest thing happened. Most of the people in the ring were handing out beer, not fighting. They have to cross the ring to get to the others so I guess it is kind of a scary job. One of the guys ran to the other side and unluckily the bull saw him. He charged and the guy had to jump over the wood piece to avoid the bull sticking his horns into his leg. I was so scared!

They brought out the horses again and a different guy lassoed one so he could ride on it backwards with his face literally on the horses butt. It must have smelled so bad. He didn’t last very long and always ended up face down in the dirt laughing.

My stomach started acting up again so Mom and I went to the ‘Casa de Wow’ early. I wish I could have stayed!!!

My Birthday!

On saturday I had my birthday with our freinds in Ollantaytambo. Mom and I had bought a cake in Cusco because there were no cake shops in Ollantaytambo. Anyway we split up, Mom and I went to get the cake and Dad and Meghan went to the laundry. When Mom and I got to the bus station we waited untill Dad and Meghan came and quickly got on the bus. The ride was from 5:45 to 7:00 and I got really tired and didn't feel great. Finally we passed Urubamba and quickly after that we reached Ollantaytambo. I wanted to go to Winn's hostel right away to go to sleep so we split up again, Mom took me to Casa de Wow and Dad took Meghan to eat pizza. At the hostel I went to our room, the one that she kept specialy for us, sunk under the covers and fell asleep imidiately.
I woke up early the next morning and went down stairs to see if anyone was up yet. Nobody. I was really hungry so Dad took me to one of the restaurants that was on the plaza called Hearts Cafe. I got two scones with a hot chocolate. The scones came with some jelly that tasted really good with the scones. When I finished we went back to Casa de Wow and there I had my second breakfast with Winn and Anette. When the sun came out Dad, Mom, Meghan and I went hiking. We were going to take a moto taxi to an Inca Temple that the Spanish destroyed called Naupa Iglesia. But the moto taxi guy didn't take us to the temple, he didn't take us anywhere near the temple, so we walked the rest of the way. The temple was a cave with carved altars. We gathered flowers to put in the temple. There were many places to put your offering, I put mine in a vase on one of the rocks. There were many offerings from people that had already been to see the temple on the altar. We went out of the cave and ate potatoes, oranges and crackers. After we finished our little snack we started our hike back to Ollantaytambo. At 2:00 Dad said we could stop and eat our mango, and he was right. We ate in some ruins which had a great view of the river. After the delicious mango we started on the road again.
Finally we arived in Ollantaytambo and at Casa de Wow everybody said Happy Birthday to me. When it was time to celebrate we took the cake out of the fridgerator and they sang Happy Birthday in English and then Spanish. Then I bent my head down and took a bite of the cake. It tasted good, like peaches. I drank Inka Kola and ate cake. After we went to see the dances at the Choquekillka Festival but we were called back again because Wither and his son Mauro had come to give me and Meghan presents. We doubled back to Casa de Wow and opened our presents which turned out to be purses, I got pink and Meghan got blue. We were going out to eat where Mauro's mom worked so he came with us. The restaurant was really good and at the end when we were paying the bill Tatiana gave me a piece of cake to eat. We went back to Winn's and I fell asleep.

Mis Padres Nos Visitia!

I tried to convince my parents they needed to write a blog post for their short visit, but they would not commit.  Oh, well.  There wasn't a lot of time (but the time we did have was great) and I can do the honors.

Mom arrived Sunday to much fanfare.  The girls made a poster for her and we were standing outside the airport waiting for what felt like forever for her to arrive.  When we made eye contact with her and she saw the poster, she had a moment.  Watching her have her moment, I then had my own moment (like mother - like daughter, you know).  Meghan then tells me that I am NOT allowed to cry so I suck it up and greet my mom all smiles.

We have a truely down day - her first at 11,500'.  We went to lunch at a restaurant on the Plaza Principal then returned to our apartment and started a puzzle.  Mom arrived with the beginnings of a cold and a persistent cough she wouldn't be able to shake until returning to Atlanta.

Monday morning bright and early, I stole from the apartment to greet my Dad coming in from his 6:35AM flight.  Only a few people knew he was coming in to surprise both Mom and the girls.  After a small bag snafu and a little confusion about the exit - Dad arrived at the gates to the airport.  We caught a cab home and it was time for the big surprise.

While I was gone, Mike had told the girls and my mom that I was out getting a breakfast "treat" -  which they are assuming means some sugary goodness is coming their way.  So, when I enter the apartment empty-handed, there is a general confusion.  Until, I point to who's coming in behind me.

My mom was shocked to silence and then a joy she couldn't supress.  Helen's response was a surprised, "You're not supposed to be here!"  Meghan, on the other hand, burst into tears and ran for her D-Daddy (did I mention, like mother - like daughter?).  Everyone was pleased and excited about their surprise.

After a boisterous and joyful breakfast, we left the apartment for a ride on the Cusco Trolley.  We hadn't ridden on it before and it seemed like a good idea.  In fact, it was a very nice time to see the sites from the comfort of a seat - and because they were still adjusting to the altitude - it was a great activity because my folks could sit and take it all in.  We even visited a street or two that I had not walked down.  The best part for me was a drive past Sacsayhuaman (sounds like sexywoman) with the gorgeous peak of Ausangate (20,900') in the distance.

Tuesday morning, we had a tardy start after retreiving my dad's suitcase from the airport - we (Mom, Dad & I) headed out to Pisac and their market day.  We had a spot of tea and wandered around a bit through the market and then headed on to Ollantaytambo where we had lunch with our friend Winn.  We caught the afternoon train to Aguas Calientes in order to make it to Machu Picchu on Wednesday morning.

Wednesday dawned bright and sunny and we made our way up to Machu Picchu on the bus.  As we disembarked we were approached for a tour and hired our tour guide.  He was friendly and knowledgeable and was able to adapt our revised tour expectations due to Mom's inability to handle much walking due to her extreme cough (which by now sounded as though it had developed into bronchitis).  We were very lucky to have him.

We returned to Cusco Wednesday afternoon and went to a lovely dinner Wednesday night at Tartessos.  The girls were excited to have their grandparents back and were looking forward to 2 days off of school for teacher conferences.

Thursday we took in the MAP (Museo de Arte Pre Colombino) which has small collection of some of the best examples of many of Peru's indiginous cultures (Figurines from Chimu, Pottery from Mochica, Huari and Nasca, exquisite necklaces made from bone and shell,  wooden statues, gold and silver decorations for both clothing and body).  A beautiful museum.  We took a stroll in the afternoon through the local Artesenal Market and then home for a little rest.    Thursday evening we had drinks on the roof terrace at Marcelo Batata and watched the light disappear from the sky and the hills light up, then a lovely dinner to cap off a wonderful visit.

I took my parents to the airport on Friday and the airline was willing to move Dad's flight to Mom's - and they left Cusco together.  It was a wonderful albeit short visit and we are looking forward to being with them in Hilton Head in just a few more weeks.

Chopani Valley Trek

I took a solo hike (2 day mini trek) with guide friend Wither through the high mountain valleys above Ollantaytambo to the town and hot springs of Lares which took us through the remote community of Chupani. We left Ollantaytambo by taxi after filling our backpacks with fruit to offer as gifts to people along the way who harvest only potatoes at these high elevations and drove an hour and a half north, just past the village of Patacancha. We stopped along side the road and Wither pointed off to the right at a high pass - our route. For lunch that day we crashed a family watia, potatoes baked in the earth after a single use adobe oven is colapsed and covered, cooking the potaoes in the ground for several hours. This is the standard mid-day meal while working the field, our potatoes were served with a large bowl of salted lettuce that was passed around the group while we ate. After our fill, we shared fruit and coca leaves, shook hardened, rough hands and headed off, up an out of Patacancha valley over a pass just over 14,000 ft and into the valley of Chupani.
For the night we ate and stayed at the home of Virginia with her 2 young boys, her husband is a porter on the Inca Trail and was not at home. A single room rock house with a thatch roof, dark and cool inside, beds and a loft on half and the kitchen on the other. Pork and potatoes were cooked on a poorly ventilated stove fueled by sod brickets and llama dung as there are no trees or bushes to be seen here. We ate in the smoky room, barely lit by the fire and a battery operated lantern while guinea pigs scurried around our feet eating the potato skins and scraps tossed to the floor. We slept in an outbuilding on the ground padded by llama pelts in our sleeping bags with wool blankets on top, I think the temperature fell close to zero that night but I stayed nice and toasty.
For breakfast we gathered around the smoky stove and ate potato soup and roasted cuy with potatoes, reducing the scurrying critters by one. I am just not a cuy fan, the meat is tasty but its mostly greasy skin and it was hard not to keep my thoughts off its live friends at my feet. We packed our bags said our goodbyes and started our climb out of the valley watching the tiny homes, people and llamas shrink to nothing behind us. From the high pass we had great views of snow capped peaks to our north and the backside of the snowy peaks behind Urabamba before descending down into the Lares valley. Along the way, each person we passed (not many at all) received fruit and/or bread, items that would be a day's walk to find, from Wither. We made it to the hot springs where we pitched our tent with plenty of time for a soak before dinner in town, but had no energy afterward to sit in the pools and gaze at the stars.
Day three started in the hot pools watching a condor fly above while the tourists trickled in who start most standardized treks in the opposite direction along with their guides and porters who carry everything for you. We packed up and walked the 1/2 hour again into Lares where we spent the day. Wither did some campaigning for presidential hopeful Ollanta Humala and we hiked a little ways down from town without our packs before it was time to drink homemade corn beer while awaiting our 3pm bus out of the valley. Four big glasses of chicha was not the best idea before boarding and I was feeling very rough about an hour into the ride. Thank goodness for landslide re-construction giving me plenty of time to disembark and return a couple glasses to Pachamama in the ditch with plenty of spectators. It was a long ride home after that but I wouldn't trade any of it.