Page 6 of Ezeur Travel Blog Posts


South America May 17th 2020

Sunday, 10 May, 2020 56 days down, 14 to go This blog is also posted on www.heatherjasper.com I started today by calling my Mom for Mother’s Day. As with the birthday call, it’s hard to have any conversation without it turning to the pandemic at some point. It sounds like in Idaho people are starting to go out a bit and more stores are opening up. There are lots of people in parks and on the hiking trails near town. Her county hasn’t had any new cases in a couple days, so maybe I shouldn’t worry so much about things opening up there. I’ve been checking in with friends around the world and no matter who I call, they say something similar. From a friend in Lima: People here aren’t respecting the quarantine. Peruvians just won’t ... read more
Any family member could receive aid
Rice and cooking oil
Thank you donors!

South America » Peru » Cusco » Cusco May 9th 2020

Sunday, 3 May, 2020 49 days down, 7 more to go (I hope) Today I made my website live! www.heatherjasper.com As with any piece of writing, I wouldn’t call it done, but I had to set myself a deadline to be done enough at some point. It’s been a good creative project to keep me busy and I’ll continue to work on it, especially since I have at least another week of sitting at home. This time, surely, they’ll relax some of the restrictions next Monday. I’ve thought that before. I hate getting my hopes up every time. Back to the url=https://rpp.pe/peru/actualidad/coronavirus-peru-dejo-de-emitir-16-millones-de-toneladas-de-co2-covid-19-cuarentena-contaminacion-noticia-1262760uplifting environmental news, in Peru we have recorded the biggest drop in air pollution. I try to focus on the Pachamama getting a fresh breath of air. I’m trying so hard to stay positive. Even ... read more
Hummingbird as Robin
Patience
Patagona gigus

South America » Peru » Cusco » Cusco May 3rd 2020

Sunday, 26 April, 2020 42 days down, 14 to go Today is my mother’s 71st birthday. I called her in the morning and was glad to hear that she has a beautiful sunny day in Boise and plans to go outside. Social distancing rules in Boise, and common sense, still allow her to go for a walk by the river by herself. It’s hard to have any conversation without talking about COVID, even if my intent is to wish my mom a happy birthday. Yesterday, Mom went to get tested for antibodies, as part of a study from University of Washington. She said that they were very clear with people who sign up, that this is only contributing to a database. This is not for diagnosing people who are currently sick and this is not any ... read more
Santa Catalina
Looking up
Empty streets

South America » Peru » Cusco » Cusco April 25th 2020

Sunday, 19 April, 2020 35 days down, 7 more to go I’ve been looking forward to today all week! My housemates and I have been planning a picnic on the roof today. I chose Sunday because we’re not allowed to leave the house and I wanted to have something to look forward to. Yesterday and Friday it rained and hailed, so I was delighted to see bright sunshine this morning. Both of my housemates went to the mall yesterday to buy picnic treats. They came home with a proper baguette, brie, olives, sparkling wine and a lot more. I bought focaccia from a neighbor who has been baking to supplement her income, beer and made a black bean and mango salad this morning. It wasn’t warm enough to put on swimsuits and pretend that we were ... read more
Napping Hummingbird
Picnic on the roof
The roof

South America » Peru » Cusco » Cusco April 18th 2020

Sunday, 12 April, 2020 28 days of quarantine down, 14 more to go Like every Sunday in the new world of Peru under quarantine, nobody is allowed to leave their homes today, except for emergency medical services. All grocery stores, pharmacies and banks are closed on Sundays. No other businesses have been open for a month. I got back to my workout routine today, after skipping yesterday. I had been on an 11 day streak. I need this part of my morning routine. Staying healthy is obviously important when any trip to buy food could expose me to contact with the COVID virus. Having a routine and making myself get up every morning is really good for my mental health. Also, I get to burn off some of the frustration of not being allowed to go ... read more
Tanager with pear
Comfort food
The Bulls

South America » Peru » Cusco » Cusco April 11th 2020

Sunday, 5 April, 2020 Even though I can only see a sliver of the park and street from my windows, that sliver includes two park benches. These past three weeks, I’ve only seen one person sit there. After last week’s scolding on Monday, I haven’t tried going to the park again. Also, after seeing the cops on my walk last Monday, I haven’t tried going on any walks and certainly not up to the Temple of the Moon. I think that the first couple weeks I was partly in disbelief. I suspect that’s something a lot of people around the world are experiencing. The cops wouldn’t really arrest me for going on a walk, would they? It can't really be illegal for me to sit alone in the park, can it? Machu Picchu’s not really closed, ... read more
Sunset
The views from my windows
Office pet

South America » Peru » Cusco » Cusco April 5th 2020

Sunday, 29 March, 2020 My housemate from Switzerland is leaving today. She got a message last night from her embassy in Lima that she has a spot on a bus leaving Cusco tonight. It’s 25 hours on the bus to Lima. Usually the bus is 18 hours, but she showed me the list of stops at all the cities and towns of people who will be on her flight. She’ll get to Lima Monday evening, spend the night in a hotel arranged by the embassy, then fly home. It seems so sudden. During the first few days of quarantine, when I started getting emails from the US Embassy about their efforts to repatriate people who want to go back to the US, I asked her if the Swiss embassy was doing something similar. She didn’t even ... read more
Away from town
Guard dogs
Sunrise

South America » Peru » Cusco » Cusco March 29th 2020

Sunday, 22 March, 2020 Today I slept in till 8, which is late for me. I made a pot of coffee and a fruit smoothie and sat down in my home office to watch the birds in the trees outside my second floor window. I posted a couple things on Instagram, checked my emails and Facebook and WhatsApp. I Facetimed with Mom. All of the technology that we rely on, that I hope will help keep me sane during the quarantine. I’ve been watching live concerts on Instagram most evenings. Even that virtual connection, since it’s in real time, helps. They’re each home alone, isolated physically but playing music to keep the connection with their fans. Between songs, the main singer for the band Las Cafeteras from LA says that she is trying to reframe the ... read more
Too slow for the hummingbird
The San Blas market
Masks for all

South America » Peru » Cusco » Cusco March 22nd 2020

Sunday, 15 March, 2020 At 8pm tonight I watched the president give an address, telling the nation that we Peruvians have been through a lot together and we have to work together to confront a new crisis. The borders are closed as of midnight, today, Sunday. All airports, sea ports and land border crossings are closed tonight. President Vizcarra is calm, reassuring and firm. We will do this together and we will prevent a crisis in Peru. Starting Monday, everybody will be confined to their homes. We will be allowed out to go buy food, to go to a pharmacy or to get medical help. Essential employees, such as those in hospitals, pharmacies, fire fighters, sanitation workers and city officials will be allowed to go to work. Police and military will be in the streets enforcing ... read more
The new Mercado San Blas
Shopping during the COVID-19 quarantine
Machu Picchu is closed

South America » Peru » Cusco » Lares Trek January 11th 2020

The Lares Trek is probably the most scenic and wild trek near Cusco. Salkantay is beautiful, but Lares feels so much more remote. There are at least six different routes through the mountains between Calca and Lares. Also, fewer travel agencies have Lares than Salkantay, so you are more likely to have the trail to yourself, like I did. I went with SAM Travel from Cusco, to the ruins of Pisac, to the market of Calca to the town of Huaran, where we started hiking. The first day is an easy walk up to the community of Cancha Cancha - it’s too small for me to even call it a village. The second day is a much more challenging trek up over a high pass and down to the village of Qiswarani. The third day is ... read more
Andean Lakes
The Cooks
Glaciers




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