After 4 days, 30 miles (walking), 15,250 feet, one glacial mountain pass, high jungles, hot springs, some rain, and lots of mosquitos, Lauren and I finally made it to Machu Picchu! To say the Salkantay trek was difficult is an understatement but it was certainly fun and rewarding! Cannot wait to fill everyone in on the details. Sorry I have been a blogtard lately... [View Full Entry]

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To me, one of the most interesting things about the indigenous Quechua is their use of jungle vegetation for medicinal purposes. When I was with the Sani community, our indigenous guide, Miguel, would constantly stop to point out various plants and their medicinal purposes. I am seriously dumbounded about how they figured this all out!! So, upon arriving in Tena, I set out to a small Quechua village outside of town called Mariposa to seek out Don Casimiro and Elias Mamallacta. The Mamallactas live in their "compound" on the top of the hill in Mariposa. When I say compound, I mean [View Full Entry]

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I guess I´m going soft... I decided to take the early morning flight to Coca, the edge of the Amazon. Can you blame me though when the alternative was a 10 hour bus ride and the flight only cost $45? I think not... I arrived bleary-eyed into Coca and was promptly dropped off at a hotel to await the other souls heading into the jungle with myself. A couple hours passed and I was beginning to get a little grumpy when my companions finally arrived. Travelling into the jungle with me would be Ryan and Kate (an early 30´s couple from [View Full Entry]

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Apparently the road between Popayan and Ecuador ain´t too safe. This necessitated that I make the journey to Quito mas o menos completely by day. After 16 hours, 2 buses, 2 taxis, and 1 colectivo, I finally arrived at my hostel in Quito, the Secret Garden... The reception at the hostel is located on their rooftop terrace which is 5 floors up. Now, mind you, Quito is at about 2000 meters so, by the time I made it up the 5 flights, my head felt like it was going to explode! Dealing with the altitude and tiredness I didn't even realize [View Full Entry]

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Finally, I am flying solo! So, after saying goodbye to Ariel, I hopped on a night bus to Popayan. Normally, I have been sleeping pretty well on these buses but, this time, I was sitting next to a Colombian teen who seemed to turn inquisitive only when I was asleep! Thus, I arrived in Popayan the next day on little sleep. Popayan is a beautiful, white-washed colonial town with lots of universities. In fact, Popayan is the birthplace of more Colombian presidents than any other city! It also lays claim to being the birthplace of Caldas, who discovered the use of [View Full Entry]

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...there are a few things I can tell you about Medellin! After a long but absolutely beautiful bus ride from Salento, Adam, Ariel, and I arrived in Medellin. Our first choice, the Pit Stop, was completely booked so we hopped around the corner to the Black Sheep. Things seem to happen for a reason I guess because my friends from Cartagena, Fiona, D, and Jackson, come walking through the door the next morning. I guess running into friends from other cities is all a part of being on the gringo trail... Sometimes you get physical proof of why Americans get such [View Full Entry]

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Hands down...Medellin has the highest concentration of beautiful women of any city in the world! I challenge you to prove me wrong! As for the rest of Medellin...you certainly aren't going to hear about it here... [View Full Entry]

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Despite traveling to 3 different areas, I had yet to take a long-distance busride in Colombia. Well, that all changed when Adam and I started our journey into Colombian coffee country! Naturally, Adam and I were running late for the bus to Armenia that we had planned to take. As we jog into the terminal, we are greated by literally every single bus company shouting at us in the hopes that we would make our travels plans with their company. It was truly a crazy scene! The next 7 hours were spent going up, down, left and right through the mountains. [View Full Entry]

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A 1.5 hour plane flight beats a 16 hour bus ride anytime!! Adam Caplan and I arrived into Bogota and checked into our hostel for the next few days, the Cranky Croc. To anyone traveling to Bogota...stay here b/c it was seriously one of the nicest hostels I have ever stayed at! While we were waiting for the other Adam to arrive, Caplan and I partook in the hostel's friday night BBQ. Alex, the literal do-everything at the hostel, cooked up deliciously tender steaks that could easily hold up to any of the stuck-up steakhouses found in the states. Cohen stumbled [View Full Entry]

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Had to check in to express how proud I am of my team. Got the chance to watch the game in Medellin and am on cloud 9. THE BLUE IS BACK BABY! VAMOS AZUL! [View Full Entry]

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