Días 28 & 29

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Wow, can´t believe this is our last day here! The month went by so fast. Day 28 was pretty much just a travel day, with an early departure from Cusco for our flight back to Lima (only had to pay $12 in overweight luggage this time around).

From the airport, our Lima guide took us to an archaelogical museum and then to lunch, but we were all so tired from such a busy week that most of us just wanted to head back to our old stomping grounds at the Hotel Kamana in Lima and take a nap, which we did. That is, after Kathy, Natalie and I were finally able to get off the elevator. Yeah, we kind of got stuck for a little while between floors, with all of our luggage. I just couldn´t stop laughing, as it seemed so fitting since all we wanted to do was sleep. But Kathy had to pee and Natalie had to poop, so they didn´t quite enjoy the unexpected adventure as much as I did, especially after the lights went out...

Dinner was at the hotel, with an appetizer of chicken noodle soup- perfect for the end of a long week and the cold, damp Lima weather. Quick visit to Metro, the big supermarket here, and the rest of the night relaxing at the hotel.

Day 29
No alarm for wake-up on Sunday!! Natalie and I slept in until about 9am, and then chilled out in the room before showering and heading off to Miraflores for our last day of shopping. We couldn´t wait to have lunch at Burger King, but when we got there at 11am, the doors were locked and we were told they didn´t open until 11:30. Soooo, we had to wander the streets a bit and then went back for lunch and spent an afternoon shopping at the artisans´ markets in Miraflores.

We have dinner overlooking the Pacific Ocean at 7pm, and then off to the airport for the last time. Our flight doesn´t leave until 11:30pm, so we will be en route all night, returning to Philadelphia around 1pm on Monday, July 30th.


There is a lot I am going to miss about being in Perú, but I am looking forward to being back home in the US. No more cold showers with bad pressure, long busrides on narrow and winding roads, waking up at 5am to catch an early flight, two hour meals where the waitstaff has to take our orders three different times....

But I will certainly miss:
Peruvian cuisine (and trying all sorts of new and weird foods)
Papas fritas (french fries) with every meal!
the excitement of arriving in a new city on our tour
the faces on the Peruvian children
having a great roommate (love ya Natalie!)
using my Spanish daily
hearing Spanish spoken everywhere
Spanish music and television shows, radio and tv commercials
not knowing where the heck we are going next or what time we have to leave
waking up to a gorgeous view of the Andes mountains (in Sacred Valley and Cusco)
the hospitable hotel staff everywhere we stayed
trying to figure out how many ¨soles¨ I will need for the next few days (and how much each withdrawal from the ATM equates to in US dollars
... and so much more.

I hope that you have enjoyed reading about my adventures as much as I have enjoyed sharing them with you. I have hundreds more pictures that I would have liked to have included with each blog entry, but between lack of adequate time, slow internet connections, my camera battery dying on me and locating the closest internet cafe to each hotel, this was the best I could do.

Thank you to all who have been right there with me during this life-changing experience. I had an amazing time.

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