tennifer

I really enjoyed my time in Cusco and being away has made me appreciate it more and more. Peru is a very unique place, Cusco especially. Sitting at 11,000+ feet, it's lively atmosphere attracts tourist for many reasons. We headed to Cusco to volunteer and to experience life in South America. Its versatile location allows easy access to wonderful places like Machu Picchu, Lake Titicaca and the Amazon, among many more. Cusco's culture and roots run deep. It's a developing city in a third world country. As it continues to progress, its history lives on through the land and its people. Upon arrival, it took some getting used to. Adjusting to the pollution, trash, dogs and lack of utilities (ie: water) was difficult at first but soon they become a part of the background. Cusco's beauty ... read more

I´m a little late to and am sorry for have neglecting my blog, but here is the story of Puno. Siham & I decided to take a weekend trip to Puno, Peru. Puno is a port on Lake Titicaca. Lake Titicaca seperates Peru & Bolivia. It is huge and home to many islands, natural & man-made. It's an 8 hour bus ride from Cusco to Puno. We opted for the night bus so that we'd be able to sleep on the way. We left Wednesday night and arrived at dawn on Thursday. After getting situated in Puno we headed off for a delicious breakfast and then to the lake. Alongside the road to the lake there is a market full of everything you can imagine. There were tons of textiles, dyes and jewelry, among much more. ... read more

Hey pals! It´s been a crazy past couple of weeks. We´made our way to Machu Picchu which was absolutely fabulous. We´ve also started our volunteering at the sustainable school. Machu Picchu: We left early Monday morning on a bus to Ollantaytambo, it´s about an hour and a half bus ride. Ollantaytambo is a small, quaint little town (mom, patty & sue: you would´ve have liked it there). From Ollantaytambo we hopped on a train to Aguas Calientes, the entrance town to Machu Picchu. The train ride is another hour & a half. It passed by pretty fast, the scenery along the route was beautiful. We followed a river the whole way inbetween mountains and jungle. Once in Aguas Calientes we found a hostel, got our tickets for Machu Picchu & enjoyed lunch in the plaza. Aguas ... read more

Hola Amigos! Everyday gets better and better. We´ve learned our way around the main areas of Cusco which is very helpful. For the first week we visited a lot of museums and churches in Cusco. With the Inca history, everything has been very interesting (as well as very old). The arcitechture of the city is amazing. We´ve been eating well. I had my first fresh mango yesterday and it will not be the last. All the fruit here is so fresh and delicious. We learned how to make a classic Peruvian dish, lomo saltado. It´s made up of rice, beef, fried potatoes and lots of vegetables. Very filling. Rob & I found a trail up the mountain behind our house and are excited to go back. It´s very peaceful there. Beautiful views of the city and ... read more

Greetings friends and fam, Yesterday was our first full day in Cusco and it was unreal. The city is very colorful and vibrant. We live on the outskirts of the city, in the hills. We have a beautiful view of the city and the mountains from our rooms and roof. We start everyday with breakfast, usually composed of bread & jelly with avacados and eggs. It's delicious. Lunch, if we eat with our family, is always started with a bowl of soup, followed by rice, chicken and a vegetable. Again, always very good. Dinner is usually the same as lunch so we're starting to eat one meal out. Meals are very cheap here. We can get a meal at the market for 3 or 4 soles, which is like a $1.50 US. If we decide to ... read more