Friday, October 21, 2011

Adventurous Friday: Peru

It occurred to me that I haven't written at all about any of my trips I have taken in the past few years. To think, all I wanted to be in college was a travel journalist. Sipping Pina Coladas from some tropical beach and writing about my resort stay. And not one blog, journal entry or even doodle about any of my fabulous adventures?!? My college self would have called me pathetic. 


So here is to back tracking a little bit... I will start with what is most fresh in my mind... Peru. 




My boy friend and I embarked on our journey to Peru in June of this year. We left straight from work to the airport, not knowing much about what we had in store. 


What I did know: we were meeting some friends in Peru to spend the week with Dani's Peruvian family. What I didn't know was what an amazing experience we would have and the adventures that were planned out for us. 


Of course the first thing we did after arriving was head straight to a Peruvian club where we were treated like celebrities, but if I mention every time we had a drink this blog would get incredibly long, so I will jump to the good stuff. 

From Left: Will, Dani (the Peruvian) me, and Ron (the bf)


The first day we went exploring we visited down town Lima where the President lives. The square was full of people parading and celebrating. The sights were spectacular but what I will always remember will be the school girls we met. These girls were so amazed by us. They treated us like royalty as they each came up giving us hugs and kisses. They even sang us the lords prayer in English. We all felt like we were on cloud 9. 


These kids loved us. So adorable! 

Photos of the "white house" forgot what the Peruvians call it! 


Although down town Lima is very beautiful and clean, many parts of Peru were not. It was strange because one minute you would feel you were living the life of luxury and the next minute reality sunk in. This beautiful country is 3rd world. 


This photo was taken on the way to Dani's graduation party. 

Here we were, dressed to the 9 after a day of pampering that I had never experienced before. We drove to the most beautiful house ( a vacation home owned by Dani's family) as we drove we passed villages where the houses were made of mud and there was no electricity to be found. The images were unreal as we continued on our vacation without a care in the world. 


A photo of Dani's graduation party. More like a wedding reception. It was beautiful, and amazing! 



From Lima we went to Cusco, where we visited Machu Pichu. The altitude was very difficult for me to deal with but the sights were well worth it.
Church of La Compania 



Plaza de Armas, Cusco, Peru 


The Inca's 12 sided stone  

Fun fact about Cuzco... the Peruvians have over 2,000 varieties of potatoes. Isn't that insane! The bread that is made here is by far the most amazing brean (or pan in spanish) I have ever tried. Each region of Peru we went to had their own specialty breads not found in any other part of the country. 

Many Peruvians earn their living in Cuzco by the Alpacas. From their wool to their meat, the Alpaca is a crucial animal for the Peruvian people. 

Machu Pichu, the most spectacular man made sight in the world. This ruin was only discovered 100 years ago, which is why it has remained in tact. Most Inca ruins were destroyed by the Spanish when the occupied the region. 

From Cuzco we traveled to Mancora, which was another spectacular trip on its own. Beaches were pristine and the houses were amazing. 


A house like this in Southern  California would probably be worth 3-5 million easy. 
These house in Peru goes for 300-500 thousand! 


Fisherman delivered freshly caught fish and lobster to our house daily. We even had a chef to prepare these meals. Ceviche will never tast the same again. I loved Peruvian food! 


Needless to say, our Peruvian experience was amazing. 

No comments:

Post a Comment