As we continued on our adventure in South America, we kept using Uber and buses to get around both countries. In Peru, most Uber rides around a city ranged from $1-$4. In Brazil they ranged from $5-$8.
In Peru, $1 USD equals 3.4 pesos. In Brazil, the rate is 4 to 1. In general, we found both countries to be a little cheaper than Ecuador.
Peru
Our journey through Peru was an amazing experience even though it was impacted by weather and altitude.
Lima is the only stop on our Peruvian journey at sea level. The rest of the trip was between 2,000 to 6,000 meters above sea level. So, to adjust to these higher altitudes, we used a lot of rest, water, coca leaves, and coca tea!
Lima
The capital of Peru, Lima is the largest city in the country with over 10 million people. The city holds a dear spot for us as we were welcomed from the airport from our family friend Icaro and his daughter. They had previously met my father on a past trip and shared a connection with him through old school rock’n’roll. We learned about his collection of the 50’s decade classics but he was missing one CD. The rock’n’roll classics of 54’-55’, as this CD was impossible to find in Peru. We bought the CD and surprised him with it. His smile and friendliness were the start of a beautiful connection with the people and land of an amazing country.
In Lima we got a free walking tour around the Plaza de Armas (interestingly, there happens to be one in every town and city in Peru and most previously Spanish colonies). The tour enlightened us about the Peruvian history. It can be broken down into four periods - Pre-Inca, Inca, Spanish Colonialism, and the present. The city features mostly Spanish Colonialism structures.
Afterward, we carried on to Barranco for the taste of present-day Lima. It struck us as a hipster neighborhood filled with coffee shops and museums, but most notably its spectacular street art scattered throughout. If you start in the south and stroll along your own path, you can end at the beach overlooking the Pacific ocean and down the 200-ft cliffs. A short uber ride or walk north will get you to the trendy Miraflores neighborhood, home to the paragliding cliffs of Peru.
The weather here was just perfect with the wind currents off the ocean pushing into the cliffs and shooting straight up, causing an up-drift for the para-gliders to elevate up and around in figure eights. It was a perfect location for the sunset.
Cusco
Going from the current capital of Peru Lima to the former capital of the Inca Empire Cusco was
not as smooth as anticipated. The tarmac at the Cusco airport was broken which caused a 2-hour delay. But we finally made it.
We stayed within a short walk of the Plaza de Armas, but our first day was a rest day as the altitude sickness was hitting us hard. After that, we started feeling better and ready to explore. We learned about the city through another free walking tour. The downtown is a UNESCO sight and all of the buildings maintain their historical style.
After exploring the streets we dived into the large San Pedro market where you can buy anything and everything from guinea pig meals to souvenirs. Meals are typically $3-5 here including drinks and soups!
While in Cusco, we purchased a day tour to Rainbow Mountains. Our excitement about the hike was short-lived though. We got picked up at 5 am. The mini-van drove us 2 hours out of the city to have a rather light breakfast. After that, it started pouring which should have been a sign to turn around or even cancel the trip, but our driver and tour guide persisted. We kept driving up and up a dirt road further and further and we noticed that it was not raining anymore. Rather, it was snowing!
We reached the town of Pitumarca and the tour guide announced that the hike is too dangerous so we should cancel. Although we don’t expect the tour agency to control the weather, we would recommend that they coordinate better with the local rangers about the weather and hiking feasibility. They only refunded us half of the cost of the tour. Overall, we had a fairly poor experience with the guides, but enjoyed the unique look of the Rainbow mountains as they were white.
Machu Picchu
Since my Uncle Vince, cousin Aaron, and friend Michael hiked the famous 4-day Inca trail, they prepared us for the amazing sight. Although we didn’t attempt the hike, we enjoyed a scenic ride on a Cusco-Agua Calientes train.
We booked our tickets in advance with the Huayna Picchu mountain hike pass (only 200 people can get a permit), giving us 6 hours to explore Machu Picchu. Similar to Rainbow Mountain, we woke up at 4 am to the sound of pouring rain, not a trickle but a downpour. We were worried that our day would be ruined, but we suited up and headed from Agua Calientas to Machu Picchu.
The entrance to the ‘city above the clouds’ had an eerie feeling with an early morning fog hanging above it. But, even the rain couldn’t take away how breathtaking the sight was. Plus it offered a relatively crowd-free hike for now.
I wanted to start my 2 hour Huayna Picchu hike still in the rain. The hike was almost a straight incline and was a great calf-muscle workout. But as I climbed, the rain started to subside. As I reached the top of the mountain, the fog and clouds parted and I was met with a spectacular birds-eye view of Machu Picchu.
It was everything I could have asked for and more, a reward for the great hike and an early morning wake-up call. As I made my way back down the mountain with people coming up later than me, the sight was covered in fog again. It truly was a blessed morning.
Back at Machu Picchu, we were excited to walk the sight. Lo and behold, the sun started peeking through the clouds. The rain was gone, and you could see Machu in all its glory. It was even bigger than we anticipated.
The fact that the Incas and Quechua people built the site up in the mountains made their work even more impressive.
With the sun out, more tourists came and packed the sight, but that could not ruin our day. Machu Picchu exceeded our expectations!
Puno
We flew to Juliaca from Cusco and after a one-hour ride, we arrived in Puno at the edge of Lake Titicaca, the highest inhabitable lake on the planet. We were in for another cultural experience but not with the Incas. This time, we got on a boat and headed off into the lake to be immersed into the lives of Uros people.
Our host family ushered us into our temporary home. Our first step on the floating island made of reeds was unbalanced. We soon learned that for the islands not to sink, the Uros people have to lay a new layer of reeds every 5 days.
Louis shared with us the history of his people who have lived on the lake for thousands of years. We learned how they catch fish in the channels between the islands, and even learned how to make arts and crafts with them. The weather was fascinating as it was warm by day, cold by night, and we had a first-class view of the nightly thunderstorms.
We also had the opportunity to experience a national holiday. On our second day, our host family dressed us in the traditional Uros attire and boated us to the neighboring island for the start of the festival of mother Lake Titicaca. At first I thought he was pulling our leg and this was a daily event they share for tourists. We watched these amazing hand crafted “float” boats made of reeds glide across the lake. On the main boat was the indiginous chieftain and the lady representing the Lake. It was a spectacle that we enjoyed all the way into the port of Puno.
As we came closer and closer we realized there were thousands of people on the beach singing and dancing in anticipation of the boats carrying the Lady of the Lake. These were not tourists but Peruvians from all over the country, we knew this was a special day.
This cultural experience blew us away. Those few days on the island with no internet, no electricity, no running water, and no connection to the rest of the world were some of the most memorable of our South American trip.
Colca Canyon
As soon as we arrived at Lake Titicaca, we had booked our bus from Puno to Chivay to Colca Canyon to Arequipa with a local tour agency. It included transportation, a 1-night stay at a local hostel, breakfast, and a guide for $45.
Our journey from Puno to Chivay was 6 hours and included some amazing sights as we climbed the Andes mountains. The altitude was close to 6 km above sea level! On the way, we saw flamingo lakes, wild vicunas (llama relatives), and local herds of llamas and alpacas.
In, Chivay we spent the afternoon relaxing in the thermal hot springs ($5 per person) and enjoying an alpaca dinner in a local restaurant with live music and traditional dancing.
The next morning we got up early and headed to Colca Canyon, home to the South American condors. We made a few stops along the way and tried cactus-flavored ice-cream and refreshing cactus drinks.
Upon arrival at the national park, we scoured the cliff sides and hiked along the trails taking in the scenery. We were there to see the condors but we did not have our hopes up as we learned that November is not the best month for condor-watching. After almost 2 hours of enjoying the cliffs bird free, we heard someone shout condor. We immediately ran to the spot and saw a condor. This magnificent bird soared in the canyon only thirty feet away as a farewell token before we took off.
Arequipa
Our final stop in Peru was Arequipa, or the “white city” as its known by its white buildings made from the ash of the surrounding volcanoes. We spent 3 days wandering around the city. The streets were easy to navigate so we booked another free walking tour, well worth it.
The city still high in elevation is surrounded by three volcanoes,protecting or destroying the city as they see fit. Overall the city was one of our favorite food spots as they had a lot of variety. We even tried vegan sushis and vegan stuffed peppers (a Peruvian staple).
Brazil
Iguazu Falls
We arrived in Iguazu Falls from Peru and were met with quite the contrast. We were much lower in elevation. We went from arid and dry climate to the wet and green climate. The temperature went from 50-70 F to 95 F. It was a nice change of pace and clothing. From the airport we got an Uber ($2) to our hotel that was only 2 miles from the Iguazu Falls National Park! SImilar to how the Niagara Falls are divided between the US and Canada, the Iguazu Falls are divided between Brazil and Argentina. We wanted to take full advantage of both sides, so we booked roundtrip buses ($7 total for Brazil side and $20 total for Argentina side) along with the park entrance ($17 per person).
We spent our first day on the Brazilian side. Upon arriving we felt like we were in Disneyworld; the humid hot climate, bus rides, tourists, and they had park attractions, but that’s not a bad thing.
We were bused from the entrance to the start of the nature trail where we had the opportunity to come close to coati (a mix of an anteater, bearcat, and racoon), capuchin monkeys, and a plethora of colorful birds. They set the backdrop for what’s to come as we finally got a glimpse of the falls. They are spectacular and seem to stretch as far as the eyes can see. Our first look was impressive, but as we continued to walk, we learned that we had only seen a small section of the falls.
On our second day we headed to Argentina (no visa required and the border crossing was quicker than we anticipated). We arrived at there side of the falls and entered the park. This time instead of taking a bus we took a train!
We got our train tickets and were off to the furthest lookout at the “Devil’s Throat” for a glimpse into the heart of the falls. As we hiked out a long boardwalk, we could hear the falls getting louder and louder. As we arrived, we were met with strong winds and mist. The mist from the falls swirled up into the hot sunny day to pour down on us as we looked over the falls.
As the day wound down, we took one more train trip out to the “Devil’s Throat” to look at the falls one more time. This time there were more tourists but the sight was just as impressive.
We highly recommend visiting both sides, if possible. The Argentina side has more falls and treks. The Brazilian side has more wildlife and a panoramic view of the falls.
Salvador
The fourth largest city in Brazil, Salvador is gaining traction with tourism. The city has a long history with Portugal and slavery as one of the first slave trading ports in the Americas. But the town is much different today since it was liberated from Portugal back in 1823.
The city is a booming port, business, and beach town even if it's not as famous as Rio and we took full advantage of exploring it. We could not find a free walking tour so we opted for our own stroll of the city. To get around, we had to take Uber and taxis from A to B. The rides including to and from the airport were all around 30 Brazilian real ($7-$8).
We started our exploration of the historic city center on the west side of town looking into the bay. Here you will find a lot of the portuguese influenced buildings and a maze of colorful homes and businesses down every alleyway. As we walked the old town we accompanied with the sound of a local marching band practicing in the main square.
From old town we headed to the Barra lighthouse sitting at the southernmost tip of Salvador. Once shining as a beacon to guide ships home, it now features a museum ($4 pp) offering a better understanding of the importance of the port and its history from pre-Portugal, to colonialism, to now. After taking in the history, we climbed the lighthouse stairs and were met with a great view of the city, beaches, and the Atlantic ocean.
We finished our day by strolling along the beach enjoying fresh coconut water for under 50 cents.
Rio De Janeiro
The City of God was our final stop in Brazil. The city has a good metro system ($1 per ride) and Uber's are easy to grab for anywhere else ($4-6 per ride). As we arrived in Rio at the heart of Brazilian football season, we realized there was a game that night at the historic Maracana Stadium and we just had to go. As we walked into the 80,000-seat stadium that has stood there since 1950 hosting Olympics and World Cups we were in awe. We had the chance to sit with the local Fluminense fans and witness the ups and downs of a 90-minutes battle with Mineiro, only for the game to end in a tie. The game was exhilarating with the crowd chanting and cheering for two straight hours. What a start to Rio!
The majority of our time was spent relaxing in Copacabana. Our hotel was situated just a few blocks off the famous beach. The beach was surprisingly less crowded than we expected due to cloudy 75-degree weather keeping the locals and tourists away.
To get a sense for the town, we joined another free walking tour that featured history, good eats, and touching on the local culture of dance, music, and festivals. We ended our tour hungry and met with our Aunt Gladis' nephew Naim for the best all-you-can-eat soup place ($5 per person) in Copacabana called Biscui!
It was now time to ascend the city for a new perspective at the Christ the Redeemer Statue! A short Uber ride took us to the train station, from which we opted for the scenic train ($17 per person including entry). The ride was beautiful.
At the top, after just a short walk, we were able to enjoy one of the new 7 wonders of the world - the Christ Statue. The statue is massive and the views of the city are breathtaking!
It was only fitting that we would end our journey in Brazil and this section of the trip at the Museu do Amanha "Museum of Tomorrow," where we had a chance to look at the past, present, and future of the planet; with a chance to contemplate our impact on the world and the environment!
Obrigado Brazil. Till next time.
No comments:
Post a Comment