Machu Picchu

I hiked up the steep trail to Machu Picchu early in the morning. The sun was just starting to rise and the day to warm up. Cusco is pretty high in altitude and cold, Machu Picchu is lower and it has a subtropical warm weather, so it takes a minute to adjust to the sudden change.

As I advanced the sun rose as if synchronized with my ascent. The weather was perfect, the view of the mountains around me was magnificent and the energy of this magical place overpowered my tiredness.

Surprisingly I was on of two people hiking up at this time. The hundreds of tourists that were also going to Machu Picchu that morning were taking the bus service. This is really ironic because Machu Picchu is located on an amazing natural place that needs to be protected if we want it around and beautiful for the years to come, yet most pollution comes from these buses than make constant runs, up and down during the day, so people can enjoy it more comfortably.

This is just one of they ways in which Machu Picchu is being greatly affected by the hundreds of thousands of tourists that visit every year. Due to the negative effect of tourism, the Peruvian government is considering either closing it or limiting the entrance in the near future in order to preserve it, said one of the guides at the site.

It was very rewarding to walk up for an hour and a half and suddenly find this amazing place hidden within the mountains. It was actually the best reward anyone could ask for. It makes the experience much more interesting, almost like a pilgrimage to one of the most amazing places in the world. So, in my opinion, is much more worth it to walk up and earn the right to indulge in such beauty, than being bused up and down like a good tourist and bad citizen of the world.

The ascent

The Inca city shows up

Beautiful

The genius of the Incas. Amazing architecture

Breathtaking

So lucky to be here!

It was a really good day :)

Beauty of Peru

The changing scenery of Peru is just absolutely fantastic. We went from desert to snow peaks overnight. I woke up on the bus to a stunning sunrise over The Andes as we approached Cusco.

Going Going Going and Cusco

The alarm went off at the crack of dawn once again, as it has done several times during this trip. I awoke and decided to skip the cold shower and instead sit outside to watch the sunrise to the sound of the roosters’ crow. It was time to leave Iquitos and although the experience hadn’t been exactly what I had imagine it would be, it was still an experience – a very interesting one – in fact, so I wanted to take a moment and take it all in. I wanted to breathe the jungle air once again, deeply and aware.

I walked to the airport because Juan lives really close. The sun had risen and I soon regretted skipping that shower.

After a delayed flight and a foodless morning I was back in Lima. I got off the plane and immediately had to find my way to the bus terminal. The tranquility of the jungle seemed already far behind. I was running to catch a bus to Cusco and it was a marathon from there on.

After 22 hours on a bus I arrived at Cusco().

Because of the celebration of the 100 years of discovery of Machu Picchu there were tourists and music at every corner. I could feel celebration all around.

I was in dire need of a shower, so before anything else I found a hostel with a “hot” shower. Although I learned, way in the beginning of my trip, that an actual hot shower is a luxury difficult to find for $10 a night.

Regardless, after the very needed shower I went out and walked around the city. The colonial architecture, the many churches and plazas and the booming commerce (mainly catering to tourists) make of this city a really vibrant one.

I walked around for most of the day along cobbled streets until there was nothing new to see. Cusco could easily lure me into its party atmosphere and it would have taken me a while to move on, so on a whim I purchased a train ticket and headed to Aguas Calientes, the nearest town to Machu Picchu, that same night. I picked up my pack and I was back on the road.

I arrived in Aguas Calientes around midnight. I caught up with some Korean friends I had met previously and we chatted for a few hours (hostelling is a very social activity). I slept for maybe three hours and awoke at four, before sunrise, to stand in line and get tickets for Machu Picchu. At around six o’clock I was on my way to the ancient Inca city, hiking alone up the steep trail as the sun started to show from behind the mountains.

Belen Market

The most fun I had in Iquitos was at the Belen market. Belen is the poorest district in Iquitos and they call it “the Venice of the Amazon” because it floods every rainy season, leaving its streets underwater from February to April.

The market extends for many blocks and it feels like a maze as you walk through it during the hectic business day. Wherever you look there are women behind their stands, usually with a flyswatter at hand, keeping the flies away and cutting up chickens, fish and some times grilling caiman meat, which they call “lizard meat.” Yumm!

The food sits on wooden tables over a plastic tarp. There are many kinds of spices of all scents and colors that combine with the smell of the meat sitting under the sun all day. There are a lot of different fruits that are grown locally and potatoes and other produce that are brought by boat from the nearest accessible town-- Pucallpa, some five hours away.

Iquitos can only be reached by boat or plane.

The market also has an herb and remedy section. There it is possible to find the cure to any ailment or ingredients for any potion; Iquitos has a long and dominating tradition of magicians, witches and rituals, Juan Tangoa told me.

Belen is an interesting place where houses are built on stilts or over big logs of wood in order to make them float as the water level rises over five feet every year.

Unfortunately it is also the dirtiest part of the city and all the trash produced in the market gets carried away with the current.

The people were friendly and smiling as they worked. It was the perfect place to get a sense of Iquitos every day life, as they know it.

But it is not all bad

Being in Iquitos has had its positive aspects as well; I have to admit. Meeting Juan, the healer, has been an interesting experience. His life story is amazing, almost unbelievable, in the full sense of the word. He enjoys sharing his crazy experiences and I enjoy listening, although I am never sure were to draw the line between reality and fantasy. I think even he no longer knows, or, perhaps, the fantasy in his life is just as real as anything else.

He was living in the U.S at the time of the Vietnam War and volunteered. He said he was later left behind, along with other South Americans, when the troops pulled out. So they had to fend for themselves and see and do horrible things in order to survive. Therefore he has been lost in insanity (like many others who fought that war) and back, thanks to Ayahuasca. He’s healed himself and many others, who travel from all over the world to Iquitos to have access to his knowledge of medicinal plants and be healed by him and Ayahuasca, “the mother plant,” he said.

He’s fought crocodiles and demons, he says. He’s traveled the world, and explored the depths of the jungle. According to him he’s been killed by a snake and then came back to life. He’s traveled light years to far away stars and also back in time to see it all start. He is, for sure, and interesting man. His name is Juan Tangoa. He is over 60 years old and in perfect shape. He says is the Ayahuasca that keeps him healthy, strong and powerful.

He’s told me many stories, some very nice, all of them amazing and a few kind of hard to believe. All I know with certainty is that he’s been through a lot in his lifetime and he’s a gathered a lot of knowledge. He truly understands the power of nature and knows how to use it.

Out of the many things he told me two really got to me and I hope to never forget.

He told me people are afraid of death when they have not lived life fully, and that the world becomes the size of an orange in the palm of your hand when you have an open mind.

He reminded me that all we have to do in life is live. Because once our time is up, it’s up and there are no second chances. He reminded me that a closed mind will take us nowhere, because it becomes impossible to see the way.

So let’s find what makes us smile. Let’s find what makes us happy; what makes us vibrate from the inside out, what we’re passionate about. Let’s focus less on the negative, on what we lack or what we think is expected from us, yet it brings us down, because in the end, nothing else will matter.

Let’s live life, day by day. Just live. Despite life’s difficulties, there is always beauty around us -- we simply forget. Let’s remember that we are lucky to be alive, to have the opportunity to be in this world in these bodies that feel and dream and hope. Let’s be.

Thank you Juan.

The not so lovely Amazon

Iquitos, Peru.

I left Lima totally excited for the next stage of my adventure. I was hoping to take a break from the polluted cities of South America and immerse myself in the greatness of the jungle, to be amidst exotic animals and learning about medicinal plants, meeting indigenous people and learning from them the way to spirituality in communion with nature.

In other words: the pinnacle of my trip. The reason why I got inspired to travel in the first place; in order to explore indigenous history, in order to reconnect with my roots and, most importantly, Pachamama (mother earth).

Well, as we all know, and sometimes fail to remember, things don’t always go as we hoped. And I have been reminded of it the hard way.

I arrived in Iquitos, the biggest city in the Peruvian part of the Amazon, and shortly after my landing, excitement was being replaced with and urge to cry. I had sort of arranged a four-day jungle expedition with a medicine man where I would learn about the healing powers of plants and participate in an ayahuasca ceremony, which was to be an intensely spiritual experience.

Since communication had been through a third person – not directly with the healer – none of this was going to happen, but I was just about to find out.

I finally met Juan, the healer, at his house and found out he had absolutely no intention of going into the jungle at this time.

Instead of a hut surrounded by nature, the ceremony would take place in a living room surrounded by plastic chairs. The view of the jungle had been replaced by possibly the dirtiest place in the whole Amazon: Iquitos --, the knowledge about medicinal plants only available for those who go on the expedition or stay long-term to study. The price: twice as much as budgeted.

I cannot explain myself enough to convey the sadness I felt. I was stuck in Iquitos and not very happy about it.

It is safe to say that Iquitos is disgusting. The motto of this place: “The heart of the jungle,” their custom: to throw trash on the streets, and far worse, the river. The concept of a trashcan, honestly, doesn’t exist; let alone recycling or reducing plastic consumption. How could this be possible? I asked myself. How could there be so much knowledge about the importance of being environmentally friendly, yet in the heart and lungs of our planet people seem to have no clue? Or simply don’t care? Are we all really that disconnected? My idealized perspective was greatly affected. Every step I took among the trash and every time I saw people carelessly littering my heart ached.

As if that alone wasn’t bad enough, in order to satisfy the needs of tourists, in Iquitos they offer tours where you can supposedly experience the local fauna and indigenous traditions. For a varying amount (depending on how much they want to charge you and how easily you let them) you will visit an island nearby where you can see some caged animals and then continue on to a place on the shore where you’ll be greeted by a “tribe.” Which in reality is a group of topless, indigenous-looking people -- who have converted to evangelicalism – and perform their ancestors’ dances in honor of the anaconda and other sacred animals, now solely for profit.

(you can tell how excited I am to be there)--->

What a joke! My heart ached some more as I realized this is the fait of the amazingly rich native cultures in South America. That’s what we’ve helped them become, a mundane tourist attraction. That is how native communities fit in the “civilized” world. Sad. Because they were once a community that lived in their own autochthonous way, in balance with nature, having rites and music and culture and society and way of life and traditions that they’ve been forced to forget.

There are still around 200 indigenous groups in the Amazon, some of which are moving deeper into the jungle as “the white man,” as Kelvin my guide explained, gets closer to where they live. So although this particular experience doesn’t reflect all the indigenous groups at the moment, it for sure foreshadows what their end will be like. As the need for cattle, timber and economic growth continues to increase in the “developing countries” there will be less space in the jungle for these communities -- once again, they will find themselves forced to change their way of life in order to survive. And that is not the worse part, because the biological loss is far greater than the cultural. The Save The Amazon Coalition, a non-profit organization, points out how we are losing earth’s greatest biological treasures:

“Rain forests once covered 14% of the earth's land surface, now they cover a mere 6% and experts estimate that the last remaining rainforest could be consumed in less than 40 years"

They claim that one and a half acres of rainforest is lost every second.

“Experts estimate we are losing 137 plant, animal, insect species every single day due to deforestation. That equates to 50,00 species a year. As the rainforest species disappear, so do many possible cures for life-threatening diseases. Currently, 121 prescriptions drugs sold worldwide come from plant-derived sources. While 25% of Western pharmaceuticals are derived from rainforest ingredients, less than 1% of these tropical trees and plants have been tested by scientists."

Deforestation done by corporations and governments, added to the locals' littering due to lack of environmental awareness are slowly but surely destroying what is left of the Amazon. It might seem, from the comfort of our air-conditioned rooms that this doesn't affect us, because it's happening far away and is too complex to be resolved. But! Without the rainforest we can say goodbye to clean air, medicine, amazing and sometimes unseen fauna and flora, unimaginable knowledge, and at some point, our own existence.

The "green" rhetoric of our time claims that we are destroying the planet in hopes that you'll buy a more expensive "environmentally friendlier" car (which really makes no no difference). But the reality is, the planet has survived much worse; It has been a ball of heat and then covered in ice; it has been struck by meteors and seen species come and go. It has existed for millions of years; chances are it will still after we --the parasites of this ecosystem-- are gone.

So it is not the planet we are destroying, this is self-destruction at its best.

“Progress” and tourism have left a scar in the heart of the Amazon. This experience scarred me. There was no spiritual epiphany, no contact with my idealized indigenous people, no immersion in nature – just the harsh reality of our time.

Peru

Peruvian culture is very rich because of European and Inca influence, but also because the land itself, like the rest of South America, is varied, beautiful and rich in natural resources, climates and sceneries. In the north there is the Amazon jungle, with a hot and humid climate, rich in fauna and flora. In the center there is Lima on the edge of a desert. And in the south – within the Andes – beautiful colonial cities like Cusco, contrast with the amazing view of the Inca city of Machu Picchu.

In Cusco the temperature is on the other end of the spectrum regarding the Amazon in the north.

Just like the Inca Empire, the amazingly rich Peruvian culture stretches along the country, varying but remaining a whole, making of this country a beautiful one to explore and a little complex to fully understand. The multifaceted society, its turbulent colonial history and its recent economic development seem a whole mess on the surface, but when you take a deeper look, it is possible to appreciate the awesomeness of this country.

In Peru I fell further in love with this beautiful continent.

Peru, just like much of Latin America, presents a very interesting merger of cultures and traditions. It appears as if the Spanish were able to convert the natives to Christianity only on the surface. But beneath, their Inca traditions still prevail and shine through still to this day.

While I was in Lima it was the celebration of Corpus Christi, a catholic tradition. But just behind the image of the virgin that was being paraded around downtown, there were groups of dancers showcasing the traditional Inca dances, celebrating the Pachamama (mother earth) as much as they celebrated Jesus Christ and virgin Mary.

Here there are plenty of churches and Catholic celebrations. But this year Peruvians are also celebrating the 100 years of discovery of Machu Picchu by Hiram Bingham of Yale University, so it was an ideal time to observe the two main influences in Peruvian culture: Spanish and Inca.

Sidewalk Art

Mendo and Alex Cerdan have been going to Barranco to create a different piece of art every week since 2008. Their materials: chalk, the sidewalk, a shared passion for art and the need to make a living.

As one of them draws, the other collects money from pedestrians who are usually very pleased with this type of art exhibit. This is the magic of Barranco; art filters into everyday life, making of this neighborhood “a living poem” as Alex puts it.

There is a merger between the chaos of the street – characteristic of Latin American cities -- and beautiful views of generally ephemeral art.

A drawing takes two to three hours to complete, “depending on the type of sidewalk and the complexity of the drawing,” said Kevin. They call it “fleeting art” because after a few days of being stepped on, is gone.

Lima - Barranco

Lima doesn’t have such good reputation among travelers. It is viewed more as a pit stop than a destination. I was advised by a few not to spend more than a day there. Its almost constant gray skies, its apparent lack of that “special something” and its dusty streets keep the world ramblers at bay. I am not sure if fortunately or unfortunately. I do know though, that I was lucky to peel some layers off this apparently not-so-beautiful city and fell in love with it, particularly Barranco, the art district.

I have come to the conclusion that travelers don’t really enjoy Lima because it is hard to figure out. The city is huge and has lots of traffic, which makes exploration a bit tedious. Most travelers stay in hostels in Miraflores, one of the richest and newest neighborhoods in Lima, home to Larcomar, the fanciest shopping mall, and the pride of Lima’s upper class. If you pick up a guidebook or ask someone in Miraflores to point you in the right direction to a must-see in Lima, they’ll suggest Larcomar, maybe because it is the representation of progress and capitalism in Lima or maybe because it has great view of the shore, I am not sure.

There, you can find Starbucks Coffee, T.G.I Friday’s, Chili’s, or purchase The North Face. It seems to be an icon of progress, as if they were one step further away from being a “third world country.” But what locals might not realize is that only one strange type of tourist looks for this type of environment when traveling. The rest of us want to get the real thing, whatever’s typical, and most autochthonous.

For a more real Lima experience it is necessary to not stay in Miraflores.

I was lucky to get some insider tips on Lima. Rafael, who had lived in Lima for a year, suggested a hostel in Barranco, the art district. He told me where to get some of the best ceviche in town and pointed me in the right direction to discover this under-appreciated city.

Barranco is “a living poem” as a street artist puts it while he drew a portrait with chalk on the sidewalk. Wherever you look there is art or an artist.

Down near the “Puente de los Suspiros” on the way to the beach, there are artisans selling their handcrafts, playing guitars and living it up until late at night. There is a café/art center that offers live music every night of the week for only 3.50 Soles (around $1.30). Several restaurants, bars and clubs with alternative styles and inviting decoration make of Barranco the most entertaining neighborhood in Lima, in my opinion, with much more character than the more popular Miraflores.

Piura and Rafael

Oh…Piura! Not the prettiest town in Peru. We arrived there around 9 am; we changed some dollars for soles, grabbed some lunch with the two Brazilian guys (Pedro and Marcelo) and shortly, they were on their way.

Rafael and I were going to catch a night bus to Lima, which was 14 hours away. So we went on to buy our bus tickets, when, Rafael learns that the money he received back from a street money-exchange agent was totally fake.

Mmmm, what to do now? I had literary met him a few hours earlier, but this guy was now completely stranded in some random town in the north of Peru with zero money.

His initial plan was to sleep in Tumbes, the town right at the border, and then continue straight to Cuzco, some 40 hours away. But he changed his plans, partly because of me, and that meant I wouldn’t travel all alone for the next day. So I felt party (a very tiny part) responsible. I couldn’t just leave him there. So, I acted like any Colombian in that situation would’ve done. I offered an almost stranger to buy his bus ticket, hoping that he’d be kind enough to return the money.

I quickly learn Rafael is not the planning type and things were not quite going his way these days.

When we got to Lima we walked and bused around for a while, with our heavy packs and without having showered in two days. It wasn’t pretty, it wasn’t comfortable and it seemed fruitless, because none of his strategies to get money and a place to stay seemed to work.

I was eventually fed up with it and decided to go get myself a hostel and told him to come find me when things were figured out. He gave me his passport as a guarantee that he’d be back with my money that same day.

Again, things didn’t really go his way and I heard nothing from him that day. I had his passport so it gave me some sort of security, but then I remembered he has dual nationality and he could’ve just given up one of his passport for 60 Soles. But would he do that? I didn’t think so. But, where was he then? I had no clue.

As I stood on the balcony of the hostel, writing and wondering if I’d ever see him again, I hear Rafael yell my name form down the street. He had slept in the lobby of an apartment building, still had no money, but now seemed to have a plan.

We decided to part ways again – I wanted to sightsee, he needed to rest – so I returned his passport because he needed two forms of I.D in order to withdraw money form Western Union. Now the only guarantee I had was his good intentions and my gut feeling. I figured I’d go for it. After all this guy had been through in the past couple of days, if he was going to bail, then he was going to bail. But I would trust my instincts and put some faith in humanity.

He promised to be back that night.

Once again, he didn’t show. The next day in the afternoon, I was close to losing all hope. This guy had no cell phone, doesn’t use Facebook or email and all I knew was his name and that he was from Ecuador, heading to Cuzco. That was it. It would’ve been easy for him to bail and just take advantage of the free ride. But I kept hoping he wouldn’t. Not for the money really, but because I didn’t want to feel like a fool for trusting.

Like it has happened several times during this trip, I questioned my idealistic view on life, my almost-naïve perspective and expectations. But I was not worried; whatever was going to happen would happen. I was mentally prepared to lose, but always hoping for he best.

It was dusk and I was not thinking much about the whole ordeal anymore. I’d almost given up. Although obstinately because Rafael seemed like a pretty cool guy and, as always, I expected better from him, as I usually do from people.

Out of nowhere he surprises me form behind in the middle of the streets of Barranco(). He’s showered, rested, had just dropped off the money at my hostel, and was finally on his way to Cuzco, three days later. He thanked me profusely and I couldn’t be more content with the outcome. I not only had my money back, I now considered him a good friend, even better, I had seen goodness in him. The type of goodness I look for in people. And in the end he didn’t let me down.

I was happy to see him and happier to know that there are still people like him in the world. It was good to know that we can still trust. In a world where many are trying to take advantage of you and people’s word seems to have lost value, there is still hope.

That is one of the things I love the most about South America. We have every reason not to trust. Robberies and scams happen all the time, poverty fueled crime is prevalent in our cities. But despite this, we still trust. There is always someone willing to give you a hand. I have been helped along the way during my trip and I have encountered people with nothing (almost literal), but good intentions.

Despite the safety concerns some people have about South America, which are not invalid, this continent is still filled with good-hearted people. I was happy I trusted, and I’d do it again.