Two Ears One Mouth

Please blame the Marathon Monster for the delay between posts. My life is work, run, eat, sleep not necessarily in that order... We had a 4 a.m. wake up call to get to Cusco. We met in the lobby at 4:30 then headed to the airport where we faced another round of extensive security checks including leaving our shoes on and carrying outside liquids onto the flight. This was also the first time I figured out how to use my calling card so I was able to leave The Colonel a little message before we hopped the flight. I'd been keeping up with my family via Facebook messages when I had wifi but this was the first opportunity I had to call...he didn't answer. The flight to Cusco wasn't too bad and the coolest part was that the mountains were literally higher than the clouds! I always knew I was fond of mountains but it wasn't until I was literally in the Andes that I realized my true love for them. My dream is to now live somewhere with a mountain view. The Andes a...

Day two in Lima was also our last day in Lima. Still cloudy but no rain really and for that we were grateful. We did a lot more walking and saw all kinds of cool sites like Huaca Pucllana which are clay and adobe (maybe?) remains of pre-Inca/Lima culture. Apparently the story goes that over time the structures broke down and crumbled over themselves creating a big mound that for years people thought was just a mountain. The city of Lima built up around it until one day someone decided to start digging and discovered this city. Cool stuff huh? As a faux anthropologist I definitely enjoyed checking the site out and was also reminded that I'm not an archaeologist who could sit in holes and actually dig this stuff out! After a fun day climbing around the archaeological site and visiting a museum with a really sobering exhibit regarding the Peruvian revolution (which I'm bummed was entirely in Spanish) we headed back to the hotel to get changed for the Magic Water Park! W...

Buenos Dias Amigos! Welcome to the first installment of Vegetarian in Peru: A Love Story. I don't know how to explain my love for Peru and more so, Cusco. But we didn't start that way. First, we met. Our flight was at noon-ish from Louisville to Atlanta and was largely uneventful. Actually, all of the travel in the states was uneventful including the flight from Atlanta to Lima. It takes about 6 1/2 hours to get there and surprisingly it really wasn't all that bad. There's something about the size of international flights that makes me feel more comfortable. It shouldn't make sense that an enormous plane would float magically through the air easier than a smaller plane but to me it does. It's the same way I (used to) feel safer on big cruise ships than on tiny row boats. But I digress. I slept a little on the plane but also watched The Hangover Part 2 (eh) and Side Effects (crazy!!!). There were no crying babies, snoring adults or serious turbulence so the fli...

Did I mention that I've been in Peru for the past 2 weeks? I'm sure I mentioned it but in my haste to ship out I neglected to say a proper goodbye! Forgive me! Also, stay tuned for the 6-10 part series Vegetarian in Peru: A Love Story where I will captivate you all with numerous tales of my travels. In contrast to my usual posts, I think this series might actually be interesting! South America is amazing and it was truly a life changing experience. Part One is scheduled for this week so make sure to be on the lookout! Here's a 5 word preview of what's to come: Riots, Lima, Spanglish, Hanger, Traffic. Intrigued? You should be :)