A Few Pictures for Your Viewing Pleasure

The top of our hike above Machu Picchu.

Heidi, climbing a rock using a handy rope - I almost crapped myself I was laughing SO HARD.

Machu Picchu

Santiago, Chile

Lima, Peru

Heids and I made it to Puno at 4:30 am this morning. Tomorrow we are going on a full-day tour of Lake Titicaca and visiting a few islands. These islands are made out of reeds that grow in the water; the residents of the island continuously replace the reeds because they rot underneath.

Love,
Meg

Beginner's Guide to Driving in South America

• Lanes: Those pretty yellow and white lines on the road mean nothing; pay them no attention. They are merely painted for asthetic reasons.
• Honking: Use your car horn as many times as you deem necessary. This should include, but is not limited to: honking at red lights, pedestrians, beautiful chicas, other vehicles, or just for fun.
• Speed Bumps: It is best to take speed bumps at an angle. Yes, that's correct, veer your vehicle to the left or right before driving over the bump so that only one tire goes over at a time. Who cares if you take up the entire road; simply honk your horn at other vehicles and it´s fine.
• Headlights: Believe it or not, cars in front of you are not affected by your brights. In fact, it is a good idea to drive 2-5 feet directly behind a car in front of you with your brights on. The driver in the other vehicle will enjoy it.
• Speed Limit: The only speed limit in South America is however fast your spedometer will allow you to drive. It is best to see how fast you can go - especially around corners. This will save you money on gasoline.
• Passing: Pass every vehicle that is in front of you. You must always be the first in a line. It is preferable to pass on blind corners or hills.

I have never prayed more in my life than I do when I am riding in a vehicle in South America. I mentioned this to Heidi and she said, ''Haha, I guess I used to think the same thing when I first got here but then I just got used to it. I haven´t died yet!'' Somehow, that didn´t make me feel better.

On a better note, Machu Picchu was amazing yesterday. We hired a tour guide so we learned a lot about how it was discovered and the different theories as to why the Incas abandoned it. We are very excited to go to Lake Titicaca tonight, we're traveling by bus - I hope we have a safe driver! We'll be in Puno (one of the towns next to the lake) for Christmas. Hope all is well at home.

Love,

Meg

Cusco, Peru

Traveling by bus for over 21 hours isn´t very pleasant. Especially when half the passengers on the bus vomit or decide that, yes, now is a great time to take a nasty shit in the back toilet so the entire bus can smell my odor. Thanks a bunch! I thoroughly enjoyed myself :) The ride to Cusco was very similar to the Road to Hana in Hawaii. Windy roads, one-lane bridges and a double-decker bus... Oh wait, you don´t normally drive to Hana in a tall bus? That's too bad, you're really missing out.

Just for fun:
Things South American's LOVE:

• Fanny packs
• Honking their car horns. (In fact, I don´t think they know how to use their blinkers and the ''courtesy wave'' hasn´t been invented yet)

I thought of a lot more earlier, but now I can´t remember. Post more later. Machu Picchu tomorrow!

Love, M

Back to traveling!

Heidi and I just started our 21-hour bus-ride from Lima, Peru to Cuzco. We should arrive sometime tomorrow around noon. The picture shows that we're sitting on the second level (first class) directly above the driver; we basically have a front row seat - I'm hoping for a nice view but Heidi claims it's just going to be desert.

Heidi, my sister, and I will be traveling South America for Christmas and New Years. We're coming home to PDX on January 14th. Heidi is fluent in Spanish since she has lived in Chile since July; I consider her my guide :)

So far, just getting to South America has cost me roughly $2,415 US dollars. This includes my plane tickets to Chile and Peru, various vaccines and prescriptions I had to get, and the entrance fees into Chile and Bolivia. I'm hoping that the rest of the trip will cost less than the initial amount. And yes, I am employed (thanks for letting me have a month off, Joe!) but I'm too lazy to change the name of this blog.

I'll be sure to blog soon. We're going to Machu Picchu in a few days and it's supposed to rain the entire time; I'll let you know how it goes!

Xo, Meg
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