Back from darkest Peru (I)

In the Paddington Bear, stories my mom used to read to me as a child, Paddington was from "darkest Peru." After a journey of 36 hours to get home that included two boats, a hike, a bus, five flights, and a car ride, I don't question the appellation.

My trip to Peru was great, a once-in-a-lifetime trip. For those of you who are interested, I encourage you to check out my brother's blog. He is a more diligent blogger and has many additional anecdotes to report.

Without backtracking for now, I'll pick up where I left off, which was getting ready to head into the Amazon basin with my dad. We didn't know if M would join us; after commenting to my dad about my supposedly "weak constitution" after I was smitten with an intestinal bug for the second time on the Machu Picchu day, he got ill just as I was getting better.

In fact, I started feeling better shortly after I threw up and dragged myself onto the train. While the train ride down to Machu Picchu--yes, down, for while Machu Picchu looks to be high in the mountains, and it is at 8,000 feet, this is almost 3,000 feet lower than Cusco and over 1,000 feet lower than Ollantaytambo--was highlighted by the spectacular scenery, it was dark on the ride home. So naturally, the train crew, after serving drinks and snacks, put on a fashion show. They modeled some clothes with an Andean touch, like Alpaca shawls and sweaters, but it was mostly, well, a second-rate wannabe J. Crew fashion show. Weird, but not as weird as the strange man dressed in some sort of traditional Andean costume who did a little dance down the aisle, making sounds rather like a guinea pig, before the train attendants came back to try to sell the clothes they had just been modeling. I wasn't feeling well and mostly pretended to be asleep.

Anyhow, the next morning I was feeling somewhat better, so Dad, G, and I headed back to Cusco. M, however, had been hit hard with the bug during the night and was simultaneously fighting vomiting and diarhhea. He was not well enough to come with us and he thought he might have to skip the jungle part of the trip. Luckily, some doctors from Houston were staying in the same hotel, and they wrote him a prescription for various drugs. Since they are available over-the-counter in Peru, Dad and I also picked up some Cipro to clear up our own lingering intestinal issues.

We all proceeded to Cusco and G got ready to head to Grand Cayman and Dad and I to the rain forest. Luckily, M dragged himself in that evening, looking like death, but clinging to hope that he could join us the next day. The next day, he was indeed just barely well enough to come. Dad and I were still tired, but looking forward to the trip into "darkest" Peru, and G headed off for some scuba diving. This post is getting long, so back to work. Next post: the long-awaited trip to the Amazon.