explorin' puno and colca (cole)

a few days late, but my adventures from last weekend... 

Buenos Noches! 

I'm currently sitting on a night  bus for the next eight or nine hours on my way back to Cusco. I figured since I haven't been too great at blogging, I would get ahead and write about my weekend excursion while I have plenty of time. 

Plaza de Armas in Puno

I finished class last Wednesday (after 8 straight hours of class... crazy, I know...), completely exhausted and thought I would have a long night of sleep before heading out to Arequipa the next day. That isn't what happened at all. My friends, Sarafina and Mary Kate, and I decided to "choose experience" and ditch Arequipa and head over to Puno and the majestic Lake Titicaca. We went straight home for a dinner and packing, then met up for the bus station to catch the next bus out to Puno. Side note: Before coming to Peru I had been scared off of any bus except the safe and comfortable 'Cruz del Sur.' Well, as soon as I saw those prices compared to the much cheaper buses, I quickly forgot my pre-conceived notion to only take the luxurious bus. We bought our 11:30pm tickets from Power (a fairly decent bus company), then bummed around the station until our departure time. Finally, it was go time. We were giddy with excitement of having the unknown ahead of us.  

As we approached the terminal we gathered our belongings, rushed off, and found a cab. When we gave our request to go to "Hostel Monterrey" on Lima Ave, the cab driver was quite confused and listed outrageous prices. "Huh??" We were all thinking. Mary Kate proceeded to ask, "Donde estamos?" Well, soon enough we discovered we hopped off a stop too early and were still an hour away from Puno. It was just the beginning of our journey, so despite the amateur traveler mistake we still had high spirits. We found a "combee," (the small buses we have learned to love in Cusco) to take us to Puno. All in a bit of a sleepy haze, the ride seemed a little like a dream being surrounded by men and women in traditional clothing and festive Peruvian music in the background. The time passed quickly and we were at our hostel in Puno before we knew it. Completely exhausted, the group decided a nap would be the best option for the time being. After a solid few hours of sleep, we were ready to hit the town. We leisurely walked the street of the town and relaxed in the "Plaza de Armas."

Ice cream in Puno

In the late afternoon, we left for our tour of the infamous floating islands - Uros. Lonely Planet says it best when it describes it as "a reed Disneyland." It was beautiful and magnificent, but very much catered to tourist. I was extremely intrigued by the islands, but partially sad that these people have converted their culture to tourism. None the less, it was interesting and informative to learn about the unique life of the floating islands and admire lake Titicaca. Afterwards, we went to a funky rock bar in downtown for pizza and beers. A perfect way to end our first full day.

Lake Titicaca

Hangin' out with locals

Friday morning we geared up for a full day of travel. After consulting our new travel bible, Lonely Planet, we agreed Colca Canyon would be the next destination. Again, we chose a random bus company for our ride to Arequipa (which turned out great) with seats on the very front of the second floor, letting us have an awesome view. The bus ride flew by with good music and the beautiful rolling landscape. The night before we consulted the bartender who recommended we jump off the bus in a town, or not even really a town, more of a  strip of a few stores, where buses to Colca Canyon come by. This cut off a few hours of travel. Under 20 minutes, a bus stopped for us and we were headed to Chivay - the entrance town to Colca . Well, the bad part about being picked up by random buses is that there is no guarantee you will have a seat. Sarafina and I found ourselves sitting in the front, with the bus drivers. It definitely added to the experience. With our novice Spanish abilities, we made small talk, then stuck to listening to the radio and admiring the Canyons we were approaching. Along the way, we picked up farmers and artisans who needed a bus ride back to town. Our spacious area in the front of the bus was quickly crowded.

Waiting to find a bus

Riding in front

We eventually made it to Chivay, one of the entrance towns to Colca. Our next bus to Cabanaconde, our final destination, didn't leave for a few hours, so we decided to do some exploring. The town was homely and A LOT less touristy than the busy streets of Cusco. We made our way to an "Irish" pub and got a late lunch/ early dinner. I was a little disappointed my hamburger turned out to be a chicken fillet... Still adjusting to the overload of chicken in Peru. After our meal we hit the markets. We were all in "awe" of the simplicity of the town and though we love Cusco, we appreciated the quaintness of the small town.

Finally, 8:30 rolled around and it was time for our bus to Colca. This might have been the least exciting bus ride, though it was extremely bumpy... All dirt roads!  When we walked off the bus two hours later, the town seemed like a ghost land. No one was out. Also, it was 10:30pm, though in Cusco nightlife would just be starting. But we all appreciated another sweet, small town. After receiving directions from a local, we went to Pachamama, our hostel, for the night. Completely beat, I went straight to bed while the other two hung out and chatted with the owners. Luckily they stayed up, because the next morning I awoke to a full day already planned. The hip, hiker brothers who co-owned the hostel suggested a route down into the canyon and to stay the night in a mountain lodge. I immediately was all in! We packed our bags and headed on our way. 

Colca Canyon 

Mary Kate, Callem, and Sarafina

Colca Canyon. Dios Mios! It's unlike anything I've seen before! (The pictures don't do it justice.) We made an Australian friend at the hostel who came hiking with us. We hiked in and out of the Canyon all day, amazed by the beauty surrounding us. Though it was extremely hot, we were so distracted laughing and enjoying each other's company. After 8 hours, including a break to swim in the river and lunch in a mountain town, we made it to the "Oasis," a little spot of lush green within the dry desert. It was incredible. I felt like I was in a island resort. We were surrounded by little huts, or rather our hostel, palm trees, and vibrant blue pools, but then you look in the distance and we are in the valley of the deepest canyon in the world. To finish the day, we had a delicious dinner, then headed to the bonfire where we drank our favorite local beer, Cusqueña, with other travelers.

The Oasis

Pachamama

Six am the next morning came a lot earlier than we all wanted, but alas we needed to beat the heat of the day. We ate a delicious breakfast of crepes and eggs and began to pack up. In the midst of gathering our belongings, Mary Kate noticed her fanny pack was missing. We split up and searched the entire place. It was nowhere to be find. After chatting with the owner and a few phones calls, we came to the conclusion it must have been stolen from the room. It was now 9:30 am, and we had to keep going in order to make our bus at 2 pm, little did we know what we had ahead of ourselves. Simply put, the climb out of the canyon was absolutely miserable. We did not have enough water and it was straight uphill for four hours. Since we were preoccupied, rightly so, with the fanny pack, we were in the hottest part of the day. It was long and hard, but eventually we made it. Once back in Cabanaconde, we ran to the store for waters and power aids. Power aid has never tasted so good! It was now 2:15... We missed our bus and the next bus wasn't til 9pm, putting us in Arequipa at 4am and there wouldn't be a bus to Cusco for several hours after that. Sarafina, Marykate, and I decided to stay another night in Pachamama rather than race back to Cusco (and there was already no way we could make it in time for class on Monday.) With the bus situation handled, we found a small store where we could pick up lunch food. We spent the rest of the day lounging around the hostel, a much deserved break, and snacked on avocado and cheese sandwiches and fruit. It was heavenly. All tired from the past couple days, we retired to bed early.

Monday morning! We woke up, caught our 9am bus to Arequipa and said goodbye to our adventure. We arrived at 3pm, spent a few hours exploring the town, and now here I am...

In the end, it was an definitely unforgettable, fun journey. And that's what study abroad is all about, right?