Arriving in Cuzco

I made it to Cuzco early Tuesday morning after a 10 hour overnight bus ride. Annie successfully arrived from Boston and we set about exploring the city. I was still feeling a bit delicate after having a sick day in Arequipa and Annie was feeling the altitude so we took it easy. Luckily Cuzco is a city for slow living- there are lots of small squares and plazas and shady benches for little brakes.

We decided to have lunch at one of the places with a cheap set menu del dia- something that seems to be popular all over the country. On this occasion for 5 soles we got a potato in spicy h. sauce followed by soup with potatoes, yucca, cabbage, and some sort of mystery stew meat. For the main course we chose the option of chicken with noodles in a spinach and basil pesto. The meal also came with chicha morado, a traditional drink made of purple corn. The fun thing about this resturant was that it was crowded with locals and people sat where there was space, none of this 2 people at a table for 4! We sat with 2 middle aged Cusqueño ladies. One had lived in Florida for a bit but we spoke mostly in Spanish. The other lady was shocked to find out I was single and I am pretty sure tried to set me up with her 25 year old son. She at least suggested the possibility, then called him and tried to get him to come down to the restaurant. Luckily (or maybe unluckily, who knows) for me he was busy, so we finished our meals and said goodbye.

Annie and I planned on booking a trek to Machu Picchu in a couple days time, but as we wandered to different agencies realized our options were more limited than we thought, not because everything was full but because it was low season and fewer groups were going out. We found the trek we wanted at one of the recommended agencies, but it was leaving the next day. Neither of us was feeling fantastic, but we were promised mules to carry our things and horses to carry us should the need arise. We decided to go for it and are glad we did, though sometimes the guides were probably less pleased to have us along!