We've spent the last week and a half in Peru, mostly doing the Salkantay Trek to Machu Picchu but we also spent some time in Cusco exploring. Here are some of our takeaways!
Machu Picchu.
1. Peru isn't super into gay pride. Well, it might be but that's not why there are rainbow flags everywhere. The rainbow flags are for the city / area of Cusco and are prominently displayed all over the country. When we first arrived we wondered if Cusco was just really liberal!
2. Peruvians are the friendliest people we have met thus far in our travels. Our tour guides, hostel hosts and restaurant servers were all eager to help and patiently work through our Spanglish.
3. It's easy to travel on a budget in Peru. A US Dollar is worth about three Soles and things were very affordable: 4 Soles for coffee, 15 Soles for sandwiches at a nice cafe, 30 Soles for an upscale dinner entree. We were happy to save some money before heading to Buenos Aires and Rio, where we know our money won't go as far.
4. Vegan food is tasty but challenging for someone with a nut allergy. We love meat but kept hearing about an amazing little vegan restaurant in Cusco so we finally checked it out. While the food at Green Point was really good, nuts (or nut milks) were included in almost every dish. We tried!
5. Altitude is no joke. In advance of our trip, most of my concerns were regarding altitude sickness. Upon arrival I was thankful that Alex and I weren't feeling sick but I hadn't expected the severe impact on our breathing. Just walking up a hill or flight of stairs (of which there are many in Cusco!) was enough to leave me winded. I wished I'd somehow been able to prepare a bit more for our trek!
6. We didn't pack enough cold weather clothes. The weather in Cusco varies wildly during the day: we'd start out hot in the morning sun with short sleeves and then grab winter coats in the afternoon when the cold rain moved in. We both ended up buying sweaters and will probably need to buy a few more things in Argentina.
7. Alpacas are everywhere! You can't enter a store without seeing "real baby alpaca" advertised and most restaurants serve the meat too (it's actually delicious). We saw a bunch during our outdoor sightseeing and there are also Peruvian women who walk around with little alpacas and charge you to take a photo.
8. Peruvians tend to be on the shorter side. Not something that we would really notice, except that Alex was always having to duck and sometimes smacked his head on doorframes. He didn't fit into our mummy-style sleeping bags during the trek either!
9. Cusco is great but the city realllly caters to tourists. You can't walk ten feet without being offered trinkets, alpaca sweaters, massages or tour opportunities. We know that tourist dollars are important here but it's still hard to keep saying "No, gracias" every thirty seconds.
10. South American airports are different than what we're used to. Sometimes our bags get checked through to our final destination, other times we have to reclaim them during a stopover. In Lima we had an hour to catch a connecting flight and we had to exit through baggage claim (though our bags were actually transferred directly to the next plane) and then go through security and customs before running to our gate. I'm sure there are reasons and standard rules - we just haven't learned them yet.
Peak: Machu Picchu (obviously)
Pit: Popular Art Museum (but it was worth a laugh at least!)
Next Stop: Buenos Aires, Argentina