Day 3 – Traveling Around Peru

The following morning we rushed to get all of our stuff ready in the suitcases and we had to get on the bus. I believe I misunderstood and ended up being on the last to get on. We rushed to the airport and began our flight to Arequipa. We flew in to Arequipa into a city that seemed substantially more desolate than Lima was. We began driving through large amounts of countryside and many homes that seemed like someone had started them but never finished. So much construction yet nothing done? Pretty strange. The guide explained that there was something to do with taxes or something of that nature that stopped people from finishing the homes. We were mostly on the bus the entire time as we drove around looking at area to area. Dogs barely alive walking and roaming the streets.

At one point we stopped by in one really nice area called the Miraflores district. There were huge palm trees and it all looked so nice in comparison to the desolate streets we saw when we first landed. We got to try some amazing ice cream from a lady standing on the corner and then we were off again on the bus. At this point we were at roughly 2300 Meter altitude, which was pretty high, but the fact that I was running on two hours of sleep I had no idea if it was the altitude or if something else was going on.

That night we stayed in a fairly nice hotel and this time I had my own room. I went to do a little shopping as buying water constantly a norm. I bought some corn on the cob that looked like it was enlarged 5-8 times the norm you would see in the US but the guide explained that it was due to the elevation. We check out some historical sites in the area and the night seemed to have ended early. Well not completely – even though I was running on fumes the guys convinced me we should go check out a bar with the girls. We stayed there for a few hours and at some point decided it was time to head back. The next morning we were heading to the Colca Canyon. Where supposedly altitude may be an issue for me – considering I come from an area where we live at sea level. Everyone apparently brought elevation pills – except for me. My doc told me – well you can buy the cheap ones for say 200 but they will make you hallucinate but you won’t feel the elevation or pay 500 for the good ones. I decided I was smarter and turned out way wrong.