Friday, August 15, 2008

Cusco and Machu Picchu

As I sit in the Bogota International terminal I realize that I have come full circle. February 1st I was laying on the floor across the hall for 9 hours as I anticipated the throngs of Rio, stumbling and mumbling as I tried to comunicate with airport workers over the location of an ATM. Now, over seven months later this terminal still sucks. No restaurant, no bar, two fuzzy T.V.s.



The past week was spent trying to pack Peru into a week. Impossible. Peru was excited and incredibly different from Chile. The strong influence of the ancient Quechua or Inka culture shares little resemblence to the westernized streets of Santiago. Small indigenous women, who only speek Quechua stumble up the hilly, narrow cobblestone streetes of Cusco carrying giant handwoven bags on their backs laden with crafts or food or babies. Often they are followed by their llama or alpaca, with whom they pose for pictures from tourists for a small price.


I could never have imagined the tourism in Cusco. Walking down the street I was excstatic to find a Vermont quarter on the ground, the first U.S. coin I had seen in months. Tour buses and taxis full of Gringos scream through the Plaza de Armas as they race to archeological attractions in an around the city. It is impossible to walk one block without having someone offering tours, massages, food, crafts, or just plain begging.


The history found in Cusco and the culture outweighs the annoyances of a high tourism destination. Molly and I went to many of the sights in city, which was the holy city of the Inkas before the Spanish knocked it down and built incredible churches. Outside the city lie the ruins of Saqsaywaman and other small fortresses, holy sites, and agricultural terraces. About an hour outside is the town and ruins of Pisac. On Sunday there is an impressive market in the square which is dominated by tourists but displays the incredible artisanal skills of the rural people. I was wholly impressed by these ruins, built way up on cliffs above the river and the city. We wandered and explored through the ruins for a few hours and glanced at the great views.



After exploring Cusco for several days we took a colectivo out to Ollantaytambo to catch the train, the only way to get to Aguas Calientes, or Machu Picchu Village. The train website, like most South American attempts isn't worth a damn so we ended up getting a confusing schedule and accidentally paid for one of the more expensive coaches to get there known as the Vistadome. There were six other people in our coach and we watched as the scenery changed from barren highlands into lush jungle forests.



Aguas Calientes is a testament to the awful things that tourism can do when unregulated. Its the Cancun of archeology. Sitting at the base of mountains in a small valley carved by the Urubamba river, the city has sprung up in response to the massive amounts of tourists that come through to see Machu Picchu. A multidude of restaurants line one of the two roads in town as locals call out in English, "Free Drink", "You like nacho?...Free nacho", etc. The buildings are all falling apart except for the facade on the street. The restaurants will do anything to get someone into the restaurant and then revoke the offer. We were lured by two free beers, free nachos, and a twenty percent discount which in the end they denied. I was able to bargain two free beers and two dollars off my pizza as the waiter literaly sweated at my offers. Everything is expensive and disgusting, including our hostal where we found a tarantula sitting on the steps outside the bathroom.


It's really sad because the city has such potential. The lushus green mountains are lined with dramatic cliffs that shoot upward into a canopy of clouds. The day we went up to Machu Picchu we woke up at 4 a.m. to catch the first bus up at 5:30. The line was incredible still but and as we drove up the steep switchbacks the excitement of the passangers was tangible. Unfortunately, something had taken up residence in my G.I. tract the night before and was unleashing its formidable claws upon my insides, thus rendering me sleepless and miserable. Although the pain continued for the most of the day, I was able to push it aside as the sun came up over the ruins and we were given tickets to climb Wayna Picchu, the mountain recognizably in the background of every Machu Picchu photo ever.



The ruins were otherworldly. The detail and care of every rock was astounding and the surrounding scenery breathtaking. It was easy to lay on the grassy terraces or in the giant quarry and imagine the glory of the city in its peak or the moment when Hiram Bingham first discovered the overgrown hidden ruins in the early 20th century. The hike up Wayna Picchu was steep but rewarding with ruins atop and new views of Machu Picchu that don't grace the postcards.



We stayed until the whistling guards kicked us out around 5:30 p.m., taking the last bus down to the town. In all it was a day to remember. The massive size of the sanctuary was hypnotic and a perfect way to end my traveling.

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

Rapa Nui

I just arrived at Sergio's house in Santiago after an incredible week on Easter Island, one of the most isolated places in the world. Easter Island, or Rapa Nui, is a Polynesian island owned by Chile, 3,600 km from the South American continent. The island is famous for its moais, the giant stone statues that mysteriously dot the island. I was always awed by these massives stone heads but was surprised to find that there are about 900 on the island. Everywhere you go on the island you find stone platforms, or ahus, with fallen or re-erected moais. The only town, Hanga Roa, is small and pleasant with a very laid back vibe. We camped at the only legal camping site at the island in town and fell asleep to the waves crashing right next to our campsite every night at Camping Mihinoa. A week on the island was the perfect amount of time to relax and explore the island.


We flew in on LAN Chile, the only airline that services the one strip airport on the island. A local told us (not necesarily true) that LAN's contract with the airstrip was just up and as of recently they were sending in a flight everyday, which would account for our dope discount. The sudden increase in flights to the island is to prevent other airlines from sending in flights, thus robbing LAN of its monopoly on the island. It seems to me that this "undiscovered" place will soon be flooded with tourists and with five star hotels, but for now it is a sleepy island in the south Pacific balancing a Polynesian and Chilean lifestyle/culture/language.

The week started off simple and from there became more 'baller.' The first day Molly and I rented bicycles and took the northeast route out to Rano Raraku, the moais quarry. On the way we saw a handfull of fallen moais, their giant noses in the dirt along the coast and sometimes a restored platform with standing moais, their backs to the ocean facing the interior of the island. Most of the moais on the island were carved from the volcanic crater at Rano Raruko and hundreds are still buried in the slopes of the volcano.



The next day we hiked up to Orongo, the old village on the other side of the island on the crater of Rano Kau, the volcano at the opposite side of the island. The village is parcially restored and views three small islets seen from over giant cliffs. We went up on a rainy day and say a ton of rainbows coming out the water and the volcanic crater.

On Sunday we took a tour and went back to some of the sites we had already gone to on our own and got a great history lesson from a local. The barren landscape of the island is startling and even more so when we learned that all the trees were cut down in order to transport the giant moais to their resting places. The Rapa Nui people had become so preocupied with the moais that they ignored the obvious damage they were doing to their home. Without trees they could not build houses nor boats. The land became eroded, the rivers disapeared, and the animals began to die. A once prosperous civilization had fallen to its knees because of their preocupation with building bigger and better statues. The largest moais, still partially carved into the stone mountain face at Rano Raraku is 21 meters tall (69 ft). Without trees they could not transport the moais from the quarry and work stopped suddenly when sustaining life became an immenent preocupation.

Renting a car is a great way to explore the island. We explored some sweet caves with out Suziki Grand Vitara. In the middle of the island are a few giant lava tube caves and on the coast, Dos Ventanas, has a small entrance but once inside there are two windows overlooking the sea from large cliffs.



The last day on the island we went self contained breather appartus (SCUBA) diving. I had never gone before and it was amazing. Molly is certified and apparantly was not impressed by the safety regulations of the company, afterwards she told me that she was instructed never to dive with a company that takes first-timers underwater...However, despite being dragged, literally, by a guide through coral and schools of tropical fish, I survived and definately can see myself getting licensed in the future.

Easter Island is an incredible place that I see changing very quickly. Just recently a 5 star hotel, Explora, was built on the island and construction is under way for more giant hotels. I can easily see the place turn into a top destination spot quickly for the beautifully clear waters, tropical climate, beaches, seafood, surfing, and archiological significance. We were still able to go some of the archeological sites without any other people around. To be alone with seven 4 meter moais standing over your head is an incredible feeling and one that may not last much longer. Just this May the first signs were put up warning visitors not to climb on the ahu and moais. I expect that in few years time the restrictions will be more stringent and the atmosphere changed. We met a guy at our campsite who arrived in December of last year and decided to stay when he learned that a solar eclipse would be visible in 2010 from the island. Trying to find a bed on the island for the event is nearly impossible but I would highly recommend it. He told me he would send me a picture for the extra food we gave him but frankly, I'm not holding my breath.


Up next, Cuzco, Peru and Machu Picchu.