Wednesday, May 29, 2013; Suze/ Lesley's room; our Cuzco hotel; 6:53 PM
Well, Cuzco this afternoon was very interesting. Right as I got off the plane, I noticed the difference in altitude - I stared feeling kind of light headed and short of breath. We were met at the airport by Gloria, a lady from the touring company, who brought us to the bus that would take us to the hotel. The streets in Cuzco are very narrow and crowded. There's hardly any walking space, but people walk on the sides of the roads anyway. The drivers can get fairly aggressive, too.
We had to walk the last block to the hotel because the street in question was blocked off for the Corpus Christi parades (super-important Catholic tradition here, involving floats and live music and parades that go on for hours). A parade was getting ready to start as we were crossing the street; right as we were in the way, the trumpet music started playing, and nobody in the crowd was budging to let us through without us getting pushy.
The hotel is quite nice, but I like the one in the rainforest better (to be fair, that one was a lot nicer, period). I guess what it boils down to is that I really like being outdoors and having a lot of space to move. Also, I like nature. A lot.
After we got settled in the hotel (and changed into jeans), we went to see if we could find a place for someone to do our laundry. We found them easily enough, in the back of a shop that sells a whole manner of things - half of it is light gear for backpackers, the other is the standard sort of the thing in the shops, as we learned - bags, hats, bracelets, colourful trousers, dolls, and the like. Mom got a day pack. We took a couple of photos of the young girls there (with permission), and wound up becoming friends (ish) with the owners. We got their email address to send them the photos.
The festival area is always loud, and the food vendors are always louder. They all want you to buy the same thing (guinea pig, chicken, cheese, and this cool-looking bread), but they try to make you get it from THEM, not the guy across the way who will bump the price down by a single soles.
After the street of fried guinea pigs and stray dogs, we wandered into a more secluded selling area. After asking several people who were yarning (knitting/ crocheting) if they had "materiales de tejer" (yarning materials), a proprietor of a beading shop showed me her wool. I got two skeins of (reportedly) Alpaca wool for 20 soles - less than $10. Alpaca wool, in the US, sells for $20, and you get less of it.
Speaking of Alpacas, I saw one being led down the street earlier today. I got very excited. It was jazzed up to be in a parade, I think.
After the quiet area, we ate chicken and fries, and Suze and I decided to come back to stay at the hotel while Lesley and Mom went out some more.
I'm tired. Signing off now.
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