Alex (our Peruvian guide) greeted us right outside the airport... just like he said he would in his Facebook message, earlier that morning. We were whisked into the city.
Cusco was bustling with life, overcast but not cold. At just over 11,000', breathing was noticably more difficult and my finger pulse oximeter confirmed 85% O2 saturation and a heart rate in the 80's. My normal being 94% saturation and heart rate resting close to 67. I took a half pill of Diamox and later found out that my friends had taken it already too.
Breakfast was had at Valeriana restaurant/cafe/bakery. Named for the valerian plant/herb, this fab country-chic, french inspired place did help calm us, as the name suggested it should. Sipping espresso drinks and Peruvian fusion food, we discussed plans for the day and the two following days in Cusco. Then it was off to find an ATM.
Wait, did I tell my bank I was traveling to Peru? S*&#! Not sure.
(I'm not sure about anything at this point. Two hours sleep is bad. A hypoxic brain doesn't help.)
We checked into the hotel and napped a couple of hours. A 4* hotel is fun! Then lunched together Peruvian-Italian fusion style.
Around mid afternoon Alex took us on a walking tour of downtown - the squares, main market and some historically significant buildings and back alleys. Alex is a gentle, smiling man. He possesses a wealth of knowledge, is passionate about his home, its history, current events and providing the best tourist experience from an authentic place.
Current events..... Not normally a topic of any of my blog posts but in this case worth making an exception for. Yesterday, Congress was CLOSED by the President of Peru. This set in motion protests, riots (yep, the tear gas variety) and some mighty scary/interesting headlines in the newspapers here.
Alex said "congress was corrupt". It does seem the President has the support of military, police and such. And apparently closing Congress is not in violation of the Peruvian Constitution. None-the-less, it's complicated and may or may not affect this trip.
Cusco is safe, despite heavy police presence and some protests or demonstrations outside the High Court, which is located on our block, within sight of the hotel lobby. Lima seems to be a bit more volatile though. We're just taking it one day at a time.
And with that in mind, rounded out the day with a Pisco Sour in the hotel bar!
(At 11,000 feet one Pisco Sour packs quite the punch, FYI. Please forgive typos. You get the gist of things.)
Cusco was bustling with life, overcast but not cold. At just over 11,000', breathing was noticably more difficult and my finger pulse oximeter confirmed 85% O2 saturation and a heart rate in the 80's. My normal being 94% saturation and heart rate resting close to 67. I took a half pill of Diamox and later found out that my friends had taken it already too.
Breakfast was had at Valeriana restaurant/cafe/bakery. Named for the valerian plant/herb, this fab country-chic, french inspired place did help calm us, as the name suggested it should. Sipping espresso drinks and Peruvian fusion food, we discussed plans for the day and the two following days in Cusco. Then it was off to find an ATM.
Wait, did I tell my bank I was traveling to Peru? S*&#! Not sure.
(I'm not sure about anything at this point. Two hours sleep is bad. A hypoxic brain doesn't help.)
We checked into the hotel and napped a couple of hours. A 4* hotel is fun! Then lunched together Peruvian-Italian fusion style.
Around mid afternoon Alex took us on a walking tour of downtown - the squares, main market and some historically significant buildings and back alleys. Alex is a gentle, smiling man. He possesses a wealth of knowledge, is passionate about his home, its history, current events and providing the best tourist experience from an authentic place.
Current events..... Not normally a topic of any of my blog posts but in this case worth making an exception for. Yesterday, Congress was CLOSED by the President of Peru. This set in motion protests, riots (yep, the tear gas variety) and some mighty scary/interesting headlines in the newspapers here.
Alex said "congress was corrupt". It does seem the President has the support of military, police and such. And apparently closing Congress is not in violation of the Peruvian Constitution. None-the-less, it's complicated and may or may not affect this trip.
Cusco is safe, despite heavy police presence and some protests or demonstrations outside the High Court, which is located on our block, within sight of the hotel lobby. Lima seems to be a bit more volatile though. We're just taking it one day at a time.
And with that in mind, rounded out the day with a Pisco Sour in the hotel bar!
(At 11,000 feet one Pisco Sour packs quite the punch, FYI. Please forgive typos. You get the gist of things.)
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