I been blessed with an abundance of clean and beautiful water in my lifetime. Water to drink and brush my teeth and cook and play in. While I have traveled to places without running water, I have been fortunate to always live in places with clean water.
Today is World Water Day. A Facebook post by NY Times journalist Nicholas Kristoff sums up the significance of the day very well. It's "a moment to remember that at least 800 million people lack clean water. And water scarcity will play a growing role in international affairs: in the past, wars were fought over oil; in this century, they'll be fought over water."
To learn more about the world's water crisis and what is being done and what can be done, visit WaterDay.org.
In gratitude for water, here's an album with my favorite water spots and shots.
I decided to Cabaña Katizia in Rincón del Mar based on recommendations from a good Colombian friend in Medellín.
Getting in and out of Rincón del Mar was the real adventure. I took an overnight bus from Medellin to San Onofre, arriving around 7 am to a small bus stop next to a gas station. I was definitely the odd one out - tall white woman with a huge backback and day pack, wherever everyone there was black and a local. Angelica, one of the caretakers of the Rincón del Mar came to get me. She took my small bag and told me to get on the other moto-bike with the driver. I second guessed her. Really, you want me to sit on the back of the moto-bike with my big backpack on my back? Yes!
It was my first time on a motorbike of any sort, so I wrapped my arms around the driver and gripped my hands tightly together. I realized shortly that this was completely unnecessary and embarrassing. I placed my hands on my knees and relaxed as we cruised by the lovely countryside and small huts on the side of the road. There were kids in uniform, walking home from school, and younger children under the shade of the trees to find some relief from the hot sun.
The caravan must have been really entertaining to them, because there were smiles and laughter as we drove by. I smiled back. Once in the town of Rincón del Mar, we stepped off the bike and walked through the sand, crossed a rickety dock over a canal. The depth of the canal varies depending on the tides. On the way out of town, the dock was flooded over and I had to hop in a small paddle boat to get to the other side and pick up the moto-taxi.
I enjoyed the visit, didn't feel completely welcome. If I would have been with my Medellín friend, I would have walked around town more and met some people and take photos. But it was the end of October 2011, the low season for tourism. In fact, I was the one of 3 tourists in town that week. People didn't go out of their way to greet me, many stared, and only a few gave a friendly nod or said hello. Maybe they assumed I didn't know Spanish, or because I was a single woman, or more likely, they just wanted to go about their lives and enjoy the break from the tourists. I'm not sure. I could have been more outgoing, but it was also nice to have a break from social interactions. At the Cabaña Katizia, I was by myself, aside from the husband and wife who prepared three meals a day for me. The rates were low, food delicious, and scenery beautiful. The tide was high so there wasn't much space right outside the cabaña to sunbathe. It was also scorching hot. So there was little for me to do but sit in my hammock and read. This was actually okay with me; it was lovely and quiet.
While in San Gil, Colombia (in the northern part of the Colombian interior), I took a day trip to the smaller town of Barichara and village Guane. Barichara is just a 40 minute bus ride from San Gil. It has about 4,150 residents and has been the set for a number of old fashioned telenovelas.
I could see why. In the local language it means "place of rest," and it's really beautiful here, not just for it's small and quiet colonial streets, but also for the surrounding natural scenery.
I didn't take too much time to explore Barichara because I was eager to start the 2 hour walk to an even smaller town called Guane. After buying a maracuyá (passion fruit) popsicle I headed up a steep hill and found the start of the "Camino Real", an old man-made nature trail connecting the two villages. The weather was perfect - the warm sun beamed down, but there was a gentle breeze to balance it out. I was only person on the trail and found company in a group of Zebu cattle, honestly one of the most beautiful animals I've ever come across. They appear to be a mix between a horse, cow, disney character, and a unicorn. Don't you think?
Guane is very quaint, and has only 1,500 residents and...not much going on. I missed the van back to San Gil so had to wait over three hours for the next ride.
In the meantime, I took some photos, tried "sabajón" a Bailey's like liqueur typical to the region, drank chicha, bought a beaded bracelet from the only artisan store open in town, and chatted with a woman and her son in the central plaza (which had a basketball and "fútbol" court, by the way) as we waited for transport back to San Gil. All in all an enjoyable day!
To get to Uyuni I had to take 3 forms of transportation. The first was the bus heading to La Paz. I only rode for 2 hours, got off at the Conani junction and sat on my back pack at the side of the dusty road, waiting for a bus marked "Oruro" as its final destination. A few passed but they were full. Finally an empty school bus used for local rides stopped and welcomed me in.
I was the only passenger that stayed on to the end. There wasn't anything of beauty to report. In fact much of the outskirts of Uyuni are just one big trash dump desert. There was traffic upon arriving at the edge of town and instead of waiting it out the driver chose to navigate his way on the dirt roads on the borders of town. What a mess.
Diapers, bags, bottles, food strewn everywhere. It was a relief to finally get to the center and buy my train ticket for that night to Uyuni. The train wasn't anything fancy but it was more comfortable than any bus ride would have been. I even had two seats to myself.
We left Uyuni around 7 pm and arrive after 2 am. Uyuni at this time of night was cold. Really cold. Thankfully I found a hostal easily and jumped in bed to defrost my body.
There's not much to report about the town of Uyuni itself. There's a massive open market to get cheap electronics, clothing, and food, but most the town's business revolves around tourism into the salt desert and beyond. All the agencies offer the same 2 day, 3 night trip starting in Uyuni and ending near the border with Chile. Passengers can arrange for a transfer across the border to San Pedro de Atacama or return 8 hours to Uyuni. As I'd already been to San Pedro de Atacama in January I chose the second option.
The five of us passengers hopped into the 4 x 4 as the driver loaded our things on top. Then we were off. The title from a fellow traveler's Trip Advisor review describes well how the trip - “Salar de Uyuni is great but avoid Cordillera Traveller”. In fact, take a look at the review to get the story of our car, and driver's, breakdown that turned the trip from a 3 to 4 day trip. Thankfully we had great group chemistry, God on our side and positive attitudes. The car actually started up and got us back to San Juan and we were able to continue the next day with a new vehicle and guide. Here's some highlights from the trip:
The antique train cemetery 3 km outside of Uyuni. The trains are what remains of Bolivia's train industry that was mostly used for transporting minerals to the Pacific. The trains were deserted in the 1940s when the mineral industry collapsed.
The world's largest salt flat at 12, 000 + square kilometers. Despite the seemingly endless quantity, the salt is mainly used domestically.
We stayed each night in hotels made not of concrete but of salt. The building contain heat well during the day but get frigid at night. Thankfully we were warned and bundled up in sleeping bags and multiple woolen and fleece layers.
Isla del Pescado is cactus island in the middle of the desert.
Leaving the salt flat we traveled southwest into the Eduardo Avaroa National Reserve of Andean Fauna.
Here we lunched at a beautiful blue lagoon frequented by pink flamingos.
Another laguna we visited had a few black and white flamingos amongst the multitude of pink ones.
The last night we stayed near the Laguna Colorada, or red lagoon, which is at 4278 meters above sea level. It was the most bizarre looking water I've ever seen, not earthly but as if we were on another planet. The color is such because of the sediment and algae living in it. The more wind, the redder it turns.
By far the most impressive sight was the geysers and fumaroles visited on the last morning at sunrise. I was reluctant to get out of the car because my hands and feet were numb as it was but it was worth it. The steam and gas shooting up out of the ground was slightly warm, and surprising loud.
Further down the hill we came upon open pits of bubbling lava and hot water. It was surreal being so close to this flow of heat and energy.
It was still cold, really cold though so we moved on quickly to the thermal baths of “Polques”, where we stripped down to our suits, or in my case in my underwear (my bathing suit was stolen in the hostel in La Paz) and slid into the hot water to defrost our bodies. Que rico. It was delightful and just what was needed to continue on to the final spot.
The Laguna Verde, or Green Lagoon, was the last site before returning to Uyuni. It was gorgeous but definitely not green. Similar to the Laguna Colorada, the wind that stirs up the algae in the water to bring out the green color. There was no wind so it was more blue than green and the mountain in the background made a beautiful reflection over the water.
The other members of my group bid farewell and parted ways, they towards Chile and I hopped in another 4 x 4 for Uyuni.
Thankfully the return ride was broken up with a few stops to see surreal natural rock formations, the most spectacular of which was to see the Árbol de Piedra, or stone tree which has been carved by the sand blow in the wind.
Ready for a retreat from the big city, I started lookng for a place to hike and relax. Coroico had good recommendations but while on wandering up the colonial Calle Jaen I came across a poster advertising the Hostal Rancho Colibri in Quime, a town about 5 hours south of La Paz. I found one article about the town on WikiTravel written by Marco, the expat from Alaska, USA, that runs the Hostal. The only other reference was a Trip Advisor review of the hostal. Otherwise, nothing. Alright. I'm up for an adventure, so off I went!
The Sunday I left was to be pedestrian/cyclist day in which no cars/trucks/buses could be on the road after 7 am. My bus left around 5:30 am to beat the police enforcement. I've been on worse buses rides but this wasn't exactly comfortable either. It was pitch black upon entering the bus and freezing cold. My window didn't shut so a cold breeze blew over me nearly the entire high altitude ride. I had on light socks, trail shoes, 2 pairs of pants, 3 layers on top (including a sweater and down jacket), cotton hat and gloves. Still shivering and numb toes the whole way. The temperature improved as the bus descended into valley and by the time I stepped off the bus in Quime.
I was a sight for sore eyes - a tall sweating gringa with a massive body bag of a backpack. I called Marco from the only call center I could see on the one main street and we met in the open market at the center of town. It's a really tiny town and with me visiting, there were now two gringos in town. Marco's been there for over 30 years after complete archeological and botanical research in the Quimsa Cruz mountain range and fell in love with the tranquility and isolation of the place. Makes sense for a man that spent many years living in the Alaska bush. Now he's retired in his self-designed and built home on the steep hill above town.
It's a beautiful spot with a great view through the trees of the town and descending valley. There's a garden out front where Marco is experimenting with Inca terracing. He's even got a rock wall in the backyard modeled on Inca stone laying designs. The experience is more like a home stay than a hostal. I was the only visitor he'd had in months so it could have been a little cleaner. Otherwise I was comfortable and enjoyed conversing with Marco about the town's history, people and politics. He provided a handdrawn map of the surrounding hikes. I was at first ambitious, with a plan to hike every day of the 3 I was to be there but I only ended up getting in an hour hike the first evening and day hike the next day. Following day was spent exhausted, reading and sleeping in the bed with the fire in the fireplace going strong.
The big hike was to Naranjani lake which sits high above Quime in the mountains. I was to get on a 10:30 am bus leaving Quime for La Paz and then get off part way to find the trail. Marco had provided a picture of the rocks that marked the trail so at first I felt confident finding it myself. I asked around to my seat mates on the bus. An older man knew exactly the trail I was referring to and then young man to my left suggested he could help me find it and did he mind if he joined. A bit straightforward, I thought, but everyone on the bus ended up knowing Marco so I figured there'd be know harm in having the companion.
And I'm glad Martin came along! The trail is not marked for hikers but for locals herding their cattle and sheep or men who work in mines beyond the lake. That means there are multiple paths breaking off to different parts of the mountain. Thankfully the general wisdom to just go up worked out and we made it to an incredibly tranquil and beautiful lake.
The only life around were the plants and a few free ranging cattle just below us. There were remains of stone shelters, perhaps used in the days were mining was more prevelent. It was chilly and windy but pleasant. My new friend and I shared an apple and conversed about town industry and culture. He's a woodworker but many of the men choose mining, tungsten being the main mineral. He talked about the prevalence of witchcraft and natural medicine to solve most health issues. There is a wise man who lives in the mountains like a hermit and my friend visited him for help after his brother died unexpectedly. Much like Peru, dedications are regularly made to Pacha Mama, or mother earth, through animal sacrifices and parties. Girls typically marry around the age of 15 and children follow not long after. Martin had never been hiking but had always wanted to go. It's not a common activity in Quime as work and family takes priority. Drinking would be the most adventurous activity one would dive into after a hard week's work in the mines or carpintry business. It's a fairly predictable life and Martin made it clear he wasn't too keen on it. At 28 years old he still hadn't married and dreamed of wandering, being a "vagabundo". That's what I was doing, he claimed, by traveling South America, right? Why and how was I traveling, and alone as woman, he asked.
It got me thinking about how strange the idea of travel must be to people who live according to the most basic human necessities. Quime is poor by American standards but it isn't exactly lacking in the Bolivian sense of life, life is just very simple and basic. Family first and work to support it. What a strange and self-indulgent concept travel must be to them. Who's got time for it? And why all alone? What's the end purpose? Who does it benefit? In my culture it's almost expected for one to travel during one's lifetime. It may be domestic or international but the aim is to learn by seeing, tasting, hearing, overall doing and that additional experience is to enrich us, individually first to then be able to share with others. I'd never really questioned my motivation for travel, it's just something I'd always wanted to do. The opportunity presented itself and I ran with it. Talking with Martin was an eye opener for sure reminding me what a rare and awesome opportunity I have by traveling. It can be lonely at times though. There's a lot of inward reflecting and commenting on how beautiful or strange or fun or scary something is. That self time is good but It's always a relief from time to time to share the musings with another.
It´s been about two and half weeks since leaving Cusco for Bolivia. There´s plenty to share but I haven´t posted updates, first, because of the lack of good internet connections, and second because I can´t find a way to upload my photos. And for me, a travel story isn´t complete without the images. I´m in Sucre, Bolivia now and there are at least two internet cafes on each side of every street but not one of the last 6 cafes I´ve visited has a machine with CD drive. All have USB inputs and sadly I left my USB camera cable behind in Cusco...So since I can´t share photos now, I´ll share links when needed.
Cusco, Peru to La Paz, Bolivia
There are a number of ways to get to La, Paz, the administrative capital of Bolivia (yes, two capitals in Bolivia. Sucre is the ´constitutional´ one). The surest, but longest route is to take a direct overnight bus that doesn´t require switching companies over the border. It´s can be exhausting and the comfort of the bus is so-so. I opted to break up the journey: 10 pm bus arriving at 5 am in Puno (on the edge of Lake Titicaca Peru side); warmed up with an hot apple quinoa beverage; Shared van (15 people) to the border; went through Peru´s exit customs, drank a delicous honey, maca, and bee pollen hot drink; walked over the border to Bolivia´s entry customs (show off my $135 USD Bolivian visa) and hopped in a shared van for the 2 + hours drive to La Paz. Thankfully I sat in the front for both of the van rides and enjoyed better air quality and a great view of the Titicaca country side.
The first glimpse of La Paz was surprising. We´d been moving along a flat, country road and then all of the sudden the city is revealed in a huge deep valley below us. The city center in the lowest part of the valley and the poorer barrios (neighborhoods) clinging to the steep hills. In fact it looks much like Cusco but on a much grander scale. There´s even a massive snow covered mountain in the backdrop, but closer than Cusco´s Ausangate. I spent 2 nights in the Loki Hostel (which I´ll recommend only for its proximity to city center, comfortable bed, and hot, good pressured showers. Otherwise it was too big, loud, internet was shifty and my bathing suit was stolen day 1). The first few hours or day were spent wandering about without any clear purpose. I made it to key tourist spots like the central Plaza Murillo with the central congress building, the old colonial street of Calle Jaen, and the witches market complete with natural remedies and gifts for ceremonies to please mother earth, or pacha mama as she is known here.
By far my favorite experiences were at the the Coca Museo and Alterna Tours. The Coca Museum isn´t anything fancy and it´s very small but I must have spent over 2 hours reading and following the arrows to each display, learning about the history and significance of this commonly misunderstood and controversial plant native to northern South America. It looks like much of this information is presented on the museum´s website so take a glance. Later in Potosí I witnessed the importance of coca leaves for miners. I´ll share that story in a future post.
The second highlight in La Paz was a tour with Alterna Tours. They´re a small independent travel agency started by university friends to focus on educational and scientific tours. They include an astronomer, political scientist, philosopher and engineer, all friends in university. I approached a number of tourist agencies in the city for information on city tours and treks and this was the only one to invite me in for coca tea, talk with me for over an hour about tour options as well as provide some insight into Bolivia complex history and political situation. I was hooked and signed up for the city tour that night. We went to one of the highest points in city center, a small park that was once used as a defense fort during a modern battle between the country´s police and government forces. Its ugly history aside, it´s got an beautiful view above the city. We learned about the original design of the city by the Spaniards and the rapid expansion down the valley in the last 10 years. Once it was dark we went to another park above the wealthy residencial neighborhood of Sopocachi. With the help of an astronomy computer program displayed the sky according to that day´s exact date and time, the astronomer showed and explained the constellations above us, the most prominent of which is the crux, or southern cross. The philosopher showed us a closer view of the craters on the moon by having us look through the high tech telescope. I definitely learned more on that tour than I would have on a tour bus around town.
If you´re interested, check the blog in the next week for other Bolivia highlights: being the only tourists in the tiny town of Quime, 4 x 4 break down in the Uyuni desert, red and green lakes, lava, geysers, and hot springs, crawling in the salt mines of Potosí, and eating salteñas in the white city of Sucre. Hopefully, photos will be posted by then too. I don´t want to send unsolicited updates so if you´d like to be in the know you can click the ´Follow by email´ or ´Subscribe by RSS´ links on the right side of the blog http://hemolelemargie.posterous.com/. Saludos.
Plastic gloves on, brooms and dust pans in hand we spent about 45 minutes picking up trash and glass on the Independencia court. Jamie wrote a good summary of the event on the GSW Blog. Photos above courtesy of Rita, Jamie's mom.
Friends and Family Visit
A former housemate visited in November and my brother came in December and the rest of the visitors all coincided the same week in July. Thankfully, most of our students were on winter break and unable to attend class so I could focus on hosting.
Mom and Dad came for 10 days. This was Dad's first time in Cusco and though Mom had already passed through en route to Machu Picchu a few years back she hadn't had much time to explore the town and really get to know the local culture. We visited the popular sites, yes, but they told me the highlight of the trip was the day we went to Pacca in the rural town of Izcuchaca. Mom taught zumba routines and Dad swing, and they learned how to dance traditional Peruvian Huayno too.
On other days I introduced them to the tastiest of Peruvian pastries (both salado and dulce types like enrollados de queso and alfajores) and foods (like ceviche, trucha, ají de gallina, and lomo saltado). We visited the Center for Traditional Textiles of Cusco, by far the best bilingual museum in Cusco where we learned about Peruvian textile traditions, patterns, and methods for creating them. The visit gave us a better eye for shopping around town and in places like Chinchero. Mom and Dad even tried their hand at the weekly pub quiz at the Real McCoy, which benefits GirlSportWorks.
Amber, a good friend I met playing volleyball in DC, joined my parents and me and Jamie and her mom for the trip to Machu Picchu. The Peru Rail train ride from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes was likely the most entertaining and fun one they've ever done. The Peru Rail waiter in our car asked if we had any music we could provide for the 3 hour ride. I offered my iPhone and directed him to the salsa and latin tunes playlists. After listening to the "tranquilo" Buena Vista Social Club, the more upbeat salsa beats came on and Oscar offered his hand to mom to dance.
Of course she was up and I soon joined her. At first there were strange looks and giggles passing around the car, but not too much longer and a good number of the passengers joined in dancing salsa and then merengue and then reggaeton.
I am so glad I had this second chance to go as the first was a very cold and rainy tour with the older students at Pacca and we didn't get a chance to climb Huayna Picchu because of the slippery conditions. So this time around we all got an early start (4:00 am wake-up) and Amber, Jamie, Rita (Jamie's mom), and I made the steep climb to the top for a unique view of the ancient ruins. Mom and Dad did their own exploring and we met up for lunch and the train ride back.
Rachel, a friend and fellow Dickinson alum also came to town with her friend Pamm. It was a short visit as they spent most of their stay in Peru on the Salkantay hike to Machu Picchu, but for their time in Cusco we visited Inca waterways at Tipón and the pre-Inca ruins of Piktillacta, enjoyed a nice meal at Cicciolina, and played volleyball with a small group of Santoni students.
Final Classes and Arrival of the New Program Managers And then Jamie and I were exhausted. The reality set in that we had just a short time left in Cusco before the visitors came. Sadly, many of our students were traveling during winter vacation and so we only had one or two classes with them before introducing the new program managers and hugging and kissing goodbye. Each school group received a group photo as a goodbye gift. In addition, Santoni students received handmade bookmarks and pens for the weekly book club and coin purses because change was constantly falling out of their pockets. The Los Nogales students got cake at the end of class and we handed out ribbons with the Spanish name - Chicas Dinámicas - written on the ends.
¡Qué rápido fue el año! Yep, my time as program manager with GirlSportWorks is complete. Jamie and I raced to the finish as we packed in a number of new program initiatives, projects, field trips and also hosted family and friends in the last month and a half. It's a bittersweet time for us as we leave our GSW post and move on to studies, travel, and work opportunities but we've had a pretty spectacular experience here in Cusco and South America so there's much to celebrate and be grateful for. Here's some highlights from the last month and half.
Healthy Living Journals Jamie and I introduced a new element to the program - Healthy Living Journals. Each girl receives one and in it she tracks her attendance, colors in an icon when she brings a drink and healthy snack, writes down her goals and each week she receives a worksheet to read or complete relating to health living values.
Playing at the Park For our final classes with Los Nogales and Santoni we took each group to a nearby park called Parque Urpicha. Between downtown and the airport this park has massive winding slides, swing sets, trampolines, a hall of mirrors and even a replica of an Inca stone tunnel.
After eating pizza and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (a first for many of the girls) Jamie and I joined the fun and giggled as we sped down the slides with 3 or 4 girls in tow.
Goodbye to Pacca My parents were in town for the last class with Pacca's older students. Yes, my parents got to experience all three modes of transportation to get to this girls boarding high school in the rural town of Izcuchaca - the private taxi, shared taxi, and squeezing 3 people, volleyballs, and cake into the moto-taxi!
Dad helped set up the volleyball net with wood sticks and later than both made their unique contributions - Mom got the girls shakin' it in a good number of zumba routines, and Dad taught the swing basics with the aid of playlists on his ipod and some new speakers at the school. The girls followed up by taking all of our hands and leading us in Huayno and Saya dances typical to Peru. While we ate cake we were treated to kind words and songs of gratitude for GirlSportWorks' sport and English classes. As we danced a little more and hugged goodbye the sun had already set behind the distant mountains. For the final part of the despedida the girls lined up in two rows and had me fall into their arms. I laughed nervously as they threw me in the air and passed me over the row of hands and then carried me to the moto-taxi an said goodbye.
Though the 4th of July came and went here in Cusco without much ado, we were treated to a fireworks display a few days later in honor of the 100th anniversary of the rediscovery of Machu Picchu by Yale historian and explorer Hiram Bingham. The girls enjoyed a school holiday on Friday and the city in general was abuzz with celebration.
Independence Day coincided with the teaching of American football, a sport the girls wouldn’t otherwise learn to play. At first they fumbled the ball left and right. However, our students are quick learners! Once they got used to the odd shaped ball the girls clamored to play in earnest. An entertaining touch football game ensued, complete with an intercepted pass for a touch down.
Last week we finally took the much anticipated trip to Machu Picchu with the teachers and 5th graders from rural Colegio Pacca. Machu Picchu may be one of the most visited UNESCO World Heritage sites for tourists, but many Peruvians are unable to afford the time or money to visit it. The Pacca students are no exception; for the majority this was their first, and maybe only opportunity to see this important cultural site. We arrived to the town of Aguas Calientes by train, spent the afternoon relaxing at the natural hot spring pools (Aguas Calientes translates literally to “Hot Waters”) and enjoyed a nice pizza dinner before heading to bed early to rest up for the next day’s adventure to the ruins of Machu Picchu. We’d planned to start the next day with an early rise to climb Huayna Picchu (Quechua for “Young Peak”) that towers over the ruins, however, unexpected heavy rains altered our plans and we were only able to visit the Machu Piccu ruins. Upon arriving, everything was covered in a thick cloud hiding the ruins, mountains, and even people. Though drizzling continued throughout the visit, the fog thankfully cleared enough to reveal a remarkable Inca city and captivating mountains rising all around us.
With the help of a professional guide we all learned about the methods for design and construction, key Inca spiritual principles expressed in the structures and the theories surrounding Machu Picchu’s purpose. Thank you to all our donors who helped make this memorable trip possible!
