Journey from Lima to San Salvador [YQrtw Day 116 Aug 4]

Location: Lima, Peru -> San Salvador, El Salvador

I woke up this morning before my 6:30am alarm. My taxi to the airport would be arriving at 7:15am and I need to be ready before that.

Since my things were packed last night, I only had to finish my morning routine and slap on some sunscreen and I was alright.

The hostel owner had called a cab company to send someone to pick me up. I didn’t want to get a cab from the streets because early morning haggling isn’t anywhere near my favorite-activities list.

I came to Lima by bus so I was very surprised by the distance of the airport to the city center. It took about 40 minutes for me to get there. Along the way, we passed by several casinos and some wealthy neighborhoods.

Usually I’m quite reluctant to travel from one place to another. The new destination is always a mystery. And what if all the dangerous things that people say about the new place are true?

This time it was different. I was excited about El Salvador. I cannot wait to leave winter for the tropics. Do they eat less potatoes in Central America?

Checking out Lima Airport

I booked a flight with TACA but the airline had changed its name to something that starts with A. I forgot about the name change until I asked for directions to the TACA counter.

As usual, the queue was very long. It’s strange that queues at airport counters are always so long and slow but when it’s my turn, everything’s done in 2 minutes.

At check-in, the person asked for my yellow fever card. I was excited. This was the first time anyone asked for it. The last 2 times, I had to forcibly show the officers my little yellow booklet. “Why doesn’t anyone want to see this?!” I asked them then.

At the immigration line, I was stuck with the queue where a lady was questioned for a long time. She left the line for another line.

When it was my turn, it was shift change for the officers. I watched the two officers cheek kiss each other. The new officer painstakingly reinked his stamp then went off somewhere for about 5 minutes. He inked his stamp again before finally beckoning me over.

As a result of all the queuing, I didn’t have much time (that would be an hour for me) to enjoy the airport facilities. Instead, I waited at the boarding gate until it was our turn to board.

Flying from Lima to San Salvador

The TACA plane I was on was comfortable. I feared that my flight would be like the one I took with Star Airlines–tiny and with bad food.

My seat was the front row of the Economy class so I didn’t bother with taking out my TV set. I mostly slept with my mouth open or read a bit on my Kindle. I felt a tiny bit of motion sickness so I didn’t read too much.

Food on the plane wasn’t too bad but there wasn’t much. I was hungry since I didn’t have breakfast so I vacuumed the tiny meal box in a short period of time.

The 3-hour flight ended quite fast and we were flying over El Salvador. I noticed a lot of greenery and not as much mountains as Peru. I didn’t see any semi-active volcanoes with smoke coming out but I read that there are volcanoes around.

At San Salvador airport, there weren’t any money changers around. I was hoping to change my 100 Peruvian soles to US dollars since it’s the currency used here.

The airport shuttle to my hostel cost US$25 which felt a bit too expensive for El Salvador’s living cost. Still, it was my only choice since I didn’t want to go on some random taxi guy’s car.

I was ushered into an 8-person van. “Just for you!” the man said.

From the airport to the city, I saw a lot of trees. They looked like they could be a part of Kota Kinabalu where I grew up. The heat and humidity also reminded me very much of home. I think I’m going to like it here.

Staying at a San Salvador hostel

My hostel in San Salvador looked like it was someone’s home. My US$20 single room has a bed, a small drawers and a space to hang my things. In this weather, I can finally hand wash some of my laundry and find them dry tomorrow.

I took a nap before heading out. I didn’t realize how tired I was until the hostel employee knocked on my door. I was fast asleep then. The hostel owner, Ana* (her real name), said she will be in tomorrow and can help with travel plans in El Salvador.

My lunch/tea/dinner was a medium-size burrito from Mils Burritos. I had Fez Tea, a flavored tea soft drink, to go with my meal.

Then I went in search of the supermarket. Nearby, there was a Citibank ATM. I’ve forgotten how ATMs are actually willing to give you more than US$300 at a time. The ATM here even gave me cash in 20 dollar bills–I read that they don’t accept US$50 or US$100 bills here because of counterfeit problems.

The supermarket I went to was amazing. After 2 months of travelling in South America, I finally met a really amazing supermarket. It was stacked with so much goodies and I found things I need and some I don’t but would like to have.

I bought a soft drink with the enticing name Kolashanpan. Is it Coca-Cola with champagne flavoring? No. It was a disgusting bubble gum-flavored drink with a bright orange color that reminded me of Mirinda Orange.

When I got back to the hostel and did a bit of hand laundry, it started to rain. Again, the rain reminded me of the sudden showers back home. The windy was strong and laced with lightning and thunder. It stopped just as suddenly as it started. Now I’ll be able to sleep well at night.

Getting a haircut in Lima [YQrtw Day 115 Aug 3]

Location: Lima, Peru

As I said yesterday, I don’t have any thing planned for Lima so I decided to get a haircut today. So much for doing my own hair, huh.

Below my hostel is a nail salon and a proper hair salon. The salon was closed when I was going out so I walked along the street looking for another hair salon. (I later found out that they also do hair jobs in the nail salon.)

I got my hair cut in the shop on the left

I found a little place called Gladys. It was the name of my host mother in Arequipa so I thought that it was a good sign.

When I went in, there was only another customer doing her nails. The owner, employee and customer were all watching a volleyball match on TV between Peru and China. I interrupted them, asking if I could get a haircut.

The only chairs were taken by the customer so I didn’t think that I could get my hair done. However, the owner told me that there were haircuts so I stayed.

The owner dragged a chair from behind the counter and put it in front of the mirror above the sofa. That was my makeshift hair cut chair.

While she was getting her tools ready, she excitedly pointed at the TV and then to me. “China,” she said. I replied, “Soy de Malasia.” (I’m from Malaysia.)

I thumbed through a few hair catalogues and pointed to a short bob. The hairdresser looked at it and shook her head.

She got out another book and showed me other hairstyles. I chose one that looked very much like the last one. Fortunately, she agreed.

She started snipping away. And she even used a fun-looking razor. It was a razor covered on one side with a teeth-shaped plastic.

I was kind of worried that my hair was cut too short. The problem with my hair is that if it’s too short, it will start to stand vertically. When I was a baby, my hair defied gravity all the time.

Halfway through the hair cut, the result of the volleyball match was announced. China won and Peru was “among the top 4”.

I was really worried that the hairdresser might wreck my hair because China won. (Chinese-looking person == China == Gals who beat Peru.)

Fortunately, I was still alive by the end of the haircut. I don’t hate my new hair but I suspect they will be doing some gravity-defying stunts when I get back to humid Southeast Asia.

It was only 10 soles for the cut (about S$5) so I won’t complain!

Rest of the day:

Took the bus one from one end to another. The areas away from the city center reminded me a lot of Indonesia.

Scene from Lima's street — Scene from Lima’s street

Lunched at a Foursquare-recommended place. Had seafood soup.

Took bus to Miraflores. Drank coffee.

Went grocery shopping before heading back to hostel.

Had a pedicure in the nail salon downstairs.

Caturday: Catlen of Troy

Location: Troy, Turkey

Catlen poses with fake chariot and gladiator

I found this cat in Troy. Unlike other cats I’ve met on the road, this is more affectionate. Maybe it smelled food on me or something.

What will you name your cat?

Picking up mail in Lima [YQrtw Day 114 Aug 2]

Location: Lima, Peru

Last night, the hostel owner drove me to the bus station for my midnight bus from Nasca to Lima. Thankfully, I was not car sick during this trip although I was disturbed by loud snoring.

It was around 6:30am when the bus rolled into Lima. The sky was grey and it looked like it rained. The bus stopped at two stops, mine was the last at La Victoria.

I haggled with a cabbie (30 soles to 25 soles) for a ride to my hostel. It took a while to find the hostel because the addresses in the area weren’t in order.

After a call to the hostel, we found the place. The place that I’m staying at is actually someone’s apartment turned into a hostel. It’s really pretty inside but a bit far from the main bus station (6 blocks!)

I explored a bit of Lima’s historical center when I went to run an errand.

Dunkin Donuts invades pretty, old building in Lima

Picking up mail in Lima

I don’t plan to do much sightseeing in Lima for the two days that I am in the capital.

Since I’ve seen Machu Picchu, pretty much everything else is dull. However, there is an interesting museum that I might go to if I can figure out where it is exactly.

However, I do have a very important errand to run. My friend, D, in Singapore has sent me a package using a poste restante service. It means that the post office keeps your mail for you and you collect it by showing your passport.

Ever since I’ve read about poste restante, I’ve wanted to use the service to collect mail in a place where I do not have an address. For me, this is really romantic.

It took a while for me to find the central post office but it was really easy to pick up my package. The lady looked at my name and went in search in the “L” box which did not have anything for me and in the “Y” box which had an envelope for me.

Woopee!

Bus system in Lima

The hostel owner, Marco* (his real name), passed me a transportation card for Lima. I went off to explore the public bus system on my own.

Here in Lima there are different types of buses. The one I took was the Metropolitano which reminded me very much of TransJakarta, the public bus in Jakarta.

There are levitated platforms in the middle of the road where the buses stop. Here in Lima, you’ll need to tap your transportation card, paying 2 soles for one entrance.

There are several doors for the buses which are quite long. Then there are different doors for different routes but sometimes these are shared among different routes.

It’s easy to take the bus but it’s difficult to get on since there seems to be a lot of people already on the bus.

Where to find cheap food in Aguas Calientes [#FoodFriday]

Aguas Calientes is the town nearest to Machu Picchu. This is where you will likely stay a night before you visit the site or having a meal before you take the train back to Cusco or Ollantaytambo.

Most of the infrastructure in Aguas Calientes is targeted at tourists. This means jacked up prices.

In Aguas Calientes, I had eaten a 45 soles (S$21) set meal where the rice was as large as the head of my fork and a 67 soles meal (S$30) that was actually pretty tasty.

Of course, not every meal in Aguas Calientes has to exceed 50 soles. I can show you a place where you can have a meal plus a fruit juice for just 10 soles (S$4.50).

Where to find cheap food in Aguas Calientes

This little piggy went to market

Go to Aguas Calientes market for cheap food

On the second floor of the local market (not the “craft market) is where they sell cooked food. At lunch time, a lot of the stalls write their dishes of the day on a whiteboard. Just order off the list and you will have tasty, freshly made food.

The second stall on the left gave me a good vibe so I had both my meals there. The stall is run by a family of women. The first time I went, the elder sister cooked while the second time, the mother cooked.

The beef steak meal was lovely but the Milanese chicken (breaded chicken cutlet) wasn’t as good. I love how they have rice along with the meal. I also requested that they only give me tomatos and not greens as the salad.

After your meal, you might want to have a drink. At the market, juices sell for 5 soles. For this price, you get about 2 glass-full of juice. That was enough to stretch my stomach.

I will definitely miss the generous servings of fruit juices in Peru.

Mixed fruit juice in Aguas Calientes market

More about Aguas Calientes:

Who likes Aguas Calientes? I kind of do

Finally, the day I visit Machu Picchu [YQrtw Day 109 Jul 27]

Hot springs at Aguas Calientes [YQrtw Day 108 Jul 26]

Lazing in Nasca/ Dealing with street harassment [YQrtw Day 113 Aug 1]

Location: Nasca, Peru

I was supposed to meet up with my schoolmate Tasha* (not her real name) in Nasca yesterday but she did not arrive. To tell you the truth, I was looking forward to some more solo travelling so I was slightly relieved that I could make my own travel plans.

Yesterday, I told the hostel owner about my travel plans to Lima. He suggested a bus that leaves Nasca at midnight, reaching Lima in the morning at around 7. I decided that I will take this bus instead of making a transfer at Ica because the buses from Ica to Lima will reach in the evening when the sun is down.

After breakfast, the hostel owner, Fernando* (his real name), was going to send off a parcel so he brought me to the bus terminal to get my ticket.

Here in Peru, people send off parcels not through the post office but through long-distance bus companies. I thought it was an interesting way of mailing.

I bought my midnight bus ticket and chose the seats on the lower floor since I did not want to have another episode of motion sickness. Tickets on the lower deck were 20 soles (~S$10) more expensive but that’s not much of a difference.

Nasca’s Thursday market

On the drive back to the hostel, Fernando pointed out the weekly market that was going on. I decided to visit the market after I slapped on a lot of sunscreen.

It’s quite comforting to find that weekly markets look the same around the world. During this trip, I visited the weekly markets in Florence and Buenos Aires. Wares are displayed haphazardly on raffia sheets under raffia sheet roofs and everything is messy.

Walking around Nasca

Compared to Arica, Chile, where I also spent two days recuperating, Nasca is a more exciting town. By exciting, I mean that there are at least 5 streets with shops, compared to not many in Arica.

At lunch, I was surprised to find that my receipt had a familiar name.

Dealing with street harassment

Remember last time I wrote about how some men on the street would shout racial slurs when I was in Arequipa?

I didn’t anymore of that in Ollantaytambo nor Cusco so I thought all that was over. Unfortunately, I encountered some today but I found a way to fight back.

Today’s first episode happened when I was walking on the pavement. An older man was walking rather slowly so I overtook him. I heard him grumble really loudly and knew that he was talking about me (but not to me).

I thought of ignoring him and walking away faster but something came over me. I stopped in my tracks and turned back to look at him.

He was still mumbling. I stared back behind my sunglasses. He walked on, still mumbling but talking about something else. I followed him quite closely behind, glaring at his head while he snuck looks behind.

I stopped shadowing him when I found a fruit juice stall and went there for a drink.

The second episode happened while I was crossing Plaza de Armas, heading back to the hostel. I had my umbrella out to shade the sun and I heard words that sounded like, “China… China… Wang wang…”

I stopped, turned to my right and saw a gang of young people under the shade. They didn’t make any noise while I glared at them (still behind my glasses). I had the intention of walking to them and shouting back if they directed their speech at me.

I rolled my eyes and said loudly in Malay, “Bising-bising”, meaning “making noise”. As I continued my walk, I thought I heard a clap from behind me.

The third and last episode was when I was walking to Plaza De Armas to look for dinner. I thought I was safe under the covers of the night but I heard, “China. Ching chong. Ching chong” when I was about to cross the street.

I looked for the source and saw two young men with painted clown faces. They didn’t make any noise. One of them looked at his shoes while the other nudged him.

Again in Malay, I said, “Jangan bising-bising.” (Don’t make noise.) I walked off, thankful that they did not attack me.

I feel a lot better after standing up to these roadside bullies. I think I chose to use Malay as retorts because it didn’t sound Chinese so no one can make fake Chinese sounds back at me.

I don’t recommend doing this in places where men are known to attack women. But if you, like me, have an umbrella in hand and are not afraid to use it then consider fighting back. Maybe just these three times.

Nasca lines, Chauchilla Cemetery and ancient aquaducts [YQrtw Day 112 Jul 31]

Location: Nasca, Peru

After the bus ride last night, the only thing I wanted to do was sleep but the hostel owner convinced me to join a land tour of the Nasca lines.

At breakfast, the tour guide ordered me to the front desk. I was very annoyed since I was still eating. He then tried to sell me his package as I was not pleased with him, I was non-committal.

At breakfast, I met a lady from the US. Her name was Ida* (not her real name). Since she wanted to go on the land tour to the Nasca lines and the cemetery, I said I would too.

Ida said that she did not have a chance to take photos of the lines since her camera batteries ran out yesterday when she was on the plane ride.

Seeing the Nasca lines up close

The land tour turned out to be quite fun and the guide was nicer when not trying to sell his package.

Our first stop was a lookout for the Nasca lines. The lookout was a metal structure with a narrow winding staircase. From that look out, we saw a hand, an upside down tree and a lizard which are part of the Nasca lines.

From that high (which is not much), the Nasca lines do not look that impressive. Up close, I saw that the ditches were really shallow and narrow. I imagined something as impressive as crop circles.

Next was the Palpa lines which had an adorable set of people etched on the side of a sand hill. My camera could not capture the figures so I give you the photo from the exhibit.

A long long drive away was the cemetery. During the ride, I fell asleep and woke up to find a desert around us.

The cemetery had tombs of some ancient people. These folks were mummified after they died and laid in little stone tombs. Many of them still had their long dreadlocks which were curled around their bodies.

Tomb raiders had stolen most of the beautiful pottery and left some of the bones and clothes above ground. We did see bits of human bones lying around.

Surprisingly, the bodies were left in their crouching positions in their tombs, as if the caretakers do not mind them being exposed in the open air.

Our last stop was the ancient aqua ducts. This was the most impressive since some of the twenty spiral aqua ducts went tens of meters deep into the ground.

The total of the tour was 150 soles per person.

To fly to see Nasca lines or not?

After seeing the Nasca lines up close, I am thinking of not spending my time and money on a flight over the lines.

Ida said that the planes do not fly if it is cloudy. This means that people who booked slots in the morning are forced to wait until the sky clears (about 1pm today) and those with later slots will need to wait even later.

Another reason that I do not want to take the plane is that it does a lot of flying manoeuvres so people on both sides and see the lines. After my motion sickness episode, I do not look forward to that.

My plan for tomorrow is to take a morning bus to Ica then if there are cheap buses to Lima, I will head to the capital. If not, I will spend a night in Ica then take the bus on the following day.

Travel safe, folks!

Violently car sick from Cusco to Nasca [YQrtw Day 111 Jul 30]

Location: Cusco -> Nasca, Peru

When I started this daily log of my trip, I promised myself not to hide too much from you guys. I want to record the good, the bad and the ugly of a long-term trip.

I am writing this entry in my warm hostel in Nasca. I am glad that the events that I will share is in the past. Some of the more graphic parts of the story will be hidden in white font and those who wish to feel disgusted can highlight those paragraphs to relive the event.

Last morning in Cusco

I checked out of my “hotel” slightly before 10 and went to a restaurant listed on Wikitravel for breakfast. The food was good with local bread, a juice, scrambled eggs and even a latte to go with it.

Unfortunately, during breakfast, I had reached almost the end of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. Even though I’ve read the book so many times, I still wept over [highlight the next two words for spoiler] Dumbledore’s death.

Afterwards, I did a bit of souvenir shopping at one of the handicraft places. I left with a plastic bag full of things I hope can be used back in the Southeast Asian tropics.

I loitered outside a restaurant Nana* (not her real name) and I went to the day before to steal their Wi-Fi. Nana left a message saying that she’ll be meeting her Swiss friends at noon. Since Nana would not be reading this, I will admit that I had a tiny crush on one of the guys so I happily said that I would go too.

I still had time before the meet up so I headed to a cafe I had marked on Foursquare. The cafe, called Panam Cafe, reminded me of the Capitol in The Hunger Game series. The coffee was alright and I bought a croissant-like bread almost as big as my face to nibble on my 14-hour bus ride to Nasca.

It was time for the meet up and I stood under the shadow of a light pole, waiting. The guys came eventually although Nana was still stuck with her errand.

We headed to San Pedro market. There, I had two and a half glass of juice since I was more thirsty than hungry. Unknown to me then, not eating lunch was a wise choice.

Soon it was time for me to leave. I bade farewell and went back to my hotel for my “muchas cosas” (loads of things).

Ciao Cusco!

The taxi ride to the bus terminal was smooth. I checked in my things and paid for the bus terminal tax.

I was delighted to find that the bus Wi-Fi worked this time for my phone. On my last Oltursa trip, my phone could not join the Wi-Fi network. I wrote a post on my Facebook Page showing how the interior of the bus looked like.

When the bus set off, I was tired but excited to be heading to a new location. I had a small packet of wafers to tide me over before the dinner on board.

Plus, my school mate from the Arequipa language school, Tasha was going to meet me in Nasca so I’ll have a travel buddy.

A few hours into the journey, I started feeling a little queasy. The bus was rocking quite violently as it turned on the curves of the hill. I few times, I felt my stomach churning but I kept everything down.

When it was dinner time, at about 7pm, I felt even more nauseated by the smell of food. I covered my nose with my blanket and hoped for the best.

When the bus attendant came over with the trolley, she saw that I was unwell and suggested that I do not eat. I was allowed a small cup of Coca Cola which I drank happily. Later, she passed me a plastic bag and a pill for motion sickness.

I rested, with my hand grabbing tightly at the plastic. Then at one of the rocky turns, I knew I could not keep my stomach down any longer.

Being sick on the bus

[Beginning of unpleasant recount of vomiting. Please highlight to reveal the content.]

I have not thrown up in a while so I was quite curious about how it was.

In the beginning, saliva fills up in my mouth, as if my body wants to protect my mouth from the attack of stomach acid. I held the plastic close to my mouth and retched.

Out came a flow of liquid (thank goodness for my juice lunch) and a taste of wafer. With the bag held closely to my mouth, I threw up more liquid.

Even when my stomach was empty, it cramped for many times to make sure that nothing was left inside. It was a most unpleasant feeling as I burped out air.

When the ordeal was over, I rinsed my mouth and tied the bag. I held on to the bag at my side, glad that the man sitting next to me had moved behind so he did not have to see that scene.

I closed my eyes and rested. I woke up when the attendant came over with hot water and tea bags. She even gave me two mate de coca which helps with altitude sickness. I embarrassedly pointed to my plastic bag. Later she passed me two bags.

I sipped some mate and rested. I could feel the bus turning every corner. I imagined that the upper deck was swaying more violently than the lower deck. I also imagined the liquid in my ears churning wildly.

I had to throw up again. This time, there was only the taste of mate. I was horrified since this meant that even drinking liquid can cause more throwing up.

When the bus stopped for new passengers, I brought my two vomit bags to the toilet and dumped them in the trash can that was lined with another plastic bag. I hoped the altitude would not cause them to burst.

When I got back to my seat, I felt a pounding in my head. This usually meant that I did not drink enough water and I was having an effect similar to a hangover.

I took tiny tiny sips of water to pacify my body. Eventually, these five sips of water came back up but that was at three hours before the end of the journey.

When I finished all three plastic bags, I had to go to the back of the bus to wake the attendant and ask for more plastic bags. I threw away the soiled bag as she rummaged through her first aid kit.

She found a plastic bag that held bottles of soft drink. Thank goodness I did not have to use that bag.

[End of disgusting story.]

Arriving in Nasca

I didn’t really sleep but I was woken up by the attendant at past 6am. She told me that the next stop was Nasca. I gathered all my things and waited patiently for the bus to stop.

When I got off the bus, I waited for Tasha’s Arequipa bus to come. The bus did came but she did not. The attendant of that bus was unhelpful when I asked if a Senora Tasha was on board.

In the end, I got on a taxi found by a tout. The tout said the ride was 5 soles (reasonable for tout prices). He told me that my hotel was full. I read about this trick in travel guides and insisted that they bring me to my hostel.

Thankfully the driver did not try to bring me to some strange place. I was left at the front door of the hostel where the caretaker Fernando greeted me a long while after I rang the doorbell.

I picked the dorm room which is empty apart from my bed. I requested for breakfast since my stomach was empty. I was surprised that the breakfast didn’t feel like The Best Meal Ever but was glad for food and a solid ground.

My adventures for the day will continue in the next post!

Who likes Aguas Calientes? I kind of do

At the end of the train to Machu Picchu is Aguas Calientes. This town, named after its hot springs, does not have a good reputation among travel guides.

“[U]nplanned tourist development and perpetual construction makes this one of the ugliest, most exploitative towns you’ll run across anywhere in Peru,” says Lonely Planet.

Wikivoyage reports, “Despite its magnificent setting, it’s not the most scenic town, owing to fast and ruthless development to support the huge influx of tourists.”

Based on all these comments, I kind of dreaded the two nights that I would be spending there.

I thought my eyeballs would melt from looking at Aguas Calientes town. But at the end of the trip, my eyeballs were intact. I even think that Aguas Calientes is much prettier than some of the Malaysian towns I’ve been to.

First impression of Aguas Calientes

When the train pulled into its station–well, just in the middle of the tracks and not really the station–I saw half-built buildings made up of concrete and wood. I thought to myself that if the whole place looks like this, then it’s really sad.

At the platform, a woman holding a whiteboard sign had the name of my hostel. I introduced myself but the woman–who doesn’t look past 24–seemed worried. I guessed that no one told her that a Chinese person was coming.

When she had gathered all the guests, we trekked through the “craft market”. The market is made up of tens of stalls all selling the same woolen hat, gloves and souvenirs.

The woman from our guest house had a cloth baggage on her back like many of the local women. From the cloth, I could smell soured milk so I wondered if she was carrying a baby inside.

My hostel was a rather sad place. It was a shop house divided into many rooms. My room had a window that looked out into a corridor and the place smelled musty.

I got out of the hostel quickly and explored the town.

Real exploration of Aguas Calientes

When I stepped out of my hostel, I was awed by the mountains that hugged the town. They towered the town and looked freshly green.

If you looked only at the mountains, Aguas Calientes is indeed a pretty town.

Away from town, the real river of Aguas Calientes was beautiful too. Sadly, part of the town where the river flowed had a smell of wet socks so the whole river might not be as clean as it looks.

The town is made up of a lot of stairs. Some of these stairs are flanked with tourist restaurants where waiters call out semi-aggressively while some have women shouting about “Masaji. Masaji.” (Perhaps I look Japanese so they use the Japanese pronounciation of massage.

I was surprised to find the football field. I expected the town to be void of activities in normal life, such as school and play, since tourism is such an important business in Aguas Calientes.

As Aguas Calientes is constantly underdevelopment–not unlike Dubai and Singapore–a lot of buildings were unfinished.

Murals in Aguas Calientes

One of the buildings’ wall had gorgeous murals.

Happy kids mural and the pathway in Aguas Calientes

Other fun thing in Aguas Calientes

Besides Machu Picchu, another interesting place in Aguas Calientes is the hot springs. But it’s kind of dirty if you go later in the day.

The best time to visit the hot springs is before 12 noon when the sun is at its strongest.

The market near the main square has a second floor with food stalls. They sell cheap (5 soles) meals!

Have you been to Aguas Calientes, how did you find it?

Sightseeing with a buddy in Cusco [YQrtw Day 110 Jul 29]

Location: Cusco, Peru

Most of my first full day in Cusco was spent with Nana (not her real name) whom I met in Santiago. She came to Cusco from Bolivia and we arranged to meet up to go check out a few museums around the city.

As she had not had breakfast at the meeting time, I went off to the bus terminal to buy my tickets for tomorrow to Nazca. The price of the ticket had shot up by 40 soles (~S$20) compared to 2 hours before I bought them. That’s quite a jump as there were only about 5 seats left on that bus.

When I got back to the city center, Nana and I started our first museum visit: The Inca Museum.

The museum tells a bit about the Inca’s folklore as well as pots and potteries from many years ago. The entrance was 10 soles, good enough to spend 30 minutes to understand a bit about the history of the Inca. (Not that I remember a lot of them.)

Next stop was the Pre-Colombian Art Museum. This museum is better and more expensive at 20 soles. My favorite exhibit here was a necklace made out of seashells which looked like little roses.

Since both museums do not allow visitors to take photos, there weren’t a lot of photographic record of the day.

Even though I like visiting museums alone, having someone else to go with and “oooh and aaah” over interesting exhibits is quite fun.

After museums, it was about 3pm. Nana wanted to bring me to Inka Fusion which she said had very good lunch menus. However, it was a bit too late and the restaurant was closed so we head to a pizzeria instead.

We parted ways after lunch and said to meet up for pre-dinner coffee (actually, no-dinner coffee). We did eventually meet for cake and also for dinner with two of her friends.

The Asian Tax

At lunchtime, I talked to Nana about a situation I have at my budget hotel. I paid 40 soles (S$20) for a double bed single room with no private bathroom.

However, I overheard the receptionist old lady tell people who came in to ask about the price of the room that a no-bathroom room cost 20 soles. This means that I am paying double for the normal price even though I asked politely in Spanish.

My Asian face is a give away that I am not from this part of the world and people think it’s alright to charge me extra “Asian Tax”.

Nana was indignant and said I should cause a scene and demand to pay the regular price.

Good thing about my situation is that although I have paid 40 soles for yesterday, tonight’s stay has not been paid yet. My plan is to tell the receptionist at checkout that single rooms without bathrooms are 20 soles so I have paid fully for my room.

Wish me luck!

Category: Countries

Journey from Lima to San Salvador [YQrtw Day 116 Aug 4]

Checking out Lima Airport

Flying from Lima to San Salvador

Staying at a San Salvador hostel

Getting a haircut in Lima [YQrtw Day 115 Aug 3]

Rest of the day:

Caturday: Catlen of Troy

What will you name your cat?

Picking up mail in Lima [YQrtw Day 114 Aug 2]

Picking up mail in Lima

Bus system in Lima

Where to find cheap food in Aguas Calientes [#FoodFriday]

This little piggy went to market

More about Aguas Calientes:

Lazing in Nasca/ Dealing with street harassment [YQrtw Day 113 Aug 1]

Nasca’s Thursday market

Walking around Nasca

Dealing with street harassment

Nasca lines, Chauchilla Cemetery and ancient aquaducts [YQrtw Day 112 Jul 31]

Seeing the Nasca lines up close

To fly to see Nasca lines or not?

Violently car sick from Cusco to Nasca [YQrtw Day 111 Jul 30]

Last morning in Cusco

Ciao Cusco!

Being sick on the bus

Arriving in Nasca

Who likes Aguas Calientes? I kind of do

First impression of Aguas Calientes

Real exploration of Aguas Calientes

Murals in Aguas Calientes

Other fun thing in Aguas Calientes

Have you been to Aguas Calientes, how did you find it?

Sightseeing with a buddy in Cusco [YQrtw Day 110 Jul 29]

The Asian Tax

Have you encountered the Asian Tax before?