Cusco, Peru Part II

So I´ve fallen behind on blogging again. My apologies. I was pretty sick for a couple of days this week, and while it´s never fun to be sick, it´s definitely more interesting when you have crazy dreams of saving babies and needing to go to the hospital bc your legs have to be amputated. Such was my life after an apparently bad tuna sandwich.

I thought I´d write a little more about Cusco since my last post was quite rushed. I also promise to post another time or two before the weekend is over and I´m incommunicado next week while traveling to Lake Titicaca. So, some observations about Cusco:

--The number of wild dogs has continued to fascinate me. You don´t just see one or two every day, you see 30 or 40. They are everywhere. Some are cute, some are downright dirty. Some are visably pregnant or nursing, and most are just trying to find a place to take a nap. But you have to walk around them as much as you do people on the sidewalks. And resisting the urge to pet them is never easy, but I´ve held back.

--You know how sometimes you´re sitting in your car behind a giant truck and when that truck starts up after a red light all this terrible black smoke comes out from the exhaust pipe? Every single car in this city is like that truck. It´s nuts. My friend here joked with her host family that her 1992 car back in Colorado is so old. Her host mother said that´s fairly new for people in Cusco. It just makes walking tougher because you´re always inhaling smog and dirt and caughing when a car goes by. My clothes probably get dirty twice as fast here as they do at home. And that nice breath of fresh air you take every now and then? I´m gonna have to wait another couple of weeks.

--Haggling is part of the culture here, especially in the major markets. However, I admit I feel terrible when I do it. Everything here is so cheap. Women in the markets will haggle because they still make a profit, but am I really the person (or any American or fortunate citizen from a first world country) who should be saying ¨No, senora, I only want to pay 3 bucks, not 4 for that hat¨? I feel ridiculous, so often times I just take what advertise as the price. But try to gouge me because I look so touristy and I´ll bargain down like it´s my job. The best way, no joke, is to just stare at the product you want and not say anything. I´ve gotten women to take off almost ten bucks just doing that. Sometimes yoú´re just thinking and before you know it you´ve haggled.

--The history of this city is quite something. I admit, I didn´t know a thing about Cusco before coming here. I probably couldn´t tell you it was a city in Peru before my trip. But the Incas were responsible for so much cultural significance in the area it truely is astounding. And when the Spanish came, everything changed. Cathedrals, laws, you name it. The combinationof the cultures has lead to a unique relationship with religion and the locals´relationship with the earth as a spiritual path. Very interesting stuff.

--I try to save money by eating with my host family, but the food here is so good and so cheap it´s hard to resist. I can get a 4 star gourmet burger with two beers for just over 15 bucks, or I can get a large pizza for 7. Everything is about a third of the price here as it would be at home.

--Oh, the buses. Possibly my favorite part of the city. Each ¨line¨or ¨route¨is determined by the name on the buses. There´s the Servicio Rapido line, the Lion of St. Germain, the El Dorado, and even the Batman. Each ¨bus¨is different, but most are large vans with about 20 people packed inside. How anyone gets out at any stop is beyon me. If you can get a seat you´re lucky.

--Just another cheap thing and because I´m a New York City guy. Cabs here are at most, which is only during the night, one dollar. No matter the distance. Amazing.

--Finally, the people on the street who come up to you asking if you want to buy something or go to their restaurant. For the first couple of times you walk through the main plaza it´s almost charming. You say no politely, or dare to see what they are offering. But after three weeks I just want to shove those people up against the wall. No, I don´t want to go to your pizzeria, did you not just see me walk out of the restaurant next door? No I wouldn´t like an öriginal painting¨that I´ve seen sold in three different towns.¨And NO I DO NOT WANT A MASSAGE! The massage ones are almost funny because these women only know how to say ¨Massage senor?¨Even turn your head and they pounce on you and speak away in Spanish. I´ve resorted to just ignoring these people, giving a stern no, and occasionally saying something quickly in English that just leaves them confunsed.

Ok, that´s all for now. Check back tomorrow for something new on Macchu Picchu!