Peru (Part Two)

Part of the group

Hello All,

Since the last email I have spent the last weeks(?) village and town hopping throughout Peru. I've met a great group of sixteen people who I have gotten to know them very quickly. We will be traveling together for a total of three weeks.

I have just gotten back from hiking the Inca Trail this morning. It was not so much the 3000 stairs that I had to climb, but the altitude that really impacted me. Seeing Machu Picchu today was pretty remarkable, but to be honest it was the four day trek that taught me some lessons. I have been up since 4am and for the last 3.5 days I have hiked 44KM (elevation went from 2700 to 4215 meters in two days).  I must say, it was the most physically challenging activity I have ever done. I would not have been able to complete the trek if it had not been for the support system cheering me on and dressing me. It was raining and windy and I was so mentally drained and physically exhausted on the first mountain called Dead Women’s Pass that one of the guys literally had to put my parka on me during the rain, hand me my poles and direct me down the mountain. It's moments like these that I truly appreciate my new group of people.

This trip has also forced me to become reliant on myself and deal with my own issues. As one would know, no traveling is complete without food poisoning - on a ten hour night bus.  Every three hours I calmly walked towards the swaying bathroom and wretched my guts out and quietly stumbled back to my seat.  I also had the privileged of calling my bank, more than once, to literally yell at them because my bank card and credit card (only source to access money at this time) was not working. Again.

The epic photo of Machu Picchu

Throughout this trip I have slowly become easier on myself and  have started learning from my mistakes. Since early September it has taken me three weeks to forgive myself and stop analyzing my past. There have been a few incidents in Peru where I have made unwise decisions in which I have dwelled on momentarily and then simply let go and went onwards.  The next six weeks have been spent on focusing solely on my present, selfishly only thinking about myself. I have ate endless chocolate/cake, gotten my coca tea leafs read (and tarot cards), bought tacky tops and an odd dress and slept way past acceptable. And I have love every moment of this. Finally, the last few days I have been thinking about my future and what that will look like once I return to Canada.

Colca Canyon - When I realized how happy I am in this lifestyle

Biking the Death Road

Things have been going really well thus far, every moment feels like a Friday. Each day I feel as though I am moving further out of my comfort zone.  I have been wondering the streets of Cuzco for two days prior to my trek and loving the freedom of venturing wherever I want to, when I want to. I am back in Cuzco for two more days where I will be taking a yoga class tomorrow and checking out the tattoo parlor.  It's so fascinating that the farther away you get from your version of the norm make you question your morals and so the larger the grey area becomes.  Sometimes I look at myself in the mirror after I shower and wonder, with a smile, who I have become. Life is so unbelievably good. I am completely aware that I am essentially living in a bubble at the moment as the most stressed out I have been was deciding what I want for breakfast, but I plan to take much of this content lifestyle and these calmed down emotions home to Canada with me. I want to continue volunteering and ideally find a position that will allow me to continue contributing in a positive and direct way -this is essentially my hint for you all to job hunt upon my return home.

On that note, I will be arriving in Calgary on November 27th.  I have decided that it is time to pick up some responsibilities and visit a particular new Niece in Canada and if I stay any longer in Peru (particularly Cuzco) I will, quite honestly, not be coming back. I’m looking forward to seeing everyone in Calgary. So feel free to book a lunch/coffee or yoga/running date with me, I’ve got loads of time!

Smiles,

Kirstin

She never believed she was brave like that.

Her Grand Adventure

Hello All,

So I know this is probably the most long overdue email, but my Internet access was much more restricted that I thought it would be.  I was also wanting to focus on being in Peru and not thinking so much about home. Alas, here are some details on my trip thus far.

Never could quite capture the beauty.

For the last eight weeks I have been volunteering at an environmental conservation reserve called Taricaya. It is a one hour boat ride from Puerto Maldonado. The reserve is very basic and the electricity runs off of a generator. I wash my clothes in a bucket and the food consisted of rice, potatoes, pasta with very little vegetables.  The time spent was pretty amazing. Typically there was between 20-25 volunteering with me. The work was gratifying but it was also really hard.  Actives included shoveling and moving gravel, cutting down bamboo and cleaning the Tapier pool (think smelly shit infested pool).  There was also amazing activities such as animal feeding, helping collect hatched turtles and climbing up a canopy that was approximately 42 meters high for bird watching. I have made some wonderful friends during my stay there - it is impossible to not bond with people when you are walking through the jungle and experiencing what we were experiencing.  The days have been really hot. Typically it reached 35 degrees, and when it went to 23 degrees I would wear a hoodie.  I have also never sweat so much in my life with the humidity.

 

Some favorite memories have been clearing trails with a machete, helping hatch the turtle eggs and simply becoming so comfortable in the rain-forest to the point that it isn't a big deal to throw a tarantula out of your bedroom.  We have had quite a few drinks over my last weekend  at Taricaya (one of the only times I drank there) and during the drinking I was conned into helping with digging up the turtle nests to see if they have hatched yet.  So, the next morning a staff member and I crawled out of bed and got on a boat to make our way to the farm and check out the turtle nests.  In the sweltereing heat and direct sunlight, Alejandro and I dug up the hatching turtles and made our way back to th boat.  The boat motor however wasn't starting so we spent the next hour floating in the river back down to the main part of the reserve discussing how terribly crummy we felt.  It was quite a way to end volunteering.

The Burning of The Field

A really gratifying part of volunteering was when we burned down a hector of the rain-forest (secondary growth). It was such hard work that began at 5:30 AM, moving trees into piles to burn them while trying not to melt our rain boots. Once the area was cleared we planted the seeds for corn.  Within a couple weeks the corn was already growing. It was so fascinating to see the before and after pictures of what we did, what my hands and back did.

The Corn We Grew

The Canopy Walkway for Birdwatching

Another memorable moment was when we released eight spider monkeys into the rain-forest.  Most of our animals that we have are either previous pets (yes, even the jaguar and ocelot) or baby animals that get dropped off. This means that the spider monkeys that we released don't actually know how to act like real monkeys. They don't know how to move through the rain forest or forge for food.  So for a weekend myself and five others slept in the rain forest and followed the eight monkeys documenting what they were eating, which helped us see if they were learning how to find food, and watching to see how high in the canopy they were going - the higher they went the more comfortable they were becoming.  In all honesty it was a really tough three days and probably the least fun of my time there. We got slightly lost in the forest at one point. Literally everything looks the same and you cannot remember which way is what direction. It was the only time I actually feared for my well being. I was mostly frustrated that I let myself be put into that situation.  We also had to trek off trails in pitch black back to our base camp because no one brought their torch.  Also, shitting in a hole with bugs biting your ass was not a good time.

The View of Taricaya from the River

Hannah & Lucy, my volunteer/Cuzco Travel Buddies <3

Last Monday I flew from Peurto Maldonado to Cuzco.  It was such a terribly sad and extremely exciting time. I was greeted by two wonderful volunteer friends at the airport and for the last few days I have been staying in a Hostel and venturing around Cuzco. I believe a moment that my personality was tested was when I walked into the Hostel pub, order breakfast by myself and sipped coffee without knowing a soul. Making friends when you don't know anyone was a bit of a test of courage, hoestly. Yesterday myself and two American guys went around the city and randomly ended up horse back riding in the mountains.  We had to walk back to town by ourselves.. We then went out for fabulous beers and food and myself, Hannah and the two guys played pool and drank beer all night long.  The other night I met a guy who rode his peddle bike from California to Cuzco in a ten month span. After chatting it up at the hostel we ended up leaving at midnight and going to a Pervian disco dancing the night away and eating street food. It was such a silly and fun night. I have never relied so heavily on my instincts to keep myself safe.  The Americans laughed at me and said how happy they were that I was willing to venture off with two burly (and really genuinely nice) guys on my own.  I think 50% of it is vibes of the situation and the other 50% is trust.

I am quite sure that the rain forest has changed me more than I have changed the rain forest.  I keep thinking about how amazing my life is at this moment - I have never lived so much in the present.  I think traveling solo is something everyone should do as my character has never been stronger and I have had so many opportunities to learn about myself.

Cuzco - The city I fell in love with

I know when I return back to Canada I will see life so much differently than when I left. This trip has confirmed that my lifestyle will revolve around traveling the world.  I've been thinking about teaching English in Thailand, working in Europe for 6 to 12 months as well as hiking to the shrine of Santiago de Compostela in Spain. All of this will revolve around traveling with a purpose (volunteering) My list of things to do have increased immensely and I have never met so many like minded people. It has been so great to know that my way of life can be a permanent possibility as I have met so many other people doing it.  A difficult part of the trip has been being without my family. I think I talk about Shawna and Megan so much that the volunteers started referring to them on a first name basis. I realize that I would have never made this daring move without the support of my family and if it wasn't for them and Hugo, Cuzco would have probably become my home base. I really have found my happy place.

The Americans

I have been slowly thinking about what it will be like to go home and making a list of things I want to do such as Spanish courses, learning to play poker, first aid courses, volunteering and such. I am in the process of re-booking my flight as I am not ready to come back to Canada yet. I know I have more to learn and do.  I will extend my trip by four weeks and fly home December 25th.

Looking forward to seeing everyone soon!

Oh, and they refer to me as the Crazy Canadian. Ha!!

Kirstin

“If it’s both terrifying than amazing, then you should most definitely do it” - Erada