Arriving at the Chilean border was definitely a bit of a culture shock. As Ian put it, "It's like crossing the border from Mexico to the United States!" Everything was different from the cleanliness and architecture to the much higher prices. On a side note, Americans apparently have to pay $100 when arriving by plane to Chile, but if you cross the border on land it doesn't cost anything. We arrived in Arica, Chile early in the morning from our over...

Sometimes you cannot always trust the guidebooks! Ian and I tried to plan our trip around the summertime, but in most of Peru it has felt like winter. On this trip, to the Colca Canyon, we found out that it actually only snows in this part of Peru during the summertime because it is the rainy season. Luckily, we were not spending too much time in the really high altitudes, so I did not have to freeze too much.We road another overnight bus from Cuzco to Arequipa (...

We returned from Puno after a short three days in order to begin our biggest event in Peru, hiking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu! However, before I begin I must refer back to one of my other blogs to say that we did try the guinea pig or "cuy" and it actually was good even though I do not think that I could eat again because I kept thinking back to my pet guinea pig as a child. Anyway, upon returning to Cuzco we went to our travel agency (Peruvian High...

A lot has happened since my last travel blog, and I apologize for not being able to update you all as frequently. Anyway, my last blog left off with us staying with a family in Cuzco, which has ended up being one of the more valuable things that we have done since they have a very wide knowledge of Peru and how to get around. They helped us get an overnight bus from Cuzco to Puno (on Lake Titicaca) in the South of Peru.Arriving to Puno at 5:30 am glazy-eyed and t...

Since leaving my family, Ian and I have moved in with a local couple on the outskirts of cuzco. The city is much different out here because it is a normal middle class residential area, but still very interesting because I feel a lot more like I am living here rather than just visiting. The Spanish classes are also going very well... I have caught on very quickly but keep getting rebuked for mixing my Spanish with my Portuguese! My brother, Chris, has also decide...