Happy Sunday!

It's been awhile.  Almost three years since I last posted anything.  A lot can happen in three years!  I will try to give you a quick overview of life during that period.

My last post details my journey as a gluten-free individual and that is still the same today.  I am allergic to gluten, as well as the wheat and barley separately (which both contain gluten).  This has been one of the biggest life changes to get used to but I am feeling like my old self again, physically.  I am still getting there mentally though - my brain fog is pretty much gone, I still have some challenging days though.  Someone told me it could take years to go away and then one day you will wake up and feel it just lift away and clarity will return!  Sure enough, one day I was talking to a co-worker about diet changes and thought "oh my gosh, it's finally gone!" I still have some days where I experience it in small doses, usually after mistakenly eating something that I shouldn't have (ie.my official cheat day: Corn dogs and fried everything at the State Fair of Texas). But about food...

I moved home from Argentina in November of 2012.  I was still working for 3rd Home, but realized I could no longer sustain myself on an income that low so I moved back to Texas, with $400 to my name and did what every college graduate dreams of doing: moved back in with the parents to share a room with their high school sister again.  That was fun for about two whole weeks and I knew something had to change so I quit 3rd Home and started working on getting my teaching certificate.  About two months into that a friend of mine, Katie, suggested I apply for an HR job at her company.  I did and was soon an active HR professional!  I have been at Employer Flexible every since.

I quit Facebook about the same time I quit 3rd Home.  After years of being online all the time for work and when trying to maintain relationships with friends in family back in Texas, I just needed to disconnect for awhile.  It is amazing what a habit that had become and how much time I had for new things after that, I highly recommend it for anyone just needing a break.

During my confinement at my parents I was able to save some money which afforded me the chance to visit my brother while my old friend, Phil was visiting the Bay Area as well.  That was a lot of fun since it had been years since I had seen either of them. 

Happy 4th of July!

Muir Woods

Meanwhile, Facundo and I decided we wanted to move forward in our relationship so he started working on getting his fiancee visa to the USA.  That was a long, exhausting process both mentally and emotionally.  That process took about a year and a significant amount of our time and bank accounts, but eventually he moved got his visa to Dallas in January of 2014.  

On February 21, 2014 he officially proposed to me at my apartment after I got home from work that day...and a week later we were married.

Engagement

Starting our greatest journey together.

About two months after Facu moved in we decided to do what every sane, young, married, financially struggling couple should do - adopt a dog!  Much to the objection of my parents, we went to "just look at a dogs" one day and of course came home with one the next.  As much as we probably shouldn't have done it, I am so happy we did, because Enzo has been so much fun to have this past year.

Enzo F. Duggan

Facu eventually got his work visa (and subsequently a job) around October of last year which allowed us the opportunity to visit some friends in New York City for NYE.  I also had the chance to travel and see friends and family since I moved home (Kate in St. Petersburg) and some friends have been able to come visit here as well.  I love being able to show people around my hometown and spend time sharing the things I love about with them so they can love it too.  Philippe came to visit last Spring, Andy came in the summer, and Edita came in the Fall.

St. Pete

Lake Tahoe - North Star

The Rustic

Edita came to experience a real, American Thanksgiving, which was Facu's first as well.  I think they both enjoyed it and can now share their experience with people they care about.  Hopefully I will get the chance to visit Lithuania some day too...I have heard nothing but wonderful things and have added it to the list :)

Edita's first American pedicure!

It's kind of crazy to look back on things and see how much as changed since I last wrote a post here.  I made some other decision during this time as well that have helped me change what direction I want my life to go in.  There is an old quote we used to say at Southwestern:

"The person you hope to someday be, you are now becoming."

I try to remember this whenever I get frustrated with life and things that might be happening the way I do not want them to happen. I joined a new church (Shoreline Dallas) which has been a new and exciting journey as well.

Also, after seeing how much my diet change my health, I decided to stop complaining about my back and went to see a new doctor who advised me to try yoga.  He said it would help strengthen my core and it has helped tremendously.  Not only that, but it has helped me combat stress and encouraged me to look at other health-related aspects in my life as well.  I am going to have to admit that I have gotten on the essential oil train (the using kind, not the selling kind) and am going to start up doing things I enjoy more, like writing.  I am going to revamp my cooking blog again.  I think I will change it in a new direction though, not just healthy eating on a budget, but trying to bring things back to the basics - I have two chairs I am going to reupholster myself, I am going to start brewing my own Kombucha Tea, making my own cosmetics, etc., and you are welcome to read all about that journey as well.

It's good to be back.

Bridget

Back to normal...kinda

So I've officially been on the gluten free diet for 2.5 months and I'm feeling much better. Mentally and emotionally I almost feel like my old self, physically I am much better, but still not quite there yet. But I think it will take a few months more since I do not know for sure what some of the ingredients are in certain foods down here. But I did feel better playing soccer on Saturday! Well, except for the whole big girl run me over and sprain my ankle part, but that wouldn't be the first time. Before that incident I felt much better than I did trying to run an 8k two weeks before. I almost died. I was in a pain and even dry heaved a few times. Pretty sad, I know, but it's most likely a combination of being incredibly out of shape, as well as eating apple strudel (with gluten!) the day before. Not my brightest idea, but my roommate is from Germany and worked so hard at it and I just...wanted...a...little...piece. Probably not worth the feeling that terrible while trying to run more than I have the rest of the year combined, but it was still delicious. And I learned my lesson: no cheating on the diet. Sorry Andy! (He had to run with me).

Don't really have any pictures to post here, I don't think, unless...wait. Here you go:

cankle time!

Probably not what you wanted to see, but I'm struggling financially theses days so I haven't really traveled around Argentina much. The one place I wanted to go was Mendoza but still haven't made it. Hopefully I will someday, I've heard it's beautiful. Anyway, I head home in November and cannot wait to see everyone!

A sister blog

I started a new blog for to help with my new gluten-free life!  I'll be expirimenting with recipes and such so feel free to check it out! http://simplywithout.blogspot.com.ar/

Bridget

Finally!

After about 24 hours of traveling, a very tired Facu and I just got back to Buenos Aires.  I will upload the photos and add a post about all the stuff we did and places we saw when I can find the cord to my camera/get the internet to work, so sorry about the delay.  But I do have some updates from the doctor!

I don’t know if I ever told you, although I’m sure I did multiple times knowing myself, but I’ve been having a lot of medical problems since I was a sophomore in college.  It started when I found out I was anemic even though my iron levels are normal and then just grew gradually from there.  Nothing ever big enough to suggest something needs immediate attention, but enough to make me aware something was not right.  I started noticing when I was suddenly exhausted all the time - even just walking one flight up the stairs.  And of course people would say “oh you’re just stressed” or “maybe you have mono” which I went and got tested for because I was so tired, but it was negative and I wasn’t getting any better after taking cold medicine.  Then other things started to happen like my short-term memory would be off and I couldn’t focus on tasks as well as before and then I was having a really hard time getting out of bed after 8 hours of sleep.  And I have always been a morning person because I like the quiet and taking my time eating, getting ready, reading, etc. so this was really annoying because I didn’t want to get out of bed.  I thought maybe I wasn’t getting enough sleep so I upped my count to 10 hours.  But nothing changed.  And then I started getting acne that was worse than any I had ever had during adolescence which confused me quite a bit since I thought I had grown out of it.

And since the changes were so small and gradual nobody else really noticed a difference in me or my habits but me.  And it was weird because I never really felt bad, but I never felt good either.  So I became sleep obsessed.  I mean, I went to bed at 11PM during the week and on weekends I would plan on going out in Memphis but would frequently find myself opting to stay home and relax because I was “tired” and “needed to catch up on sleep.”  

And then I noticed a huge difference in my food digestion that prompted me to try the celiac diet.  So I kicked gluten out but I didn’t notice a difference in how I felt so I nixed that after a few months.  And then I had some blood work done; which is where I discovered that my anemia had nothing to do with iron but we weren’t sure why.  And things remained the same for about a year or so until after graduation I would get terrible headaches sporadically every few months (enough so to get my eyes checked in case they were the problem) and then my joints began aching too if I sat still for too long.  And I can’t tell you how incredibly frustrating this all was, not knowing what’s wrong or if there is even something wrong at all.  People would tell me they thought I was a hypochondriac and was fine and it was all in my head (which, of course at this point, I’m sure you know that was really encouraging to hear).  

I became insanely stressed because I didn’t know what was wrong, and maybe people were right and it was just in my head.  I was getting angry and worked up over nothing, I went from crying once a year to crying to every other day.  And over stupid things too.  Wow, I’m crying because I missed my exit on the highway?  What is wrong with me?  And I know people change, which I clearly have over the past few years just because of life, but I became really cynical about everything.  I still appreciated life with it’s challenges, but I just noticed a negativity I’ve never seen in myself before.  I could find something wrong with everything.  

And there were good days and bad days too.  Most of the time though, I couldn’t sleep through the night without waking up every hour.  And then I would wake up feeling hung-over even though I didn’t drink the day before.  And poor Facu and my mom have had to put up with me the most since I’m living down in Argentina and they're the ones I vent to when I can. So, when I was home this past month we took a day away from our vacation to go to the doctor to figure out what the heck was wrong. 

Two arms and a leg later I found out I am allergic to...pretty much everything.  The main thing is gluten, which wasn’t much of a surprise, but the setback is that I’m also allergic to cow milk – which immediately kills most cheeses, yogurt, ice cream, milk, etc.  And then there's eggs (the yolks and the whites), cherries, almonds, black pepper, garlic (really God?), avocado, apricot, pineapple, green beans, mushrooms, kidney beans (Actually, I think I’m okay with this one), chili powder, mustard, and the list goes on.  Oh and don't forget brewer’s yeast! So that means no beer, even the gluten free ones.  But I guess the dairy, eggs, and garlic probably explains why I didn’t see much improvement with the celiac diet.  I was substituting yogurt and eggs for breakfast cereal, and I wad definitely drinking gluten free beer and putting garlic in everything when I cooked – all of which are things I’m allergic to.  Awesome.  And I guess it's really hard for your body to function properly without absorbing any nutrients for years (which I know my mom will claim is the reason I'm so short).

On the bright side, coffee and chocolate are safe along with meat and seafood, and I apparently need to eat MORE salt so I won’t complain about that.  I can’t tell you what a relief it is just to know.  I mean, I definitely cried when I saw the list and found out that mushrooms and garlic were a no go too, but still it’s much better to know and be able to solve everything then be left wondering if you’re crazy or if you have something more serious.  

And there’s also a possibility that after 2 or 3 years I can start gradually introducing certain things back into my diet.  But we’ll see, I’ve only been on the new diet for 2 days so I’m still trying to figure out what I CAN eat so that I can start feeling better.  So if you know of any cheeses besides goat’s cheese that don’t have cow milk let me know!  Also I’m still a bit confused about alcohol because I thought brewer’s yeast was only in beer, but I’ve read it might be in wine too (which would be really sad), but I really don’t know so help would be great.

Bridget

Choice

Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime.
- Innocents Abroad, Mark Twain


I love this quote, because traveling seems to kill the little silly things that don't matter much but become such a big part of your everyday life, while at the same time, it seems to exaggerate and solidify the things that are most important to you.  And once you've disposed of the unessential items you'll have much more time for the things you love.

For me, the most important thing a person has is: CHOICE.  The ability to choose what you do, what you believe, the way you react, the way you think, and the way to change your situation if you've chosen not to be complacent with it.  So often we choose to take the entitlement mentality that is based around the mindset that we are victims to our situations. 

I've been doing it quite a bit lately, but then I remember even though something may happen that's out of my control, I still have the choice to complain about it, deal with it, change it, or remove myself from the situation altogether. Maybe it's inconvenient and takes a little time and work, but nothing comes easy in life for anyone.

There are some people in this world who have not been taught that they have the power to choose the way they live their lives.  Some think it's all given to them and they are therefore entitled to it as well as anything else they desire while others think there's nothing they can do to better their situation and everyone else is to blame for it.  Both are false.  Anyone can do anything if they have at least 2 of 3 things:

1. an education (and I'm not just talking about the schooling kind)
2. a desire
3. a strong work ethic

Don't let anybody tell you any different, even yourself.

Argentina is the place for doppelgangers

If you want to find yours then head on down to Buenos Aires!  They say that there is at least one other person in this world that looks like you and apparently they all live here. 

Seriously not a week goes by that I don’t see someone and think “what are you doing here?” and realize it’s not who I think it is but instead is a complete stranger.  Or I meet someone and can’t stop staring at them because I feel like I’ve met them before.  Only to soon realize that they just remind me of someone because they look and act scarily similar. 

I’ve compiled a list of my friends who have “been in Argentina” in the past year:

Ben Kessler (you have a salsa-dancing, flannel wearing clone down here)

Peter Hall (Equipped with a North Face vest, fratastic shirt, and the same hairstyle, I’m still pretty sure it’s actually you)

Willie Dale (your long lost, brown haired, brown-eyed brother with extremely flat feet)

Blake or Andy?

Alex Nicholson (in this case, your doppelganger is an expat as well.  Same hair, same nose, same humor, and same manner of walking – only British)

David Guetta

Blake Rustmann (a brown haired, big-headed version – only smarter ;) )

Katherine Lagow (wait, that actually was you)

Sarah Casey (American-born, Spanish speaking, freckle faced, Argentine living version)

Harry Potter (real-life version)

Aaron Nicholson (same ginger beard and all)

There’s definitely more, I just can’t think of them off the top of my head, but I’ll update as I remember.  Also, I really need to start taking pictures because it’s ridiculous how similar these people are.

Wait a second...

So if a christian says something derogatory about a certain type of person it's hateful and unintelligent (which I agree, it shouldn't be done considering it goes against everything Jesus taught) yet when other people say something derogatory about Christians it's not hateful and not ignorant?  And aren't they the ones preaching about being more open minded to other people's beliefs?  I see a double standard here.

Valuable lessons from Rhodes College

It's 6:30 AM in Argentina and I can't sleep, so what better way to pass the time then to reminisce about Rhodes College and the wonderful things I discovered from its diverse social scene.


1. The Gold Medallion Shoe
I may not know the name of these shoes (I literally got the picture from googling "gold medallion shoe"), but I do know one thing about them, the girls at Rhodes College love the shit out of these things.  They had them in every style imaginable: neon, plaid, heels, sparkly, etc.  And they wore them with their dresses, they wore them with their skirts, and they even wore them with their Nike shorts - so of course they had to have at least 3 pairs each to coordinate with their various ensembles.  Because why would anyone pay 20 bucks for a pair of old navy flats when you could pay 70 for the same ones with gold medallions glued to them?

2. The North Face

Another thing people at Rhodes loved was to give the appearance that they had been mountain climbing recently.  And by that, I mean they loved The North Face.  And I'm not talking any North Face, I'm talking about the Denali jacket.  I have never seen this jacket so many times as when I went to eat lunch on the first day of fall at Rhodes College.  Bust out your power sweatshirts everyone! And if you didn't have one when you started at Rhodes, you had one when you left, because who would be caught dead wearing a Patagonia?  Don't get me wrong, I think it's a good jacket and a good brand, but I doubt that most people who were wearing it didn't actually know what the name "The North Face" even refers to. 

3. Nike Shorts
Apparently these shorts are a staple to any college girls wardrobe.  Even if she has never gone on a run in her life.  Which is fine, they're comfy and fashionable and can be paired with gold medallion shoes and North Face Jackets to turn any bad day into a stylish one!  No but really, these shorts are everywhere.  I had the old version of these shorts for soccer practice when I was younger and didn't even realize the gold mine of a fashion statement I was sitting on until I got to Rhodes.  I busted those babies out as soon as I caught on!  Although they weren't quite as cute as these neon pink tiger stripe ones on the right here so I had to invest half my paycheck in a more updated version.  And quite frankly, for as cute as they look, I can't help but be disappointed about the poofy section in the front near the elastic line.  Does anyone else have that problem or did I just buy the wrong season of Nike shorts?

4. Sperry Topsiders

These shoes have a fashion niche that spans generations.  From my mom having her own pair of the beloved boat shoes to my younger sister's praise of  their wardrobe versatility, these shoes have are tale of the ages that makes everyone a bit nostalgic for the feeling of the ocean's breeze flowing through your hair.. Comfy and sophisticated, you can even buy special nude color-panty-hose-type socks to wear with them so they don't get stinky.  Or, if you want to see a variety of the different styles I advise you not to walk by the ATO and Kappa Sigma frat houses.  The RAT would be a better bet because apparently the only reason people dare to brave the questionable cuisine there is to show off the new additions to their wardrobe.  It's like the whole J Crew catalog just came to life. So, if you're the type like me who buys them because their comfy and about as close to owning a yacht as I will ever get, then I recommend the bluefish 2 eye version. 

5. Rainbow Sandals

God bless California Surfers for teaching us that you don't find a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow, but instead, theses little bundles of leathery delight. And I think I can speak for everyone when I say that the first 2 blister filled, calloused weeks of breaking these babies in is totally worth it.  For just $40 bucks and bearing this slight 2 week grievance your feet are rewarded with a bliss that is molded to the contour of your feet and makes you feel like you're walking on pillows.  Just don't let them get wet otherwise it feels like you're walking on sticky floor type pillows.

6. Longchamp

I'm going to be honest and say that I didn't know the significance of these either until my friend brought me a $2 Shanghai knockoff last year.  But I do remember that EVERY girl at Rhodes College had these.  If not the first semester, they soon learned to ditch their North Face backpack for this more feminine tote that can function both as a book bag as well as a purse.  I was a little amazed and appalled to find that they cost upwards of $115.  I'll stick to the Shanghai specials, especially since nobody seems to be able to tell the difference.

7. Croakies

Don't let the name deceive you.  Although it might scream redneck I can assure you that only the most fratty of frat boys will be found sporting these.  And that is pretty much every single one at Rhodes College.  Just wander past the library on a Friday evening and you'll be greeted with a slew of men dawning these along with their Columbia vest on top of a collard shirt (paired with J crew critter shorts and Sperry's of course).  Before Rhodes I thought Oakley dominated the sports eye-wear market, only to find that there is a whole other realm of sports out there I wasn't aware of.  And they all seemed to originate on the thresholds of frat houses. The original founders probably had something to do with a mix of frat houses and duck hunting, but now I'm pretty sure the wearers of said eye wear would rather hunt for a pledge to make a beer run than a duck. Be sure to get the attachment so they don't fall of your head!


List 2 will be coming soon.  Here are a few teasers: Ugg boots, the entire J crew store, and anything Kate Spade. 

It's been awhile

So I've been a terrible blogger lately. It's been over 2 months since I last updated. To be honest though, I haven't really felt up to writing lately because I work online about 10 hours a day and being on the computer anymore than necessary isn't that appealing. But what needs to be done, needs to get done!

So to recap a bit, I went to the beach with Facu and his family. They have a house there with a grill and it was so nice to escape the big city and just enjoy the ocean. Especially since there weren't a ton of people there since it was chilly. His mom made homemade fried calamari one night which was wonderful. With just a little bit of lemon and salt and we were all set. Nom nom nom...

I think the best part of the entire trip though was when we went out to a bar one night with some friends and they had a special going on for unlimited beer for 3 hours for 30 pesos. And that my friends is the equivalent of $6.83 USD. Oh what fools! They told that secret to the wrong group of people too. Why pay 24 pesos for one beer if I can pay 30 for infinite beer? And then, to make the night even better, the bouncer was from none other than the greatest city in the world: Dallas, Texas. AND THEN, if you didn't think the night could get any better, oh it did. This random German Shepherd just strolled into the bar and plopped himself down on a couch like he owned the place. And of course we took a picture with the celebrity before he was quickly shooed away:

The rest of the weekend we spent failing miserably at fishing, but at least we tried.

Facu Fishing

Facu's Dad fishing

And then this week was spent getting back into the swing of things. Facu's birthday was yesterday so I made some chocolate chip oatmeal raisin walnut peanut butter cookies since he doesn't really like cake. Nom nom nom.

Yes, that is a triple decker cookie stacked with layers of dulce de leche!

Anyway, that's all I've got going on at the moment, but hopefully I'll have some stories after my first soccer game this weekend! Got my cleats ready and everything (my mommy polished them for me before she sent them). I'll let you know.

Bridget

Pinamar beach

My new crib

I have officially moved into the city. For the past 2 months I had been living outside it in Quilmes where the beer is made. But now I'm a city dweller! I'm living in the home of a good friend of Facu's that's in a really nice part of the city called Retiro. I'm next to the train station and a few touristy places and the most important thing...a Starbucks. I'm getting a little tired of this instant coffee thing so the fact that there's 2 within walking distance is incredibly convenient. And there's also 3 grocery stores within 2 blocks as well as some fruit ladies that sit nearby selling produce to people that walk by. 

But of course this is Argentina (TIA) and 4 days after I move in to this awesome place, there's a story all over the news about some French photographer getting killed in the park down the street. Seriously? He apparently went for a walk yesterday morning and was taking pictures of some nature in plaza San Martin (a relatively safe place - during the day) when some rando tried to steal his camera. Of course the frenchie said no, and proceeded to tackle the man to get his camera back which is when he was then stabbed in the chest...6 times. The poor guy was on vacation here and just wanted to take a few pictures of some trees. At least he kicked the thief's butt. Although if he hadn't done so he would probably still be alive.

I don't understand the way people can warrant taking another human's life for something as insignificant as a camera. Btw the criminal was caught and is now in jail. Lucky for him the photographer wasn't a Texan, because then he would have pulled out his gun and shot the thief and got his camera back (in the leg of course so as not to kill him).

Anyway, mom and dad don't worry I'll be smart so I'm safe. Also I'm not french and I don't have expensive things...except the phone I'm writing this with. But I'll be careful. Okay I guess I should give a tour of my new place.

shared living room

my bathroom...Jacuzzi tub!

shared kitchen

my giant bedroom

my living room/work space

It's beginning to look a lot like Summer

This was my first Christmas away from home so I figured I'd make I might as well make it as nontraditional as possible and spend it in the southern hemisphere. 

There were a few things a bit different for me being in Argentina.  For starters, it's summer here, which might be normal for Argentina, but not for us winter Christmasers who bundle up in sweaters with cocoa and coffee to watch Home Alone marathons on a regular basis.  Another things is that, like New Years Eve is for us, Christmas Eve is the biggest night of the year down here.  So we celebrated by dressing up and having an asado (barbeque) around 10:30 pm and cracking open a bottle of champagne to go watch the fireworks outside.  They were going off like crazy all over the city - it was like the 4th of July when I was a kid, before firework control to effect. Some guy in the villas (slums) was even setting them off as well, Facu said "he probably didn't eat tonight, but he's setting off fireworks."  Which is pretty amazing and sad at the same time since they probably didn't much to give, yet they're willing to give what they did have to share the celebration of Christ's birth with everyone.

About 12:15 AM on Christmas morning!

After the fireworks finished, we all went back inside to open presents from "Papa Noel" (Santa Claus).  Us foreigners were really surprised because we usually open presents after everyone wakes up in the morning, but this was really neat doing it this way because then you can enjoy the rest of the day with your friends and family.  So we sat around and some more people came over for dessert and then around 2A.M. we headed out to a Christmas party at a friend's house. 

When we got home the next morning (!), I changed into a skirt and tank top, strolled downstairs and got ready for another asado with Facu's dad's family.  He is one of 7 kids so they all came over with their kids and it reminded me a lot of Christmas with my family since there were tons of people in the house.  They set some tables up outside for lunch and then we all went inside and exchanged more gifts.  Everyone was so friendly and welcoming to us confused winter celebraters and it was a lot of fun. And even though I missed my family and friends at home quite a bit I'm really glad I got to experience and appreciate celebrating a little differently this year.  I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and I cannot wait to see what this next year has in store.

Fruit Pizza for the Christmas BBQ

Skyping with my family later

  .

Machu Picchu

Well, I finally got the opportunity to see Machu Picchu.  It had been on the travel list for awhile and then the trip just kind of fell into my lap.  Bernard Chu, a Southwestern buddy, had been telling me he was heading that way in November and so I just jumped on board.  The only issue was missing Christmas since I was planning on heading to Argentina and didn't see a point of going back to the States when I was already so close.  But my parents assured me that they wouldn't disown me for missing out (although my mom has graciously been sending me pictures of all the Christmas decorations she decided to put up to rub it in).  I will just pretend it's her way of coping with my absence this year.

NFL Sunday

So after avoiding the malls on Black Friday, I shoved half my life into a few suitcases hoping I wouldn't be charged an arm and a leg for luggage fees.  After arriving in Lima I met up with Bernard and we headed to stay at a guest house of our friend Whitney - also a  booketeer.  She actually grew up in Peru so we took advantage of her language skills and headed to Cuzco.  Cuzco is a great little city but a bit high so we had to spend a little time getting acclimated up there with some Coca Tea.  There is a great little pub called Norton Rat's in the main square that we crashed for awhile. They were promoting NFL Sunday so as Americans it was a no-brainer which bar to go to.  It was actually pretty weird because I ran into a guy with a Cowboys hat on that happened to be from the exact same city as me and even lived with a family friend of ours when he was out in LA.  Small world.

Our trip to Peru was already planned out and completely organized be a tour guide that my friend Emily recommended.  His name is Jimmy Jhon and he was awesome and if any of you want to travel there some day let me know so I can give you his info. Not only was he more reasonably priced than most guides, but he also picked us up from the airport in Cuzco and from then on out we didn't have to worry about anything.  He already had our meals, hostels, excursions, train tickets, and tickets to Machu Picchu all set up so all we needed to do was survive long enough to take advantage of everything.  Easier said than done though. (Also her really like to be called Jaime Juan).

The first day we took a van up to the top of a mountain that was 2796 feet above sea level (4500 meters) and then biked 72 Kilometers down (about 45 miles).  It was great, the weather was beautiful, the view was amazing, etc.  And the roads were surprisingly good.  Afterwards we grabbed some lunch and went white water rafting which was good. We headed to dinner and then a local bar for a bit, keeping in mind that we had to get up at 6am the next day.  The 2nd day we had an 8 hour hike up the Inca Jungle Trail with a few stops on the way (Thanks God).  It was the most difficult hike I've ever done.  Not really sure if it's the altitude or that I'm just out of shape, but I was really sore the next few days.  It was beautiful though because we could see the whole valley from the top.  And the places we stopped at for more water, bug spray, etc. were neat little homes of people that lived up there.  They all had monkeys for pets and sold their homemade juices, chocolate, and other things like Gatorade. At the end of the hike though there were some really nice hot springs strategically located for our use. So good. 

Relaxing in the hot springs

The next day we went zip lining between the mountains which was really cool.  Some of the areas between the lines though were a little iffy.  For instance, we landed on one platform and had to climb up a ladder (which is probably the best word for it) that consisted of metal bars hammered in to the rock on the side of the mountain.  Which reminds me to mention, that if you're afraid of heights then you should probably avoid going to Machu Picchu or at least hiking any of the trails to it.  There were many parts were I knew if I slipped or stepped on a loose rock that I was a goner. Not really sure how I managed to survive actually, seeing as I'm not the most coordinated person and add a backpack on there that weighs have my body weight.  It's a miracle really.

Path up Wayna Picchu

We had a 3 hour hike over some railroad tracks after the zip lining which brought us to Aguas Calientes, the town at the base of Machu Picchu. It was a cute little town built around the river, probably one of the nicest towns I saw while in Peru.  Some good restaurants and little shops to look through, though the prices were a lot higher compared to Cuzco since we were at Machu Picchu.  But we had an option of either waking up at 4am to hike to Machu Picchu the next day or wake up at 530 and take a bus up.  Definitely chose the bus. Best choice we could have made too because not only did we get to sleep longer, but Whitney had sprained her ankle the week before and it was swelling up again after all the hiking, but also, if we had hiked up we would have been completely drained.  And this would probably have prevented us from hiking up Wayna Picchu which is a cliff overlooking Machu Picchu.  It was really steep and you had to go slow since it was a lot riskier than your typical mounting hike, but it was definitely worth it once you got to the top.  The view was amazing.

There were some "stairs" if that's what you want to call them that people were coming down while we were hiking up.  All I could think when looking at them was "there is no way in hell that I'm going down those stairs."  Here's a pic of them:

And even though we went up a different way, guess had we had to go down?  That's right, the stairs of death. They give you no other option.  It was okay though, you just had to go REALLY slow.  But it was definitely worth it.

There were a few first experiences for me this trip.  One was peeing in a hole in the ground. Awesome.  Now I see why guys love peeing outside. Another was the consistent lack of running water in the hostels we stayed at.  It was great for me because I had an excuse not to shower everyday (although a few cold showers were necessary when running water was found). I think my favorite part was in one hostel the water wasn't working so Bernard went to tell the lady "hey there's no water...no hay agua" and she just looked at him and said in Spanish: "yeah, the water is turned off"  and then just walked away.  No big deal, and not going to do anything about it. Another thing I had never seen before was people taking the pet monkeys around town.  We were eating breakfast one day and this woman's brown hair started moving and then jumped down onto the table.  Obviously it wasn't really her hair, just the baby monkey living in it...which she proceeded to start feeding at the table in the middle of the restaurant.  Don't worry though, I'm pretty sure health codes don't exist in Peru, so nobody got mad at her. A very common thing there that I wasn't used to was when you were standing in line somewhere, patiently waiting your turn, people would just come up and cut in front of you.  No biggie, I was just standing there for 10 minutes like a normal human being, but thanks for making me hate you.  Forget social courtesy, next time I go I'm gonna cut lines like nobody's business.

Also, while Cuzco and Aguas Calientes were really nice cities, Lima was the ugliest place I have ever seen.  And I'm from Plano, Texas.  Plano.  First off there was no green anywhere, I don't remember seeing any trees outside of this one park we went to.  Second, the buildings were no higher than 3 stories, brown, and everywhere.  I think the city has 10 something million people and there aren't really any skyscrapers so it was just built out.  I didn't feel it was necessary to take any picture of it during the day time.  I took one picture of a street at night where the lights could help disguise the ugliness.  Here it is, enjoy:

 

Anyway, I think that's it.  Here are some more pictures from the trip!

 

Cuzco, main square

Where we biked the 1st day

Monkey on a leash

the group

chewing Coca leaves to help with altitude sicknes

not really sure what these are

nice safe mountain pass

Santa Maria ghost town

my feet after the 8 hour hike

they were blasting one of the mountains

Cuzco

Machu Picchu

our awesome guide

at the top of Wayna Picchu

 

Machu Picchu

travel buddies

rest stop

fountain park in Lima