A Camel in Cusco: Day Two

Today I woke up and showered. I’d been worried about it the night before because Maggie mentioned that all people might not have hot water with their host families and so of course I extrapolated that to mean that hot water might not be available in many places. However, I enjoyed a cozy hot shower and small breakfast. I talked to Nate for a bit and then packed up and took a taxi to go meet Lauren and Maggie at our hotel for the night. I was the last to arrive but wow let me tell you, taxis are super cheap! Four soles… which is barely more than a dollar. Lauren went straight to sleep, which is exactly what I did yesterday so I understand the impulse, while Maggie, her mom, and I left to walk around.

First we came upon this fabulous market with sweaters and hats galore, fabric piled eight feet high, grain, bread, coca leaves, fruits, fish, vegetables… almost anything you can imagine needing! I most certainly want to return, maybe later today. I think I need to buy another purse because my flap purse doesn’t seem secure enough to me. I’ve been pick-pocketed before and that experience does not qualify among my favorites, so I’ll do my very best to be careful and avoid a similar experience here. They’ll cook food right in front of you or prepare the most spectacular looking (and smelling) smoothies. Maggie and I kept remarking upon the multitude of smells here. Many are good- like fruit, cooking bread and meat, or flowers. But there’s also the diesel smell from all of the cars roaming around, various sewer smells, room-temperature meat smell, unwashed people smell… Good or bad, it’s interesting. Certainly a more thrilling olfactory experience than I’ve ever had in Connecticut. We stopped and got a snack and ate the most delicious peach, pineapple, and honeydew I think I’ve ever had. The food here, so far, is marvelous! The peach especially… wow!

We roamed some more, said goodbye to Maggie’s mom, then headed out once more. We came upon an older couple’s wedding or vow renewal and they’d begun a party outside the church! They had some mariachis playing the Mariachi classics like Cielito Lindo and Las Mañanitas. We people watched and roamed some more then decided we should head back and wake up Lauren. However, as we passed the market on the way to the hotel we saw that two men had begun to set up a street performance. They danced around and one even swallowed a sword! Maggie and I were mostly enamoured by all of the adorable children. Andean children are the absolute cutest! There was this one little girl in front of me who, when I waved, gave me the biggest smile! I don’t think she was too happy when Maggie took her picture though because the smile turned into a scowl for a split second.