Cuzco, Peru

Last June I convinced my bff to cash in some more miles and head back to South America for the 2nd time to join me in Peru. If you knew M, you'd know that it doesn't take much convincing or arm twisting to participate in any kind of travel adventure. I think it was our first trip together in the summer of '08 to San Francisco that proved that we were compatible travel buddies, and her husband was even lucky enough to follow us around while we each tried to "out-itinerize" the other with tours of Alcatraz, wine tasting, baseball, biking the bridge, and reading street maps to try to get back and forth from our hotel using streets that weren't steep enough to require an oxygen tank.

Sorority pose at Alcatraz

Lots of wine tasting of course

Brewers vs. Giants on a chilly summer night

Biking the bridge on a 45 degree cloudy morning

Prepping for a whirlwind adventure in Peru was a little different, especially when your point of arrival is at approximately 11,000 ft. above sea level and you need to drink tea made from cocaine leaves to combat the altitude sickness. (oxygen tank mentioned above would've come in handy there too)

They say it's important to plan a couple of days in Cuzco to acclimate before heading to Machu Picchu just in case anyone in your group gets altitude sickness since obviously it's not ideal to end up puking and in bed the day that you have your entrance permits to see it. Cuzco is charming and we both put on our nerdy Spanish teacher hats and decided to explore the local sights like Pisac Market, NOT drink alcohol (which is hard for the 2 of us to do when we're together), rest up and NOT eat cuy picante (a guinea pig type of delicacy that they eat there). For two adults who exercise and are in pretty good physical health, it's really not an exaggeration that you get winded walking up and down stairs. Altitude sickness really is just dehydration, so it's also important to chug water like nobody's business, and that means lots of trips to the market to buy bottles and bottles of water. After having spent a year in Chile with clean water, it was definitely an adjustment to remember not to put my toothbrush under the sink.

Plenty of tiny markets selling souvenir crap like this stuff that I first fell in love with in China "adidas/alpacas", really???

We spent lots of time around the Plaza eating, drinking Coca light and people watching

A shot from one of the second floor balconies where we could sit and observe

Pisac Market

I miss getting my produce like this 

So many varieties of potatoes

and corn...

Burying and cooking Pachamanca, a dish that's cooked underground using hot stones, potatoes, meat, etc.

I was obsessed with taking pictures like while I lived in South America, I must have known deep down that I'd end up in AZ...

Family Time

Sorry for the lack of updating lately, I was fortunate enough to have 3 sets of visitors to come to see me in Chile so I've been super busy since Christmas enjoying the summer here with friends and family. As you saw in earlier posts, one of my super bff's and her hubby came to visit me over their winter break. We brought in the New Year properly and then they made their way back to the States in time to start their respective second semesters.

A week after M and J left, the other M and J came down, my mom and step dad, that is. My step dad had bypass surgery in June so it was great that we were able to hike all the way to the top of Cerro San Cristobal...

We also took the tour and tasted some wine at Cousino Macul...

Then my Aunt Dawn and Uncle Tom came and we maximized the space in the casita...

Ita and Sole put together a delicious meal to welcome them...

And then the guitar playing and singing began...

Even Otto joined in...

The next day we climbed the other cerro, Cerro Santa Lucia...

The view from one cerro to the other...You can even still see a couple of snow capped mountains lingering in the back drop...

I feel very lucky that my friends and family were able to come all the way down here and share this part of my life with me, and in two weeks I'll be re-joining my aunt and uncle down in Punta Arenas for the next phase of the adventure!

Cheers to the little ones

It's time for me to make my way south tomorrow!  I've said my goodbyes, seen my little brother marry the girl of his dreams, and done everything that I can do to prepare myself for the this next chapter of my life.  I know that a year isn't very long, and that most things here will remain the same while I'm the one who will probably experience the most changes...except for my friends and their growing families. Kids change a lot in a year, and it makes me sad to not be able to see a lot of these little guys and gals for so long.

So here's a toast to you my friends, I'll be running around South America while you are busy raising your beautiful families.  Give them all kisses for me!!!

My Summer Part 1

Spent a few days in Boca Raton with Meg and Jenna...

Celebrated Courtney being 14 years cancer free...

 Had a boating day with the girls and even got to drive a little...

 Borrowed some mint-green Manolos to wear to a fancy SATC 2 Party...

 Sold a bunch of my stuff at a yard sale...

Had my first going away party...

Dog-sat for my second favorite furry friend...

Watched the Cubs really suck it up...

Watched the Brazil v Netherlands game with a bunch of disappointed brasilenos...

Actually put some effort into celebrating the 4th this year...

So far away

A lot has happened this week and things are starting to sink in at many levels.  My move to Chile is not so much in the distant future as much as it is becoming a part of the present. Reading about poor Sara's scary health situation and having a health scare in my own family really has made me think about the reality of living so far away from all of my loved ones.

I can't really say that I operate well under pressure when faced with a crisis of my own, but I seem to react well when others are in crisis.  I guess that is probably mostly true for all of us, but this week that mirror was really held up to me to take a long hard look. Fortunately my step dad's bypass surgery was a success and he should be back home by next week.  I'm also grateful that I was still here to lend a hand to Kris and Nate when their new twins decided to make an appearance at 33 weeks.

These are the moments that make the reality of my decision to leave for a whole year a little harder to accept.  Family and friends are the most important parts of my life, and I'm fortunate to have their support as I venture off to add a new chapter to my life.  I hope that a part of this transition for me will be learning how to give my love and support from afar and remembering that home is only a plane ride away.