The Inca Trilogy and Other Critters

In the culture of the Incas, there were three levels of existence that are represented by animals. First, the condor represents the heavens. Second, the puma represents the earth; and third, the serpent represents the world below the earth. This is called the Inca Trilogy. I always found the symbolism of the three levels fascinating. In our travels around Peru we were able to see all three of these animals, plus some more.

I took the train up to Machu Picchu to meet Clay and Trista who were coming in from the Sun Gate after completing the Inca Trail. We were supposed to meet for the sunrise, but it wasn't until hours later that we saw the mist-rise. That's what happens when you go in the rainy season.
Eventually the mist rose enough for some awesome views of the ruins.
When we eventually got back to Cusco that night we were all so tired that we had to take a day to rest. The next night we boarded a night bus to Arequipa. Even though we picked a nice company with plush fold down seats we didn't get much sleep. When we arrived we booked a tour to Colca Canyon - which used to be known as the deepest canyon in the world (until they found the one next to it was about a hundred meters deeper). It was interesting to learn about the different cultures that have inhabited the canyon.
This is also one of the best places to see condors. We sat and waited and sat and waited and finally, as if on cue, one huge condor flew by the viewpoint. It looks small but the condor has the longest wingspan of any bird - up to 11 feet. It also has one of the longest lifespans - some living up to 100 years old.
The next morning we took a flight up to Iquitos - the largest city in the world that is only accessible by boat or plane. It was fun to fly over the Amazon rain forest and imagine what we would do if the plane crashed in the middle of the jungle.
We had reservations for the Amazon Rainforest Lodge and on the way out to the lodge we stopped at an animal reserve. This little guy eats leaves that drug him so that he moves really slow. I don't see what's so wrong with being slothful - he looks pretty happy to me.
Of course it wouldn't be a trip to the rain forest without an anaconda trying to strangle you at some point.
When I was young I used to look through the animal encyclopedia and try to decide what animal I wanted to be. I loved cats so I always picked the Ocelot. I finally got to see one in real life.
We got to the lodge and had fun swimming in the pool and going down the waterslide. There was a lookout tower to bird-watch and take pictures from.
One of the days we got to go piranha fishing. I caught a little one that I had to throw back, Trista caught a big one that the chef fried up for her to eat, and Clay, the fisherman in the family, didn't catch any. :-(
We got to visit some tribal villages and see how they used to live. After painting our faces, they sang a song for us and invited us to dance with them.
Then we got to try a different kind of dart game - with blow darts. Whoever got the bulls-eye got to be the new chief. (Nobody got it.)
One afternoon we went out hiking in the jungle to see if we could find any wildlife. Although it was interesting learning about the different plants, the only wildlife I saw were millions of mosquitos feasting on my flesh. Clay found thousands of baby spiders on his arm after climbing this tree.
The last day we went to "Monkey Island" which was one of my favorite stops. There were lots of different animals roaming free (including many different species of monkeys) and if you happened to have bananas in your hand you were their best friend.
Then I had a sudden craving for Fruit Loops. I don't know why.
Later that day we stopped at a Manatee Reserve. The Amazon manatee does not have any natural enemies except for humans. Now they have been hunted almost to extinction. It was fun petting this 'water-elephant.'
We also saw other typical animals of the jungle that I was happy we didn't run into on our trek.

We got back to the city and took a little boat through 'Belen - the Venice of the Amazon.' All the houses are either floating or they move all their belongings up to the second floor in the rainy season. As a real estate agent Clay was interested to know that there are no property rights - if you can get the materials to build your own floating house, you can live there. As such, this is one of the poorest areas around the city.
From Iquitos we flew down to Puno (or rather up to Puno becausewe went from 150 ft. to 12,400 ft. in altitude). We took a boat out to the floating islands where they make everything out of grass reeds. We even took a little ride on a boat made out of grass.
We got to try on the local clothes with Maria who welcomed us into her hut on the island.
As we were about to leave we happened to spot the missionaries. I learned earlier that each island has been proselytized to by different religions. So there is an LDS island, a Catholic island, and a Seventh-Day Adventist island. It was interesting to see the Elders preaching on the Seventh-Day Adventist island and meet some of the investigators.
When we got back to Cusco we had a day of shopping and relaxing before I said goodbye to Clay and Trista. Later that afternoon they came back knocking on my door saying the flight had been canceled due to fog in Lima. After many hours on the phone and at the ticket office they were on their way and I was left alone in Cusco once again. In order to not succumb to loneliness and boredom I wandered up to a language school and signed up for Quechua classes. I was the only other student with my teacher Janett, because all the other students were studying Spanish.
It was interesting to learn about the linguistic culture of the Incas. It was also interesting as an English teacher because some aspects of the grammar are similar to English. One day we watched one of the few films that exists in Quechua and I was able to pick out a few words (with help from the Spanish subtitles). Then the last day we went to the market and I got to practice with the old ladies who sell medicinal plants from the mountains. It was nice to stretch my mind and be in the student's seat again. It is also fun to practice with my friends who were surprised at my interest in the language. In the past Quechua was forbidden in school and speakers felt a sense of shame when they used it but now the attitude has changed and it is a requirement in school here. So now I have just over a week left and I've been spending time with friends and trying various street foods.
I've also made appointments with doctors and dentists to get everything taken care of since I don't have health insurance in the U.S. The last time I went to the dentist was in Guatemala where it was much cheaper and still good quality. The only other thing I have left to do is explore the markets and do some more shopping. I'll be sad to leave Cusco again but now I know that if I want to come back I will find a way.