In Peru, we visited Lima and Cusco. We met up in the Lima airport and had one full day in the city. During that day, we took a city tour and walked around a bit to get a feel for the area. That night, we met up with old and new friends. My friend Dave Cicerchi, who has been living in a remote area of Peru for the last 3 years through the Peace Corps, happened to be in town and joined us. We also met Hugo and Jessica through some contacts of my dad and they took us to eat some rotisserie chicken and provided us with lots of suggestions as we continued our travels. We had a very nice visit.
In Cusco, we took ourselves around town, visiting the center and the Cathedral. The following day was the big day for Machu Picchu. We took a 4 hour train ride and then a 1/2 hour bus ride to arrive. When you climb up to look out over the ruins, it's incredible. They are immense, much larger than the ones in Ecuador. 80% of what is there is still the original. It was really something to see and it is difficult to do it justice with my words.
Then our travels took us to Buenos Aires, Argentina. This city carries more of a European influence which is noted by the physical features of the people and their dress. The accent was also different and could be a bit challenging for me to understand. It is a good thing we had a bit of time in Buenos Aires because there was a lot to do. We went on a nice city tour to introduce us to all the different neighborhoods. From there, we were able to decide which places we wanted to re-visit.
We went to Recoleta cemetary, where famous writers, presidents, and Eva Peron (Evita) were buried. The monuments/tombs were huge and elaborate. We went to a Tango show, called Madero Tango. There were many to choose from but this one included 5 main couples who danced; twisting and kicking in all directions with intervals of music between sets. Sometimes, FYI, you really can see people tango dancing in the streets.
The following day we went to Caminito, a neighborhood with a lot of character, color, and shops. When we weren't in those shops, we were meandering down Florida street where street vendors put out their work (it is a pedestrian only street). That evening we went to Cabana Las Lilas, a restaurant which was recommended to us by a number of sources. We all got a form of beef, as that is what Argentina is known for. I thought it was good but I don't eat much beef so I'm not a good one to compare it.
Our last day, we were lucky enough to be able to go to an Argentine soccer game. We sat way up in the visitor section because it is actually not safe to sit with the Boca fans. The fans literally chanted the entire game - and loudly! The game was impressive and Boca won 2-1 against Arsenal.
From there, we were off to Santiago, Chile. We gave ourselves a tour of the city here. We visited some of the big parks like Santa Lucia, went up the funicular in Cerro San Cristobal, visited the Cathedral and saw La Moneda (where the president lives).
The following day we went on a tour to Valparaiso and Vino del Mar. On the way, we stopped in a vineyard and got a tour which was pretty interesting. The rest of the day was spent visiting different viewpoints to overlook the city. Unfortunately, I feel that this area has a lot to offer and show but our tour didn't capture it.
We tried the Pisco Sours of Chile as well.
Overall, we had a wonderful trip. We were busy but it was a good kind of busy because we wanted to take everything in. We fought off/through some illnesses but everyone arrived back to their respective countries in one piece. We have lots of pictures too!
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