so, today, for my birthday i took a train to machu pichu (i visit tomorow) and peru through a bunch of parades and festivals. coincidentally, it was also peru’s independence day. here’s a pic from the small town of pisac. in the background, you can see the gay pride flag (cusco’s flag) and the canadian flag (peru’s flag).
parade in pisac
FIRST, some follow-ups:
-like most (all) of my ideas, the inca wall puzzle does exist.
-bembo’s wouldn’t sell me a hat. my brother prob could have schmoozed his way into getting a hat….but the best i could get was a job application
TODAY, i walked all around cusco. it’s a cool little city….with tons of narrow winding stone passages. it’s a fun place to wander around for a day. humans are lazy, with differing consequences. on the plus side, cusco has a cool mix of incan, spanish and modern architecture (it’s easier to build on or around the old stuff). on the down side, people pee in many of the alleys so it smells.
FLAGS. tomorrow is peru’s independence day; apparently, it’s also national law that all buildings must display the peruvian flag. so the streets are filled with peruvian flags (which look surprisingly similar to canadian flags). I’m not sure which came first, but cusco’s flag is identical to the homosexual rainbow flag…coincidence?
THEATER. this evening, i checked out kusikay. it was actually surprisingly entertaining…full of acrobats, comedy, dancing, audience interaction….and no speaking. it wasn’t as polished as a similar program might be in san francisco, but it was still well done.
PICS:
+this is the second country (el salvador) where i’ve seen barbed wire placed at human level to protect a shitty little grass patch…seems dangerous and a waste of money to protect some dried up grass.
+another cool inca wall in the middle of the city.
+cuzco from above (taken from the ‘christ the redeemer’ statue, which is apparently not just limited to rio)
+a cool little [hippie] park in cuzco
CUZCO! (…or is it cusco?)
today ushi (the sentra) and i finally made it to one of the two major destinations of the trip: cuzco! (the other destination is iguazu falls). the inca stonework really is quite amazing and it’s nice that, as far as i can tell, the knockoffs are pretty obvious…..so you can appreciate the originals even more.
driving into cuzco is a bit overwhelming. it’s a densely packed, stone filled little city. the central area is very easy to manage by foot…but a bit more difficult by car (at least at first). in most cities i follow the major flow of traffic…hoping it will lead me to a major destination (such as the central plaza). here, i followed cars so i could know which streets were passable for cars and which weren’t. like in parts of europe, many streets are barely wide enough for cars. after driving around peru, i think we need to invent a new mode of transportation…in some parts of nepal, they’re using ziplines instead of building costly roads…interesting idea.
SOUVENIRS
souvenirs in peru are, for the most part, very nice and very affordable. instead of the ‘i heart sf’ shirts, they sell intricately carved gourds and nice paintings. so what’s the downside? EVERYBODY sells the same stuff…so it loses it’s value. even in lima, they sell the same stuff. why do we need thousands of identical stores selling the exact same stuff at the exact same price? it’s really ashame — i’m ok buying mass-produced products (iphone, etc.), but mass-produced art work just doesn’t sound right. also…where are the inca wall puzzles? seems like a good souvenir idea, no? 3d or 2d puzzles which interlock like the walls…not like traditional puzzle pieces.
finally, at one of the artesanal markets (‘artesanal’ is used loosely), they had a cool visa card reader, which is shared by all the stands….not a bad idea.
BEMBO’S BURGERS
like in n’ out, bembo’s seems to have a passionate local (peruvian) following…and is better than mcdonalds…but is just another hamburger chain (like in n’ out). they wear these really dorky wool hats. well…that’s what i thought at first. then i saw some of their artwork on the wall, illustrating their hat in different styles (lichtensten, warhol, etc.). then i liked the hat. now i want to buy one. i guess advertising does work.
here’s a pic of the sentra in front of our first inca wall! the site of Tarawasi is small but nice. it’s cool that you can touch and interact with the archaeological site (rather than it being roped off). on the other hand, it’s ashame that dogs defecate near the wall and that people play soccer on the grass right next to an archaeological site. as much as i like soccer, it can’t be good for the wall.
i took off from nasca bout 7:30am. about 1.5hrs later, i had gone ~30 miles (up hill + road construction), was down to 2/3 of a tank and gasoline was dripping from engine onto the exhaust pipe (and the ground). so, i decided to head back down to nasca to find a mechanic. the mechanic i did find was pretty incompetent, as well as physically abusive to his son. $5 later, he had reconnected a hose (by accident/trial-and-error) and i was back on the road to cuzco. on the way back up the mountain, the fuel gauge sunk even lower….down to ~1/3 of a tank…and i still had ~80 miles to go. i was also pumping the brakes again…and the car nearly stalled several times. at that point, i pulled over and realized three things:
1) the hose he had reconnected was still leaking, but it was excess oil coming from the engine….so not as dangerous as i had once thought.
2) the fuel was actually leaking from the gas cap…i tightened it a bit, and that helped.
3) the mechanic in huaraz was not joking when he said that the sentra was \built for the coast, not the mountains\”
so, back on the drive, i decided to push forward…knowing that i had 4 gallons of super in my trunk (from ecuador). at the next road construction area, a man waved his arm, so i stopped. before i knew it, i had picked up a hitchhiker. the one benefit was that he knew the distance to the next gas station….so that was a bit comforting. he also noticed that the fuel tank was extremely hot (the backseat sits directly on the fuel tank….he thought the engine might be in the trunk). but, like the hannukah miracle, the remaining few gallons burned and burned–much longer than anyone would have expected–and we made it safely to puquin.
the funny thing, though, is that from puquin, i then drove another 200 miles to abancay (nasca to puquin = 100 miles)….but only used half of a tank! seems the sentra has difficulty climbing 2+ miles in elevation….but can stay at a given elevation without too much of a problem.
pic: as tessa and francois can attest to, drivers in peru love driving on the wrong side of the road…..even when there’s no good reason to. why?”
today, i drove from ica to nazca (aka nasca). along the way there’s a ‘mirador’ which looks out over some of the nazca lines. i was expecting a lookout on the edge of a cliff. instead, i found myself climbing up a rickety metal tower in the middle of the desert. from the top, you can see a couple of the glyphs, but it’s not as dramatic as the plane. as soon as i got into nasca, i hopped on a 6-seater prop plane and got the birds eye view of the lines….which is much more impressive….although it didn’t help that i’ve already been feeling kinda sick since yesterday afternoon. The girl in front of me actually did puke on the plane. a few more turns and i would have been next.
so what’s the deal with the lines? well, supposedly they were ‘drawn’ in the desert 1-2 thousand years ago by removing the top soil/rocks to form lines and shapes. I was actually a bit underwhelmed by the lines….they were smaller and easier to make than i had originally anticipated. with a bit of rope, and some time, i could probably do a comparable job….just not hundreds of them…unless i had the sentra. however, what is impressive is:
-the lines have survived wind and rain for thousands of years. especially when they’re so shallow (6in deep?)
-an entire population has sprouted in the middle of the desert, solely financed by some lines on the desert floor….which were accidentally dscovered about 100 hundred years ago.
-according to lonely planet, there are unrecovered landmines around the lines from their earlier wars — what an ingenious way to keep tourists from destroying the archaeological evidence….much easier, cheaper and more effective than fencing in the entire desert.
aside:
one of the most frustrating things about driving in latin america is not understanding the driving culture/language. sure, i understand most of the basic laws and signs*…but it’s the driver-to-driver language which i lack. for instance, today, a white sentra in front of me was signaling with his hand that i should pull over to the side (he had his left arm on top of the car, finger pointing to the side, and sliding his arm left-to-right). kinda worried, i pulled over, and everything seemed fine….well, \fine’s\” a relative term, when the exhaust pipe is split in two (hanging up with some of mark’s wire) and the brake switch/lights don’t work. later on, two additional on-coming cars flashed their lights at me….but the car was fine, and there were no cops to be seen. on top of that, cars seem to honk all the time.
USEFL COMMUNCATION TOOL: one thing i learned from another cab in guayquil is how to signal to the window washers ‘no’ (at many stop lights, people will come up to your car with a squeege and offer to wash your windshield). simply turn on your windshield wipers and they’ll walk right by.
*according to a taxi cab driver in guayaquil (ecuador), it’s legal–and expected–to turn left at a red light…as long as there are no cops around. even when cops are present, the rules are flexible…such as the cab driver in huaraz (peru), who sped through a police checkpoint (all taxi’s there look the same, so it’s hard to catch them).”
today:
-bribed some cops at the airport with some granola
-dropped off tessa and francois at the airport
-got lost in lima trying to fnd the panamericana
-used some wire to strap up my broken exhaust (it was dragging on the road)
-drove to ica
-spending the night at a very nice hacienda here (…treating myself a bit….but for only $25/night!)
-there’s a really nice — but very low — car here…how does it survive the speed bumps?
a thought:
peru’s coastline is pretty interesting (…because it’s so monotonous, but kinda unique). in the winter, the ocean is cold (wetsuits needed to surf), but apparently in the summer it’s warm enough. then comes the beach. then comes the panamerican highway. then the beach continues for miles and miles (aka desert). but many parts of the desert here are overcast (maybe just during the winter?). then come the andes. then the rainforest (…i presume).
but aside from a few chicken/vegetable farms and towns, there’s not much else near the panamericana. seems like this area could be used for so much more, especially since it’s right next to a major highway. how about wind/solar power? how about agriculture (low-cost desalination?)?
note: gps location is lima, peru
today, we walked around miraflores a bit…checking out an ancient temple (1500 years old…and is more a pile of mud, than anything else) and the inca market (which has tons of artesanal works…although like most markets, repetition is the norm). we then had lunch at a really nice place in barranco — the place had a $15 set menu…..and was plentiful in size, great taste and experimental (such as francois’ puffed up egg white with a yolk and potato chip on top….the egg white looked like an upside down bowl of rice, and was one of the sides that came with his thick steak). afterwards, we checked out some paragliders, played some rummy, had dinner at a mediteranean place with some of tessa’s friends (…this time with ridiculously oversized portions) and ended up drinking pisco sours in huarangas bar, like last night.
SENTRA MAINTENANCE SUMMARY
the sentra has now gone over 10k miles, crossed hemispheres, driven to an altitude over 2 miles above sea level and feared the best and worst of ‘roads’. so what kind of work has been done to the sentra so far….and how much has it all cost? well, here’s a list with approximate prices:
– re-weld exhaust pipe back together (antigua, guatemala) — $10
– change front brake pads and check rear ones (xela, guatemala) — $5 labor, $25 parts
– re-weld exhaust pipe back together (tegucigalpa, honduras) — $5
– change oil (tegucigalpa, honduras) — $30
– patch tire (choluteca, honduras) — $10 labor
– re-weld exhaust pipe back together (san jose, costa rica) — $15
– add tube to a tire with good tread, but holes in sidewall (catacocha, ecuador) — $10 parts, $5 labor
– change oil (with the cheap stuff) & flush oil system with oil cleaner additive – 20-w50 added in tegucigalpa was very thick, and made the engine hard to start (huaraz, peru) — $20
– change front left cv-joint & all front cv boots (huaraz, peru) — $20 parts, $15 labor
– change fuel filter (huaraz, peru) — $5 parts, $5 labor
– find electrical short (huaraz, peru) — $5 labor
so the grand total (more or less): $185….but i still need to fix my brake switch and re-weld the exhaust pipe….so it’s more like $200. not too bad….no wonder there are so many sentra’s here!
note: gps location is lima, peru
LIMA’S NICE?
contrary to what everyone has told me so far….lima actually seems like a decent city. sure, it’s an urban sprawl which seems to lack any semblance of planning. However, all of the areas we saw today seemed nice, safe and full of culture. We started off at the anthropology museum in pueblo libre…which has some cool artifacts from peru (inca and pre-inca). we then went to the plaza mayor, grabbed lunch and checked out the catacombs underneath the san francisco monastery (thanks for the recommendation marjory). the monastery is nice….the catacombs a bit strange: they have piles and piles of bones….some placed artfully in circular patterns. we also checked out some markets, the inquisition museum, and a very american mall back in miraflores (pizza hut at the food court, chili’s, etc.)
COMPETITION?
more than any other place so far, business in lima seem to concentrate around similar ones. yesterday we went to calle pizza. today we went to the meat and fruit markets, a street which specializes in making foam decorations and costumes, another alley for repairing tv’s, etc. it seems like almost every industry has it’s own dedicated street here.
SENTRA HEAVEN?
so many sentra’s here. lima may have the highest concentration of sentra’s and their spinoffs (sunny, blueberry…and other nissan’s which look the exact same). yesterday night, we were surrounded by 3 sentra’s. today, we could not go 1 minute without spotting a sentra. unbelievable!
AN INSIDER’S PERSPECTIVE
tonight denise (naldo’s friend) took us around lima. as you might expect, it was really fun to see the nice (and non-touristy) parts of such a huge city. she drove us around barranco, miraflores, etc. we also swung by the largest private club in lima (~20,000 members). the club is on the beach, and is absolutely huge — even featuring atm’s and hair dressers inside the gated walls. afterwards, we had dinner at a really nice restaurant in miraflores (LA73). Francois has been in Peru three times, and this is the best dinner he’s had here…and entrees are only $10. afterwards, we stopped by a really cool bar about 3 houses away from our hostel. the funny (sad) thing is that we would have had no idea about this bar had it not been for denise….and the bar/lounge was very cool and very packed. thanks again for a fun evening denise!
so, this morning i picked up the sentra and took it to the recommended electrician: chino’s. the shop is barely wide enough for a door; it’s sandwiched between a restaurant and a tire repair shop. the first thing chino did was to use one of my fuses to verify that what i told him (that the fuse for the meters kept blowing out) — not off to the best start. he then proceeded to take off a bunch of stuff and remove random wires, then check the fuse again. how did he check the fuse? well, first he got some coated multi-strand copper wire. he stripped off the coating, then removed individual copper wires. he would then wrap a strand of the wire around the metal tabs of a blown fuse, and use that ‘repaired fuse’ to test out if he had found the short. if he hadn’t, the copper strand would break (like a fuse).
he continued to unplug random connections, test the fuse, rebuild the fuse, etc. for about 30min. i was a bit shocked (…i would think a car electronics guy would be able to do more than just guess and check), a bit dissapointed (…this guy had better tools at his disposal, like a multimeter), a bit impressed (…using copper wire to rebuild the fuse was a kinda clever idea) and finally shocked again, when he did actually find the problem. turns out that the switch for my brake pedal was shorting the system….so he unplugged that….and everything works fine.
well, almost. two small problems. 1) my brake lights don’t work now. 2) you know how in an automatic car, you need to push on the brake pedal to get the car out of park?….well, without that switch, i couldn’t get out of park. luckily one of my earlier failed attempts at a kill-switch is able to bypass that safety feature (i no longer need to press on the brake pedal to get out of park).
in other news, once we were back at sea-level, i stopped smelling fumes and the transmission started working better again! we drove from huaraz to lima, stopping at a little town (baranco) along the way for lunch. so far, most of lima is overcast, congested and not too nice. we’re staying in miraflores, which is a really nice area in lima. it has nice restaurants, shops and houses. the restaurant we ate at tonight was kinda funny. it was on calle pizza (a street with tons of pizza/italian places). however, food was coming and going from the restaurant all night. for instance, the pizza’s were prepared inside, then brought next door to be cooked, then brought back in to be served. the apple pies also came from another place next door (the waitress literally walked in through the front door with the pies already on ceramic plates).
sorry, no pics for today.