PERU IS REAL!

Well pals it looks like I finally made it! Flying all day and night was not pleasant, but I met some pretty interesting people in the process including a Chilean man who complimented my Spanish skills, an Argentine guy my age who laughed when I attempted to share travel stories in his language (he soon grew tired of trying to figure out what I was saying and put on headphones), and a herd of senior citizens wearing bright Hawaiian shirts and name tags around their necks that said in big red letters "South American Trek Team".

When I finally made it out of the doors at the Cusco airport I had a heart attack. I opened the doors to find this place that I dreamed up in my head anxiously awaiting my arrival. I was offered a small bag of cocoa leaves, a wide brimmed hat, and an awe-inspiring view of carpeted mountains in every shade of green you can imagine. I only accepted the latter.

Next thing I know I'm being put on a bus to a town called Urabamba. My new friends all fell asleep instantly (the luckiest of us had only been traveling for 13 hours) but I pried my eyes open long enough to see women carring infants in blankets of bright colors, men keeping a watchful eye on their pigs that are about to step into the oncoming traffic, and a little boy pee into a pile of thoughtlessly discarded garbage.

The houses are Tiffany's green but definitely don't share the same level of elegance. People were living in constructions that I thought were surely debris from a bad storm that must have ripped through the mountainside. But there was no storm, and those shanty towns are what these people call casa. I can't help but think that they aren't too concerned about what their shelter looks like, because their backyard is a true paradise.

We did some exploring, some napping, some orienting. The town is bustling with kids whizzing by on their bikes, homeless dogs hunting for some leftovers, and men in little buses trying to convince you that you want to go wherever their bus is headed.

Now the mountains are black against the dark blue sky. They look like sleeping giants, and I'm pretending that they are my protectors sleeping right outside to keep the mosquitoes at bay.