The green “TOURISM AREQUIPA” sign lit atop the yellow frame made me feel a little calmer. I had been trying to locate a legitimately licensed cab company after hearing reports that in addition to visiting the Santa Catalina Monastery, getting driven out into the desert by a bogus driver, beaten, and robbed was a...
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The Hummingbird I knew about Nazca before I had ever heard of Macchu Picchu. It was 1994, and I was in the middle of playing Illusion of Gaia on SNES. It’s fair to say that game planted a huge seed in my subconsciousness, playing upon my desire to travel the world in the future;...
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There are many perils in choosing to live in a developing country like Peru. Overnight buses are occasionally stopped and robbed at gunpoint; Montezuma’s Revenge strikes each and every traveler eventually; there’s always going to be a lack of good bacon, cheese, and turkey. I could deal with most of these, but there’s something...
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I’ve given you the details of a day in my shoes, but I feel like that piece doesn’t really give travelers a sense of what it’s like living in Peru. Some things are so comfortable and familiar, in a way I never would have found in Asia. Others bordering on the extreme, downright dangerous....
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It’s no secret Japan has weighed heavily on my mind since I left in 2008. I had a good setup there: - A brand-new apartment in a quiet area with a heated toilet seat. In the mornings I could run to a park overlooking Kinko Bay and see Sakurajima smoking in the distance. -...
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As a hot springs connoisseur, I was surprised to find little-to-no information on those pools closest to Arequipa, in the town of Yura (pronounced “jura”). I had heard that these particular hot baths were subpar in both temperature and ambience, but since they were off the beaten path in a country where it’s difficult...
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This isn’t meant to come off as negative, but I’m still very sick and not in the best mood… my apologies if it does. I’ve had the chance to notice many things in Peru that shock me into reality. Dogs on Rooftops Yes, you read that correctly. Although I found the stray beasts around...
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My first days in Peru were filled with illness: dehydration from the plane, adjusting to the change in diet, breathing the air, absorbing the water. Dealing with different immunities and bacteria. Living in Asia may have tempered my gastrointestinal distress a bit, but the fact remains this week was the longest I have ever...
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I’m living in Peru. I’m 31 years old, and I’m an American. More to the point, I’m a Texan. I also happen to be violently ill from a stomach bug as I’m writing this. As nearly all Americans and some around the world are aware, the US government shut down this week as the...
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Korean people are the most common to find anywhere on the planet, with populations in the millions outside their home country. It should come as no surprise that I encountered a couple here in Peru, touring the Santa Catalina Monastery. When they asked my friend to take their picture, I had to be sure:...
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