First Grade Class Seeks Postcards!

The following is reposted from a real life friend who knows this class. Please consider sending them a postcard. It would mean so much to them to get postcards from all over the world!  Thanks.

Dear Parents,

This year I signed our class up for a postcard exchange with 100 different schools across the U.S. and its territories. Unfortunately, only 15 schools have mailed us postcards. I am reaching out to you for help. I am asking for any of you, that are willing, to post on your Facebook wall or make a request by e-mail to all of your contacts and ask them if they would be willing to send us a postcard for our class to receive. A postcard stamp is only 32 cents and a postcard can even be handmade. They would be sent to:

Melanie Morgan’s 1st Grade Class
Fort Sam Houston Elementary
3370 Nursery Rd.
Fort Sam Houston, TX 78234

The kids have been excited, enjoy getting new mail, and looking up the location on our map. We read the cards as a class, laminate them, and display them with our map. This has helped them greatly understand how HUGE the U.S. is. It is such an abstract concept and it makes it more concrete. Traditionally the postcards tell us about their state and/or town, something neat about that area, etc. Just a friendly greeting at this point would be nice as so many kiddos keep asking when “the rest” will come. I am very disappointed as I do these exchanges often and this year’s teachers weren’t reliable.

Thank you for the consideration and any help!

First Time Scammed: Cairo, Egypt

My husband and I never had to deal with avoiding scams before we had kids.  Vagabond travelers don't have enough money to be targeted.  When our first two kids were 4 years old and 4 months old respectively (back in 2005), we went on our first international trip to Europe and Egypt.  Going to Egypt with a little money (as opposed to a hobo budget) meant we could now try hotel and travel agency sponsored "tours" for the first time in our lives.  We had always seen tourists take "tours," and now we were in the position to try one to see the Great Pyramids.  Woohoo!

Our airport taxi driver took us to a modest hotel near a train station.  We didn't want anything too fancy, and this fit the bill.  The rooms had peeling paint, but good hot water, which fell smack dab in the range of "not awful, but not expensive either."  We should have known better than to let a taxi pick our hotel for us.  They all get kickbacks from hotels.

The next morning, the hotel owner tried his best to sell us tours to Giza.  None of them appealed to us, so we decided to go DIY after all.  Not to be dissuaded, the owner insisted, "Well, at least let me call you a taxi.  I know a driver who speaks English and can talk about some sights along the way."  We needed a cab ride anyway, so why not throw this guy some business?

Once you're inside someone else's car, you're pretty much at their mercy.  Usually, cab drivers are decent businessmen, and take you where you asked them to go.  But in Cairo, sometimes they take detours.

So our cab driver makes small talk and points out various landmarks in Cairo as we mosey along.  Then he casually says, "I know this great Papyrus Museum" on our way to Giza.  How about we stop there and let you take a look around.  They do a demonstration that the kids would enjoy, and the best part is, it's all free!"

We start to mumble no, but he pretended not to hear us.  Before we knew it, the cab had stopped, and we were shuffled into the "Papyrus Museum."   It was a store selling paintings on papyrus paper.  The store gave out free tea, which we drank.  They gave a quite entertaining demonstration on how papyrus paper is made, which the kids loved.  So now we feel we should buy something from the store in return for their great service.  I bought something cheap for US$10; this was the bottom of the barrel.  Later that afternoon, I saw the same "painting" sold by a street vendor for around US$ 50 cents.

Back in the cab, he asked if we had any particular interests on what we wanted at the Pyramids.  We said we wanted to see the Sphinx and our daughter had always dreamed of riding a camel at the Pyramids.   He exclaimed, "What luck!  I have friends who run a camel tour at the Pyramids.  I will take you to them!"

So off we went, on another detour.  He took us to a travel agency who gave us a great deal on touring the Pyramids and Giza by horse carriage, including a five minute camel ride.  We won't have to walk the huge park in the hot sun with the small children.  They will take us to the Pyramids and back, the same cab driver will return us to our hotel, and all expenses are included in the cheap package they were offering.  The package included entrance fees to the Pyramids, entrance fees to the Sphinx, and a video camera fee which the park charges.  We couldn't get a better deal doing it by ourselves.  They can, because it's their business.

So we made the deal, and paid the money.  Then they took us out back where they had a camel.  They put our 4 year old on the camel, and the camel began walking around in a small circle.  We protested, saying, "Oh no.  We want the camel ride to be at the Pyramids!"

"Oh, sorry.  We misunderstood.  Our camel is here.  But, don't worry, we have camels at the Pyramids too."

After five minutes of mind-numbing camel circles, we hopped into the horse carriage and were on our way to the Pyramids.  The carriage made its way around the park, where we could see other tourists in similar carriages as well as on foot.  The carriage had an overhead awning to protect from the sun, so the view was a bit restricted.  We could only see what was ahead, but couldn't see out the sides very well.

We asked when we could get out to wander the park.  The driver replied, "When we get closer to the pyramids, you can have 15 minutes to take pictures."  Right about now, we started to envy the tourists on foot, who are free to look at whatever they wanted as long as they wanted.  Yes, the park was big.  And the sun was hot.  But freedom is worth walking for.

When we did get our 15 minutes at the Pyramids, we had a great time exploring a bit.  We see a bunch of camel-ride vendors and paid for our girl to ride around the Pyramids on a camel.  (By now, we realized they didn't have camels at the Pyramids.)  She was ecstatic.  But as she was riding, our carriage driver started yelling furiously at the camel-ride vendor in Arabic.  The camel-ride vendor retreated, hanging his head. When we asked what that was about, he said, "Oh, you are my customers.  He knows he is not supposed to take business from my customers."  In other words, the camel-ride vendor was accused of poaching, even though he made my little girl's dream come true.  And the scumbags who gave her a camel ride in a dusty dirt parking lot resented it.

After the camel ride, we hopped back in the carriage to head towards the Sphinx.  We had traveled across an ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, only to get 15 minutes at the Great Pyramids of Giza.  What a colossal mistake that was.  But it wasn't as colossal as the next one.

For some reason, our 4 year old daughter was more fascinated by the Sphinx than by the Pyramids.  So we consoled ourselves that we would insist on spending more time at the Sphinx.  When we got there, the carriage parked outside the ticketing area.  The driver said, "There is the Sphinx.  You go in and take pictures.  Come back in five minutes."

"But we want more time."

"No, no.  Impossible.  Too many tourists.  You can't have more time.  Take picture.  Come back in five minutes."

Whatever.  We were going to take our time here.

So we take some pictures, and before we knew it, the driver was next to us.  "We go now."

"We want to stay longer.  Take pictures from the other side.  Look around.  Give us 10 more minutes at least."

"No, impossible.  The guards there will come and kick us out.  If you don't come, I will leave without you."  Sure, enough, the guards were giving us menacing looks.

Now at that point, we should have said, "Fine.  Leave."

But we didn't.  We left with him.  Those guards looked angry.

As the carriage turned around and we looked back at the Sphinx one last time, it dawned on me.  The driver did not pay for the entrance fees to see the Sphinx;  he had only paid a small bribe. That is why they were able to seemingly charge less than what we would pay for ourselves.  Now the bribe only allowed us to slip in to take a few quick pictures.  But it did not allow us to stay longer than five minutes and actually enjoy the Sphinx.   We had outstayed our non-fee-paying welcome. 

We were very upset by the time we returned to the travel agency, but unfortunately, did not know enough Arabic to tell them off properly.  We said, to the best of our ability, that we were angry with their lies, and that they were awful people.  I don't think they much cared.  If they had cared about the feelings of their marks, they wouldn't be in the scam business. 

The cab driver was silent on the way back.

The next morning, we checked out after we told the hotel owner we were very angry at the cab driver and the scam artists he took us to.  And that we would never come back to his hotel again.  Again, I don't think he much cared.

Oh, by the way, the parks do not charge any video camera fee.  That is a common scam that all the "travel agencies" repeat often so that tourists come to think it is true.  Another common scam is the many "Papyrus Museums" selling overpriced paintings near tourist destinations in Cairo.  We quickly learned that everyone near tourist traps in Cairo who spoke English was a scam artist of one kind or another.  One friendly English-speaking stranger told us the museum we were about to visit was closed for the afternoon, but could re-open in an hour.  Then, another friendly English-speaking stranger told us if we wanted, we could kill some time in this gemstone store he knew.  It was a very nice store featuring jewelry, and then we got offered tea.  We realized this was the "Papyrus Museum" scam, thanked them profusely, and left.  The museum was never closed.

So we learned our lesson.  Speak Arabic in Cairo.  Avoid English-speaking locals.  This rule alone made the rest of our stay in Egypt absolutely wonderful and scam-free.  We ended up spending another 2 weeks in Egypt, including going to Abu Simbel in Aswan, doing everything ourselves and exactly the way we like it.

Excellent article on how to enjoy the Pyramids for free here.

Traveling During a Peruvian "Paro"

Peru is usually a very friendly and politically stable tourist destination.  But sometimes Peruvians get mad at their government, just like everyone else.  When they cannot get the government to take their grievances seriously, sometimes they resort to protests called a huelga (strike) or a paro (stop).  The goal is to stop all transportation in a certain area to force the government to negotiate.  Protesters block all major roads with broken glass and rocks, burn tires at the road blocks, and throw stones to break windows of all vehicles attempting to "scab" the strike. Most paros are 24 hours or 48 hours long and announced ahead of time so people can plan accordingly.  Sometimes the paro doesn't go well and becomes extended indefinitely. 

The Panamerican Hwy blocked by a semi-truck at the Cañete paro.

This is not something they do lightly.   Tear gas is used frequently on crowds, and it is not unusual for policemen to shoot and kill protesters.  Recent paros have largely been about foreign-owned mines contaminating water sources and exploiting the local workforce, but there is a paro now in Cañete protesting the construction of a second prison, which locals believe would increase crime rates even more than the first prison did.

When transportation is stopped, it is stopped.  Buses and cars form lines kilometers long behind road blockages made of broken glass and rocks.  And you can end up sitting in a hot bus at the roadblock for the entire length of the paro, be it 24 or 48 hours or more.  The roads are filled with pedestrians, because everyone now has to walk wherever they need to go.  It is important to note that Peruvian paros do not prohibit traveling on foot. Depending on the paro, they will sometimes even overlook motorcycles, mototaxis, and bicycles if they use the backroads.

What's a traveler to do if he or she is stuck in a paro?  One has two simple choices:  keep moving ahead or stay put.  If you can afford the time, I would recommend finding the nearest hotel outside of the strike area and enjoying local attractions until it is over.  Traveling through a paro is not entirely pleasant or risk-free.

In September 2011, my kids and I were traveling from the Lima province to Arica, Chile when the bus stopped in Moquegua and told us it wasn't moving on because of a paro ahead.  We could either sit in the bus, get a hotel room in Moquegua (at our own expense of course) and finish the trip the next day, or continue traveling on our own.  After consulting my kids who mostly voted for "adventure," we decided to try to push through the paro.

I asked around and found a taxi who would take us to the edge of the strike zone in a town called Camiara.  He told us that all we had to do is walk about 30 minutes through the strike zone, and there will be taxis on the other side of Camiara.  He even promised us that he would call the other taxis on his cell phone once we got there. That sounded easy enough, so off we went. 

When we arrived at the strike zone, he tried calling somebody, but there was no answer. In hindsight, I think he would have promised anything to get us into his taxi.  Live and learn.  Our taxi drove on the shoulder past kilometers of buses and cars waiting in line to get us to the actual roadblock.  We got out with our wheeled luggage and started walking around the broken glass and rocks.  Eventually, the debris was too thick to walk around.  We had to lift our luggage off the road entirely and guide the kids carefully over the debris.  After about 20 minutes we got to the other side of the debris field into Camiara.

There were no taxis waiting for us.

There were buses of hundreds of angry protesters shouting and chanting.  There were crowds of travelers camped out on sidewalks and parks, waiting for it all to be over.  It turns out the paro was not just in Camiara, but all the way to Tacna, the last Peruvian city bordering Chile, about 83 kilometers away.  Eighty-three kilometers of desolate desert.  Everyone told me to spend the night on the street in Camiara and wait for the paro to be over.  But we didn't leave the nice city of Moquegua to be stuck in a small town with no hotels; we had voted for "adventure."  I'd like to say we bravely went off into the desert, walking.  That was our intent.

Actually, we only took five steps towards leaving town before we saw a car going the same way.  I waved it down and asked if he could take some passengers to Tacna.  He said he would for 100 soles for our party of 2 adults and 3 children; we took the entire backseat of the car.  This is about double the usual carfare to Tacna, but beggars can't be choosers.  We were lucky to have met this guy to begin with.  Price gouging is a pretty regular phenomenon in Peru, after all.   Also he asked for the fare up front, which is very unusual in Peru.  Here, you always pay when you get to the destination--except during a paro, apparently.

Because the main Panamerican Hwy was blocked by protesters, the driver took mostly backroads that he happened to know quite well.  We were lucky he had been "scabbing" all day long to make an extra buck and knew exactly where the road blocks were.  At one point, one of the dirt backroads he had taken earlier in the day was in the process of being blocked when we reached it.  He quickly plowed right through before we could be stopped.  Going through the way we did could have resulted in an accident, but we were lucky.  Again.

The car we were in was already carrying 3 adult passengers and 3 kids.  Along the way, we saw so many desperate people walking and needing a ride that the driver decided to squeeze one more adult into the backseat with us.  She was an older woman who had been walking since dawn through the desert from Camiara.  The kids moved onto our laps, and away we went, packed like sardines.

About seven kilometers outside of Tacna, there was a new roadblock with rocks and burning tires.  There was a small mob of protesters threatening to break the windshields of all vehicles that attempted to pass.  Every single car taking passengers dropped everyone off and u-turned.   I tried to get some of my money back since we didn't get all the way to Tacna, but that was unsuccessful.   Mostly I just wanted to lodge my grievance.  Now I understand why he wanted the money upfront; we were paying him for the attempt to transport, not for successful completion of travel since he knew that could not be guaranteed in a paro.

I put the littlest kid on my shoulders, everyone else took a piece of luggage, and off we went walking on the desert highway.   It was hot, but fortunately, we had packed plenty of drinks in Camiara before we left.  One of my kids didn't have good walking shoes, but other than that, we had a pretty uneventful walk for about an hour.  I was very glad to have packed lightly.

We came across an empty taxi venturing out of Tacna to check out road conditions ahead.  After telling him about the road block we had just come from, we pedestrians begged him to give us a ride back to Tacna.  Again at double the normal prices, he relented, and again, we all packed in like sardines, squeezing as many people we can into the vehicle.   He got us all the way to the entrance of Tacna, where there were marchers with banners.  We walked past the marchers; once inside the city, there were plenty of local taxis.  There was no paro inside Tacna.

Going across the border was different.  There were no buses, only a few colectivos (shared taxis) who would take us to the border crossing itself.  They said we would have to look for Chilean colectivos on the other side of the border, that no Peruvian vehicles were allowed to cross during the paro.  Again, for double the normal price, we hired a colectivo and pushed on.

Once in Chile, of course, everything was normal.  It appeared most Chileans in Arica didn't even know about the huge disruption to transportation on the other side of the border.  We got to our reserved lodging late, but we got there.  We were lucky we didn't have to go through any protester/police confrontations.

In summary, it is entirely possible, though somewhat risky and expensive, to travel through a paro.  Depending on how large the strike zone is, be prepared to do a lot of walking.  Here is what I would recommend:

1.  Travel light.  Walking for kilometers and kilometers with heavy luggage is a pain. 
2.  Bring snacks and plenty of water for your walk.
3.  Bring comfortable walking shoes.
4.  Bring lots of money to bribe "scabs" to give you rides whenever you can, piecemeal-like.
5.  Avoid large protesting crowds, because they attract police, and that usually doesn't go well in Peru.  Tear gas bites. 
6.  It is easier to be robbed on foot, so don't take out any electronics unless you absolutely have to. 

Having a vial of Felix Felicis wouldn't hurt either.

San Pedro de Atacama, Chile (Sep 2010)

After crossing the entire southern Peru (by bus) and the border into Chile, we spent a day in Arica looking for a rental car to drive to San Pedro de Atacama.  It turns out that many Chilean rental cars are licensed for only one province only and not allowed to cross provincial lines.  The few which are allowed were quite expensive.  To be fair, it was a Sunday, and our options were limited to begin with.  We decided to take a bus to Calama (100 kms from San Pedro) and rent a car there.

The best place we found for car rentals was not surprisingly, the Calama airport, which was conveniently on the way to San Pedro.  All rental cars had standard transmissions, which meant my husband had to drive.  I had never learned to drive stick.  But no matter.  Renting that car was the best decision we made on this trip.  Our own car gave us the freedom to visit whichever sites we wished on our own schedule, which is invaluable with kids. 

Driving in the Atacama Desert

San Pedro de Atacama is unfortunately, a tourist trap in the middle of a gorgeous desert.  But what a very worthy tourist trap it is.  We spent two days hiking in the ruins of Pukara de Quitor, hiking in the canyons of Valley of the Moon, splashing in our private hot spring pool in Termas de Puritama, and attending a wonderful "Space Tour" where we got to look at the clear desert night sky (at 2200 meters in altitude) with butt-kicking telescopes.  All activities were very engaging for the kids.

There were a lot more things to do and see, but being on a budget, we had to pick and choose.   The kids had originally wanted to see the Tatio Geysers, but after learning that required getting up at 3 or 4 am in the bitter cold, we decided to skip it.  All in all, we were quite pleased with the activities we chose.

1.  Pukara de Quitor.   

Ruins of Pukara de Quitor, looking uphill.

Only 3 km from San Pedro, this is the ruins of a 700 year old fort built into the side of a large hill.  It was fun for the kids to climb all the way to the summit.  The park fees of $4,000 pesos ($8) a person were a bit steep for looking at a bunch of old bricks, but the view at the summit was quite spectacular. 

2.  Valley of the Moon (Valle de la Luna)

Hiking in the Valley of the Moon

Only 17 km from San Pedro, the Valley of the Moon park had beautiful, rust-colored canyons and singular rock formations.   

It has two hiking trails that were breathtaking as well as fun to climb.  One trail had a section that was in complete darkness, so you have to come prepared with a flashlight.  The other took us climbing rock after rock up and down and all over the place.  It was a great outdoors activity for the entire family.


At the end of the day, all the tourists converged and climbed a giant sand dune to watch a spectacular sunset.  Each site at this park was driving distance from each other.  Having our own transportation allowed us to take our time with the kids on each hiking trail and move along at our own pace.  Park fees are $2,000 pesos (US$4).

3.  Termas de Puritama

Picnic area, changing rooms, and hot pools

This was by far our favorite attraction at San Pedro.  Well actually, it is about a 45 minute drive from San Pedro (32 km uphill).

There are 8 cozy pools of hot springs, heated by volcanic activity.  If there aren't a lot of people, each party can enjoy its own private heated pool of crystal clear water.  The entrance fee are $11,000 pesos (roughly US$22) for adults, $5,000 pesos (US$10) for children.  But it's good for the whole day.  We went mid-morning and enjoyed our pool all to ourselves until 4:00 pm, complete with a picnic lunch we brought with us.  (At around 4 pm, the bugs start to come out.)

Word to the wise, bring plenty of towels and bathrobes if possible (they do not provide any).  Although the pool is warm, the wind is icy and fierce up there.  We thought we would die of cold every time we had to get out.  And bring plenty of sunblock.  At 3,500 meters in altitude, one burns much more easily than normal. 

4.  The SPACE Tour

The SPACE Tour is operated by a French amateur astronomer named Alain Maury who lives near San Pedro.  His business has an office in town (just ask around) where you can purchase tickets.  A bus takes all the participants to his lodge a few minutes away, where he gives an hour long chat about stars and star gazing.  Then the real fun begins.  Outside his lodge are about 10 large telescopes all pointed at something amazing in the night sky.  After a brief tour through all the scopes, it is free for all.  The kids had a fantastic time looking at their favorite sky objects over and over again.  The 2.5 hour tour costs $15,000 pesos (US$30.00); kids are half-price. 

5. Lodging and food

Most of the lodging in San Pedro is very expensive.  We found a very modest but nice place (El Rincon San Pedrino) on the main street (Licancabur St.) for about US$30 a night for a double bed with private bath.  You can negotiate lower prices for rooms with shared baths.  It has an enclosed parking space for private vehicles.

Food is likewise on the pricey side.  But we found several restaurants with "menus"  (daily specials) for around US$6 a meal.  We never ventured that far, but we heard there were food stalls with meals for half that price at the end of the street at the main bus terminals.  We also learned to buy bread and lunchmeat at local stores for breakfast sandwiches, which saved a bundle.

Approximate cost of trip for a family of 2 adults and 3 kids for 2 days and 2 nights to visit 4 attractions near San Pedro de Atacama (from Calama, Chile):  $530.   Estimate of costs are all in US dollars.

(Our youngest child was usually free at attractions, and the 2 older kids were half-priced, so entrance fees usually cost the equivalent of 3 adult tickets.)

Car rental: 2 days $50 + gas $20 = $70

Lodging:  $30 x 2 rooms x 2 nights = $120

Food:  $15/person x 2 days x 5 persons =  $150

SPACE tour:  $30 x 3 = $90

Valley of the Moon Park fees:  $4 x 3 = $12

Pukara de Quitor:  $8 x 3 = $24

Termas de Puritama:  $22 x 2 adults + $10 x 2 kids = $64

Machu Picchu (Part 7): Kids

Not bad going down, but imagine climbing those steps up.

I'll let you know right up front, Machu Picchu is not a kid-friendly place.  Unless a child is very interested in archaeology, there isn't much to do but climb, climb, climb.   It is a mountaintop with steep, stone steps (photo on right).  No modern construction is allowed at the ruins, so there are no railings, no benches, and most importantly, no bathrooms.  An adult might no mind so much, but kids tend to need their bathrooms close by.

Nonetheless, the entire family can have a great time if you prepare well. Having brought my kids there twice, I would recommend the following.

1.  Bathroom.  The only bathrooms are outside the entry gate to the ruins.  They cost 1 sole per person.  A mom can go in with several kids on one ticket. Make sure they all go before going into the ruins.  Once you're at the ruins, it is about a 10-15 minute walk to go back out to the gate, if you need to use the bathroom again.  Small children might want to wear pull-ups, just in case.

2.  1:1 adult to kid ratio.  Machu Picchu is all about rigorous mountain hiking.  I strongly advise bringing one adult for every child visiting, so every child is holding the hand of an adult.  Some places are so narrow that only one person with one child can fit on the path.  An adult would be hard-pressed to guide two children on both sides.  Also, younger children would need a lot of rest.  An adult can stay with them to move at their own pace while the older kids are free to explore faster.

Inca Bridge Trail at Machu Picchu.

3.  Inca Bridge Trail (on left).  The Incans built a trail onto the side of a cliff.  The 40 minute trail (20 minutes one way)  is one of the must-see marvels of Machu Picchu, but it is precipitous.  You have to sign in a guestbook before starting the trail, so that if you fall off the cliff and don't show back up to sign out, they at least know who you were.  There is no age restrictions, but children are asked to hold hands with an adult at all times.  Once you see the trail, and the cliff, you won't need to be asked.



4.  Altitude.  At 2200 meters, Machu Picchu can be quite a strain on the young ones or those who are not in good shape.  It might be worth one's while to acclimate for 2-3 days in Cusco before attempting hiking at that altitude.

5.  Food/Drink.  You're not allowed to bring food into the ruins, but they don't check your backpack.  You should bring fruit, drinks, or other snacks for the kids.  Trust me, after climbing for a few hours, they will be hungry and thirsty.  Security might ask you to put the food away, so look for a place that is not highly trafficked to pull out your snack and drink.  Bring food that won't leave crumbs; banana is good, potato chips is bad.   For a lunch, walking all the way outside the gates to eat is a good idea.

6.  Short trip.  It is so expensive to go to Machu Picchu that it is tempting for adults to want to stay there all day to get their money's worth.  When going with kids though, they will get bored and/or tired after a few hours.  Consider only taking a short trip to MP when visiting with kids, say 4 or 5 hours instead of 10.  They'll have more fun and better memories.

7.  Playing cards or light toys.  It is a good idea to have something to play with when they are resting.

8.  Parque Urpicha in Cusco.  With the exception of Pompeii, Italy, I've found that while my kids like ancient ruins well enough, but they don't usually love them.  So it is nice to combine the trip with something they do love to do.  When in Cusco, you can take them to a park with giant slides called Parque Urpicha.  Entry fees are only 50 centimos per kid, and 1 or 2 soles per adult.  They also have manual carnival-style rides, where an adult can spin them around endlessly in helicopters and such.

Parque Urpicha.  Water slide without the water at the bottom.

Parque Urpicha.  Hand-powered carnival rides.  Ingenious.

This concludes the Machu Picchu series.  Happy, cheap traveling!

Machu Picchu (Part 6): Food

First, before I forget, you don't tip waiters at Peruvian restaurants.  The fancier ones (American franchises like "Chilis") do expect a 10% tip.  But in regular restaurants, it is not expected. 

Peruvian restaurants (for locals) serve a daily special called the "Menu."  They make a big pot of several dishes and serve them cheap.  The "Menu" usually consists of an appetizer called "la entrada" and a main course called "el segundo" (for second course) or "plato de fondo" (main course).  They usually throw in a free drink (watered-down juice or koolaid), but they often won't serve it if you order a soda or other drink.   At nicer restaurants, the Menu will include a dessert as well.

In low rent restaurants, you have no choice regarding the Menu--you get what they made that day.  Normally though, you get to choose amongst 2 or 3 appetizers and 2-5 main courses.  The dessert, if included, is usually something cheap like "mazamorra," a fruit-flavored pudding thickened with potato flour.

On the low end, a Menu can be found for as little as three to four soles (a little over a buck).  I guarantee you it will taste like someone's leftovers from 2 days ago.  Normally, a decent Menu will cost around six to 10 soles, depending on location.  At tourist traps like Aguas Calientes (or Machu Picchu Pueblo), Menus are double, averaging 20 soles.

If you don't want the Menu, you can always order a dish cooked to order (a la carta).  Those are usually much more expensive, double or triple the Menu price.  Even at budget places, a la carta offerings start at 15 soles a plate.

A word to the wise to those who are concerned about what they feed to their kids:  ALL Peruvian restaurants load their food with MSG, known locally as "Ajinomoto" (the Japanese manufacturer of MSG).  In fact, Peruvians buy MSG by the kilos and use it liberally.  Sometimes, if the budget allows, I will order "a la carta" and ask for no salt and no "ajinomoto."

Why no salt?  All Peruvian salt is fluoridated with 2 ppm fluoride.  I'm not a big fluoride fan.  

The prices I listed for the itineraries are for Menus in local eateries.  For fancier restaurants and better quality dining, obviously, the budget has to be bigger.

Common Peruvian main dishes

Peruvians LOVE potatoes and rice, and often eat both together.   Be prepared for a generous serving of carbohydrates with relatively little meat (compared to what North Americans are accustomed to).  Here are a few dishes I would recommend trying to get a good sense of what Peruvian cuisine is like.

Ceviche
This is perhaps the national dish of Peru.  It is raw fish chunks and other seafood cooked gently in lime juice, marinated with peppers and spices, served with toasted corn kernels and boiled yam.  Absolutely delicious.

Anticucho
Beef heart kebabs served with potatoes.  (Sometimes they make it with chicken.)  Great food to go on sticks.

Seco de res / pollo / carnero

Meat (beef /chicken / lamb) stew with potatoes, carrots, and peas in green sauce (they call it "jugo") made of cilantro and spinach.  Served with rice.  Sometimes beans as well.

Estofado de res / pollo
Meat stew (beef / chicken) with potatoes, carrots, and peas in red sauce made with reddish pepper ("aji colorado," not spicy).  Served with rice.

Cau-cau
Beef tripe stew with cubed potatoes in yellow sauce made with yellow Peruvian peppers ("aji amarillo").   Served with rice.

Sopa seca con Carapulcra
Peruvian spaghetti with chicken or pork in red sauce (annatto, panca).  It is usually served with a side dish called Carapulcra, made of peanuts and dehydrated potatoes.

The list can go on, but those are quite representative of local cuisine.

Cusco

If staying in a reasonably priced place on Calle Nueva Baja near the Plaza de Armas, my favorite restaurant is on the corner of Nueva Baja and San Andres (I believe).  It is a typical "menu" restaurant (6 soles a menu) where locals eat.  But the prices are good, and the food isn't bad.

If possible, try to buy your bottled water in Cusco.  The prices for the same bottles double once you get to Machu Picchu Pueblo.

Machu Picchu Pueblo (aka Aguas Calientes)

2nd Floor of market: food stalls

Best kept secret of MPP:  Eat at the market.  Above the central market (Mercado) of MPP, is a market of food stalls where Peruvian workers eat.  They are cheap (5 soles for breakfast, 5 soles for lunch) and the service is great--even if you have to sit on stools to eat.  I tried some of the fancier restaurants, but only felt ripped off.  Plus they automatically charge a 10% gratuity.  No, thanks.

At the market stalls, a cup of delicious hot coffee is included in the 5 sol breakfasts.  And refills are only 1 sol each.  Contrast that with 20 sol breakfasts where they charge 3 sols for each refill.  No, thanks.

While I am talking about the market, it is a good place to shop for the ingredients of your picnic lunch.

When going up to Machu Picchu, either take a picnic lunch, or plan to return for lunch.  On top of the mountain, there are only two restaurants.  The first is a US$35 buffet at Sanctuary Lodge, and the other is a hamburger booth that sells burgers and sandwiches for 15 to 20 soles.  Now you're not allowed to eat at the ruins, so when you picnic, you need to come out of the park to eat.  But there are benches near the hamburger joint.  It is also a convenient time for a bathroom break.

Arequipa

Arequipa has a fairly large well-to-do population and a lot of fancy eateries.  They also have to-die-for anticuchos.  You can find Menu restaurants and Anticucherias all over the place.

But when I was last in Arequipa, I discovered my favorite restaurant in all of Peru.  It is called "Picanteria El Misti."  I forget the address, but all taxis know where it is.  The food is expensive (24 to 50 soles a plate), but the portions are humongous.  I kid you not.  Hu-mon-gous.   Order one dish for 2 or 3 people--or 4 people.   Or be prepared to eat the leftovers for days.  But gosh darn it, the food is like heaven, so I didn't mind eating leftovers for days.

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I know budget dining is not for everyone.  But it is more than possible to spend only 20 soles ($7.5) a day per person on food, even while eating out three meals a day.  Peru is one of the countries where food is exceptionally cheap compared to that in western countries.

Machu Picchu (Part 5): Lodging

Lodging

First, a note on hotel lingo in Peru.

Simple = 1 twin size bed
Doble = 2 twin size beds
Matrimonial = 1 double size bed
Triple = 3 twins or 1 double + 1 twin


1. Lima

Assuming that you are already in Lima before the MP trip, I have not included costs and lodging in Lima as part of the tip.  Touring Lima itself will be a separate post.

However, here are three lodging options I have tried in Lima.  They all have good hot water and take credit cards.
a.  Golden Tower Hotel and Suites.  In a safe area of Lima, near many shopping opportunities and restaurants.  A matrimonial costs S/. 90.00 a night.  Because of the location, this is my favorite place to stay in Lima.
b.  El Principe.  Near the airport.  That area is seen as in a slightly more dangerous area of town, but we never had trouble.  A matrimonial costs about S/. 80.00 a night.  The list price on their website is $45, but you can negotiate that.
c.  Inkari Suites.  In a safe, middle to upper class neighborhood in Lima, near a couple of restaurants but no shopping.  A matrimonial costs S/. 150.00 a night, but their double size beds are usually queen-sized.  This is the most luxurious hotel I've used, with a jacuzzi tub in every room--and the best bang for the buck I have found in Lima.   I believe that some of my money was stolen when I put it in the room's safe.  They have since had a complete staff turnover, so I have stayed there since with no problems.  (I won't use room safes anymore though.)

There are plenty of budget hotels in Lima that charge S/. 40.00 - 60.00 a night that are pleasant and safe.  I stay at the pricier ones because whenever I go to Lima, I have certain errands to run.  I pay a premium for location.

2.  Cusco

With 1.5 million tourists passing through in 2010, Cusco has a large variety of hotels to suit all budgets.   Budget hostels ("hostal") usually run around S/. 60 - 75 a night for a matrimonial (double bed).

a.  Hostal Imperial II, on Calle Nueva Baja 474 (clever.ken@hotmail.com, Phone:  51-84-631619, no website).  This is my favorite place to stay in Cusco.  It is centrally located at walking distance near the train station and the central market, as well as the Plaza de Armas (central town square).

b.  Hostal Quipu, on Calle Fierro 495.  Very similar to Hostal Imperial II, but a little farther up a hilly street.  It's a good place to stay, but at 3,400 meters in altitude, hilly streets can take their toll on you. 

3.  Machu Picchu Pueblo

The municipality of Machu Picchu has a fairly comprehensive list of lodging options.  Again, prices range from S/. 40.00 a night at budget hostels to hundreds of dollars at luxury hotels.  Most of the budget hostels are within a block or two from the Plaza de Armas.  This is good, because the other hotels may be more luxurious, but the walk is all uphill from the Plaza.  Believe me, the average middle-aged parent with kids would want to keep the mountain climbing to a minimum.

Unfortunately, I have given the hostel business cards I collected at MPP away to other travelers.  This was before I knew I was going to have a travel blog.  In low season, it wouldn't be hard to simply show up, ask around, and find something between S/. 40.00 and S/. 70.00 a night. 

This year, we stayed at Hostal Angies which was very nice--until we left.  Some of us left with fleas, while others were ok.  So, not every room was visited by their pet dog.  But also, not recommended.