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"Even the Peruvians were embarrassed..."
Mar. 30th, 2014 03:40 pmPeru -- Country Number Eleven for me! First time in South America, first time south of the Equator, first time eating... but we'll get to that. My usual vacation habit of one post a day couldn't hold up against spotty internet service, but now we're at the Lima Ramada Airport Hotel (right next to the Airport -- just walk out the doors marked NO EXIT), so here goes:
The whole country uses septic tanks, and nobody has septic-tank-safe TP, so you have to put your wipings in a little bin next to the toilet. When my paranormal teen romance novel is greenlit by Hollywood, I will use my newfound wealth to bring biodegradable toilet paper to Peru and end these good people's suffering.
- Day 1: I left some breathing room in my schedule, and stayed in Fort Lauderdale for one night. Note to self: when spending ANY time in Fort Lauderdale, rent a car. Hotel had an airport shuttle but was Middle of Nowhere, over a mile to reach even a degraded sign of civilization such as a McDonald's. This will all be gone when the ice caps melt.
- Day 2: Flight from FLL to LIM on Jet Blue. Mostly because I didn't want to stay at the dingy hotel any longer, I got at the airport way too early. To entertain myself, I pulled out my Nook and buried myself in Susan Cooper's the Grey King -- a bit too deep, since when I looked up at the end of chapter 14, my small bag was gone. Barely controlling my panic, I asked the lady sitting next to me if she'd seen anything. "No," she said, "but you should probably check with the gate agent, they have a lost and found." As I approached the gate station, the agent smiled and said, "You noticed your bag was missing, didn't ya?" That's it. I'm never reading again.
Flight was nice, but instead of eating my apple and memorizing my script, I spent the whole time gabbing with the woman in the window seat. Her name is Dora, and she's the widow of a diplomat, and the mother of two more diplomats -- clearly NOT from the bottom rungs of Peruvian society, but by the same token with lots of fascinating stories about her world travels as well as her childhood on a rural ranch.
You can imagine my surprise when, at customs, I was pulled out of the line by a suspicious agent. Turns out it was the apple I didn't eat. You're not allowed to bring apples to Peru.
- Day 3: Dave and Sharon arrived after midnight, and we all had a late dinner at McDonalds. When you're traveling overseas, you're required to eat at McDonalds at least one, and it's best to get it out of the way. Then off on a short flight to Cuzco, which would proabably have been terrifying if I had been able to stay awake.
Cuzco is fascinating, with layers and layers of history (i.e. cruelty, injustice and opression) made visible -- jaw-dropping pre-Conquest walls and foundations topped by nutcase rococco Spanish buildings which are now filled with Bembo's and similar offerings. Bembo's has interesting toppings on its burgers, but the meat is incredibly bland minced beef. We ate there too. And then zoned out from lack of sleep and lack of oxygen... but we did get up and go out to dinner where we ate... but that can wait...
The whole country uses septic tanks, and nobody has septic-tank-safe TP, so you have to put your wipings in a little bin next to the toilet. When my paranormal teen romance novel is greenlit by Hollywood, I will use my newfound wealth to bring biodegradable toilet paper to Peru and end these good people's suffering.
