We didn’t really go out and explore. We mostly slept in and planned/booked our passages to Machu Picchu.
We don't feel too bad for not spending a lot of time in Lima or that we spent more than half the day inside the hostel because we're coming back to Lima 3/4 days before we fly back to SF anyways. We figured we'd look around and be tourists then.
There was a lot of snoring and you could hear the street noises all night. I had to get up in the middle of the night to get my headphones because I just couldn’t sleep. Managed to eventually fall asleep but woke up around 8 and then again at 9 and finally at 1030. We got up and had breakfast at 1130. The view from our hostel window is nice but super noisy..
After breakfast we went downstairs to talk to the in-hostel travel agent about making our way to Cusco and eventually to Machu Picchu. We talked to the lady for such a long time asking about bus options, train options and date options. We booked our 21hr overnight bus from Lima to Cusco. The bus is pretty nice. Its got seats that recline fairly low, they serve us drinks and food and there’s an entertainment system on the back of the chairs. At least that’s what we were promised and that’s what is on their brochure. After we bought that ticket we were trying to find the best way to get from Cusco to Machu Picchu. Turns out a lot of stuff were booked for roundtrip stuff so we had to book a one way 4hr train ride from Cusco to Aguas Calientes (the town next to Machu Picchu). Then check into our hostel and from there hike up to Machu Picchu on that same day. Spend a day exploring the town and leaving the next day after that. Which means another 4hr train ride back to Cusco and spending a day or two there.
- Lima to Cusco 21hr bus ride = $65
- Cusco to Aguas Calientes 4hr train ride = $80
- Machu Picchu entrance ticket = $60
- Aguas Calientes to Cusco 4hr train ride = $95 (only available one, supposed to be better than the previous train)
Getting to and from Machu Picchu is by far going to be the most expensive thing we pay for on this trip! We needed to get more cash so we crossed the street to the atms. There were official money exchangers all standing around and people were coming up to them and exchanging money right on the street. Never seen that before.. They were official because they wore these blue vests that had some Spanish written on it and the type of currency they took. Plus there were cops around so we felt it was safe enough.
We then booked our hostel for Cusco which was super easy since the hostel we're in now is called Pariwana Lima and our hostel for Cusco is called Pariwana Cusco. The people at the front desk did it for us. Lu also mentioned that Pariwana sounds a lot like marijuana. Of course it does. Tonight's theme in the hostel is Pirate Party so some staff members were wearing pirate hats and the bar/restaurant area was decorated accordingly. That's Lu and I sitting.
After all this booking business was done we went back upstairs and did some online research and after that we ate a late lunch/early dinner at the hostel. It was so cheap! I ordered the lomo saltado which is meat, onions, tomatoes and aji chili with French fries and rice. It was amazing! Their mayo tastes different too. There’s something even better they added to it. Lu and Katriz got the bisteac a la pobre. Each plate was around $4 and each juice was about $3. And the juice was fresh. How do we know? Because the bartender was cutting up the mangos and it was the smoothest and tastiest mango juice I’ve ever had. Lu got pineapple juice and Katriz got passion fruit juice. Needless to say we scarfed down our food!
We decided to leave the hostel and walk around the area for a bit. We went into the Saga Fallabella which looked like a mall. I guess it’s their version of a mall. There were 3 floors and it was circular. It looked like a Macy’s with counters for different stores everywhere. We left after we got back to the main floor. We were trying to find a local mart but in the end we never found one. We were looking for a lock and a flashlight. We kept going in and out of any store that looked like they might have it. We went to this one store that had school/office supplies on the main floor and then turned into a toy store on the 2nd floor.
We played with some masks before continuing on our hunt. We even went to a small museum. It was alright. We went and “attended” mass. We were there for a whole 5mins. It was packed. There was a wedding going on next door. Went back to the hostel. Showered and Lu and I tried to find a good stream for the 49ers vs Texans game but was unsuccessful. The game would stall, lag or cut out every now and again. I think because there were too many people online. While we were trying to watch the game, Katriz went back to the church and tried to attend mass but instead attended the wedding. So now we’re all just chillin in bed since none of us want to go out or socialize since we’re leaving tomorrow anyways and we have a 21hr bus ride to look forward to =]
