BEST 24 Hours EVER

So a lot has happened since we blogged last.

We returned to Machu Pîcchu and hiked Waynapicchu, which is the mountain you see in the background of all of the pictures. Despite our sore legs from the previous day´s hike, we managed to scale yet another mountain. And, again, the view was well worth it. We´ll have pictures that we´ll later post, but as you can imagine, they will not do it justice. You MUST see it to believe it. Here are a few of our photos to give you an idea:

After the hike, we walked back down to Aguas Calientes, and caught the train back to Cusco. We had dinner at an Irish pub (very Peruvian, I know) and followed it up with drinks at Mama Africas after being harrassed on the street to "Come to Africa..." It is true what they say about having a drink at a high altitude. You get a lot more bang for your buck, or in this case, sol.

Today, we woke up and realized we could no longer walk. So, we decided we would let someone else do the walking for us. We rented two (of what must be, the WORLD'S SMALLEST) horses and galloped around the Incan ruins surrounding Cusco. One of the ruins is pronounced like "sexy woman," which was sort of entertaining to have numerous individuals ask you if you wanted to see thee "sexy woman."

A quick flight to Puno and we dropped our stuff off at the hotel. It turns out that today is CARNIVAL! So we walked around and checked out the dancing, parades, and silly string that every child on the street seems to have a huge can of. We are just returning from a delicious dinner of trout straight from Lake Titicaca. Tomorrow, it's off to the Lake, where we'll spend a night on an island, so we'll be back online in a few days.

We´re off to continue in the CARNIVAL celebration.

P.S. Phillip, we´ve seen llots of llamas and we llove them.

BEST Cure for Altitude Sickness EVER

After arriving in Cusco yesterday, we realized we could not catch our breath. As the night progressed, we had pounded headaches, rapido heart beats, and felt generally ill. It turns out that Cusco has an insane elevation that is fit for only llamas and sherpas, neither of which we were.

Today, we travelled to Aquas Calientes (in spanish "hot waters") and then went up to Machu Picchu. We were wandering around the trails and took one labeled Montana Machu Picchu. Being the experienced and foolish hikers we are, we ascended up the Montana (which is not flat like the state, rather very steep) rather quickly. After two hours of hiking we came to a flag staked at the very top and realized that we had scaled one of the Andes. All in a days work.

The best part was that we realized that we had overcome our altitude sickness. It turns out rather than meds or rest, what you need to do is go gonzo on a Mountain, gaining as much height as possible in the shortest period of time you can.

Anyway, since our legs were quivering after the hike, we stopped into the thermal springs here in Aquas Calientes. If you have never gone to any thermal springs, they are not the most hygenic experience you will ever have. The hot water felt great on our sore muscles, but we will not be reporting this part of the adventure back to the travel nurse.

Tomorrow, we return to hike more of Machu Picchu, which apparently is not currently considered a wonder of the world. However, they have a very aggressive campaign here in Aquas Calientes, and we are sure that if you visit www.n7w.com, you can make a difference. They are VERY concerned about this, as we have seen about 9 billion signs proclaiming that we should "votemos por machupicchu maravilla del mundo."

After the morning at Machu Picchu, where we will hike Waynapicchu, a slightly shorter mountain than Montana (see photo to the right), we return to Cusco and are going to look into a horseback ride around some Incan ruins. We will keep you posted.

Buenas noches.

BEST Welcome to the Jungle EVER

So we have made it into the jungle and back without catching malaria, yellow fever, or any other weird tropical diseases. That we know of.

We knew we would be in for an adventure when we got on the bus with our tour group and our guide said, "Welcome to the Jungle." Moments later, he told us that when we arrived at the lodge, there would be a nice glass of jungle juice for each of us. At which point, we looked at each other and mouthed, "AWESOME!"

The bus took us to the office to unpack a few items, repack in duffle bags, and grab some gumboots. They were emphatic about the gumboots and we soon found out why. If you ever are heading out to Sandoval Lodge, you take a bus from the office, a motorboat across Madre de Dios for forty-five minutes, hike 3 km through the rainforest, and then take a canoe across Lake Sandoval. The lodge is on your left by the cayman area. You cannot miss it.

Getting there was not so bad, except they had nonstop rain for the past month and we found ourselves wading through 8 inches of water and muck more than hiking. Fortunately, we listened to the instructions and wore the mandatory gumboots, so it was manageable. We cannot say the same for the rest of our group. The Israeli couple with us opted for sandals, which as it turns out, do not hold up so well in standing water. Better yet, 1 km into the hike, he discarded the sandals and walked through god-knows-what barefoot. Our guide was not entertained. We, however, were, as we sung under our breath "George, George, George of the Jungle." Keep in mind, this couple that "roughed it" also requested a rickshaw trip on the way back to the office after our stay.

The rest of the trip was fun. It turns out, we were the youngest people by 30 years at the lodge. And, despite the promise of jungle juice when we arrived at the lodge, we were disappointed to find that it did not consist of very liquor known to man and served from a garbage can. Sensing our confusion, we explained to the guides what jungle juice means in the United States. Especially in the universities in the United States.

Unfotunately, we were plagued by rain for most of the time, but managed to take a few side trips here and there. One rainy afternoon, they put on a video about otters in the lodge. While the old people sat and oohed and ahhed over the video, we staged what will be known as the Otter Rebellion of 2007. About 10 minutes into the video, we quietly approached our guide and begged him to take us anywhere. Meanwhile, the other tourists stayed glued to the video, including one man that went so far as to pull out his binoculars to see the otters on the video. We are not kidding. We were in a lodge in the Amazon, and a man was watching an otter special through his binoculars. Anyway, the otter video was not entertaining, so us and an Aussie couple slipped out and took a midnight canoe ride around the lake, watching the sunset, looking at birds, and spotting caymans.

We arrived in Cusco this afternoon, a little lightheaded and unable to catch our breath due to the high elevation. Tomorrow, we take a train to Machu Pïcchu to do all things Incan.

Ciao!

BEST Roughing It EVER

After five hours in the air, we approach the Lima airport. As the plane came to a halt, the passengers exploded in a unanimous uproar of applause. Through utter confusion and delirium from our three hours of partial-sleep, we looked at each other and inquired, “Is this unusual that we landed safely???” Once realizing we were no longer in the Miami airport, we too, joined in the joyful cheer.

After collecting our backpacks from the baggage carousel, we stopped by the ATM to tock up on the Soles, the local currency. If you work in the Peruvian tourist industry, I imagine you are instructed to look for certain characteristics in what would be deemed a “quality tourist:”

1. Backpacks. Those rich yuppies/college students always looking for “culture.”
   
2. ATM use. Especially immediately after arriving.
   
3. Ladies
   
   

We seemed to pass the test for each of these, and were thus, welcomed to the country with open arms. Literally.

Taxi cab drivers for as far as the eye could see began yelling “Mujeres, taxi?” And, as tourists, we basically look for one thing in a taxi driver . . . who asks first.

Alejandro won our business and soon our hearts. After he placed our backpacks into the trunk, we were off to the hotel, or so we thought. Turns out, at 7AM when Kimmmm & Emmmm want to catch up on much needed sleep, Alejandro had something else in mind. We careened around corners at 90 kmph, and came to a screeching halt when spotting a car across the street that had flipped off a cliff moments before. We stop, remarked, “Que horrible!” and returned to the tour. Alejandro commented on the beautiful Pacific Ocean. Several times. And before long, we find him pulling off to the side so that we can experience firsthand the beauty of una bonita y grande ocean. Then, we stopped at a park. And to watch fishermen. And to watch surfers. And to walk a dock. And climb the rocks that led to the ocean. And to take pictures with Alejandro. And, ironically, to fill up the gas tank to make it to the requested destination.

Eventually, we make our way to the Marriott, but not before Alejandro inquires of our preference regarding a very pressing factor about Peru—chicos de norte Americana o chicos de sud Americana (that’s Spanish for “do we prefer North American boys or South American boys?”) To which we reply, “TODOS chicos.” (All boys)

So there we were, ready to begin roughing it at one JW Marriott. Roughing it began when the bellhop carried our hiking backpacks as though he was picking up precious jewels. After checking in, taking a catnap on the pillowtop mattresses, we headed over to lounge at the rooftop pool, overlooking the Pacific. We spent the next few hours in the sun, then headed down to the beach, where there was an impromptu airshow taking place. The airshow had to compete with another show that captivated the crowds . . . a Big Band performance by the US airforce (whaaaa???). Now, we knew Peru to be a developing country, but we never took that to mean developing musically. So we stood around watching fighter jets and listening to “Helllooooo Dolllyyyy.”

Finally we were ready for a decent meal. Here is one of the reasons we have already come to love Peru: We shared an appetizer of yucca, a bottle of wine, and we each ordered grilled salmon, and our bill came to $20/person.

Yes, we truly are roughing it.

Tomorrow we head off to the Amazon where we are fearful our accommodations will not be as luxurious.

Buenas noches,

Keeeem-bur-leee y Ayy-mee-leee

P.S. There’s no time difference here.

BEST Connection in Miami EVER

As a general rule, good things do not happen when the Miami airport is involved. I was a bit apprehensive about flying to Peru via Miami, but it was the cheapest fastest way to get there.

Things got off to a rocky start in DC when we were about 3/4 of the way to the metro and we realized that we had neglected to take out our bagged trash. So, we turned around and headed back home to avoid returning home to a biohazard in two weeks.
Back to the metro it was!

I thought things would go okay at Reagan - check-in was okay, security was empty, and they loaded us on to the plane on time. I had a middle seat, which wasn't that great, but I would live.

The rest of the passengers file on, and a family with a small child sits behind us.

We wait.

And then, we wait some more.

Finally, the Captian comes on and explains that the plane is broken, specifically, the bathroom and that someone has to fix it before we can leave. As we wait, he launches into a lengthly tutorial on the mechanics of an airplane bathroom and the various types of suction involved. I miss most of this because the child behind me has begun screaming and kicking my middle seat, which he does for the next two and a half hours.

Finally, mercifully, the plane lands and the little monster sticks his head up over the seat. He's one of those little kids with huge eyes and a big grin. Emily immediately begins cooing at him, touching his hands, and exclaiming "He's just like a real person, only tinier" while I mouth "I hate him so much". As a final insult, or maybe because he heard me, the kid sneezes. Directly on my head.

In case you missed it, let me repeat. I WAS SNEEZED ON!

We ended up getting off the plane at 9:55, not yet having had dinner. With the exception of the 24 hour Burger King, everything in the aiport closes promptly at 10 pm. We wander around for a bit, and Emily decides to try and get Dunkin Donuts to make one last breakfast sandwhich, and I decided to try my luck with the Burger King, which in retrospect, was a huge mistake, just like flying through Miami.

The Burger King had only four people working and about 50 customers ranging from a gaggle of women with a church group, moms with kids, people who don't speak English or Spanish, and in the middle of all of it, tired cranky me. The employees at Burger King were of the surly and slow variety, and based on the sheer volume of screaming by customers, order accuracy was not their forte.

After a painful 20 minutes of waiting and still no food, I had come to the conclusion that the Burger King at the Miami Airport is about as close to hell on earth as it gets. As I looked into the eyes of the pimply teenager who finally handed me my chicken sandwich and bottle of water, I saw a reflection of the devil himself.

I backed slowly out of the Burger King and got in the security line, where of course, my newly purchased un-opened bottle of water was promptly confiscated because as a freedom loving God fearing American, I also moonlight as a liquid toting terrorist.

Despite this rocky start, I have high hopes for the rest of this trip, namely because it doesn't involve the Miami airport. We'll blog when we can.

** Also, CONGRATS TO CASSIE AND MANNY FOR TYING THE KNOT THIS WEEKEND. HAVE A GREAT HONEYMOON AND WEDDING **

BEST Haircut EVER

Before:


After:


I donated 10 inches of hair to Pantene Great Lengths which is a charity which takes hair donations and makes them into wigs for women with cancer. The first cut was really scary (and my head felt about 5 pounds lighter), but I am really starting to enjoy my new look!

BEST Reintroduction of BEST SUMMER EVAH EVER

This past weeks snowstorm has sealed the deal. I won't go into the details of my experience, as I'm sure all of you out there have your own horror stories of an inept government who is unable to clear roads, people who drive like idiots, sheets of ice forming everywhere, knee deep puddles of slush, and the biting cold wind that takes your breath away.

Despite the different experiences we've had in the past few days… I think we can all agree on one thing.

Winter in DC sucks.

In addition to all of the annoying weather crap, there is also nothing going on. You've probably noticed that quantity and quality of this blog has gotten significantly worse as well… I realized that I had hit a new low when I considered the ramen dude dying to be a blogworthy event. As low as it may be, I still do have some sort of quality standard though … there will be no mention made of one blond overweight model who lived out every little girls dream by marrying the old dude and getting his millions.

I digress. Back to winter. It's not fun.

That's why we here at Best Winter Evah have decided to check out early. It's time to bid the snow, ice, slush, etc adieu. So, I would like to reintroduce… BEST SUMMER EVAH, a much happier time in all of our lives. Obviously, it's still winter in DC and I’m not going to say that the summer lives in my heart or anything campy like that because that would just be silly. If we are going to end winter, it's going to be done properly, by going somewhere where it is legitimately summer RIGHT NOW.

Peru.

That's right, we will be having the Best Summer Evah down south for the next two weeks… hiking Machu Pichu, chillin' in the Amazon, sunning ourselves on the beach, speaking a horrible version of Spanish with the locals, searching for llama eggs, etc.

We'll try to post quick little updates as we have time and internet access, so make sure to check back every once in a while and we'll do our best to help you beat your winter blues.

BEST Last Look EVER

So, Mom and Dad are selling my childhood home. Now that they are empty nesters, nearing retirement, they are moving to a bangin' new pad that's slightly smaller and in a neighborhood with significantly less rugrats running around screaming. I can't say that I blame them.... there is nothing more annoying than looking out the window and finding your backyard full of small children that don't belong to you.

Anyway, the move will probably occur before I get back to western New York again, but fortunately, I'm able to get a last look of my childhood home via the wonder of the internet. You can too. Check out the virtual tour here.

Also, Sheesh deserves mad props for making her extremely spooky internet debut as a guest appearance in the virtual tour. I'm not going to tell you what room she's in, you'll just have to look and see!

(Note: This picture was taken in July- I don't miss my snowy snowy childhood)

BEST the Artist EVER

I know several days have passed since the biggest NFL game of the year, but...
CONGRATULATIONS TO PEYTON & COMPANY on a spectacular season! I am so happy to see my hometown boys win it all!

Other than my enthusiasm with the Colts' win, there is not much more to report. The commercials did not live up to the hype that is the Super Bowl, except of course, the K-Fed Nationwide commercial that everybody had heard of weeks in advance. Just as an aside, did anyone else notice that it was shown right after a Fed-Ex commercial? How convenient.

Other than the actual game and the commercials, what else is there to speak of? The half-time show.

Ahhh, the half-time show. A few years after the infamous Janet/Justin duet, there was little left to expose on national television. Prince (or is it "the artist formally known as Prince"? or maybe just "the Artist"???), however, had something up his turquoise & tangerine sleeve. Everybody watching the show marvelled at his ability to perform flawlessly during the rainstorm that poured onto the stage. Although the show was pretty tame, considering this is the same performer that brought us such classics as "Cream" and "Get Off," he unveiled his surprise during my personal favorite, Purple Rain.

So Prince is nearing the end of his set, and he disappears behind an enormous sheet or screen, allowing objects to appear larger than they are. Soon he begins rocking his guitar solo, at least, I think it was his "guitar." Let's just say, not much was left to the imagination to recognize the gratuitous vision Prince had slipped into the show. If you thought the GoDaddy commercials exposed a lot about the female anatomy, Prince went above and beyond the call of duty when displaying a certain anatomical part of the male!





















Some things never change. Long live the Prince!

BEST Auditors Without Borders EVER

Every now and again, Kimmmm and I are required to go on travel for work. It's a good opportunity to check out the wondrous places our nation has to offer, especially the ones I would never willingly travel to on my own.

Jack Stack BBQ in Kansas City?

Check.

Furniture depot in Hickory, NC?

Check.

Amber waves of grain? Purple mountain majesties? Fruited plain?

Check, check, and check.

But never were we approached with an opportunity that sent us on an international quest. One of our best friends, however, was. A couple weeks ago, Kelli was approached by her manager and asked if she would be interested in traveling to Guatemala for one of her clients. To show her overwhelming desire and indepth knowledge of the culture, without hesitation, she responded, "Si!"

So, she packed her laptop, mosquito repellent, and a flashlight, and flew out that weekend. She was on her way to audit whatever it is that Guatemala needs audited. Being the uber-politically correct gals that we are, we assumed she would audit the likes of the braiding business, straw markets, or banana distribution. We were wrong.

Well, a week has passed since she first embarked on her auditing in Spanish journey, and she decided to try to capture bits and pieces of her experience in a blog (we may or may not have persuaded her to do so). You can take a read here.