After a red-eye flight from Miami to Lima on which I slept for a few hours, I arrived at the airport in Lima pretty much underwhelmed and tired. The day I was stuck in Miami was pretty much a drag and was not the optimal way to start my trip. Oftentimes, I find that the first day of the trip or my attitude prior to departure can affect the whole trip, so I was trying to put myself in check and get in the right frame of mind before I arrived in Cusco. Luckily, my iPod is stocked chock-full of a variety of music and I can usually find something to settle myself.
I had a few hours of free time so I went to the airline counter to get my boarding pass and also check to see if they could find my luggage somewhere (since I was pretty sure that with the delays and all it wouldn't arrive). They informed me that I needed a ticket for the flight because whatever they'd given me in Miami wasn't good enough to get on the plane. Uhhh....this was a paperless, electronic ticket, so of course I didn't have a ticket. Here we go again, I thought. An hour later, they figured out how to print my ticket but they said that I had to pay a $25 charge because of the flight change (since I was a day late). I told them that I wasn't the one who was late, American Airlines was late. And since they are partner airlines, they should be the ones who have to pay. But these people wouldn't let me get the ticket unless I paid, so I added another receipt to the ever-expanding "things to write American Airlines about" pile....
After paying my airport tax at the window (strange how that's not included in the ticket price :o/ ), I grabbed a mocha at the shop and plugged into the nearest power jack I could find to recharge my batteries, literally. One of the only reasons I stick with American for most of my flights is that they have power jacks (same as the type in a car) under almost every seat and I have a power inverter from the old days that lets me charge my laptop or iPod while I fly, which is crucial.
The rest of the morning went more or less as planned. I got to Cusco after getting some more awkward sleep on the one hour flight and, low-and-behold, all of my luggage actually arrived. I was amazed that something had actually gone right for once! I didn't see my friends anywhere around, but fully expected to see them outside at the car like the first trip down there. It's a very small airport, so I went outside and didn't see them, so I just chilled out in the warm mountain air and waited. The previous year, some friends of mine had gone down there to see them and they never actually got picked up, so naturally I got my contingency plans mentally rolling. Except that I really didn't have any! I meant to look up a youth hostel online before my trip and print out directions so that at least I could have some backup plan, but I never got around to doing it. In the end, however, it didn't matter because my friends arrived and swooped over and picked me up.
Being at above 12,000 feet, the first day more or less went as I expected it: drinking massive amounts of cocoa-leaf tea and relaxing. Food is pretty much banished on the first day (something light only) and any physical exertions are especially frowned upon. Even after a week of being at the altitude, I would occasionally gasp for air all of the sudden, even if I was just standing there. I don't suppose that has anything to do with the fact that I am in terrible condition physically (I'm working on it, Summer ;o)!
I'd hauled down a couple hundred dollars worth of smelly lotions, jeans, jackets, etc. for the girls so I got to play Santa Claus for a little bit in the afternoon. I also had brought some fancy chocolates for Vanessa's mom as a gift of gratitude for letting me stay at their house. Their house in Cusco is very nice and has a small patio and two more guest rooms and a bathroom outside, separated from the house. Last time I had stayed in the upstairs suite, which took quite a bit of effort just to climb the stairs. This time I got the small room downstairs, which was just perfect for me.
The focal point of the trip being to spend times with my friends and not worry about tourist activities, I spent the afternoon with the family and had some good banter, discussions, and debates about everything from how girls don't understand men to religion. The religion discussion was especially mentally stimulating (as it usually is) and reminded me of my days as a traveling consultant when a group of us would get together and have these kinds of discussions. These subjects are great to talk about, but they didn't do much good for helping me fall asleep at night :o) !
Yusteen, we also watched Little Miss Sunshine on a locally pirated DVD, which was actually a great movie!
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