Friday, January 4, 2013

Day 114: Ups and Downs

I'm high in the mountains again, making my way toward Lima along the old Incan trail.  Ups and downs like I haven't seen since the Atlas Mountains along the Moroccan coast.  It's beautiful here, and more densely populated than the area southeast of Cusco.

The only adequate map I was able to find in Cusco lacks the detail necessary to find a route each day, so I'm still asking the locals.  It's inefficient, but really pretty on the verdant mountains with the steep patchwork of fields ripening with corn, wheat, potatoes and other veggies unknown to me.  I rise and fall thousands of meters every day along footpaths and dirt roads with locals toiling in the fields, plenty of livestock - though now too low for alpacas - misty humid valleys, windy crisp mountains, afternoon thunderstorms... Try as I could to avoid the inevitable, guinnea pig is the most common food among the mountain families.  Not at all like chicken.  The pilgrimage continues happily, though slower than I sketched out, so Lima is weeks away.  Beautiful.  

5 comments:

Amy R said...

Finally. Now I know. Guinea Pig doesn't taste like chicken!

Lovely to hear from you, Ann!

Anonymous said...

Well, slow for you is record-breaking speed for the rest of us.Glad there are more people in sight. I'll skip the guinea pig roast. Hope those shoes/clothws/socks are holding up. Take care/

Susan Alcorn said...

I'm glad you are continuing to find a beautiful route and get lots of help finding it. I liked the guinea pig I had while in Peru; Agree it did not taste like chicken.
How's the weather?

ksam said...

So, finally, something that doesn't taste like chicken! So what would you actually compare it to?? Hope you get a chance to post some pics one of these days...even after your home safe and sound!

The Solitary Walker said...

Amazing, as always, Ann.

I suppose guinea pig tastes like... err... well, guinea pig. It's the tail that's the succulent part.