(Note: Our latest expedition left for Peru just after Christmas. Pam has been sending me daily reports - while she's been on several Southern Cross expeditions, this is her first trip to The Little Bug "El Bichito").
It feels at home to be in Peru -- the sounds and the smells and the warmth of the air. Of course, we don't really get a sense of the real Peru until we arrive in the Andes Mountains tomorrow. Lima is a noisy city. People are always out and about. Salsa type music is always playing, and the Peruvians don't mind playing it loudly.
After resting at the hotel for a while today, Wayne, Cameron, and I went out for dinner. We sat OUTSIDE for our meal. I had "pollo y papas fritas" which is always a safe bet. I'm not sure all what Wayne and Cameron ate, but there was a little heart and stomach in the pile of meat. We visited the mall close by, which was very busy for the time of night. Apparently the mall doesn't close until 11:00 pm. That was a good thing because the TSA took my hairspray at the Salt Lake airport and I needed to replace it. There's not a blow dryer at the Manhattan Inn here in Lima, so the hairspray's not going to help anyway. Flat hair tomorrow.
Wayne and I are just loving the warm night air. We have to open the window at the hotel because it is so stuffy inside, and that means that we're privy to all the sounds from the city, including the fun sounds of children playing in the streets.
The bulk of the expedition participants fly in early tomorrow morning, but we do have three flying in late tonight. Thank goodness Cameron (our fearless expedition leader) will be meeting them at the airport. Wayne has done really well with his back. He's hurting quite a bit tonight, but overall, we are amazed how he has faired the trip. It was 17 hours from the time the plane left Salt Lake City to the time we landed in Lima. I slept for the whole 7 hour trip. We stopped at Guatemala so some passengers could disembark and others board the plane, but I wasn't even aware. I woke up as we were flying into Costa Rica. I think that's why I feel so good tonight. Plus the warm weather is kind to my body. By the way, would I have had to have been awake in order to say that I've been to Guatemala? I hope you had a marvelous Boxing Day. Pam
