Cusco

Cusco, Peru
   I spent the first couple of days in Cusco resting and giving myself time to get better and get used to the altitude (over 11,000 feet) but now I am feeling almost 100% better and I am active again!
    At my hostel a couple of my roommates were Brazilian and I watched my first real futbol game with them which was a team from Spain versus England. I am definitely going to have to start getting into futbol now that I am living in South America for 6 months, especially for Argentina!
    I met up with my friend that I went to middle school, Jacy, with who is studying abroad in Cusco for dinner last night and I met her Brazilian roommate too. Tonight for Valentines day we are going to dinner and going to the discotecca and going Salsa dancing! I guess they start out with group lessons there which I think will be really fun. When I was walking around Cusco today I bumped into Jacy and we made a plan to also visit some museums tomorrow afternoon and go to the Sacred Valley and do a city tour on Saturday.
      If you go to Cusco, I recommend starting to look for your tour tickets early because there are many companies in Cusco because it is such a tourist town and it is very important to compare prices and be knowledgeable about your options if you do not want to be ripped off and it takes time! I had already gone around and asked about day trips to Machu Picchu from Cusco but it is over a 3 hour trip there and it involves multiple means of transportation so I decided I would rather sleep in the town of Machu Picchu which is called Aguas Calientes. Day trips ran roughly around $250 U.S. dollars from what I heard.  So then I thought I might just go there myself and sleep in Aguas Calientes and then just hire a guide at Machu Picchu because apparently there are a ton there just standing around for cheap. So then I found that the train tickets to Aguas Calientes are about 110 dollars and then the entrance fee was about 60 dollars for an adult. But while I was around Cusco today I found a tour company that mostly has clients from other South American countries that offered $120 U.S. dollars but we are going another route than from the train that I had read was more inexpensive in lonely planet. The $120 dollars includes 2 days with the tour guide, transportation, entrance fee, three meals, and the hostel in Aguas Calientes which is a great deal and the best I've heard out of all the people I have talked to at my hostel! I am going on Sunday and Monday and I am really excited! We will go to Aguas Calientes on Sunday and then on Monday we will wake up at about 430 in the morning to be at Machu Picchu by 6 to hopefully see the sun rise! I am really excited for Machu Picchu and then I am heading to Chile!
       Even though Cusco is touristy it is really beautiful and I think is a must see if you are in Peru. This is the longest I am staying in one town but it is nice to relax and just enjoy the city. I really loved spending Valentines day in Cusco, I couldn't think of a better way of spending it! I wasn't anxious to go to the Artisan market in Cusco because I had already spent alot of time at a Mercado in Otavalo but I ran into it and I actually really loved it. They have tons of stands to get fresh made juices. I plan to go tomorrow morning!:)
The sales people here, including street vendors, can be described as both innovative and aggressive. In South America in general, you can tell everyone is definitely on their grind to try to find ways to make money. You will be on the bus and someone will come on and will be trying to sell some goodie while the bus driver is still driving and then they will get off later. Another backpacker and I were wondering how they get back to where they started since they are usually dropped off in the middle of nowhere.
Well I have to go meet Jacy but I will try to post more often!
I will be spending my last full day enjoying the streets of Cusco tomorrow!