Long weekend in Mendoza

After class on Thursday I rushed home to pick up Mommom, called a cab and we headed to the Retiro bus terminal.

It was a really nice bus. We got cama (bed) seats which were AR$560 per ticket. About US$160 round trip. That included a cold and hot dinner, breakfast and drinks (including wine!).

Christina was on an earlier bus but Sam and Sheridan got the two seats behind me and Mommom. It really wasn't a bad ride because the seats were so comfy I honestly slept most of the 14-hour trip.

We got to Mendoza at around 10am and got taxis to our hostel... This was probably the crappiest hostel I've stayed in... And I've stayed in over 10 different hostels so far. It was called Hostel Mendoza Lodging or something like that.

It was dirty and everything was broken like the shower head and the beds. Luckily we were changing to a good hostel tomorrow (Hostel Independencia).

We walked down Av. San Martín into different shops and cafes. We had lunch at this outdoor cafe and got burgers.. They were huge! After we sat there for a while with our half eaten burgers, a dirty woman came up to us who was trying to sell us stickers earlier in our meal asking if she could take our extra food for her and her sister... Sure! We're done with them. We even gave her a bag from a pharmacy I got bug itch creme from.

Her hands were so dirty and she had some spit on the sides of her mouth but what was it to us to say she couldn't eat what would be thrown away anyway. Then she went around to other tables and asked the same thing.

I am so fortunate.

Mommom was really having a tough time walking. She has really gotten worse than I remember her being. I don't think she knew how bad her breathing, knees and hips were until this trip cause she hadn't walked that far in years.

The girls had a reservation for sunset horseback riding and an asado but obviously Mommom couldn't do that so I just stayed in our hostel with her and watched Prison Break. It's ok, I went horseback riding in Colonia, Uruguay.

I really wish I could have gone though. At around 12:30am the girls come back and Christina got sick from too much wine... That's my kind of asado! They told me how much fun they had and how they all galloped so much, even Christina who has never ridden a horse in her life! Jealous! Oh well. It was AR$400 I didn't have to spend. And honestly it was money I didn't even have! I brought less money than I thought so I have to really keep an eye on that.

Mommom visits!

My Mommom is visiting me in Argentina! She's 80 years old and has never left the country! I'm super pumped to hang out with her and stay with her in a condo she rented in Palermo SoHo.

Last couple days I've had class so she has been at the condo watching Spanish TV to learn the language (which she says is really helping) and getting food. Next week after our trip to Mendoza, we'll be able to do more touristy things together.

She's really trying at the language. But mainly she just repeats "Qué es eso" and "Qué es la palabra..."

Her favorite is "Qué es eso."

She's been good. Only talked about politics a few times but she understands when I'm sick of it now. Plus I'm not afraid to tell her right off the bat when I want to change the subject.

Soft love to grandmothers, tough love to travel partners.

Mommom, Christina, Sheridan, Sam and I are going to Mendoza this weekend! We changed our plans from Cordoba and Oktoberfest because it just got way too complicated. There were no hostels available in the actual town, only in the city of Cordoba which means we'd have to take the bus there. And it's not an all day event like we thought, only at night. Also, it was freaking expensive.

Además, WINE>BEER.

En route to Buenos Aires

We got up at 5 this morning and got the same taxi van/driver (all through the hostel) at 5:45. I feel that the taxi drivers in South America are so nice. They talk to you and want to get to know you.

We got dropped of at the Taca terminal, even though the Cusco airport is so small it's just one terminal for all the airlines.

We said thanks to our taxi driver and went to check in. It was a mess getting all 6 girls to collect their passports, tickets to Lima and to Buenos Aires, reciprocity fee for Argentina and visas. Mindee couldn't find the receipt for her reciprocity fee and the woman said she couldn't look it up which was false because I had mine looked up in Uruguay. But she finally find it in the bottom of her back pack.

Then we went through security. Christina, Sheridan and I went straight through but when Mindee walked by, a man that walked at the airport called her over and demanded her 3x4 inch customs paper she received over a week ago...

So she dug around in her bag and finally found it but he wasn't letting her pass because it had a small rip in it. The guy was apparently being a huge ass and making a big deal out if nothing and made Mindee cry. That's when Sam stepped in and started yelling at him in Spanish saying it's the same information and he was being a dickhead.

We saw them talking aggressively to each other and him slamming papers down on his desk of his worthless job.

He wrote "immigrations" on Mindee's ticket, told her in Lima she had to leave through security to pay for another paper then come back through security to make her flight...

I left my customs paper in my checked luggage so I really, really, really hope I don't get stopped cause I got lucky this time he didn't call me over. But poor Mindee is hot and tall with blonde hair and blue eyes and got called out... I say that's racial profiling.

So we got on our flight to Lima and I sat next to Christina. We pulled away from the gate then waited and waited. Finally they told us there was a technical problem with the plane so we had to go back to the gate.

Ok, no big deal. We have a two hour layover in Lima and we're flying the same airline. As long as this won't take two hours we'll be fine.

So they said everything was good and we pulled away from the gate again... And waited. Then they said there was still a problem and we might have to deboard (is that a word? Not sure).

So there was tons of confusion especially since our group was scattered all over the plane. A lot of people on the plane had only a layover in Lima and had their final destination somewhere else so before we could deboard, they had to cluster all the people that were going to the same city and put them in different flights.

All the information we were getting from "what passengers heard" and nothing from the captain so we really didn't know what was really going on.

Luckily, the guy sitting next to me through all this was Peruvian and I got to practice my Spanish. I'm definitely getting a lot better with my conversational Spanish. I have to make a point to find a language partner and read Spanish books when I go back to the states to keep it up.

Sam and Sheridan talked to the flight workers and waved for us to get off the flight.

So we got out of our seats and got in line to deboard. Mindee, Carla and Sam already got off because they were at the front of the plane but they wouldn't let the rest of us get off the plane.

There was a group of young girls with a primary school that were traveling around Peru. While waiting, I was talking to them in Spanish and they were so cute. They were asking my name, why I was in Peru and where I was from. One of them asked if Philadelphia was near Utah... Um, no.

Finally we got off the plane and they gave everyone a blank ticket with our names hand written on it.

We walked back into the terminal and Sam, Mindee and Carla were no where to be found. They probably got put on another flight.

About an hour later they had us line up on the same plane... wasn't too crazy about the idea of getting on a previously malfunctioning plane but whatever, we needed to get to Lima then Buenos Aires.

We got to BA but obviously missed our flight. So we we went to the check-in place to get the next available flight to Buenos Aires. Luckily on the way to check in we saw Sam, Mindee and Carla-- what luck!! However, the next flight wasn't until 10om... that was a good 8 or 9 hours away. So we complained a bit and the guy felt bad so he gave us VIP ACCESS AND FREE LUNCH! I usually don't complain but it was so worth it that time. The guy said our checked bags would still be going straight to BA.

So we found Carla and Mindee and told them we got VIP access. They said they'd go get Sam and get the same.

So Sheridan, Christina and I hung out in the VIP area and it was awesome. Free wifi, drinks, snacks, and sandwiches! About an hour later I got a call from Mindee over Viber. Apparently Sam was in baggage claim because when she checked back in, they told her she needed to get her suitcase from baggage claim then recheck it but Mindee and Carla didn't check any bags. The people were super rude to her in baggage claim and kept ignoring her when she asked when her bags were coming. She had to wait by the carousels for 2 hours before her bag finally came through because the workers kept saying her bag was on the next landing plane. But before she saw her bag she saw Sheridan and my bags so she grabbed them.

After she had all three bags, she had no way of contacting us so she was going to leave the bags in baggage claim with the workers so she could find us and we could get them. She didn't know we were already past security in VIP rooms.

But the workers wouldn't let her leave the bags unattended! She waited for us for another hour or so and finally said those weren't her bags and she just left (understandably).

Meanwhile, I was calling the Taca people in baggage claim with the VIP phone telling them to search for a poor girl in baggage claim with three suitcases. I was literally sick to my stomach knowing that Sam had been waiting with our bags for so long because they wouldn't let her leave.

We called back a few times but no sign of Sam. So I went back to customs to see if I could see her. Luckily, right when I got there I saw her turning the corner heading toward customs visibly upset.

Apparently the ticket the check in person gave her didn't work at immigrations so she had to go back and cut the line to get another boarding pass that worked. Then through security she was so distracted that she forgot to take off her belt and necklace and empty her water bottle so they stopped her and gave her a hard time. By this time she started crying out of stress and three different workers had to take her aside to calm her down. By this point, she was by herself for almost 4 hours through all this stress that was Taca's fault to begin with.

If they told Sheridan and I we had to get our bags we would have... even though it was Taca's fault that the bags didn't go straight to BA. There was no reason we would have had to go get our bags then recheck them.

So after calming Sam down a bit in the VIP lounge and getting free lunch and drinks, we headed to the Taca costumer service to tell them how much they suck and how incompetent their workers are. We also checked to make sure Sheridan and my bag was ready to go to Buenos Aires because we never actually saw them.

What came out of Sam's rant about how much Taca sucks, was $200 gift vouchers for Taca flights... great... Avianca and Taca are Peruvian airlines... probably won't be able to use those. But whatever, we got VIP treatment and got drunk off of free drinks.

Actually, the VIP treatment was freaking awesome. We all relaxed and had a great time eating their food and using their massage chairs, wifi and computers. It would have sucked to wait all that time with the "normal people" :)

We were having so much fun that we were actually kind of upset when we had to leave to catch our flight.

We got into BA around 6 (couldn't sleep a wink on the flight) and I didn't get home until 7:30am... I had a 9am Spanish class... are you fucking kidding me?

But alas, I am a great student and took a half hour nap, got up and headed to class. I was actually a zombie for the entire day but I had class until 7:30pm... worst day ever.

However, my Peruvian vacation was awesome and I wouldn't replace it for the world.

Machu Picchu

We got up today at 3:50am and got our backpacks together for our hike up Machu Picchu!

Carla was having more stomach troubles but this time from the other end... yuck.

We all ate bananas and bread and waited for Carla. It was already 5am and we had to get going! We finally pushed Carla out the door at 5:15am. It was drizzling so we had our train jackets and ponchos but eventually it got so warm we ditched the rain coats early on.

It was still dark but we were on our way from the valley to the top of the mountain.

There were buses that take people up to Machu Picchu but we decided to hike it... It was tough! It was mainly uneven rock stairs all the way up. The poor girls in my group were so sick so they left presents for the Inca gods to find later on the trail... TMI? Oh well, it was funny to me.

We were really splitting up while hiking up the mountain from the valley. Sam and I were always first and Mindee and Carla were last. Sam and I were just so anxious to see Machu Picchu that we were getting a little frustrated so we just went ahead and waited for them at the entrance.

But after about an hour, hour and a half we got to the entrance of the park. Right outside the entrance was so touristy. There was a restaurant playing club music (at 7am) and you had to pay a sol to use the bathroom.

It was still drizzling and cloudy and we were just praying for it to clear up. Seeing Machu Picchu for the first time was amazing. It's no wonder the Spanish conquerors never find it. It's high up and the ruins are surrounded by beautiful mountains.

It drizzled on and off basically all day but it was so warm we didn't even use our ponchos, we only used them to keep our backpacks dry.

We got to walk around all the ruins and see the sights, it was unfortunately cloudy so we couldn't see very far beyond the ruins but it was still beautiful.

We bought the ticket for Machu Picchu park entrance and entrance to hike Machu Picchu mountain so after a couple of hours exploring the ruins we headed over to the mountain a bit after 9.

However, we got a little distracted because THERE WERE LLAMAS EVERYWHERE! They were waking in the walkways and hanging out in the grass if the terraces eating.

So obviously, we had to take some selfies with the cute llamas. We were having was to much fun with it too... Especially Sam.

We got to Machu Picchu mountain at 10 and started up. We read on a blog that this mountain was less steep and less rocky than the other one... I could NOT imagine how anything could be rockier or steeper.

It was such a hard trail and it was straight up to 3,082 meters altitude. The trail had a lot of narrow steps with a rock wall on one side and a straight cliff on the other. Other parts were really jungley.

I just want to say, it was HARD. Everyone else was hanging back again so Sam and I went ahead. It took us an hour and 25 minutes with CONSTANT rock stairs to get to the top... My ass, thighs and calves are gonna kill me tomorrow. A lot of the stairs were really high and some were wobbly which really made us feel really great when we were 4 inches from falling of the cliff...

The people walking down were mostly great supporters telling us how much farther we had. But one group of guys, apparently just having Machu Picchu as a final hike for their week-long hike-fest of Peru, told us how hard and scary it got and how we had two hours left... Thanks guys.

We took lots of breaks in which we caught our breaths pretty quickly but then huffed and puffed by the next 20 stairs. The altitude didn't help one bit.

Finally, we saw a little hut at the top of the mountain surrounded by clouds.

WE MADE IT!

We were exhausted! We sat down on the bench with some of the other victors of that day. We meet a cute guy from California and another one from Barcelona. Oh how I miss their "th" accents in Spain...

About 10 minutes later Carla and Mindee finished the hike then Sheridan and Christina 2 minutes later. Once everyone was all there and got some snacks, we went over to the Machu Picchu mountain sign to take a celebratory group picture. It was unfortunately so cloudy that you could barely see anything. We were literally in the middle of the clouds. It was a good picture though.

We waited until noon then started back down. It only took us about an hour to get down and it was so much easier, just a but dangerous because of the slippery rocks.

But on the way down we heard a murderous scream ahead of us from a girl... Not a good sign. So we headed down to catch up to it and apparently a rock broke under a girl's foot and she fell off the trail. It was on a hill but luckily a tree caught her fall. It was actually her friend who screamed.

When we checked on them they were sitting in the stairs recuperating and the friend got so scared that she started crying.

I could not imagine. I'm not afraid of heights but some of that hike really freaked me out. It would have been terrifying to lose my step.

We meet so many people from all over the world on our way up and down. We meet people from Canada, USA, Spain, Belgium and China.

The visitors were also so diverse. There were school trips in Machu Picchu and also old couples. We were taking about that yesterday; we felt like you had to hike up to Machu Picchu to really deserve it. But after seeing all these old people, we realized there's no way they could have done that hike up from the valley and they've probably never been to Machu Picchu. It's great that they have the buses for those people, everyone else is just lazy.

Although, hiking all the way from the valley and Aguas Calientes to the peak of Machu Picchu Mountain was REALLY tough.

The clouds finally parted so we got some great shots of the ruins and the mountains. Then it was time to head back down to the valley to catch our Peru Rail back to Cuzco.

The trek down from Machu Picchu was definitely tough. Our legs were wobbly and my feet hurt so bad from walking down the stairs.

We were excited to see Aguas Calientes finally but it was 3 and we had to get our extra stuff we kept in the hostel and get a quick lunch. We headed for the train and stopped to get something to eat. We grabbed some burritos and ran to our train, luckily we got on just in time.

Man, my shoulders were so sore from carrying my backpack already. And the bug bites on my legs hurt! They definitely couldn't be mosquito bus because they're bright red, blotchy and painful. I'm hoping they go away soon. I think I got them in Cusco/Aguas Calientes.

Our amigo, Fabrizio wasn't on the train this time :/ the train was also so much more packed than going from Cusco to Aguas Calientes.

Sam and I sat together. We went through our phones and told stories of our pictures and videos... I found tons of funny and embarrassing photos and videos of me and my friends... Cough cough Lindsay Kendall.

Sorry not sorry.

I also learned that Sam takes way too many weird selfies. Well, not way too much, just enough.

We reserved the same Cusco hostel we stayed in before, took (cold) showers and packed up for our 5:45am taxi ride tomorrow morning for our flight to Lima then Buenos Aires.

I didn't go to bed until 10:15!!!! That's the latest I've gone to bed since Lima!

We were all just so exhausted and we knew we are gonna be so sore tomorrow.

Back to Buenos Aires! I loved Peru, definitely wouldn't want to live here, but is a great vacation spot... If you could call our trip a vacation.

Peru Rail

Today we took the most expensive train per kilometer in the world. Peru Rail from Cuzco to Aguas Calientes. Poor Carla was so stomach sick when she woke up but we had to get to our train at 7:45am.

Peru Rail and Inka Rail are both so expensive because it's the only way to get to Aguas Calientes and Machu Picchu from Cusco. It's completely monopolized and perfect to make money off of the 2,500 people who enter Machu Picchu every day (when we got our entrance tickets for Machu Picchu the day before yesterday, there were only 100-200 tickets left).

We all had tea, bananas and crackers for breakfast and took a taxi van to the Poroy train station.

Carla had such stomach pains and was throwing up all morning and during the van ride. We finally got her into the station and with her crying, the workers put us in our own car so we could sit together.

After 15 minutes Carla was feeling better and we got tea, water, coffee, orange juice and snacks.

Our steward's name was Fabrizio and he was so good to us. He was super cute too. He talked to us in English for a while then we finally told him we spoke Spanish... Oops. The face he made was so funny because we were letting him struggle with English when we knew Spanish perfectly fine.

He also played great music in our car like Shaggy, Rihanna and David Guetta. He said he wanted us to have a party in his car since it was literally only us 6 girls and him.

The train is beautiful! It's mostly windows, even in the roof to see the great views, river and mountains of Peru.

Below are brave people hiking the Inca Trail!

We each only packed a backpack full of stuff for our overnight trip to Aguas Calientes/Machu Picchu.

Aguas Calientes is so beautiful! It's basically a super super small village alone the river in a valley of the Andes Mountains.

It was definitely very touristy though since you had to go through the village to get to Machu Picchu. Actually, to get from the train to the village you have to weave through a maze of super traditional Peruvian market stands.

Aguas Calientes is so small that there are no cars or taxis. Everyone just walks or bikes. We walked the main street (it was basically the only street) to get to our hostel at the top of the hill. We got two three-bed private rooms again.

We put our stuff down and went out to buy snacks then to the hot springs. It cost 10 soles to get into the hot springs and it was so nice!

We were all kinda stressed from traveling and being sick and all hanging out in a hot spring really brought us back to reality of the amazing place we were staying. We would look up from the springs and there were nothing but beautiful mountains surrounding us.

The bottom of the hot springs were gravel which felt good on our tired feet. It drizzled for a little bit but it wasn't bad since we were basically in a hot tub.

We had great conversation too. I learned that even though Carla is a vegetarian, she used to eat almost every part of animals including organs. Sam also told me all about the Grand Canyon and how I have to go... Maybe that'll be a good round trip with my mama.

Traveling around South America has made me realize how much of my own county I haven't seen yet! I definitely wasn't to focus on that after this trip, especially because I have friends all over the country.

After we showered, and I realized how bad my sunburn on my shoulders and back from yesterday was, we went to look for dinner.

On the main street, there are TONS of restaurants with workers outside them shoving menus in your face and yelling about happy hour specials.

By the way, happy hour is the same in Spanish and English... And probably every other language/culture that likes to drink.

We got a 6 for 1 drinks with unlimited chips and guacamole happy hour special from one restaurant so we jumped on that! We didn't even care what food they had. It was kinda funny because the restaurant workers were rivaling each other for our attention the entire time.

All of the food looked pretty similar too: alpaca, trout, spaghetti, streak, chicken, Guinea pig and Mexican food. There was so much Mexican did but it was a lot more expensive than the other stuff for some reason.

For 15 soles we got a soup or salad, entrée and juice/smoothie. I shared minute soup (tomato base with egg and small pieces of beef) and a stuffed avocado (with other vegetables and cheese) with Sam, and ordered spaghetti with meat sauce and a banana smoothie. All was really good! I would have gotten Guinea Pig to try but I didn't see it on the menu until after I ordered :/

During our dinner, a young man went up to Mindee with a flower and a note and told her it's from his friend across the street. The note said that she's beautiful and he's been looking at her all night and asked if she'd like to be friends. He also asked if she had any free texting apps. Mindee got so embarrassed but it was still so cute.

When we left the restaurant, we bought some passion fruit, bananas and apples for our Machu Picchu hike tomorrow. Waking down the street, this high school-looking boy came up to me and asked if he could take a photo with me... um, ok. He had a bunch of his other friends get in the shot and his girl friends had about 5 cameras to take pictures... I got Sheridan, Sam and Carla to get in the picture with me but obviously Carla started freaking out for some reason and ran away...

Sam, Sheridan and I were literally in bed by 7:15. We strayed up till about 8:15 researching Machu Picchu. The wikipedia page is actually really interesting if anyone wants to check it out.

We learned later that the other room watched Emperor's New Groove on Netflix! I was so jealous! They probably learned more about Cuzco and Machu Picchu than we did!

We're all so excited for tomorrow's hike but we gotta get up really so I need to get to bed! 

Night, Aguas Calientes!

Sacred Valley

Our bus for the sacred valley picked us up at 8 then picked up a bunch of other people from other hotels and hostels throughout Cuzco.

We had a guide and the bus took us over a mountain (about 12,300 feet) then down through the sacred valley.

It was so beautiful! We traveled to Pisac, Ollantaytambo, Chinchero, and a bunch of small villages and markets in the valley.

Pisac was the most beautiful view. It was terraces and mountains everywhere for miles. We climbed up to the top of one of the mountains through all the Inca ruins.

In Ollantaytambo we climbed about 300 steps up the terraces and ruins with our group. These ruins are where the Incas practiced their astronomy by watching the motion of the sun and seasonal changes.

We got to Chinchero when it was dark but we saw a beautiful, ancient church.

I pretty much bought everyone's Christmas gifts from home at the Inca markets! So everyone should prepare for colorful Peruvian presents :)

We went to a lodge buffet and it had such good food and variety! They had seafood, salads, pork, chicken, beef and alpaca! The alpaca was great! It tasted like streak and a little chewy. They had cerviche as well which Mindee and Carla loved.

They also had awesome desserts like black forest cake, rice pudding and 3 milk cakes.

We were so full! We walked down by the river where there were alpacas, llamas and vicuñas. They were just hanging out eating grass.

We got home at like 8 which was super late for us, especially since it gets dark by 6. So we all just went to bed.

So far I haven't felt any altitude sickness! Let's hope it stays that way. Tomorrow we're going to Aguas Calientes which is the town with Machu Picchu and that's only about 8,000 feet so we should be good for the rest of the trip.

Honestly, this spring break has been so amazing and we haven't even done the part I'm most excited about! I can't imagine this trip getting any better but I think it will :)

Tips on staying in the Amazon rainforest

So as you can tell by my recent posts, I hung out in the Amazon rain forest for 4 days during my spring break to Peru! Obviously, when I packed for Buenos Aires I didn't have the Amazon jungle in mind so unfortunately I didn't bring many things I needed.

Here are a list of things I wish I had, things I had but didn't need, and tips about staying in the Amazon.

1. Malaria pills aren't always necessary

I spent AR$150 on malaria pills before I came and apparently the Puerto Maldonado hasn't had malaria in the area for about 30 years. Also, Sheridan got unbelievably sick because she started them late and had to take many doses at once. She threw up at least 10 times at the hostel, in the airport, on the plane and on the bus to or lodge. She was miserable for the whole day and one of our guides said there had been increasing problems with the side effects of malaria medication and an extreme decrease of actual malaria.

He told her to stop taking the medication and she'd start feeling better and she did! The only reason the rest of us didn't get sick from them is because we either started them a week ago and only needed one dose or didn't take them at all.

It's true, malaria pills are a pharmaceutical scam... Like many medications nowadays.

2. Bring a poncho

Fun fact about the rain forest: it rains. And even in the dry season (now) it rains hard. Sometimes it's too hot for a rain jacket so make sure to being a poncho.

3. Bring a comfortable hiking backpack

You need your backpack for your daily excursions to carry food, water, and anything else you might need.

Mine is cool cause it has a chest strap to make it more comfortable and two things on the front straps to which I could hook my camera case and a water bottle for easy access. Having a water bottle in your view at all times really reminds you to drink up.

For my next hiking backpack, though, I definitely one that has a waist belt so less of the weight will be on my shoulders and back. I'd also want bungee straps on the front of my bag to carry anything too big to fit in the bag, like a jacket, or anything wet. 

4. Waterproof cover for backpack

Even if your backpack says it's water proof... Most likely it's water resistant... for a drizzle. It POURS in the Amazon. One day, it rained longer and harder than I've ever seen before. It's a pain to get your things wet because everything takes so long to dry there because of the humidity.

5. Bring extra shoes that aren't flip flips

Also, when it pours, you will hike straight through puddles. There's really no choice. Your shoes well be soaked and it'll take forever for them to dry. Bring extra, comfy shoes. I had my gaucho shoes (Tom's) and it was nice to walk around in them when I had to.

6. Bring water bottles

Water is key. I had two plastic water bags with carabiners that were nice because I could attach them to my backpack and when I was done with one I could just fold it up and stuff it in my bag. I got them at the dollar store so they're super cheap and still strong. It's better to get one with reinforcements on the hole for the carabiner so nothing rips.

Our lodge provided us with purified water... Even though the girls swear that's what made them sick.

7. Bring an extra towel

Our lodge had a swimming hole but it would have sucked to dry off in the same towel we use for the shower since the water was a bit dirty.

8. Bring something to read

We have a good amount of down time here between our excursions. We either nap or hang out at the main lodge. But when I don't want to nap or before bed, I read my kindle :)

9. Camera!!!

BRING A CAMERA. A real camera! Don't use a stupid smart phone camera. There's no way you can capture the beauty in this jungle on a phone.

I got a new camera for my birthday mainly for this trip which I love but my friend Sam had an old DSLR and her pictures are phenomenal. I'm so jealous. I may look on Ebay or go to a camera exchange place to look at prices when I go home. I love my camera but I really think a DSLR is worth the price.

10. Have a great group of people

I traveled with a group of 5 other girls and I'm so happy I did. They all bring ideas and fun times to the table and really made my experience great.

11. Bring long, airy pants

I had running leggings which was too hot to wear but I also had yoga pants which weren't bad. Since you can't wear shorts because of the mosquitoes during the day, long airy hiking pants are the way to go.

12. Bring a long sleeve airy shirt

Again, because of mosquitoes, long or 3/4 length sleeves are recommended. A breezy, loose (maybe button-up) long sleeve shirt is best for hiking.

13. Bring a good pair of sneakers

I didn't see the need to buy hiking shoes and I'm glad I didn't because they really aren't necessary. All you need is a good pair of sneakers; I had running sneakers.

14. Bring zip lock bags

Again with the rain... You don't want your valuables getting ruined so bring different size (sandwich to gallon size) zip locks with you hiking.

15. Have a positive attitude

If it downpours during your hike, don't worry about it. It's a great experience like any other so we should all look at it as such.

16. Don't expect wifi

The eco lodges in the Amazon run on generators so expect limited electricity and zero wifi. Make sure you tell your loved ones at home that you can't be in contact for a few days while you're in the jungle or else they'll freak out when they don't hear from you!

17. Bring a brimmed hat

It's great protection from the sun, bugs and the rain.

18. Bring a bathing suit

It's an awesome opportunity if you can swim in a swimming hole because it's so darn hot.

19. Bring high-DEET bug repellent spray and/or lotion... And lots of it.

Yes, mosquitoes can be vicious. Make sure to bring DEET 35-80. I know DEET is super bad for you but it's necessary, especially when it's too hot to wear long sleeves.

20. Don't need much suntan lotion

Most of the time, there are so many trees that the canopy blocks the sun.

21. Bring plastic grocery bags

They're great for when your clothes haven't died yet from the rain and you have to continue in your travels around Peru.

22. Stay in an eco lodge

We stayed in g lodge which has lodges all around the world. Everything is included for your stay which is so helpful. The lodges are really nice and somewhat resort-like. Much better than actually camping in the Amazon if you're not an extreme outdoorist.

23. Don't need to many soles/USD

There's really nothing to buy in the Amazon lodge except for extra drinks.

24. Bring diarrhea/upset stomach medicine

All of the girls I am traveling with had stomach problems. Definitely bring Imodium and other stomach/digestion medicine.

25. Bring fast-dry clothing

Nothing is worse than waiting for days for your clothes to dry cause you have to keep packing them up... That's what happened with my sneakers and yoga pants.

26. Bring a flashlight

There's only candle light in the bungalows and zero light in the shower and bathroom. Bring a flashlight for having to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night/showering at night and also for the night excursions.

That's about all you need to know about surviving a few days in the Amazon (in an eco lodge).

I had the BEST time and I'd suggest going to the Amazon to anyone who wants an adventure.