We ran around Puno this morning looking for aloe vera for Jo’s face. She is bright red, almost orange and quite puffy. We spent the morning yesterday just ganging out in the main square on Taquile. Unfortunately no cute boys threw rocks at us (an ancient local tradition that meant the liked us), but one Italian guy did corner me for a while.

Stefano is from Milan and works with computers. I asked him if I would be employable if I knew hos  to design websites…absolutely!!! Now I don’t have to be worried about starving when I move… 🙂 haha

The walk back to the Hostal Uros last night was quite an adventure!!! It was raining. When I say raining I actually mean monsooning! Thunder, lightening, the whole works!!! We waited a few minutes but it didn’t let up so we took out walking fast. We dodged the torrents pretty well by walking close to the buildings. Crossing  the street was a whole other matter! We really needed a canoe or a least a reed boat like they have on Uros.

I’d made it most of the way back when a taxi came by and doused me in freezing cold rainwater! I yelped, but the damage was already done! I was soaked from my knees down.

Our flight to Lima was fine. Nothing exceptional, especially not the food! They serve box lunches. Bread, with butter, cheese, a limp piece of lettuce and some kind of meat along with two cookie type things. Wow….how filling!

After finding our hostel (recommended to us by an Irish girl we met on the train to Machu Picchu)…if this sounds complicated, it was! Turns out she had the street right, but the house number wrong. What’s worse is there was no sign on the house, but our taxi driver was persistent and helped us locate it…we caught a taxi to the Plaza de Armas a.k.a. Plaza Mayor and checked out a church with catacombs. It was amazing.

What I have come to realize is that living in a country like this would make me crazy! Okay, crazier than iI already am! They have only done a partial restoration and a partial excavation…. Why? Well, politics & money! To see the consummate artistry of th ruins and the incredible architecture of the church, I have to wonder what on earth happened to the people of Peru. When did they lose their interest in quality???

Well, I have to run. Jo and I are on our way down to the beach area. there are tons of shops and the like. We are planning on getting ice cream at the Hard Rock Café