Well, I finally have a moment to write. We have been going non-stop since we arrived in Lima. Wednesday we spent most of the day in flight to Peru, settling into our hotel at midnight. Our wake-up call was at 5:30 am on Thursday and we were on the road by 6:15 am. We thought that was bad, but my sister had it far worse. Her flight (from China) was delayed twice so she ended up arriving at 5:30 am on Thursday - resulting in two nights without sleep!
On Thursday we traveled by van from Lima to Ica - going along the west coast of Peru. There are three natural terrains in Peru - rainforest, mountains, and the coast which is dessert. Lima only receives 2 inches of rain per year, so these last couple of days we have seen a lot of sand and little vegetation. It is hard to imagine that there is a rainforest just east of the mountains.
In Ica we visited a vineyard and learned about the traditional way in which Peruvians make wine. Nearby was an elementary school and the children outside were very friendly and excited to see us (unlike the middle school students we drove by today - one of them giving us the finger...Referral!!)
Next we flew in a small plane over top the Nazca lines. These designs were constructed by the Nazca Indians (using fist-size rocks) and stretch over 135 miles of dessert. They were undiscovered for 1000 years, until airplanes came around. There are only speculations as to the meaning of the designs (a calendar, a way to communicate with the Gods?).
On the tail end of the flight we found out why the tour guide had made us wait to eat lunch when my mother ended up vomiting due to the turbulence. :0
After lunch and a museum tour (see the pictures of the mummies and the explaination for why they are so well preserved) we went to the town of Paracas to stay the night.
Friday morning we took a boat out to see the "Candelabro" (see picture) and a small group of islands and large rocks called the Ballestas. On the islands were an incredible number of sea birds - at least a million. No one lives on the islands, but the waste from the birds left on the rocks (called guano) is exploited for fertilizer. When the locals discovered how great of a fertilizer guano makes most of the islands were raked clean - lowering the height of some by 100 feet!
We also saw sea lions on the island. We caught a glimse of the big papa seal lion when he came out from the cave and let out a loud angry cry. He must have been 500 pounds!
Next we visited a natural reserve on the pennisula by Paracas - getting beautiful pictures of the cliffs and ocean. Then we had another 4 hour drive back to Lima.
I have to head out to dinner. Here the meals are very late - except for breakfast, which is too early! :)
More later~
Mrs. B.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Thursday, May 24
We passed through many small villages on Thursday
We saw a lot of these beautiful flowers
The elementary kids
Our wild ride to the Nazca lines
Can you see the "alien" design?
How the Inca wrapped their dead
An Inca mummy...you can see the original eyes, hair, etc.
Why the mummies are so well preserved...
Paracas
Friday, May 25
The Candelabro
Ballestas - this does not capture how many birds there were, but is a great shot of the seals.
The dessert terrain
The natural reserve
The travelers
3 comments:
Sounds like you are having a wonderful journey! Enjoy the ride! Aunt Shirlee
Wow what beautiful country. I hope your adventure continues to be interesting and fun.
Just want to let you know things are going pretty well with your group DVD's. A little pressed for time but the Inside Out II video is done and the kids seemed to really like it. "Crucial Conflict" should be done soon as well. I will take care of everything so don't worry about it even one bit.
Enjoy your trip of a lifetime and best wishes!
-Levi Hansen
Bidler Letters
Dear Mrs. B,
Hey! We have been looking at your blog. Peru sounds amazingly incredible. I’m sure all the great scenery has been just beautiful to look at every day. I would love to be surrounded by the mountains. All the history of the land is very interesting. It’s nice to hear about all the places you’ve been already. That’s a lot of flying and driving though. Well, Peru sounds magnificent. I hope the trip keeps getting better. We are glad to hear from you as always! Sincerely, Heather and Blake
Hey,
WAZ UP! What’s up ms. B. All of us miss ya. In class were reading your blog and learning about the places you went. The Amazon must be cool all of that stuff that I never see you r seeing right now. All of the animals and wildlife. I bet you were grossed out when you’re mom threw up. Well, have fun & bring me back a suviner. An take some cool pics and send um to me. Miss ya Ms. B. Bye. –Airrion (The King)
Dear Ms. Bidler
This is Abe and Eddy. We hope your having a fun time in Peru, we’re not having fun here at school. Hope you find many fun animals. Hope to see you in the future. Have a safe trip home. Abe said don’t fall in the snake holes. Sincerely, Abe and Eddy
Mrs. Bidler,
Seems like everything is going really well for you down in Peru! Every things going great here too. Were all learning a lot about Peru too, all the different things with the environment and everything. I think it’s a really neat vacation/tourist spot. I like how it looks so exotic. Hopefully everything else, like the rest of your plans and stuff work out just fine…! With lots’ a luv, Nina
Thank you we learned that the Amazon River runs through Peru. –Desmond and Gen
We learned that Peru doesn’t use the currency that we use but instead they use Neuvo Sol. If you would want to convert $100 U.S. dollars to Neuvo Sols then it would be 319.479 PEN. We also learned that there is a total of 27,925,600 people that live in Peru.
--Mike and Nicole
Dear Mrs Bidler we really learned a lot about Peru. I learned about the guanos and how they are used as fertilizers. I also learned about the sea lions in the island that he was about 500 pounds. And learned about the nazca lines that it stretches over 135 miles of dessert and that it’s a way to communicate with their gods. And have fun hope you tell us more about Peru. Mario and Bryan
They are very populated, and there are a lot of animals there as well. I also learned that they are democratic and they are nice. I learned that the Andes Mountains covers 40% of Peru, I also learned that it rains 2 inches per year. That’s not a lot. Guano is really gross!
We all miss group! It’s really cool! Did you have fun with your husband there? Hope your mom is ok. Have fun. Bye! Zach, Brittany, Cody Ray
Mrs. B We had a science/ILA assignment to find out new stuff about Amazonia & Peru. We (Brandon and I) found out that the Andes cover 40% of Peru and that Lima is the capitol. Also, Machu Picchu is cooler than Lima, even though it’s farther south.
Peace, Tom & Brandon M.
Post a Comment