Full Leather RIot Gear

Cuzco, Peru

I don't know why I picked it up. I thought that perhaps a wandering security guard dropped it. Or maybe police were coming through checking Id's. Anyway, when my eyes rested on his clear spiked higheels, I knew that this wasn't your normal security guard. And my eyes went up further to his tight leather ass-shorts, black suspenders, riot helmet and nothing else but an expectant look, I realized further that the 12 inch black police baton was his and not used for normal police work. That's when I said to myself - Oh...It's that kind of party.

Inti-Raymi is the sun festival in Cuzco, Peru. We spent six days and more importantly six nights in Cuzco, and for the first time ever, when I found that my flight out on Sunday was canceled, my body actually shuddered at the thought of another night out on the town. There were cultural events as well, we, well ok one cultural event. We saw the indigenous ceremony at the Incan ruins over looking the town, Sachasayhuaman (pronounced sexy woman), which was very interesting. Although a drizzle throughout most of the afternoon put a damper on the sun ceremony, towards the end of some particularly enlightened chanting, in Quecha, a magnificent rainbow marticulated over the proceedings and made believers of even the most skeptical viewers.

We had come to Cuzco from Bolivia (I seem to be doing this backwards), where I met my friend from school in Ecuador, Caitlin and her brother, Toby. We first took a four day tour through the salt flats of Bolivia. We saw green and red lakes with pink flamencos, precarious rock formations, and the salt flats themselves, which seemed to be about 12,000 square kilometers of nothing. The prime attraction being that you can take cool pictures with people standing far away and mess with proportions. For example, I took a picture with me holding a beer with a bewildered look on my face and Caitlin and her brother standing far enough away that they looked like small people (one devil and one angel) whispering in each ear. You get the idea. After the salt flats we went to Lake Titicaca, though I was had picked up a cold from a particularly nasty bus ride and didn't feel up to doing much of anything. And from Lake Titicaca we arrived in Cuzco.

Alrighty. That about catches y'all up. I come home on Thursday, so you can expect a wrap up email and that's about it. Ok, I hope this email finds everyone well. See some of you soon. Moe