Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu is one of the most amazing, if not the most amazing sight I have ever seen. If it were just the Inca ruins it would be enough, but they are perched up on top of the high, jungle ridden Andes mountains. You would never know a city was up above the cloud cover in the mountains and because of that the Spanish didn't find Machu Picchu when they conquered Peru.



This picure is attempting to show the steepness of the city and the height of the mountains surrounding the ruins.



I love this shot. I'm pretty proud of it! The mountain peak behind the ruins is Waynu Picchu.

This is a view of the terrace farming.

We spent the whole day from 5:30 in the morning until 5:00 at night hiking around the ruins and then up to Waynu Picchu the peak behind the city and then up to the Sungate, a peak up around the otherside. Luckily none of us got altitude sickness, but I am slightly scared of heights, so the top of Waynu Picchu scared me to death.

This is the view down into Machu Picchu from the top of Waynu Picchu.

Just happy to be there!

Our whole group at Machu Picchu.



There is no way to really capture these mountains, but part of what makes them so beautiful are the deep gorges or valleys between the mountains.



Definitly a place to see before you die if you have the opportunity!

My New Most-Embarassing Moment of All Time!

So there I was in the Amazon Jungle hiking through the mud with this attractive man that I had been flirting shamlessly with all week and then I get heat stroke. We had been hiking through the Amazonian mud for hours and I was doing okay, but then we canoed out onto Lake Sandoval, and were out in the hot, reflective sun for an hour or so, and when we stopped for lunch I got heat stroke. Now imagine me bawling my eyes out in the arms of this man - who is dousing my arms and legs in water bottles full of Amazonian water and fanning me dry with his hat. He coaxed off my boots and jacket and put his arms around me, and I was totally crying my eyes out while he was making me drink water and soothing me. I am still mortified.... So I'm suffering terribly, but we can't just turn around because we are 5 hours out into the jungle so the whole way back he is watching over me and keeping me from falling over and talking to me non-stop about anything to distract me from my sickness. Oh, goodness. So so so so so humiliating! I think I'm all cute and flirty and then I'm helpless and bawling. Great move, me.

Look in the mirror...

Look in the mirror and remind yourself you are in your 30's.

I have maybe been accused of looking and acting younger than I am, and I appreciate that, and admit it.

The problem is, the men I am dating are in their 30's...some of them act like they are in their 30's and some of them look like they are in their 40's...and that is okay, right?

I am looking for a responsible man and it's okay if he looks older, right? Men have less options for staying younger looking, and that's just the way it is. I am looking really hard for a nice man to fall in love with. Dating for this long, stinketh. But really, in the spirit of notes to self and rambling, I really am looking for just a nice man who is smart and righteous and relatively attractive, right? Right.

The argument we ladies in our 30's have is what is still important? What is absolutely essential and what isn't? None of us want to age ourselves out of getting married period. But no one wants to settle, either.