Huaraz

So with Mom and Hanna gone, Dad and I continued onto Northern Peru; maybe the most beautiful place Ive ever seen. The mountains are 20,000+ feet and tower over beaucolic farms and fertile valleys. First day we saw emerald lakes. Second day I took Dad bouldering. It was so much fun. We had no gear but a crash pad and climbed in our sneakers but we went as high at 25-30 feet. Apparent bouldering is just 3-7 meters off the ground and after that (what we were doing) is "free climbing" ie just climbing without gear, or "high balling" as its called in climbers slang (thanks google article). The rocks here were left by the glacial retreat and they are really just ridiculous large relics of another time. When you get to the top of one you are on this platform surrounded by valleys and mountains, and you feel like youre on top of the world. Dad loved it. Hed get to the top and go Woah What a Rush! I got a sunburn and one single black fly bite (there are a lot here but theyre really slow so I generally have been killing them before they get me), but it was such a great morning, I didnt even mind.

Then we came back, rested, ate lunch, and went out on horseback together with this guy Kirk. Kirk was everything. A dental student, had enlisted and done 4 years in the marines, a mountain guide and EMT, trained in search and rescue, ski patrol, a surfer, boarder, climber, and when I asked him why everyone in the world loved the Princess Bride so much, he said something has to fill the space when youre not watching the Neverending Story. Right on.

The ride was amazing. The horses were spunky but listened well and we galloped underneath the mountains and walked quietly through eucalyptus groves for hours. It is so silent here, the way it is at the beach where the water swallows up the sound. Occasionally we would come across people thrashing wheat with a stick or a little mule braying at the tall horses enviously, but often there was no sound at all, or just the wind. We came home just before sunset, and prepped quickly for shabbos. We were in bed asleep by 9:30pm.

This morning I was sick. Actually Ive been sick for the past 4 days with what I can only assume is post-street-vendor diarrhea (my first in my time here!), but have chosen to ignore it in favor of having fun and eating whatever delicious food came my way. But last night it brought with it some slight fever and chills, and imodium-worthy cramps, and this morning, I was out of commission. Couldn't eat breakfast, lunch, or dinner, but I did have some matzah that we have with us. Took some cipro and shivered in bed. Slept all day. But what better place to be sick – I watched the clouds move and the rain fall through the skylight. Out the front window I watched the country people chop their wood and the horses play and graze in the field. I slept through some hail and snow and cold rain, and by the time I emerged after shabbos was over, the sky had mostly cleared and the city lights blinked off in the distance and everything was peaceful.