Perú: Day 6 and Altitude Sickness
My amazement continued as we descended the canyon. The stunning views of the terraces — the man-made farming platforms built on the mountain sides — were another sight of disbelief.



The Incas built these stair-like flat lands on hillsides with the purpose of farming. They used stones to make the retaining walls. The larger terraces were used for crops and the smaller ones for flowers or decorations.


But the mesmerizing morning wasn’t over yet. After a spiritual daybreak, I spent the later half immersed in the town of Maca. We dressed up like natives for five soles (a dollar fifty) and pranced around the streets acting foolish for the locals. Despite the warning against touching llamas on their backs or behinds, one of them spit at one of our guys when we posed for a group picture. It was probably lunch time for the llama as it was for us. I wonder if they too got hangry?








I started feeling woozy after lunch. It wasn’t until our guide explained that we were ascending to the tallest point of the tour that I identified the altitude as the culprit. Puno is the fifth highest city in the world standing at 12,530 feet above sea level; Machu Picchu only reaches 8,000ft. I needed coca leaves pronto, before my symptoms got worse. I searched for the three most perfect coca leaves in my bag, held them in my right hand, blew on them, said, “Apu Misti,” because Misti was my favorite volcano name, made my wish, and put them in my mouth. I added more leaves, paced my breathing, and drank Gatorade as we proceed up the road.
I continued my treatment until the afternoon wound down. It wasn’t recommended we chew coca leaves any later because we were prone to become night owls. The sun blinded us head-on with a deep shade of red. The surrounding desert had been our lullaby until we spotted pink birds standing in pools of water. They were Andean flamingos, endemic birds of the high plateau. “What do they eat?” we asked. They indulged in delectable microorganisms found in the lake of Lagunillas, except we didn’t spot any there. For whatever reason, the flamingos preferred the even smaller masses of water. It was the second time that day we were privileged to witness another one of Peru’s rarest birds, Gladys repeated. She was trying so hard to engrave it into our heads, minds, and souls how lucky we were. I could see in her eyes again that she truly believed we emcompassed positive energy. And if she believed it, who was I to think otherwise? Full of good energy were, then.



The first thing I did when we arrived to Puno was lay. My head had been spinning but lying made it worse. My head started throbbing and my heart racing. Looking out the window felt like vertigo. The coca leaves had failed me. Actually, I had failed me. I had consumed them too late. I got cocky thinking I’d conquered the altitude the previous day by feeling well over all. I didn’t think my body would react to the elevation anymore. I should have started chewing the leaves earlier and kept up my conscious breathing. My last hope rested on dinner supposing the fuel would suppress the symptoms.


I needed something I knew would help my altitude sickness and that was tequila. I ordered a tequila sunrise and spaghetti bolognese. I know it was an awkward pairing but I wanted comfort food. And comfort me it did. It was the second best meal I had in Peru. I still crave that little bowl of pasta to this day.
Needless to say, I skipped the nightlife that evening. I just wanted to feel better so I decided to rest. I walked back to the hotel with a couple of other girls wishing the Gods would take pity on me.
