Dear Jo,
Since you're coming on my next great adventure with me, I thought I'd give you a few helpful hints about packing for Peru...
1) Shoes: Basically, don't bring heels, dress shoes, or anything remotely slippery - in fact, those non-slip shoes you've been wearing in food service for the last five years might be a good option... Many of the roads in Cusco are paved with stones that have been there for centuries. "Slick" doesn't even begin to describe them. These are roads I would slip on when they hadn't seen rain in two months. This time, it'll be raining every day. Rain boots, running shoes, duct-tape soles, you get the idea.
2) Clothes: The only reason you'd dress up in Cusco is to pick someone up or go to a wedding. So stay casual. But not too casual. Unless your objective is to alert every human being there that you are an American, stay away from the shorts. And unless you want people to think you're European, stay away from the sleeve-less tops. And unless you want people to think you're Australian, stay away from clingy clothes.
3) Toilet paper: Really, don't pack any for the plane, but keep it handy when you go into public restrooms. And while we're on that topic, bring coins - "public" doesn't inherently mean free.
4) Hand sanitizer: See above.
5) Passport/I.D./credit cards: You need a Passport to get into the country and Machu Picchu, but unless you have an international student card, leave the wallet at home. Pick-pocketing is a very real issue, and while they don't want your I.D., they're not going to give it back. Credit cards either won't work anywhere or will charge you a hefty fee. So leave the wallet alone. Soles are all you need to carry with you.
6) Cell phone/laptop: Most restaurants, hotels, and cafes around the plaza will have Wi-Fi, and it will be strong enough to send emails and texts. But for anything like uploading photos, you'll have to use the Internet cafes conveniently located no-where near the tourist sections.
7) Umbrella and rain gear: Essential! If you're there in the winter, you'll be lucky to see one day of rain in Cusco, in winter quite the opposite. 70% chance of rain for three months.
8) Jacket/sweater: Being wet is almost always cold, so expect to be a bit cooler than you're used to when the weather is in the 70's. It won't get much cooler at night, but it always won't get much dryer.
9) Tourist guides: Complete crap. I'm just going to shoot straight with you, Jack's may have the best French toast and La Bodega may have the most American pizza, but believe you me - they are NOT the best places to eat in Cusco. And certainly not if you're looking for authenticity! You know how many white people I saw in a Pollería? One. And that's because they have mirrors. And in a pastelaría, none, cause they don't have mirrors. The tourist guides are only good if you are hoping to see the same thing that every other tourist sees in Cusco - the bland side.
10) Power converter: Contrary to the info found on popular internet sources, the outlets and voltage are the same as those in the U.S.
11) Make-up: If you want to stand out more than you already do, feel free to put on make-up. If you were doing it to get attention, you didn't need to.
12) Camera: Bring one by all means. Just be careful where you show it. If you flash it around in the streets full of women who make their living by forcing tourists to pay for snapshots with llamas or cute children, it will not be stolen, but you'll end up shelling out FAR more than you were anticipating for pictures you didn't even want.
13) Water bottle: Don't bring one. You'll be buying all you water anyway, so just use the ones you buy.
14) Ibuprofen (or your pain-killer of choice): If you think spending the first few days of your trip to Cusco in agonizing pain due to the oxygen deficiency in your blood, leave that at home. In the case that you prefer sleeping at night and being able to breath during the day, pain-killer would come in handy.
15) English/Spanish Dictionary: Well. For a complete answer to this proposition, I'd simply like to point you to my post in this blog from 20 June called "All the Spanish..." We can just swing by the Coco Museum on our way to the hostel.
I hope this small guide will help you a bit as you ponder what you'll be wanting and needing on our trip. And I'll be more than happy to amend this list as questions arise. This should get you started tho.
You're welcome.
Since you're coming on my next great adventure with me, I thought I'd give you a few helpful hints about packing for Peru...
1) Shoes: Basically, don't bring heels, dress shoes, or anything remotely slippery - in fact, those non-slip shoes you've been wearing in food service for the last five years might be a good option... Many of the roads in Cusco are paved with stones that have been there for centuries. "Slick" doesn't even begin to describe them. These are roads I would slip on when they hadn't seen rain in two months. This time, it'll be raining every day. Rain boots, running shoes, duct-tape soles, you get the idea.
2) Clothes: The only reason you'd dress up in Cusco is to pick someone up or go to a wedding. So stay casual. But not too casual. Unless your objective is to alert every human being there that you are an American, stay away from the shorts. And unless you want people to think you're European, stay away from the sleeve-less tops. And unless you want people to think you're Australian, stay away from clingy clothes.
3) Toilet paper: Really, don't pack any for the plane, but keep it handy when you go into public restrooms. And while we're on that topic, bring coins - "public" doesn't inherently mean free.
4) Hand sanitizer: See above.
5) Passport/I.D./credit cards: You need a Passport to get into the country and Machu Picchu, but unless you have an international student card, leave the wallet at home. Pick-pocketing is a very real issue, and while they don't want your I.D., they're not going to give it back. Credit cards either won't work anywhere or will charge you a hefty fee. So leave the wallet alone. Soles are all you need to carry with you.
6) Cell phone/laptop: Most restaurants, hotels, and cafes around the plaza will have Wi-Fi, and it will be strong enough to send emails and texts. But for anything like uploading photos, you'll have to use the Internet cafes conveniently located no-where near the tourist sections.
7) Umbrella and rain gear: Essential! If you're there in the winter, you'll be lucky to see one day of rain in Cusco, in winter quite the opposite. 70% chance of rain for three months.
8) Jacket/sweater: Being wet is almost always cold, so expect to be a bit cooler than you're used to when the weather is in the 70's. It won't get much cooler at night, but it always won't get much dryer.
9) Tourist guides: Complete crap. I'm just going to shoot straight with you, Jack's may have the best French toast and La Bodega may have the most American pizza, but believe you me - they are NOT the best places to eat in Cusco. And certainly not if you're looking for authenticity! You know how many white people I saw in a Pollería? One. And that's because they have mirrors. And in a pastelaría, none, cause they don't have mirrors. The tourist guides are only good if you are hoping to see the same thing that every other tourist sees in Cusco - the bland side.
10) Power converter: Contrary to the info found on popular internet sources, the outlets and voltage are the same as those in the U.S.
11) Make-up: If you want to stand out more than you already do, feel free to put on make-up. If you were doing it to get attention, you didn't need to.
12) Camera: Bring one by all means. Just be careful where you show it. If you flash it around in the streets full of women who make their living by forcing tourists to pay for snapshots with llamas or cute children, it will not be stolen, but you'll end up shelling out FAR more than you were anticipating for pictures you didn't even want.
13) Water bottle: Don't bring one. You'll be buying all you water anyway, so just use the ones you buy.
14) Ibuprofen (or your pain-killer of choice): If you think spending the first few days of your trip to Cusco in agonizing pain due to the oxygen deficiency in your blood, leave that at home. In the case that you prefer sleeping at night and being able to breath during the day, pain-killer would come in handy.
15) English/Spanish Dictionary: Well. For a complete answer to this proposition, I'd simply like to point you to my post in this blog from 20 June called "All the Spanish..." We can just swing by the Coco Museum on our way to the hostel.
I hope this small guide will help you a bit as you ponder what you'll be wanting and needing on our trip. And I'll be more than happy to amend this list as questions arise. This should get you started tho.
You're welcome.
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