It's interesting to reflect on what I remember expecting from Cusco before we arrived four weeks ago. On the long twisting bus ride here, I remember our hearts were fluttering with fond memories of this quaint colonial town and the majestic andean landscape we had grown to adore on our previous trip to Peru three years ago. The rich connection we felt with this place back then, with its culture, its history, and the sheer beauty of the surrounding countryside, played a significant role in our decision to return to this part of the world on this year's epic journey.
In a way, I think my personal style of idealized memory-making may have doomed this return trip to be a little unfairly judged. The memories I had taken with me from our first visit to this part of the world had spent the past three years aging into a rich barrage of images, so enchantingly perfect that, this time around, the bustling reality of this tourist Mecca didn't stand a chance.
This city has undeniable charm. As I look around at the narrow cobbled streets lined by impeccable Inka masonry walls, and the richly textured Spanish architecture that towers above the city's Andean foundations, I can't help but let a touch of the warmth and admiration I once felt for this place swell to the surface. But there's no doubt that over the course of the past month, my sentiments toward this place have changed.
Although we've been here longer than any other city on our trip so far, we've struggled to feel settled here. I don't know how much of our experience has been due to the reality of the place, or simply its timing in our trip. In a lot of ways I think we were expecting Cusco to be able to replicate some portion of the enriching depth we've found in so many other corners of this continent. The reality is that this place already provided us with that experience three years ago, and it almost seems unfair to have expected it again.
Instead, our time here has been riddled with challenges, and it's left us feeling a bit raw. Cusco is seeming to be a place of transition for the two of us - a place of difficult learning, personal reflection, and shifts in self-perception. Once again we're feeling a dire need to step back and redefine what we're looking for and what this trip means for us, to try and shift our perspective just enough to shed some light on an opportunity we may not have recognized before.
Armed with optimism for the renewed sense of direction we hope to find in the weeks to come, we will be heading out tomorrow to the high-altitude town of Puno on the shores of lake Titicaca, for some nice cold mountain air, some rest, and hopefully a fresh start.
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