Dueling Backpacks

Day 167 (December 12, 2018) – Queenstown, New Zealand We were told by two separate New Zealanders that they never go to Queenstown because it’s become a playground for rich Americans and no longer feels like New Zealand any more. We were ready to listen to them and change our plans, but by the time we had a chance to do so it was too late to cancel our hostel reservation, so we went anyway. Queenstown is for sure a bit more fun if you have money to spend and we met our fare share of Americans, but I’m still glad we went.

Day 164 (December 9, 2018) – Arthur’s Pass and the West Coast, South Island, New Zealand The Saint James Walkway trek had soaked us to the bone, and we couldn’t bear another night of camping, so we caved on our plans to camp the day after our hike and went back to Christchurch for a night of indoor accommodations. We took hot showers, had a decent meal, got a great night’s sleep, and then headed out again on our intended itinerary.

Day 160 (December 5, 2018) - St. James Walkway, South Island, New Zealand After we decided to come to New Zealand, we knew we had to go on some epic hikes while we were here. New Zealand is known as a great outdoor adventure destination, and we set to work months in advance trying to figure out the perfect hikes to do. New Zealand has a category of hikes called "Great Walks," which typically are the most popular hikes in New Zealand - and for good reason: they have the most outstanding scenery and the best facilities.

Day 155 (November 30, 2018) – Christchurch, New Zealand Nothing exciting happened in Christchurch, but I wanted to write down how we got here so we’d remember.

Our time in Peru felt both very short and very long. The time leading up to our Machu Picchu hike passed by really quickly. We spent a few days on the beach in Mancora and then ran around Cusco like madmen collecting supplies. After we finished our hike and returned to Cusco, after having been to Cachora, Choquequirao, Aguas Calientes, Machu Picchu, and Ollantaytambo, it felt like we had been gone a month even though it had only been a couple weeks. Our remaining time in Cusco, Arequipa, and Lima felt like it was just a long recovery from our hike that seemed to comfortably and quietly pass by.

Day 151 (November 26, 2018) – Lima, Per ú We only had three days in Lima. Two of them were spent shopping and the last was spent walking around the city center. Our introduction to Lima was pretty terrible. The Uber ride from the airport to our Airbnb apartment in the Miraflores neighborhood took forever. We sat in traffic for ages. We didn’t think we were ever going to get there, and by the time we did finally arrive we were already dreading the ride back to the airport in a few days. Lima is huge and congested. Distances may not look far on a map, but they take forever to travel across with all the traffic.

Day 147 (November 22, 2018) – Arequipa, Per ú We spent an entire week in Arequipa, but it went by in a blur. We were busy making bookings for our New Zealand trip, which required a lot more pre-planning than most of our stops in South America. To be honest, we spent most of our time in our Airbnb apartment on our computers that week, but we still spent some time exploring the city. Arequipa ended up being my favorite city in Per ú. It took a bit of getting used to, but there was a lot to enjoy. It felt very authentic, not overly touristy, and a good city to spend some time in.

Day 136 (November 11, 2018) – Ollantaytambo, Per ú On our way back from Machu Picchu we spent a couple nights in Ollantaytambo, within the Sacred Valley of the Incas. This is where many people depart the train from Machu Picchu and grab a bus or van back to Cusco, but we had heard it was an interesting town to spend some time in so decided to stay a couple nights.