The Brightest Star in the Sky! Joy to the WORLD!

The Shooting star is back at it again! Joy to the World!

I (Camille) have arrived back in Cusco Peru.  I am here for the month of December taking more Yoga Training. I got the shooting star out of storage (thanks Dougie) and after a bit of love and a lot of pushing she fired right up and is running GREAT. She is ready for round 2 of  South Bound and Around! I loaded her up this weekend and went out the the Eco Yoga Farm (about an hour outside Cuzco) It felt good to ride again. We loved and have missed to open road.  It was such a huge relief to get her up and going again after months of leaving her behind in Cuzco. We are looking forward to getting the White Rabbit out of hibernation as well.

Paul is still in California, working hard, selling those Christmas Trees that are in such high demand this time of year. He arrives in Peru the 7th Of January. He is missed and We (the Shooting Star, the White Rabbit and I) are excited for him to get here.

I am taking another Yoga Training course, there is always more to learn. Loving every moment of it. I am learning more about myself and more about teaching what I love to others.  For those who do not know, I took a teacher training in May 2011 when we were here last. The training is through Yoga Inbound in Cusco Peru. Asthanga Vinyasana with Anusara influence. In other words Yoga Inbound reflects the strength and discipline  of Asthanga, an eightfold path of yoga. Vinyasana, the flow and creativity of the yoga asanas (poses) of the mixed levels and the refinement and alignment and the heart opening nature of Anusara.  Is a a beautiful class. Intense 3 week course. Nothing but Yoga, Yoga, Love, Love, Shanti, Shanti, OM.  I am taking the course again and I am also Teaching a couple of classes a week here. So If anybody is in the hood drop in for some Yoga.

 

Loving being back here. This is such a beautiful part of the world. I am so grateful for this opportunity to be back here doing what I love. Thank you all for being part of this and being part of my life. It is through all of your Love and Support  that makes it this all happen. Hope this season is filled with Love and Peace for all.

Peace on Earth and Goodwill towards ALL!

Camel and Shooting Stars.

15502ft. and down to the Amazon

We left our Cusco home for one last ride before we have to store our bikes. We decided to go check out the Jungles of Peru. Peru has intense Biodiversity. Dry Desert, Andes Mountains and Wild Jungles. The Jungle was the only level we had not explored. To get there we had two days of riding and it required riding up through the Andes at 15502ft! So beautiful, so cold and simply unforgettable. The bikes still run and start at this high altitude. Being this high  requires handstands in the highway to truly feel alive in the moment!

                                                                             The highway from Cusco to Puerto Maldonado is newly paved and the only road that goes into the jungle. Still there is not a lot of traffic on it (most people fly) so most of the villages along the way are small, beautiful and happy and surprised to see us..

Then all of a sudden we are out of the mountains and in the lush flat lands of the Jungle. With Monkeys and snakes, bugs and spiders. The Monkeys were harmless and mostly just curious and interested in us and the motorcycles. The monkeys were rescued and lived at the Anaconda Lodge where we stayed for a couple of days. There were about 7 different species of monkeys living there. Why they named it the Anaconda and not the Monkey lodge, I have no Idea? They liked to steal whatever they could but mostly gave everything back after they teased you and played with whatever they stole from you.

  From there we took a 7 hours boat ride up river to a private part of the jungle. Where we camped on the banks of the river and took long walks in the jungle where we saw all sorts of Jungle life. This is a private Macaw clay lick. The Macaws have to eat this clay this time of year to digest the un ripened fruit. But do not think that we just walked up and watched them. NO. We had to hide behind a wall of palms and wait for hours to see them. If a boat or a hawk or a monkey came by the Macaws would fly away and we had to wait for them to return.  At one moment there were about 40 Macaws that came. What beautiful and sensitive birds they are.

   This is a Saber Tree. The biggest and most sacred tree in the jungle. Holding so much life, energy and history. You can really feel the Jungle spirits in this tree. The jungle has so much life in it and that is what it is all about. Survival! Living! Staying Alive! Everything from trees that walk to find a little sun to trees that shed  skin every month so the vines do not straggle them. To all the animals that feed on each other  to all the bugs that fed on us. talk about bug bites!

The jungle is full of so much life and color. Butterflies, flowers,birds and sunsets. It was really beautiful and very amazing to experience. After spending that time there I think we have decided we really enjoy the mountains and are not jungle people. We were happy to have to ride back over the 5502ft Pass.

 

Mountains, Bikes, Yoga….We might be here a while!

Well after 3 solid months on the road, We have decided to slow down a bit and absorb some of the most beautiful mountain regions and culture this world has to offer.

We are in Cusco Peru and loving it. This place is full of endless possibilities. From Manchu Picchu to hundreds of Inca ruins. Mountains, hills, rivers,lakes, trails.  From mountain biking to yoga and everything in between. And that is just what we are going to do here for the next month of our trip. Paul just bought a mountain bike and I start a yoga teacher training course this next week. so needless to stay We kinda like it here.

I think this might be our home for the next couple of months. It has everything we need to live comfortably. Bed, parking for the motorcycles, WIFI, Hot water (most of the time),Kitchen and a beautiful view of the city and some mountains. and LOTS of colors:)

We have not ditched the motorcycles completely…How else would we get our mountain bikes up the mountain?

Johnny and Jenna, who are river guides in Stanley just happened to be here in Cusco this week. They rented a motorcycle and we cruised around the Sacred Valley. Had an awesome time and it is so good to see friendly faces. Thanks guys!

These are some really cool ruins I visited the other day with our friends Johnny and Jenna.

Moray was perhaps an Inca agricultural experiment station. As with many other Inca sites, it also has a sophisticated irrigation system. Their depth and orientation with respect to wind and sun creates a temperature difference of as much as  59 °F between the top and bottom. This large temperature difference was possibly used by the Inca to study the effects of different climatic conditions on crops.(thank you wikipedia)

Nasca Lines & Inca Ruins of Peru

We visited the famous Nasca Lines. Nobody Knows for sure why or how these lines were made. They are lines is the middle of the desert that form pictures of animals like Monkeys, Spiders and birds. Trees and people (that resemble aliens?????)  The Pictures they form are huge and most of them you have to see from an airplane or an elevated view. The Lines have been there for hundreds of years and since they are in some of the driest deserts in the world rain is not a problem.

Some believe the lines were put there by there by the ancient Nasca People for Ceremonial purposes. Others believe that they were a form of irrigation While some believe, the only way they could have gotten there and because you can only see them from the air, that aliens had to have drawn them with their laser beams!?!?!?!?!? You decided.

It is hard to make out what these are in the photos but it gives you an example of the size and length of the lines and the desert they are formed in.

So far we have not wanted to spend the 200 dollars it cost to go see Machu Picchu.  However there are so so many different ruin all around the Cusco area.  The Valley right over a pass from Cusco is called the “Sacred Valley”.  Ruins are everywhere and lots of them are free of charge and since we have motorcycles we have access and the freedom to check all of them out. Most of these are not full of tourist so they have a more peaceful feeling.

 

The Incas were hard working people and they knew how to build functioning farms in high elevations and food storage for storing produce and food all year long. Amazing structures made of huge boulders that seem to just fit together perfectly like a puzzle.                                                                                Riding the ruins. Cause we do what we want.

Here we have some Peruvian mountain bikers.  This day was presidential election day and all the villagers dress up in there best clothes to come out and vote.

Peru has Major Diversity in its Landscape:)

In these photos we are heading from Nezca( which is on the coast) towards Cusco( where you depart for Machu Picchu ruins).. This road is 650kms of awesome awesome riding. We went from sea level to 13000 ft. in 55 miles. Today we rode above 14000 ft. for over 100 miles.Topped off at 14,982ft. CraZy stuff.

                                                                                This is where we camped for the night at the elevation of 13000 ft.. simply amazing stuff. The stove barely worked at this elevation, but we managed a nice dinner and coffee in the morning..  oh yeah we woke up to a nice frost layer on our bikes.  The bike’s did run at this elevation. However they were a little sluggish.

This photo is on our way up off of the coast.

Canyon del Pato

This canyon rises from the coast up into the alpine through 40 something tunnels on dirt roads. This was so much fun.  As you can see it followed the river the whole way. very very beautiful. Peru is amazing.

 

Our lunch break could not have been in a prettier place.

On the way up the road we stopped by this coal mine.  These workers were BLACK- BLACK  from the coal.  And they worked all day like this without any kind of face mask. Not even a cloth over there face. Kind of crazy!!

 

Transitioning from Ecuador to Peru

Riding through South America We have seen the most diverse landscape regions so far. In Ecuador it rained Everyday at about 1pm. We rode through high mountains and volcanoes covered in snow to; high farming villages; to the Ocean. It would be cold and wet one minute and hot and dry within another 10 miles. It is amazing how many different climates we can see in one day, in just one little country. It is also amazing that from border to border, as soon as you cross into another country how the scenery changes. You can see that you have crossed into a new land.

Riding through thick FOG..

If you are worried about the gas prices in the states come to Ecuador. These are the gas prices in Ecuador. It is in $ and Gallons! (Diesel is 1.37)( unleaded 1.48)The cheapest we have seen.

Crossed into Peru on 26 March 2011. Border crossings in South America is much smoother then Central America. Notice there is nobody around.

Sunset over the Pacific Ocean in Zorritos, Peru. The view from our Bungalow on the Beach.

We always love meeting new friends while traveling. We stopped by a fruit stand on the side of the road and met Trevor and Suzette who are living/working in Sullana, Peru. They invited us into their home to stay the night. We can not thank them enough for their hospitality.

This is a 112 mile stretch of Desert in Peru" “Desierto de Sechura” . Nothing but sand and dunes with a straight highway going straight through.

Camille decided to trade in the shooting star for a broomstick…it gets better gas mileage

It is so hot on the tarmac that Paul’s Kickstand just sunk right through the road.