Fact #31: 70 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #31: Here's something Hiram Bingham and Christopher Columbus have in common: both thought they had discovered some other place.

Fact #30: 71 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #30: Like many explorers, Hiram Bingham didn't know exactly what he found.

Fact #29: 72 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #29: Hiram Bingham said in his Harper's Monthly story, published in 1913, that a "local muleteer" may have been in Machu Picchu in 1902, based on scrawls he found on a wall. It seems clear that even if the Spanish didn't know it existed, others certainly did.

Fact #28: 73 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #28: Hiram Bingham may not have been the first European to find Machu Picchu. Some say it was a German named Augusto Berns who came upon it in 1867.

Fact #27: 74 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #27: Hiram Bingham didn't really discover Machu Picchu; the residents knew it was there, and a local Quechua-speaking guide, Melchor Arteaga, is said to have led him there.

Fact #26: 75 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #26: Machu Picchu was, not surprisingly, declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1983.

Fact #25: 76 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #25: When you enter Machu Picchu, you'll see why it's been designated one of the best-preserved pre-Columbian ruins in the world.

Field placement update: travel is booked!

Hello everyone!

This week I have received quite a bit of exciting news! My plane ticket to Peru has officially been booked; I received the e-ticket confirmation today!! :) Looks like I will be leaving on Wednesday, September 7th and returning on Saturday, April 21st. I am leaving a little bit earlier than anticipated (I was originally told in March that we would leave on September 12th, but then found out that our departure would be between September 6-10 - I was hoping for the 10th). I will be travelling to Europe this summer from August 10 - September 2 to visit my little sister, Rosalie, who is currently working as a tour guide at Vimy Ridge & Beaumont-Hamel, so I was hoping to have a few more days off in between arriving from Europe and departing for Peru. Oh well! I will be tired but it will be worth it.

The lucky thing in my situation though is that I will have time to come home to Ottawa before returning to Waterloo for the mandatory 2-week de-briefing period in April! The rest of my class returns from their field placements on Sunday, April 22nd, but since I am flying back from Peru on April 21st (one day before the others) I will be able to spend the weekend at home! I am so happy about this.

Here is my travel information in case you are interested (my full travel plans + itinerary can be found on the link titled 'Itinerary' located at the top of this page):

Wednesday, September 7th, 2011

Flying with Air Canada:

-Depart Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport at 14:00

-Arrive Toronto Pearson International Airport at 15:00

-Depart Toronto Pearson International Airport at 17:35

-Arrive Jorge Chavez International Airport, Lima, Peru at 00:25 on Thursday, September 8th, 2011

Saturday, April 21st, 2012

Flying with Air Canada:

-Depart Jorge Chavez International Airport, Lima, Peru at 01:55

-Arrive Toronto Pearson International Airport at 11:00

-Depart Toronto Pearson International Airport at 13:10

-Arrive Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport at 14:10

So for any of you who are interested in coming to meet me at the airport upon my return ... ;)

That is all for this week, I hope you are all enjoying the beginning of the summer!

Sheila

Fact #24: 77 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #24: You can go to Machu Picchu and return to Cuzco in a day, but you'll have more of it to yourself if you plan to stay a night or two. Day trippers usually leave by 2 p.m.

Fact #23: 78 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #23: Aguas Calientes, which has grown haphazardly as tourist crowds have grown, offers accommodations, some basic and other more luxurious, and is the starting point for the ascent (by bus, if you wish) to the Incan citadel.

Fact #22: 79 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #22: The train deposits you at Aguas Calientes, at the foot of Machu Picchu (which you'll see spelled as Machupijchu).

Fact #21: 80 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #20: In March and April, however, train travelers have been taking a bus from the Wanchaq Station into the Cuzco area, to Ollantaytambo and then taking the train to Aguas Calientes because of maintenance projects with the line.

Fact #20: 81 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #20: Depending on the level of luxury you desire, your train trip to Machu Picchu could cost as little as $96 from Cuzco (for the Expedition train). It's $142 for the VistaDome and $668 for the Hiram Bingham (all prices in USD).

Fact #19: 82 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #19: You have three choices of train travel to Machu Picchu: the Expedition, or backpacker train (basic), the VistaDome train (which has lots of windows, but if it's warm outside, you may feel as though you are baking in a terrarium) and the Hiram Bingham, a luxury train operated by Orient Express.

Fact #18: 83 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #18: Most visitors take the narrow-gauge train to Machu Picchu from the Cuzco area (usually departing from the Poroy station).

Fact #17: 84 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #17: The five days' journey from Cuzco refers to hiking to Machu Picchu, which you can still do today on the Incan Trail, a three- to six-day trip that requires good stamina.

Fact #16: 85 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #16: Hiram Bingham wrote in Harper's Monthly in 1913: "It seemed almost incredible that this city [Machu Picchu], only five days' journey from Cuzco, should have remained so long undescribed and comparatively unknown."

Fact #15: 86 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #15: Cuzco, with a population of about 300,000, is the gateway to Machu Picchu, but don't let the word "gateway" confuse you: Machu Picchu is 50 miles (80 km) beyond Cuzco near the town of Aguas Calientes, far below the Incan ruins.

Fact #14: 87 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #14: The symptoms of altitude sickness don't generally occur until you're at 8,000 feet (2,438 metres). Depending on which yardstick you use, Machu Picchu may be less than (or more). Some say it's at 7,100 feet (2,164 metres); others say 9,000 (2,743 metres). Bottom line: Cut yourself a little slack.

Fact #13: 88 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #13: To help cope with the altitude, make sure you don't get dehydrated and avoid drinking alcohol.

Fact #12: 89 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #12: Some hotels provide oxygen for visitors; others offer coca tea, and it's not unusual to find packets of coca leaves for sale. These can be chewed and are said to help relieve altitude issues. And yes, cocaine is produced from the leaves, but the amount of the alkaloid you'd ingest from the tea or chewing the leaves is small.

Fact #11: 90 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #11: Among the problems AMS can cause: headaches, shortness of breath, fatigue and/or nausea or vomiting. Consult a doctor before you go if you think you may have a problem. Symptoms usually disappear in four days, but in some cases, AMS may be fatal.

Fact #10: 91 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #10: At 11,150 feet (3,399 metres), Cuzco requires acclimation. Some people develop altitude sickness, also known as acute mountain sickness, or AMS.

Fact #9: 92 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #9: Cuzco, sometimes spelled Cusco, means "navel" or "centre" of the Earth. It certainly was the centre of Inca civilization high in the Andes Mountains.

Fact #8: 93 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #8: Legend has it that Manco Capac, the son of the sun god, and Mama Ocllo, daughter of the moon, established the seat of what would become an empire at Cuzco in the 11th or 12th century.

Fact #7: 94 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #7: Much of what we know -- or think we know -- about the Inca society is hazy and often mixes fact with myth.

Fact #6: 95 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #6: Because the Incas had no written language system (or one that we have yet figured out), the spellings of original words vary widely. Inca, for example, may be spelled Inka, Ygna, or Inga.

Fact #5: 96 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #5: The Incas, who created incredible architecture and political systems, had no known written system of language, although some scientists suggest khipu may also have served that function.

Fact #4: 97 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #4: The Inca used khipu (spelled "quipu" in Spanish), a series of knots that functioned as sort of a counting system.

INDEVOURS presents Roy Sesana tomorrow!

Hello everyone!

I would like to invite you all to attend INDEVOURS' first fundraising event of the year: a very special talk by Roy Sesana. Roy Sesana is a medicine man of the Gana Bushman from the Central Kalahari Game Reserve in Botswana. Speaking through a translator in his native language, a part of the Khoisan family of languages most notably recognized by its characteristic clicks, Sesana speaks about land claim issues in the Kalahari between the indigenous populations, fighting to stay on their ancestral lands, and the local government. The talk is taking place at the William G. Davis Centre (DC) 1350 on the University of Waterloo campus tomorrow, Friday, June 3rd, and will commence at 7pm. There is a suggested donation of $10 that will be put towards helping us pay for our field placements.

Roy Sesana

As I mentioned last week, all 4th year International Development students (there are twenty-six of us) are coming together to organize quite a few fundraisers over the course of this semester in order to raise funds and awareness about our upcoming field placements. I am a part of the event organization committee (we also have a marketing/advertising committee, a donor relations committee, a web and social media committee, and a project reporting committee). Needless to say the past few weeks have been incredibly busy with planning the event and jumping over the hurdles that have presented themselves along the way, but I am quite excited to meet Mr. Sesana and his translator tomorrow and see our hard work come together in what I hope to be a very exciting event.

Stay tuned as we continue to plan other fundraisers over the course of the term. In the meanwhile, you can now make a donation to the INDEVOURS campaign directly! I appreciate all of your support.

Thank you so much and hope to see you tomorrow!

Sheila

Fact #3: 98 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #3: About half the population of Peru is Quechua, a South American Indian group. The group's native tongue is also called Quechua. A dialect of that language was spoken by the Incas.

Fact #2: 99 days until the start of my field placement

Fact #2: Peru shares borders with five countries: Ecuador, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, and Colombia.