Our last day in New Zealand was St Patrick’s Day. It also coincided with the New Zealand port of call for the Volvo Ocean Race. We spent a lot of time walking around the pier and checking out the pavilions. There was live music, shopping, and loads of interactive activities for kids and adults alike. It definitely wasn’t a bad way to spend our last night in the City of Sails.
Random events that happen during vacation always seem to make the trip even more memorable, don’t you think?
~j
Obviously, I have to do a little pre-trip research before we leave to make sure I know what I’m after. The best part is in Vietnam I will be collecting DONG! Giggle away my little minions; that’s funny as hell!The exchange rate is approximately 20,000 Vietnamese Dong to $1US. I think it’ll be crazy to be paying for items with 50,000₫ notes. (That’s only about $2.50.) Also try wrapping your head around being able to take out a maximum of 2,000,000₫ from a bank machine. Apparently, that’s the machine limit. (That’s about $95!)
The least valued currency for exchange alternated between the Zimbabwean Dollar and the Vietnamese Dong for a while. Now the least valued currency is that of Somalia with the Vietnamese Dong running 2nd. Thanks VietnamWiki for the photo. 
The Cambodian Riel is approximately 4010៛ to $1US. Unlucky for me the coins are rarely used. That could be a bit of a struggle collecting them. The Thai Baht is about 30฿ to $1US. Gotta love travelling with exchange rates like that. It definitely helps the bank account!
FYI: All of this learning, and now I know a lot of currencies are actually descendants of the Spanish Pieces of 8. How very Piratey! Arrrr!
If you’ve been reading all along, you’ll know that I’ve promised more on the taxi drivers and more on Pachacutec. There is a connection, I promise, ok, maybe not so much Pachacutec, but Pachamama. Read on…
To preface this post, let’s say that neither of us is a particularly religious being. I have done a bit of world religion studies just for personal interest. Jon, however, has a completely irrational secular love of Jesus. (Which I think really scares people who have never met him before, and he’s wearing a shirt that says “Jesus Loves Me”. Either that, or they think they share his (non-existent) beliefs and it is all good.) We both enjoy visiting churches and sites of worship, so it all works out well when we’re traveling.
You may know that a huge majority of Peruvians are Catholics. Roman Catholicism is the official state religion, and obviously plays a major role in Peruvian life. As we were driving, several of our taxi drivers made the sign of the cross over themselves, and just kept on driving. (Pedal to the metal! Please save me Jesus?) Also, there were religious icons hanging on wind shields and rear view mirrors of every vehicle we were in.
However saturated the country may be in organized religion, it is also holding on to Incan customs and traditions. There are native cultures – like the ones on the Uros Islands or Andes highlands, who still believe in ancient practices. For example, on Taquile, the custom is that a young couple lives together for 5 years before getting married. They live in the man’s parents house, and having babies during this time is perfectly fine. You could see how the church would have issue with that. Maybe?
We met some interesting people on the train to Aguas Calientes. Our tickets were consecutive but we weren’t seated together. Jon ended up sitting next to a guy named Craig. Apparently, he has been to every state in the USA and is now working on every Province in Canada. I was seated in a group of 4 with Andy and Angela and a nice Peruvian man. And Craig’s friends Michael and Michael were seated across the aisle with Andy and Angela’s friend Chad. (That seems as confusing as the role call scene from Ferris Beuler’s Day Off!)
Turns out Andy, Angela and Chad were staying at the same hostel as us in Cusco. And, Craig, Michael and Michael were staying at the same hostel in Aguas Calientes. Small world that Peru! They were all from the US East Coast and 3 had been skiing at Sun Peaks before.
Ok so that is a lot of backstory…the 3 dudes were in Peru for 4 days. Just a quick little weekend trip to Machu Picchu! We are pretty sure the two keep Michael around just for his humour and/or his Spanish skills.
Mid-train ride Michael dropped a bottle of beer out of his jacket. The beer started fizzing out the top; instead of wait for the fizz to die down, he opened the beer into a lovely Cusqueña explosion. Talk about an ice breaker. “And the sad part is that I’m a scientist!”
On the way to the hostel we made formal introductions so we could stop calling Michael “Beersplosion.” Turns out he’s a huge Matthew Good fan which led to talk about Canadian music. “Thanks a lot for Nickelback!” He and Jon also share the same hatred for Bieber. Kindred spirits immediately.
I would have enjoyed the site a lot more if there weren’t so many touts and chatzski sellers trying to sell their crappy crap to me every second step. So annoying!
The bus ride on the way there should have been a good indication of what to expect. For the hour long drive there the driver kept picking up people selling ice cream, candy, cold drinks etc. And then he picked up Mexican Stevie Wonder who serenaded us for about 20 minutes. Jon took some good video. (NB: Video to be added after we get home. I’m not that technologically advanced when we’re on the road!)
The bus ride home was 2/3 the price of the one there and I’m guessing there was some sort of deal for standing room only. We are still alive, so no worries. Maybe Greyhound should look into new pricing policies?
More on the bus system later friends, must go find Squatzi some more clothes.
Sent from my BlackBerry device on the Rogers Wireless Network
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