Cusco, Peru - Come to Jesus

Religious Conversion by Way of Oxygen Deprivation
We were both awake at two this morning with altitude headaches.  I turned on talk radio and took many deep breaths before falling back to sleep.  Today we took a warm up hike to speed up the acclimatization, one with many stone steps and a big white statue as the payoff.  These South Americans sure love their Jesus - he always gets the best view.

Cusco, Peru - Touching Down in the Andes

Shades of Brown
Cusco is a city made of stone, 11,000 feet above sea level.  We arrived by plane yesterday and felt the altitude as soon as we stepped off.  My chest tightened as if wrapped by a belt and I could hear my heartbeat deep inside my ears, a swish-swoosh that sounded like windshield wipers.  The city soaks up an entire valley, surrounded by dusty mountains that have waited for months for the dry season to end.