Manhattan

Silvia and I went to Manhattan in May. We attended a surprise 40th birthday party for my brother-in-law Evan. Afterwards we went to a club with my aunt where everyone sings along with the piano player. Old music, like Elton John and Billy Joel. We went to the MOMA. Silvia wanted to go to the top of the Empire State Building, so we endured that. She left the Statue of Liberty for another trip. While in midtown I bought a video camera, the fruits of which are below. The first clip is of us taking in the sights in Greenwich Village.

We stayed in the Comfort Inn on the westside (71st) within a block of Central Park. We took a run on the park drive. On a later day I did some laps around the reservoir. It is clear that the serious runners run the drive, not the reservoir.

The last clip is of us checking out the bouldering in Central Park. The rock, some sort of wavy slate or phyllite, felt greasy, and it had a lot of open holds. Too bad I didn’t bring a chalk bag.

6 Mb wmv

6 Mb wmv

Peru

I spent two weeks at the beginning of the year in Peru with some friends from work. Ericka arranged the trip. We stayed with her family in Lima for a while. We took a bus ride to the Cordillera Blanca and spent two nights in Huaraz. I don’t have any pictures from that, but we drove into the Parque Nacional Huascuran, and we also drove over a 15,000 foot high pass to see the temple at Chavin de Huantar.

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We saw in the new year at Gaby’s beach house south of Lima.

Silvia (center) and Ericka’s two sisters, on the night of the party.

I’m front row, 2nd from the right.

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Of course we flew up to Cuzco to see Machu Picchu. In the picture on the right, the rocky peak above the city is Huayna Picchu.

More of Machu Picchu. The Urubamba River is visible in the far right picture.

The archeological site is littered with little temples and altars.

This particular altar is called the Intihuatana. It has subsequently been damaged by a film crew.

Our guide explains to us how the Inca worked stone. I have since learned that these chisel marks are the work of an archeologist trying to replicate the Inca’s methods.

Here I am performing what our guide assured us is an authentic Inca ceremony.

We spent the night in the tiny town of Aguas Calientes, and the following day we climbed the steep trail to the top of Huayna Picchu.

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The remaining photos were taken in and around Cuzco.

Left: the cathedral in Cuzco. Right: Me standing before a ruin which I believe is called Tambo Machay.

Left: a street in the market town of Pisac. Right: An ornament frequently found on roofs in the high country. It is a cross with a bull, a sun, a moon, and a coke bottle of holy water.

Me and Karen.