My second little wave

Returning to Andean life... Already on the way from the airport to Cusco, the overwhelming smell of this city hit me. The exhaust fumes mixed with an undefinable sweet smell, plus a hint of spiciness and the feeling of the warm Andean sun on my skin... In the background, the sound of Cumbia music or Reggaeton, which constantly deals with the unspeakable pains of love, desire, and being abandoned. In short: It felt like coming home. It has already been five years since I was able to spend half a year in this Andean culture. Back then, I was in an SOS Children's Village in Bolivia and traveled a lot. The faces of the city, the impressive sparsely vegetated mountains in the background, the passionate Spanish melody of the language, and of course the bitter taste of coca tea... everything reminded me of that time. I am incredibly happy to be able to be here again!

We have only been here for six days, but it already feels like a small eternity. The days are filled with colorful experiences. Two days ago, for example, we took a Free Walking Tour and were lucky with our guide Kenner. Son of an artist from the Peruvian jungle and a mother who teaches history at the university. He himself is also an artist, a guide, and he lived in Switzerland for eight years until the regulated life there made him return full of homesickness. After just a few sentences, a very exciting and intense conversation developed, in which Paul found out that he is also a healer (he doesn't like to use the word shaman), but he only heals himself or his family because he is still too preoccupied with himself, he says. The enthusiasm with which he speaks, his sensitive way of being close to nature, and weaving his life with the mystical symbols and history of his ancestors, the Incas, fascinated us very much. He knew so many interesting things to tell about his country that we stayed with him after the tour for a delicious ceviche with a view over Cusco and agreed to have lunch together the next day. We also had Theresa with us, a nice German girl who is traveling alone and will soon be working as a volunteer at a yoga retreat here.

So it happened that Kenner captivated us further in the spell of his culture yesterday with an insanely delicious meal. He told us about Ayahuasca, a drink from the jungle (made from certain leaves and a vine) that is said to have hallucinogenic and far-reaching eye-opening effects. It is used by healers for all sorts of purposes, he has also tried it several times himself, and the effects are supposed to be quite astonishing. It makes things visible, confronts you with yourself, with your own good as well as shady sides. You perceive much more than in everyday life, and many report that it has changed their lives. At this point: No worries, we are not planning to have this experience ourselves! However, we are very interested in this shamanic culture and it could be that next week we will go with Kenner to a healer in a village and hike to cross the five-thousanders that frame Cusco to reach the Sacred Valley, to a place where two rivers merge and continue flowing together. With at least one kilo of coca leaves in our backpacks to make the journey easier, as an offering to Pachamama (Mother Earth), and as a gift for the ceremonies. I am incredibly curious if this will work out!

I could go on writing indefinitely while my mate tea gets cold and Paul has his first Spanish lesson. At the latest on the day we met Kenner, however, we said goodbye to the idea of capturing everything that happens to us here - it would simply be too much.

A big hug from the spring-almost-summer-like Cusco!

By the way, for those who want to learn more about Ayahuasca, I recommend the "Other Worlds" documentary: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=VNxSDc-Pffc