Well, my entry to Peru was nothing like I expected it to be. After realising my entry stamp as I crossed the border from Argentina to Bolivia was not a legal stamp ( obviously pre - organised scam !) and arriving at the Bolivian /Peru border - Im a $100 lighter and watched as the official tore one of my $20 notes in front of me telling me its fake - Not much you can say in a situation like that ! Keep your mouth closed and pay the fine, pay for a visa I never needed and walk out ! Of course after he tore the $20 note I did not have enough cash - Luckily a woman I was travelling with on the bus from Copacabana gave me the outstanding 30 Boliviano's - before I went into a complete panic ! Thank you as well to Liam - the british -Korean guy from Manchester who spoke fluent Spanish or I would probably would have kicked up a fuss and it would have ended in messy situation for me.
So , fine paid, passport stamped we walk across to the Peruvian border hoping that I don't need to pay any fee's at the border as I now have a total of one torn $20 note and a R50 south african note - both meaningless in this case. Once the official starts scratching his head when he sees a South African passport I go into a mild panic - but soon I hear the sweet sound of stamp -stamp and Im in ! Phew ! I feel close to tears just due to the anxiety - Damn border crossings ! Im so thankful for the money lent and the assistance from Liam !
But the kindness of strangers does not end there - In Puno I start feeing really bad - not sure , bad tummy, headache , general malaise and no appetite ( that never happens) ! Im glad I hopped off the bus as I feel exhausted and could do with a couple days rest and just chilling.Little did I know I would be flat on my back in severe pain , staring at the ceiling contemplating my life. Being sick in unfamiliar surroundings- no regular comfort zones, no family or friends - well - Basically it Sucks! And besides feeling really sorry for myself Im basically exhausted - nothing worse than having no energy - when your head wants to go outside and explore the world - the body says stop ! Ok , so the body says stop and then comes the thought patterns and the processing of being sick.But before I get into that - lets get to the second act of kindness .
Im walking down Lima street in Puno desperately seeking a pharmacy - rehearsed the spanish words for pharmacy talk when an elderly man ( who is trying to get people into their restaurant ) stops me and asks me if I am ok. I nearly burst into tears as the pain is so excruciating by now I can hardly see through my eyes. He takes me of to the pharmacy , orders some serious painkillers and 500mg of tetracycline , Im tempted to gobble them all at once - but he takes me back to his restaurant - gets me a bowl of soup - free of charge - and I take the antibiotics. I hate antibiotics at the best of times - but in cases like these - well there aint much option. Im amazed once I come out of my pain daze that a random stranger with broken English went to these extremes to help me. So much gratitude.
Its been 3 days of staring at the ceiling , eating hardly anything - just enough to allow medication to be absorbed and going into deep , dark spaces - seeing whats hiding there for me. I wouldn't say Im surprised , but Im surprised at my reaction . And it aint pretty - lets just say the light is shining today a little brighter - waiting to get on a bus to Cusco later today - relieved that Im feeling better - not a 100% but starting to feel ravenous , I could eat a guinea pig ( cuy - local delicacy mmmmm??)! Its a good sign.What will Cusco bring - Ive had a glimpse in the last few days what awaits for me on a deep healing level - I hope I have the courage and make the right choices to tread here in this space.
Lets see what happens ! First I need food !
No comments:
Post a Comment