I awoke bright eyed and bushy tailed, ready to conquer the world on Day 3...until the stomach cramps hit. I was a bit sick the night before but thought I would be better after a good night's sleep. WRONG. Day 3 was the longest and I knew I had a LOT of walking a head of me. Simply put, the morning was atrocious. It was steep uphill for the first hour, and with every step, I felt the shock of contact fully through my stomach. Thankfully, as the day went on and I drank a lot of water (and took a lot of Pepto), the cramps subsided and day.
The best part of Day 3 was the ever-changing scenery and the gentle sloping of the terrain. One minute we were in the highlands overlooking snow capped mountains, then we were in the valley's forest watching a wild turkey in a tree. The less challenging terrain also allowed for a lot of individuals to bond. Because we were not huffing and puffing up steep inclines and not focusing on difficult descents, were were able to learn a lot about one another as we took in the Andean beauty. I learned all about Kevin's Polish grandparents and Charlie's Korean ancestry. Luke and Jonathan told me all about medical school in Australia, and Mark and Lindsey kept everyone laughing all day!
That night, I learned to play Asshole (the card game) and joined the crew at the campsite bar. After an intense, somewhat drunken discussion about relationships, disgusting habits, and other things new friends confide in one another, we all went to sleep and prepared for the Big Day. Day 4 was Machu Picchu...
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