marmalade.ca | have passport, will travel

Posted by Kelly on Apr 27, 2012

Arequipa, Peru

Arequipa is a beautiful city, one that I somehow thought would be perfect for spending Christmas in. However, my idealistic vision of being in a colonial white-walled city at the holidays jarred with the reality that tourists were flocking to Ica, Mancora and Cusco — most definitely NOT Arequipa. So while it was lovely to be able to explore the city’s charms and not feel swamped by other...

Posted by Kelly on Apr 18, 2012

Peruvian food and drink

Or what I put in my mouth to stave off hunger and thirst for 25 days. In hindsight, I wish I’d thought to photograph more of my meals while in Peru. Of them all, the ones I wish I’d taken shots of are the alpaca brunch in the Colca Canyon (I was really ill with altitude sickness and could barely stay alive at the lunch table; taking a photograph was the last thing on my mind), the lomo saltado...

Posted by Kelly on Apr 16, 2012

Daytripping around Trujillo, Peru

While there are packaged (and expensive!) tours you can take to visit Trujillo and its ruins while in the area, the far cheaper way to go about it is to hop on a combi or micro and do it yourself. Travelling solo with my less than solid Spanish I wasn’t sure about doing this on my own, so when a group of travellers at my hostal in Huanchaco invited me on their excursion I jumped at the chance. Taking...

Posted by Kelly on Apr 14, 2012

Cruisey days in Huanchaco

Two days into my stay in Huanchaco, Peru — a small fishing village on the outskirts of Trujillo — I knew that I didn’t want to leave. The weather was fantastic (sunny and hot, but not too hot), and the people warm and friendly. For some reason there were heaps of Canadians — which while a little odd, after the solitude and disappointment of Lima, made me feel welcome and right at...

Posted by Kelly on Feb 13, 2012

Two days in Lima

Arriving in Lima at midnight from North America is a lot of what I think sheer and utter chaos feels like. You’re tossed from the plane that has safely carried you across continents, successfully made your way through the disorganized mess that is Customs and Immigration at Jorge Chavez International Airport, and celebrated (relievedly) the reunification between your weary-assed self and your...

Posted by Kelly on Nov 4, 2011

30 Days of Indie Travel, Day 4: Mistakes

“Everyone makes mistakes. We forget to ask for Coke without ice in Mexico and spend the rest of the trip in the bathroom. Or we arrive at the airport for a 7pm flight only to realize the flight left at 7am. Tell us the story of your worst travel mistake.” – This post was written as part of Bootsnall’s 30 Days of Indie Travel Project. I dont tend to make a lot of mistakes: I’m such...

Posted by Kelly on Nov 1, 2011

30 Days of Indie Travel, Day 1: GOALS

I can’t believe it’s been three years since I boarded a plane for Hong Kong, the first stop on my three-day journey to New Zealand. Deciding to move to Godzone for a year seemed like such a normal thing to do (my friends are quite the jetset lot!), but getting on that Cathay Pacific flight was such a surreal experience. I’d not left North American in over a decade, and here I was bound...

Posted by Kelly on Oct 29, 2011

Great expectations

Over the last day or so it seems like Im seeing a lot of gripes and whinges on the travelsphere: “oh don’t go to Machu Picchu, it’s overrated. Taj Mahal? No way. Pyramids at Giza? Are you kidding me? The Grand Palace in Bangkok? What, and face all those crowds?” What is happening? I have always thought that travel writing should be inspiring, that it should captivate the reader and...