Rest Day But Not The Best Day

Today was rest day for us and we all did whatever we wanted. Jacques went to Quinua to go see the Wari museum. The Wari were a pre-Inca civilization that thrived in the central highlands of Peru between about 600 and 1000 AD. They built an extensive empire with advanced urban planning, terraced agriculture, and road networks, influencing later Andean cultures, including the Inca.

Although I had really wanted to go as well, I felt like I needed a day of rest and on top of that I woke up with a bit of an upset stomach (it would later turn out that Jacques had an upset stomach as well). So, I decided to stay. So Göran and I went to the market for groceries as I wanted to make lentil burgers for dinner for us that evening. We really had to hurry home quite quickly because my stomach turned more and more upset.

When we arrived back it turned out I was sick once again, if you get my drift. That day I spent catching up on writing a week’s worth of blog entries, did laundry, and started working on the lentil burgers in time. Meanwhile Göran met up with José and explored the outskirts of town and surrounding nature with him.

When Jacques returned, both men did screw checks on our bikes and lubricated the chains, an important task as not only we but also our bikes are enduring a lot throughout the three months that we will be here. In the late afternoon Jacques and I turned my vegan mixture into tasty lentil patties. While I was cutting the vegetables and preparing the guacamole, Jacques went to the nearby bakery where they sell buns fresh out of the oven in the evening. Around 6 PM dinner was served for us and Iván and it turned out to be delicious, even if I say so myself.

After that, Jacques and I started feeling worse and worse. We had a fever several times in the evening and night and our intestines were full-on protesting against food now. Overall, Jacques’ immune system is better than mine so the sickness hit him slightly less hard than me and he recovered a bit quicker than me. While he was ok-ish (but far from fine) the next day, I was still in bed with a fever and I had to throw up at night in addition to frequenting the toilet at an abnormal frequency. Four weeks in Peru and sick three times. Not a great quota.