Blatts in Peru: Hail, Horses and Ruins of Peru

The rain was one thing, but when the hail pellets began to pour down in earnest, we knew we'd better run for cover.  We had dismounted our horses half an hour earlier, and had walked to the Tambomachay ruins when the black clouds moved in.  In no time, the tiny hail stones had turned into dime-sized rocks, and the first zig-zags of lightning raced across the sky.

There was little cover to be had, and we were a long way from the entrance buildings.  In an instant, we jumped over the rope barrier protecting the sacred ruins, and scampered inside an ancient gate.  We huddled together, standing in the refridgerater-sized doorway, pushing ourselves against the Inca- hewn stones to avoid the pounding hail.   Lightning   and thunder rained around us in a torrential, apocalypse-like downpour.

By the time the hailstorm had diminished, we were soaked, and hungry.    Our horses were a long ways away, and Steve flagged down a bus so we could make our way back to them.  

It was just another part of the adventure, we supposed.  That morning, we were frustrated to find that the horseback tour we had purchased was a bit of a scam.  We had ridden for twenty minutes, when our cowboy guide instructed us to dismount and get on a passing bus to get to the ruins.  We had been promised a 4 hour tour of the ruins!  After a good deal of arguing in our rapidly improving Spanish (I can argue in Spanish quite well now!) the cowboy agreed to continue on with us over the mountain.

Steve really liked his horse, and is considering giving up teaching and instead farming sheep and baby alpacas.  If he has his way, when we return to the states, he will buy a whole menagerie of furry fellows to eat blackberries in the backyard and frolic with Rascal!