Secrets of the Sacred: A Trek of Two Sisters

So yes, it is that time again, not just for blogging.....but for travel! To say that 2011 has been full of incredible memories is truly an understatement. Almost this time last year I was preparing for a semester abroad in Kenya, which if you have not read my earlier posts was (how do I put this in just one word...)- life changing.

Currently I am nested in my older sister Elizabeth's apartment figuring out how to strategically pack for my next adventure with her through South America. A Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar, she is living in Chile working towards a masters in Economics, while continuing to be my trusty translator. Although I have a solid education in Spanish, Swahili completely took over that alternate language department in my brain, so I find myself fumbling over just basic greetings and forming sentences.

Since my time is limited right now with getting the arrangements made for our 5:30 AM departure to the airport, I am going to actually post Elizabeth's blog entry to help explain more about our trip- "Secrets of the Sacred", a 3 week excursion to Peru, Bolivia and Rapa Nui or more commonly known as Easter Island with just us 2 sisters. If you have time you should check out her blog: http://myverybarryadventuras.com/ and read more about her experience in Chile and all of the amazing things she is doing with her life. There is a tab dedicated to our trek, so since we will be only with our iPods, our main venue of blogging will be featured on that tab, so stay tuned...

I cannot think of a better way to bring in the new year...adventure on!

Designed by: Hannah Barry

Written by: Elizabeth Barry

Hannah and I take off from Santiago tomorrow morning for 22 days of sisterly bonding, epic adventure, and (if her design for our trek is any indication) lots of blogging. The latter of course will depend on our internet status and the photos may have to wait until we get back to our laptops, which we are leaving behind. Somehow we have managed to take care of the laundry, reconfirm transport, and get packed (still working on this!) in under 36 hours. We landed in Santiago yesterday after a wonderful Barry Family vacation to Torres del Paine and the Chilean Lakes District (see other blog posts) and said our goodbyes to Mom, Dad, John, and Sarah who are now safely back in North Carolina. Lucky for us Jessica had prepared a delicious New Year’s Eve dinner, so Hannah and I rang in 2012 with Jessica, Alexis, her parents, and Ozzy! They have the perfect view of the Entel tower from their balcony, where we watched the fuegos artificiales go off for about 20 minutes at midnight. Unfortunately, Hannah and I could not make it out to the discoteca. Instead, we opted to crash around 1:30am and get a good night’s sleep in preparation for a day of organizing and re-packing for what we have dubbed the “Secrets of the Sacred” adventure.

Before I get into our plans in detail, which of course are very flexible given that we will be traveling in South America, during the rainy season, and on a handful of buses, I want to explain how this trip has evolved. I’d like to think that I first hinted to Hannah to take off Elon’s January Winter Term to travel with me during my summer vacation here in Chile, though our mom seems to think that she planted the idea from the very beginning. Either way, thanks to Elon’s brilliant “J-term”, Hannah gets to spend a little bit more time with her big sis in South America and still graduate on time in May. Like our mother, we have been pouring over Frommer’s, Fodor’s, Bolivia’s Lonely Planet guide, and the Moon Handbooks in order to piece together this trip. I knew that I wanted to visit my Peruvian host family from the time I taught English in the Sacred Valley during the summer of 2009 and we both thought it would be neat to check out third world Bolivia. Though I had been to Machu Picchu briefly during my time in Peru, I couldn’t let Hannah get that close without going back. Originally we had planned to spend more time in Bolivia–checking out Sucre, Potosi, and spending a bit more time in La Paz. However, last minute we were able to work Easter Island, aka Rapa Nui, into our plans and needed to cut this part of the original itinerary out. After watching 180º South, a documentary about what’s going on in Chile, especially the Aysen Region, and seeing the clips from Rapa Nui, it became a dream of ours to visit the most isolated inhabited place in the world. This dream has become a reality and we will be spending the last couple of days of our journey together on Isla de Pascua.

Putting the pieces of the puzzle together helps explain the catchy phrase “Secrets of the Sacred” which has become our theme of sorts for our trip. There will be a whole lot of sights and experiences in between but some of the highlights are of course the Incan ruins around Cusco and the famous Machu Picchu, the sacred Isla del Sol (Sun Island) on Lake Titicaca (the world’s largest high-altitude lake, which is just a ferry ride from Copacabana, Bolivia), and the intriguing moai of Rapa Nui. We can’t wait to soak it all up, share our stories and adventures via blog, photos, and in person once we return, and have fun traveling together, just the two of us for the first time ever (which I guess is also quite “sacred”)! Our trip looks something like this…

Fly to Arica, Chile, and cross the border into Peru Arequipa, Peru Colca Canyon, Peru Cusco, Peru Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu Puno, Peru (Lake Titicaca) Copacabana, Bolivia (Lake Titicaca) Isla del Sol, Bolivia La Paz, Bolivia Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia San Pedro de Atacama, Chile Fly from Calama, Chile, to Santiago and continue to Rapa Nui (Easter Island).