It is not worthwhile to go around the world to count the cats in Zanzibar.

A day of rest before setting out on the four-day trek on the Santa Cruz trail in the Cordillera blanca, around a series of 6000m+ peaks that look imposing even from a distance. In the mornings here in Huaraz, from the rooftop patio/poor kitchen of Jo´s Place backpackers´ hostal, one can see several snow capped peaks. In the afternoon, the clouds and the rain make it seem like the upcoming hike might be miserable. At least in the afternoons.

It will be less miserable now that I´m recovering from yet another stomach sickness, which I will do the reader the service of not describing. Yes, I´ve learned my lesson. I did make a trip to the hospital today, to make sure I didn´t have pneumonia or a brain aneurism or chlamydia. Sure enough, check check and check. I was admitted after a 20sol entrance fee, and the young interns poked around my veins for a bit before pumping me with some intravenous solution which did return me to relative normalcy over the next 3 hours or so. José, a poor blood-pressure taker with a friendly face, wheeled me into the X-ray room for some photos of my left ribcage, which has become increasingly more painful ever since a particularly intense impact at the bottom of a sandune in Huacacina. The lights and power shut off halfway through the civi-dressed doc´s developing process, but an emergency light shown on the poster of Jesus with unnamed cherubs on the wall, making me feel right at home. We redid the photos, and it turns out I´m just bruised, not broken. I was also asked to give a sample of a little something; however, there was apparently some miscommunication, as José was not looking for urine, but rather a liquidy substance from the other exit. (This mistaking illiciting a good deal of chuckling from the group of young hospital workers, including the mustachiod man playing Tetris on the computer behind the counter.) Before heading to the hospital, I told Ryan and our new English traveling companion, Danny, that I should have no problem providing the hospital with a stool sample should they need one- as long as they had a funnel to aid in collection. However, after three days of rushing to the head, I was unable to come up with anything on cue at la Clínica San Pedro. No worries, the blood sample would be enough.

I´m now armed with a rehydration fluid, some eating instructions, and a series of pills to be taken along the way, and I hope to be recovered soon, as I was sad to miss two nights of debaucherous weekending here in Peru, laid up in bed. Ryan and Danny returned at around 4am last night (I´d been sleeping for roughly 10 hours at that point), Ryan with a belly full of a street vendors "Sex Burger" - this consisting of 2 fried eggs, 2 sliched salchichas (a hotdog type meat item), french fries, a great deal of mayonaisse, ketchup, and mustard, all in a bun. I hypothesized that he would have a hard-on for an hour after awakening; he admitted he´d hoped the burger would increase his stamina.

Huaraz hasn´t been all bad, however, as I was able to get some cheap replacement glasses and a cheap guitar with a nice little softshell case, which should be nice for passing the time. I´m not at all pleased to be back up at altitude in the cold, but the people of the Andes are noticeably different in demeanor than the costeños living along the Pacific. They are more soft-spoken and move at a slower pace, perhaps as the temperature slows down the movement of molecules. There are fewer hawkers and more folks willing to help. The elderly ones generally have those lines that make you ask "you´ve done a good bit of smiling now and then, haven´t ya?" The man we bought our camping stove from actually lowered his asking price without us asking him, and threw in free stuff to boot - with a genuine grin. And it seems like sturdy equipment. I´d expect to get gauged for this kind of service along the coast.

All for now, I´m thinking about some soft food, soup perhaps, a spanish movie in the hostal, and a little more R&R. Early to rise tomorrow.