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prettyMushy


Registered: 04/03/12
Posts: 1,828
Loc: Canada
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Re: Hello from Peru! [Re: karode13]
#26347077 - 11/26/19 04:19 PM (4 years, 2 months ago) |
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Its great to see you again Nature Boy, you may or may not have been around recntly, not sure... i lurk more than anything nowadays
-------------------- Anything posted from this account is made up for the entertainment of others, this account is a complete work of fiction. Its not illegal to get bored and make up stories, authors do it all the time.
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Nature Boy
Stranger than most



Registered: 07/09/07
Posts: 8,241
Loc: Samsara
Last seen: 2 months, 5 days
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Quote:
PsychoReactive said: Grab some coca leaves while you're there.
We did. They're even given out in the Cusco airport for free. Just grab a handful from the basket and shove 'em in your cheek as a quid. In the hotels (every one!) they have big hot water heaters and glass bottles filled with coca leaves with tongs sitting next to the jar. You just fill a cup with hot water, reach in with the tongs and grab a bunch of leaves, and let the tea steep for two minutes before drinking. All free of charge...any time you pass through the lobby. My wife drank quite a bit of coca tea...maybe two (sometimes three) cups per day the entire time we were there. So mundane and matter-of-fact, I don't even think I took a picture of the tables. In the stores surrounding the great square in Cusco, they sell coca leaf CANDY!
It's not as if you get any detectable high from the tea - you don't...it's just supposed to help combat high altitude sickness and the associated fatigue. At Machu Pichu, the plants are actually labeled as coca. Once you see its appearance growing naturally, you start to see it all over.
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Nature Boy
Stranger than most



Registered: 07/09/07
Posts: 8,241
Loc: Samsara
Last seen: 2 months, 5 days
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Re: Hello from Peru! [Re: coAsTal] 1
#26347323 - 11/26/19 06:37 PM (4 years, 2 months ago) |
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Quote:
coAsTal said: I hope you get it past customs ok-- so glad you're enjoying your trip brother!!
Yeah, getting past customs was a HUGE anxiety producer for me. I did NOT realize that I'd be swearing out (electronically, while being photographed and with my passport shoved into the machine) that I was not in possession of any plant, fruit, vegetable or meat from Peru. Technically, I was not in possession (it was in my checked luggage, not on my person) so I went down the list and just checked "no." After that, I thought I was home free. Unfortunately, not so!
Next you have to stand in line with the "receipt" of your attestation with a shitty B & W picture of your face on it, your arrival flight info, etc., etc. and wait to be re-admitted into the USA by an actual customs agent, who then asks the same questions while engaging you and observing you. It was at that moment that I felt most vulnerable and a bit regretful, but since the cactus was in my checked luggage there was no turning back at that point. In my mind I had a prepared "spiel" just in case. Probably would have convinced/fooled no one, but luckily it never became necessary. [wipes sweat off of brow].
So now I'm the proud owner of a 6" T.peruvianus pup from Cusco, Peru, which I will lovingly care for as a souvenir and remembrance of the vacation of a lifetime.
-------------------- All submitted posts under this user name are works of pure fiction or outright lies. Any information, statement, or assertion contained therein should be considered pure unadulterated bullshit. Note well: Sorry, but I do not answer PM's unless you are a long-time trusted friend. If you have a question, ask it in the appropriate thread.
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