The Llama club vs. the Pink Fury

In February of 1980 this obscure club of three was born in Peru : Myself (not in the picture), Sue, and Ron a guy we met and hung out with for a short time. (Pay no attention to the random smiling child. Not a member of the club!) We had found these miniature llama’s made with alpaca fur at a market. Sue had hers dangling from her woven pullover (^see picture^) while Ron and I carried ours in our bags and would occasionally let them come out to play.  This was our travel mascot. Our good luck mojo. And at one point, an instrument of torture, but I’ll get to that later. Yes, we were the Llama club.

We were stuck in Aquas Calientes, the town just below Machu Picchu. It was raining which delayed our visit to the ruins. This town was super rustic back then. The roofs were pieces of metal with rocks to hold them down. Electricity was only available for a couple hours each night. Our room cost a dollar.

Look, our Baño ❤️ Very luxurious.

That day we sat on a porch, laughing and telling stories with Ron, watching the backs of drunk men pissing in the street. It was one of those days that didn’t go as planned but we had a lot of fun.

 

Another positive thing about getting stuck in Aquas Calientes were the thermal baths located up the hill behind the town. Directions were” left at the cow and right at the pig!” I know it looks like that guy in the photo is naked but I swear he was wearing at least underwear!

The next day we made the hike up to Machu Picchu which was spectacular but strangely I have few pictures, none of which are that great.

After Machu Picchu we took trains and buses to several different towns. Along the way we saw:

We didn’t do any grocery shopping but appetizing opportunities were there at every train stop.

Oh, and check out this hand made instrument!

40 years is a long time to procrastinate writing a story. We lost Ron by mistake in Cuzco so the memories can only be excavated by the remaining two aging llama lovers. This is how I remember the tale of The Pink Fury. We were on a train for a four hour ride surprised to discover we did not have seats. It was a train full of Peruvians, crying babies, chickens, sacks of grain and us. All we could do was find a place to lean. Sue tried sitting on an arm rest from the aisle. A women wearing a pink sweater, sitting in that seat was not having it and elbowed her off. Sue stands up behind the woman’s seat, and as everyone watches,  takes her little llama and dangles it above her head, lightly brushing her, like an annoying flea. The lady in pink absentmindedly swats at whatever is torturing her without realizing what’s happening . Then suddenly she whips around, growling and barking like an enraged cartoon character. There is a collective gasp from the whole train. Sue leans back with a look of sarcastic terror. There is silence for a frozen moment…. that gives way to everyone laughing, including that lady who earned herself  the title of Pink Fury! And then there was world peace. Sue was not invited to sit on the arm rest but eventually a few people exited the train, we got to sit and someone put their baby on one of our laps. Well probably Sue’s lap since no one in their right mind would hand ME a baby.

In retrospect, I don’t know anyone besides my eighth grade bestie, who would do something like that. She charmed a crabby pants lady in pink with her bold silliness. I think she will always be that mischievous 14 year old.

Years passed, the llama club forgotten and those little guys somehow got ditched by both of us. It was just a tiny thing, didn’t take up much space so why did we get rid of them?   Rehashing this story and trying to remember the details has made us both sentimental about the lost llamas. Then last week I was presented with this:

 

No fur and made of metal with a warning on the bottom “For decorative use only and keep away from children.” Seriously it could be the llama version of brass knuckles. It fits in your hand and could deliver an effective surprise punch to a home intruder. But still, getting back to world peace, it is comforting to be back in Llamas. Thanks Sue, I love you and happy birthday!

P.S. One more.