October 26, 2025

Dear god, pachamama, tunkashila, ayahuasca, San Pedro, Peru and love,

What would you have me know today?

Your passage home is safely protected. Your travel will be smooth. As in ceremony, breathe in breathe out and take care of your body. We will do the rest. 

Relax your body. Keep your heart open. Know that you are love and loved. 

On October 26, I woke up around 3:15, packed my bags, and met my taxi—the same driver who had taken me from the airport the day before. We got to the Cusco airport around 4:30 a.m. There were very few people. It’s a small airport, and although passengers were lined up, there were no LATAM agents yet. We waited—maybe even an hour—before the agents arrived to check bags. I was third or fourth in line. The man who helped me seemed unfocused and inefficient; he couldn’t find my flight, and it felt as if it were his first day on the job. But everything worked out.

In Peru, it often takes a while for gates to be assigned, so you can be through security without knowing your gate. I walked around, looked at the shops, didn’t buy anything, and got a coffee and a sandwich. I ran into Victoria—she was on an earlier flight—and saw other people from the retreat. One couple was actually on my flight to Lima, seated farther up. The flight from Cusco to Lima may have been slightly delayed, but it was uneventful.

In Lima, I had a long layover. The airport has a big duty-free area with tons of restaurants. I looked at a lot of menus; nothing sounded good, but I was hungry, so I ended up getting some kind of wrap that was just okay. Eventually they assigned the gate, and I headed to the right section of the airport.

On my flight from Lima to Los Angeles there was an open seat next to me. I was in the window, a man was in the aisle, and his wife was in the center seat behind us. I don’t think they spoke English; I suspected she might ask whoever took the middle seat to swap, but since no one sat there, she stayed put. I was so relieved to have the open seat. The flight was 8 hours and 40 minutes—long and uncomfortable. Even though we’d already gone through security and I’d filled my water bottle and bought more water, they made us dump all liquids at boarding. I was irrationally upset; I wanted to stay hydrated. As soon as the seatbelt sign turned off, I hit the call button and asked a flight attendant to fill my bottle. I got up a couple of times to use the bathroom, watched three movies, tried some music, and didn’t sleep at all.

Arriving in Los Angeles, customs was fine, but the whole display—the flags, Border Protection, the separate lines for citizens and non-citizens—felt gross to me. LAX is confusing. After I picked up my bag, rechecked it, and went through customs, I had a 10-minute walk outside to the terminal for my San Francisco flight, then had to go through security again. It was a scene—confusing and complicated—but I had about three hours to do it all. Food options were poor; the only thing I found was a Subway-type place. It was gross, and I didn’t feel good about what I ate that day compared to most of the trip.

My flight to San Francisco was delayed, and everything seemed to take longer than it should. I landed around midnight. I was so grateful Brent picked me up. He’d been waiting in the cell-phone lot, but there was tons of traffic getting into arrivals, so I went upstairs and met him at the drop-off area. We had a good drive back to Marin. One eventful moment: driving through the Sunset, I had to go to the bathroom so badly—I’d considered going at baggage claim but just wanted out of the airport—so he pulled over near St. Cecilia’s Church, and I basically went in the bushes on the sidewalk. Instant relief.

I got home close to 1:30. The next day I did almost nothing—showered, ate, and rested. I was glad to be home.

Travel details

Cusco to Lima

Depart Cusco on Latam flight DL6222 at 7:35am – Seat 14F

Ahuacpinta 149, Cusco (CUSCO) to Alejandro Velasco Astete International Airport (CUZ):

Recommended Arrival Time at CUZ

  • Arrive 2 hours before your flight for domestic departures within Peru (CUZ → LIM).
  • However, because you’re connecting internationally afterward (LIM → LAX → SFO), arrive at least 2.5–3 hours early to allow for any check-in or baggage complications — especially if your airline needs to check your bag all the way through to the U.S.

👉 Ideal arrival time at Cusco Airport: by 4:30–4:45 AM

🚖 Transfer from Ahuacpinta 149 to CUZ

  • The drive is about 20 minutes in light early-morning traffic.
  • Plan to depart your hotel/B&B around 4:00 AM to give a comfortable buffer in case of road delays or lines at security.

✈️ Additional Tips

  • Check-in: If you’re flying LATAM or Sky Airline, their Cusco counters typically open by 4:30 AM.
  • Bag-check rules: If your ticket is booked as one itinerary (CUZ–LIM–LAX–SFO), you can check bags through to the U.S. at CUZ; otherwise, you’ll need to re-check in Lima.
  • Lima connection: Allow at least 2 hours in Lima for passport control, baggage, and security re-screening before your international flight.

Summary:

  • ✅ Leave your hotel: 4:00 AM
  • ✅ Arrive CUZ: 4:30–4:45 AM
  • ✈️ Flight departs: 7:35 AM

Lima to LAX

Latam flight DL6024 leaves Lima at 12pm & arrives LAX Terminal B at 6:40pm – seat 25L

figure out if I need to re-check my bag?

Lima connection: Allow at least 2 hours in Lima for passport control, baggage, and security re-screening before your international flight.

LAX to SFO

transfer from Terminal B where I arrive to Terminal 3 where my next flight leaves

Delta flight DL2986 leaves LAX at 9:49 pm arrives SFO at 11:14pm – seat 22A

Brent picking me up around midnight?

1. Cusco (CUZ) → Lima (LIM)

  • Domestic segment on LATAM — short 1-hour flight.
  • Check-in: You’ll check your bags in Cusco and most likely they’ll be tagged all the way to LAX, especially if LATAM issued your entire itinerary (ask the check-in agent to confirm).
  • At Lima: You’ll disembark and walk to the international connections area to clear Peruvian exit control and security before boarding your LIM → LAX flight.

🌎 2. Arriving in the U.S. at LAX (International Arrival Point)

This is your first U.S. port of entry, so you must clear all customs and immigration here, even though you’re continuing on to San Francisco.

Here’s the process step-by-step:

✈️ Deplaning & Entry

  • Follow signs for U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
  • Have your passport and Customs Declaration (usually digital via the airline app) ready.

👮 Immigration

  • You’ll go through immigration:
    • U.S. citizens/residents use Global Entry, Mobile Passport Control, or the regular U.S. citizen line.
    • You’ll be asked where you’re coming from and if you’re bringing any agricultural items or food.

💼 Baggage Claim & Customs

  • Even if your bag is tagged to SFO, you must claim it at LAX for customs inspection.
  • After clearing customs, there’s a re-check counter right outside customs where you’ll hand your checked bag back for your Delta flight to SFO (you won’t need to recheck at the main terminal).

🔄 Security & Connection

  • You’ll go back through TSA security before boarding your domestic flight.
  • If your LAX → SFO flight departs from a different terminal (usually Terminal 3 for Delta), allow at least 2 hours connection time to walk, clear customs, recheck bags, and clear security again.

✈️ 3. LAX → SFO

  • This is a domestic flight, so no more customs or immigration.
  • Arrive at SFO like any normal domestic arrival — you can exit directly to baggage claim (if you didn’t recheck a bag in LAX).

💡 Practical Tips

  • Keep boarding passes handy for both LATAM and Delta segments.
  • Don’t pack fruit, coca tea, or food in checked or carry-on bags entering the U.S. — CBP can confiscate it.
  • Use Mobile Passport Control (MPC app) or Global Entry at LAX to skip long lines.
  • If your flights are on separate tickets (LATAM + Delta booked separately), you’ll need to reclaim and recheck luggage yourself at LAX after customs.

In short:

CUZ → LIM → LAX → SFO
✅ Exit Peru immigration in Lima
✅ Clear U.S. customs & immigration + recheck bags in LAX
✅ Domestic connection to SFO (no customs again)

Posted in Days