The Story of the Sandals

Back on the Monday before I went on the trail, and Encarna was still with me in Cusco, I found a lovely pair of sandals that I HAD to have...ladies, you all know what I´m talking about. This was in a mini market type place that we had ducked into to avoid the rain. The sellers were in a U shape in a large inner courtyard of an old building.

The lady selling the lovely sandals didn´t have my size in the colour that I wanted (red, of course) but she did say that her husband could whip a pair up for me no problem. I would just have to put down a deposit and come back on Wednesday (the day before the trail). Hmmmm sounds good to me! I paid a deposit of half the negotiated price and she told me she would be there on Wednesday at 9 sharp with my sandals.

Wed 9:00 - no one
Wed 10:00 - no one
Wed 11:45 - "Oh, sorry they´re still not here. Can you come back later please?"
Wed 1:30 - "Oh, when I said later I meant like 3."
Wed 3:30 - "Oh, sorry. Still not here and I´m closing at 4 today...but the lady across the way will be here to take them from the guy when he gets here....for SURE in an hour."
Wed 4:30 - (lady across the way) shakes her head - they still haven´t come.
Wed 5:10 - Still nothing. I left an angry note (I went to use an internet cafe to use google translate).

When I got back to Cusco after the Inca Trail, I was determined to get those bloody sandals!

The morning started much like it did above - no one was there. By my third visit at 11, one of the other sellers asked me to stop and have a look at her stuff. I was so angry by this point I replied, "No comprando nada aqui, la señora de 48 me robaron!"  - I won´t buy anything here the lady in stall 48 has robbed me....and I stomped away.

The woman called me back a few times before I reluctantly turned and walked back. She wanted the story. I explained the thing as best I could - the verb tenses were all over the place...gasp! - and the woman managed to piece it together. By then another vendor, a gentleman, had come over as well. They discussed the situation and then turned to me and said, "We will call them and get you your sandals. If they don´t show up we will reimburse you ourselves." wow...

They called the people from stall 48 and asked me to come back in 40 min...here we go again. But, I went away and came back an hour later for good measure.
 The maker of the sandals was there...with my sandals and a thousand apologies - it was Christmas time...there were many orders...the wife didn´t consult...etc, etc...
Anyway, I finally got my sandals - and I still had an hour to kill before my flight to Iquitos...the jungle.