[Aurelius]

"She still of course languishes (quite rightly in my view) on terrorism charges."

Thoroughly agree on the appropriateness of her incarceration. I've been by her prison, going by bus from Puno on the west coast of Lake Titicaca to the airport at Juliaca to the north. The reported harshness of the climate strikes me as a bit overblown. We were in Puno in August, which is like our February, and a light jacket is all that was needed, even after dark. Of course Puno is on the lake and protected by rapidly rising land on the shore side, while the prison is at higher altitude and on a plain - the lake is at about 13,000'.

[wardaddy]

I've been there too. Thin air for me. I had serious altitude sickness once in the Sierra Nevada mts. near Santa Marta in Colombia years ago after spending weeks above 15,000 feet while doing some searching for pre-Colombian relics. Once you get a bad case of altitude sickness, it recurs much easier. I don't go above 10K anymore if I can help it.

Titicaca is prime training ground for competitive free depth divers...training at that altitude enhances their dives at sea level.

I used to go to Huaca, Chimbote, and other northern coastal ports north of Lima on ship's business some 10 years ago. Amazing what a desert NW Peru is.

FR is creeping today...have you noticed?