BY INTERNET: CCBS has acquired the internet services of ADN Telecom; it works 7 days a week, 24 hours a day (although cloudy days may affect the energy supply). However, it has a limited capacity and at certain times of year researchers will have to cooperate and respect schedules to ensure an acceptable internet speed. During the day, internet usage peaks between 4 and 9 pm.
IMPORTANT: Please do not come with expectations of, for example, backing up your photos or data online, or seeing You Tube videos without restriction, or downloading large documents.
BY RADIO: Cocha Cashu also has a two-way radio that can be used for personal communications. It is far cheaper than the telephone, but less reliable, as bad weather can interfere with transmission. We currently communicate through a service in Cuzco: Service Galindo (Alex and Diana); telephone # (51-84) 23-8219; service available between 7:00 pm and 8:30 pm. However, no one can contact Cashu unless the Cashu radio is on. To place a call to Cashu, one telephones to the service in Cuzco and asks to speak to Cocha Cashu or to Cocha Uno (the radio designation for Cocha Cashu) via radio. One can make a telephone call from Cashu via the radio as long as the call is “collect.” Such calls are made through an operator and therefore take longer. It is best to have people call you, if you can arrange it, or to use the satellite telephone. Making a connection on a particular day and time is not guaranteed, so family and friends should not worry if you do not make/receive a prearranged call, miss their birthday, etc. Also remember that you are making a radio connection. That means the whole world is listening. Galindo charges for their radio-patch service. We keep a log of each call made to or from Cashu. At the end of the call the service will tell you how much your connection cost. This is also recorded, and you will be billed for your calls at the end of the season. The current price is $0.37/minute. That is the charge for the radio-patch only, in addition to the cost of the telephone call.
BY MAIL: Usually people arrive at or leave Cashu several times during the main Cashu research season. That means that you will have several opportunities to send mail. So, bring stationery, envelopes, and postcards with you as well as U.S stamps (peel-off only) and Peruvian stamps. Investigators returning to the States will mail letters from there, which is faster. You can also receive mail at Cashu. Delivery is irregular and not completely reliable, but you may wish to give the address to your family and friends anyway. When people pass through Cuzco on their way to Cocha Cashu, they should stop at the Cocha Cashu office and pick up any mail that may have accumulated. The address for receiving mail is: Your Name c/o Veronica Chávez, Estación Biológica Cocha Cashu, San Diego Zoo Global Peru, Av. Perú F-10, Urb. Quispicanchis, Cuzco, PERÚ. In case of emergency need (e.g. new glasses), we will try to connect you with someone coming in who can carry the item for you.
