It costs about fifty cents for a bag of dried coca leaves the size of a fist, which given the rate of consumption I maintained for my week in the Andes would have lasted about three months. 
<p>It's hard to overestimate the curative power of these semi-bitter leaves and the tea made from them: altitude sickness, headaches, muscle aches, exhaustion -- all fade before the mighty power of the dozen or so alkaloids packed in to each leafy length. 
</p>
I left the bag behind in Cusco (there's apparently a considerable stretch of jail time associated with the importation of coca leaves -- who knew?) but it's never far from my thoughts. Fair thee well, sun plant of Tahuantinsuyu...
<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.flickr.com/people/32611082@N00">00dann</a> from Brooklyn, USA
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<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/32611082@N00/757733665/">Coca, uncut</a>