We left the hotel, our bags all stored in Elli and Vicky’s room, and were transported to the Titicaca dock on motorcycle taxis. We were to stay overnight on the island Amantani after first visiting the nearby island Taquile. For the overnight stay we would be divided into pairs and then looked after by a […]
Day 96 : Cusco
It was a lazy day today, we slept in and had a quiet wander around Cuzco looking at a few shops. I managed to get my hair cut along the way which was good. In the evening we attended a pub quiz at the Real McCoy and had a great time. I think our team […]
Day 95 : The Inca Trail day 4 – Machu Picchu
The final checkpoint before Machu Picchu opened at 5:30am and we were in a long line waiting for our turn to head through for about twenty minutes. Melissa led us all through some stretches, much to the amusement of others in the line. This was the first time on the trail that we had everyone […]
Day 94 : The Inca Trail day 3
The early morning walk up to the Runkuracay pass (3850m) was steep and tiring. I stayed at the back and walked with Kelly for most of it, Kelly wasn’t feeling very good and was struggling a bit so needed encouragement and I was happy to take it slow and steady. Overnight it had snowed to […]
Day 93 : The Inca Trail day 2
It was Danny’s birthday today but we didn’t celebrate much other than wishing him a happy day, the proper party would come later. He did get a few little gifts which was nice. Things got harder today. I believe that is what is called understatement. From our campsite we would today be climbing up to […]
Day 92 : The Inca Trail day 1
Leaving Ollantaytambo we drove in the bus towards KM 88, the starting point for our traverse of the Inca Trail. According to my guidebook the town here is called Qorihuayrachina and we were at an altitude of 2600m. Getting off the bus we were greeted by the sight of dozens of men in matching uniforms […]
Day 91 : Cusco and the Sacred Valley
A bus arrived this morning to transport us through a tour of the Sacred Valley. Our first stop was the Inka site of Sacsayhuaman perched on a hill overlooking Cusco. Our guide Martine sat us down in the wide grassy space between two hill tops and explained about the supposed history of the site. The […]
Day 90 : Cusco
There are a few really good places for breakfast in Cusco and today we ate at The Real McCoy, a restaurant set up by a couple of expat Brits that serves food that you might get back home in the UK. I had cereal and toast with vegemite (it has been about three months since […]
Day 89 : Chivay to Cusco
We drove from Chivay to Cusco today but took a mountain pass that Rhys and Vanessa hadn’t taken in the past. This turned out to be an inspired idea; the day was beautiful and our early start meant we drove through the plains and mountains with beautiful light over the breathtaking vistas. Mostly the road […]
Day 88 : Chivay and the Colca Canyon
Once again we had the company of Miguel as our tour leader, this time for an excursion out to the Colca Canyon. The main attraction of the canyon is the possibility of seeing condors in flight and we were lucky enough to arrive after an hour and a half along a bumpy dirt road to […]
Day 87 : Arequipa to Chivay
We had a different activity this morning, a reality tour of the poorer areas of Arequipa. With our guide Miguel we were driven to a number of different places to be shown what life is like for those without much money. Normally I would expect a tour like this to involve being shown around people’s […]
Day 86 : Arequipa
The Monasterio de Santa Catalina was our first call today. The Monastery was started more than four hundred years ago and was set up as a self contained city within a city for the resident nuns. For hundreds of years the nuns lived a life separate from the outside world, communicating only with family through […]