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It felt like my head had barely touched the pillow as my alarm went off at 6am. Wide awake with the nervous energy that usually precedes an international flight I showered and packed my bags before heading up to the bar for breakfast. Due to the fact it was so early, only bread rolls, coffee and hot water had been put out. I had to make do with the slightly dry, sickly sweet rolls and Coca Tea until I got to the airport. My secure taxi had arrived promptly at 7.15am and even though I could have haggled with an unofficial taxi for a cheaper fare, it was too early in the morning to run the risk of something untoward happening. Alberto whisked me through the city, taking as many short cuts and detours as he ... read more

Having spent most of my day in Starbucks yesterday blogging, I decided that I really ought to try and see more of the former 'City of the Kings'. I had walked through Miraflores in the late afternoon sun yesterday to take in the air. It was an interesting suburb, much lusher and greener than other parts of the city I had seen when I arrived. I escaped what appeared to be 'Gringoville' surrounding the hostel and walked down Diagonal and La Valle to Parque del Amour. The park was filled with people all enjoying the warm weather on the weekend, and was surrounded by tall palm trees and well tended lawns and flower beds. A huge terracotta sculpture of two entwined lovers took pride of place at the parks centre, and from what I could see ... read more

Morning seemed to follow the night before with indecent haste, as I rolled over to turn off my alarm. Although I'd gone to bed early last night, I still felt exhausted and longed for the comfort of my own bed. Having showered, I dragged my bags outside to pack them, not wanting to wake the other people in my dorm and sat at the bar to await my transfer to Paracas. At 6.30am I was beckoned to the front gate of the hostel where I was met by Willy, the driver on my private transfer. Once I had slung my heavy bags into the boot of his taxi, I climbed on to the back seat and we made our way out of town and back towards Ica. We were joined on the journey by Willy's brother ... read more

I was woken this morning by the chatter from the menagerie of birds that were kept at the hostel. I had had a great nights sleep, considering the bed felt like it was made out of reinforced cardboard, mainly because I had the entire six bed dorm to myself. I was surprised to see so many people when I went down for breakfast, considering my dorm had been empty. I was greeted by the dear little lady who had checked me in yesterday, and offered scrambled eggs which I took gladly. I had heaps of time before I had to catch the coach to Ica, so I had a very leisurely breakfast. I had so much time in fact that I had long enough to find somewhere in the sleepy town of Nasca to Skype Tina ... read more

After a surprisingly sound nights sleep on the coach from Cusco, I woke up minutes before we arrived in Nasca. I had got a fright last night when I was told that we would be arriving at 4am rather than 8am as planned. Thankfully the crew-member was wrong and we arrived a little ahead of schedule at 7.30am. According to my instructions from Green Toad Buses I was to be met on arrival in Nasca and whisked straight to the airport for my flight across the world famous Nasca Lines. In fact, no sooner had I stepped off the coach to collect my bags I could hear my name being called from a far. I was greeted at the gate of the Cruz del Sur terminal by Manuel, who escorted me a hundred metres up the ... read more

Although I'd asked for a wake up call before I turned in last night, I was wide awake before the phone even rang. It was more to do with the rather uncomfortable I had attempted to sleep in rather than the excitement of finally getting to see Machu Picchu. Thankfully Keith reached over for the phone with a groan, clearly as happy to be getting up at 4.50am as I was. Having washed my face in cold water and grabbed my duffel bag and day pack, I headed downstairs to join the rest of the team for breakfast. Everyone looked dead on their feet as I took my seat next to Henk-Jan and began to gulp down my breakfast. Few words were exchanged and we sat eating, apart from to say how pleased we were that ... read more

It was an early wake up call today just as Smithy had promised. As I took the two cups of Coca tea I had been handed by our porter, I couldn't help but feel a little deflated after the news last night. Keith and I felt equally gutted about the circumstances under which we had to finish the trail as we got dressed, but sadly that was the hand we had been dealt and there was little we could do about it. Breakfast was a far more somber affair than it had been the last two mornings and I could only assume that it was because the group shared my disappointment. Once I had eaten, I was handed a set of shoelaces by Smithy with which to fix my boots. I wasn't sure how they would ... read more

I woke up to the sound of rain hitting the tent today and hoped beyond hope that it would pass quickly. The repair job that Javier's friend had done on my boots hadn't lasted very long, and the thought my feet getting wet whilst walking didn't fill me with joy. Keith and I were greeted with a steaming hot mug of Coca tea as we opened the tent, which one of the poncho clad porters brought us. It wasn't particularly cold this morning, but a warm cup of tea defiantly helped the wake up process! I got dressed and donned my waterproof trousers and the whole boot gaiters that I had bought in Cusco, much to the delight of the porters. Joining everyone else in the mess tent, we were served piping hot quinoa porridge followed ... read more

Waking up early yet again this morning, I crept about the room getting myself packed and ready as quietly as I could so as not to wake Simon. We would be beginning our trek along the Inca trail within hours and I was excited to say the least. Lil, Keith, Matt and I were the first down to breakfast this morning, and as much as we made small talk, I could sense a certain amount of anxiety at the table as we were joined by Tori and Talia. The palpable apprehension lingered in the air for the duration of the short minibus ride to 'Kilometre Eighty-two', where we met our team of porters for the first time. As each of our duffel bags were weighed, we were hassled by local women attempting to sell us all ... read more

I was woken up by my room mate Simon's alarm sounding at 6am this morning. We had spent at least an hour exchanging stories last night when I turned in, which meant getting up this morning was exceptionally hard work. Once we had showered we headed downstairs for breakfast and were greeted by Keith from our group, who also looked a little sleep deprived. For the first time in South America I was had been given the choice if something more than bread and jam for breakfast and I was rather excited. I piled my plate high with cold meats, cheeses and a couple of boiled eggs, much to peoples amazement. I wanted to enjoy my last breakfast in civilisation, and no one was going to stop me.Having eaten and packed what few belongings I needed ... read more