WheresWatson

Considering it was New Years day none of us were particularly hungover. However, we were all suffering from a little sleep deprivation but that was quickly fixed with a Subway and diet coke. It was bank holiday and as a result nothing was open and there was very little for us to do. After some thumb twiddling and a rather questionable game of cards we decided to leave the hostel and do something to celebrate the first day of 2012. Half an hour later and we were in a taxi speeding our way to the Middle of the World!! We climbed out of the taxi and all we could see was what can only be described as a glorified shed. I wrongly thought that at the Middle of the World there would be something fairly impressive ... read more

It was the first time I had been alone in weeks and if felt good to sit in silence. So, considering how successful getting the bus from Cusco to Arequipa had been I headed to Arequipa bus station to board a bus to Lima. Not one bus company had a seat to Lima. It was way too close to Christmas and locals were trying to get to their families. I did not have the fore sight that this might even be a problem… idiot abroad-mí! The closest to Lima I could get was Paracas. Okay fine Paracas is better than nothing. Lima was only 3 hours from Paracas and the chance that I would be able to get a bus that short distance was more likely. Yet again, I was on another 18 hour bus journey. ... read more

We arrived at Cusco bus terminal with 20 minutes to find a bus company with affordable seats available. We had already made the decision to go with a more expensive carrier as firstly the journey was another long over night one and secondly the road between Cusco and Arequipa is notoriously dangerous, especially when wet. A lot of buses have gone over the edge of the road with fatal outcomes. The bus companies were advertising how many buses had gone over the edge in the previous 12 months. Obviously the more expensive carriers have a lower number of buses lost. Another demon along this road is hijackers. The buses often get hijacked by men carrying guns and they rob everyone’s property onboard. There was one bus at the station that had gunshots through the front window ... read more

I arrived late evening in Cusco after another long 20 hour bus journey from La Paz. Cusco is a charming city even by the dark of night. The buildings are mostly old colonial types with a few modern ones squashed in between them. My hostel is by far one of the most charming I have stayed in yet. Again, Loki did not fail to deliver and if it hadn’t been for the enormously steep hill of steps to climb to get to and from the city centre it would have been perfect. Oh never mind, It was perfect with all the steps. The hostel itself is a mansion about 200 years old. Two dominating grassy courtyards are at the centre of the hostel and on arrival were full of fellow gringos. Even if I don´t participate ... read more

Tas requested we woke early at 0530. We boarded our boat all half asleep. The plan of this journey was to watch sunrise and listen to the mornng chorus of the birds and wildlife. Unfortunately it was too over cast and therefore sunrise was off the cards. But wed rifted down the river and listened to the morning chorus of the birds and howler monkeys. After breakfast Tas took us piranha fishing. Piranha fishing consists of throwing raw meat into the river attached to a hook and hoping that one is able to yank the hook up before the piranha demolish the meat. From the point of the meat entering the water and the piranha eating the meat is about 5 seconds. So whilst listening to dubstep thanks to DJ Megan we spent 2 hours trying ... read more

AAAhhh.. regardless of the mosquito net and 50% DEET I was bitten to death in the night but the slightly more alarming discovery was that of a spider bite. Now usually spiders do not really bother me but spiders that bite in the jungle are something I have a real fear off. After breakfast I showed Tas my rather enlarged knee and two very distinct entry points. He was not concerned and recommended taking antibiotics just to be sure. He said I would already be dead if it was something to worry about... excellent! So, antibiotics all the way. We all climbed back into the boat and headed to the marsh land in the search of snakes specifically anacondas and cobras. After an hour of paddling around in waist deep grassy swamp land we found an ... read more