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Published: June 23rd 2008
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Train time
... another one of the better activities we came up with. So... for anyone still interested (probably not many!) we finally got round to finishing off the blog. It all got a bit sidetracked after the last entry due to a positive pregnancy test in Sucre!
After that we headed to the Bolivian jungle where we were due to start some volunteering with an organisation that look after pre-school kids so that the parents can work. Mae's morning sickness hit bad and that combined with the intense jungle heat and humidity, and several screaming kids, meant we didn't last long! On one day we were looking after 10 four year olds (9 of them boys!) in a classroom that they were not allowed out of. Probably one of the toughest things we had ever done and made us question if having our own was such a good idea!
We headed quickly for La Paz (the highest capital city in the world) where it was a lot cooler. However, the heat exhaustion was replaced quickly by altitude exhaustion and now Mae could only manage a couple of hours of walking before needing to go and lie down again! Jack, like a true gentleman, was now carrying two backpacks everywhere and everything
La Paz
... the breath-taking (literally) city sprawls densely up the sides of the surrounding mountains. was getting just a bit too much like hard work.
La Paz was amazing though... we were staying in the heart of the Witches market surrounded by stalls of potions and herbs and llama foetuses - apparantly they bring good luck to a new home! The 'world's most dangerous road' now didn't seem like such a good idea, and so we moved quickly on to Lake Titicaca and the pretty town of Copacabana. The world's highest lake was very beautiful and after a couple of relaxing days there we crossed the border into Peru.
We went straight to Cuzco, the launch pad for Machu Picchu.. and it was here that we found out that Mae had spent the last 5 weeks with salmonella! Yes things were just getting better and better! Jack nearly put us straight on a plane home but after a very stressful day we decided to do the Machu Picchu visit as planned.
And we were so pleased we did! We had to forego the 4 day trek we had planned to get there and instead just did the two hour climb from the nearest village up the side of the mountain! We had
View from the top
The sun comes out as we reach the top for the incredible view over the lost city. set off at 4.30am in the pitch black with a flickering torch .. wondering if this was a good idea after all! But after a tough climb, reaching the top just felt wonderful!
It was the most amazing place. It is is a city that the Inca's built on the top of a mountain, surrounded by more mountains. And it was lost until some American stumbled on it quite recently! It is impossible to do it justice with words.. or even pictures but the setting of this amazing place just blew us away. You could walk through the houses, and their vegetable plots, and past the sacrificing stone! It was incredible.
After Machu Picchu we flew to the Caribbean coast of Columbia as we had promised ourselves a week on the beach before making a break for home. Cartagena was beautiful.. an old walled pirate city with wooden balconies and hanging bourganvilla, surrounded by sea on 3 sides. We spent a few days wondering round this stunning city and visiting the local beaches and then took a boat to a nearby remote island where we camped on the beach of white sand, metres from the crystal clear water... just
Playa Blanca
Where we spent 3 wonderful days camping on the beach. We didn't move much from this spot! what we needed after the stress of the previous few weeks. We ate mangos, sipped pina coladas, snorkelled and did all those lovely tropical beachy things!
Before our flight home from Caracas, Venezuela, we spent a few days with Jack's uncle and cousins. We felt incredibely guilty having to cut our trip short and not spending more time with them, but thankfully they understood we had special reasons for needing to get home quickly. We had a couple of lovely meals though and Adriana and Rebeca took us to a great salsa bar where we saw a fantastic band which included a member of the Buena Vista social club.. a great last night to our trip!
Our trip did not turn out as planned but all in all was a fantastic time, and although unexpected we are now excited about the prospect of being parents by the end of the year!
Thank you to everyone who contributed to the trip of a lifetime.. one we will remember forever and is responsible for our first child!
Over and out.... xx
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