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Published: February 13th 2006
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Loco Locomotive
Here I am on the 10hr train journey from Cuzco to Puno(lake Titicaca). Just stretching the legs.....or maybe getting dragged into a traditional inca music and dance spectacular November 29th 2005
I decided my short stint in Peru was coming to an end, it was time to head east to the border. My original plan of hitting Mancora in northern Peru and heading down the coastline, would have to wait to my next visit to these parts. Hopefully when I'm a more accomplished surfer and I'm able to take more advantage of the reputedley kick-arse sets. GNARRLY!
So after two weeks in the Cuzco region, I boarded the economy class tuesday morning ten hour train ride to Puno. Pleased to see a newly acquainted face in the form of Sally "Kyles" Dawson. Bearing an uncanny resemblance to one of our great aussi exports. Pedros "The Greek" jumps aboard the train. Bringing with him Johnny "london" and kiwi chick "Flick". Unbeknownst to me, I would be hanging out with all these guys at different places along the way.
A long journey was broken up nicely with plenty of scenic vistas, cards, laughs, music, Inka guitar song and dance ÉSPECTACULAR. As well as the wishful thinking from the three lads. That the two stunning girls who happened to change in our carriage, into their catsuits. In preperation for a fashion
Hey Speedy.......
It'd been a long day for this muchacho. Run off his feet con tequila show for the elderly rich tourists in first class. Would make their way back down to the scum class to perform the same show. Unfortunately, it was wishful thinking at it's peak. Nevermind, the initial catsuit transformation shall serve us well on those lonely jungle nights.
We made it to Copacabana the next day, after an uneventful night in Puno. Leaving Kyles behind to do her thing. Copacabana, a small Mediterranean like town, showed us a really good time. Mainly chilling out for a few days, meeting colourful characters, seeing the few sights. With a few fun-filled drinking sessions thrown in for good measure. Our final drunken night resulted in us missing the early morning ferry to the supposedley beautiful Isla del Sol. An Inka creation site, and birthplace of the sun according to the Inka culture. However, La Paz was waiting, and none of us wanted to put it off another day.
Oh my, my. La Paz. What a city! What a Lady! It gets you on that first glimpse of the canyon that the large sprawling city sits within. Surrounded by 6000m plus(above sea-level) snowy peaks. The largely indigenous city sits a whopping 3600m above sea-level.
Ready Mr Music
A great band that we were lucky to see twice in Copacabana. Very envious of that beard. Many an hour was spent wondering the alleys, witches markets, and a visit to the very informative Coca Musuem. With a great nightlife to boot. However, I don't seem to have any photo's.
Incidentally, I met a number of fellow travellers who'd been mugged or victims of attempted muggings. You notice a list of the different scams and mugging techniques in most hostels. However, I was witness to nothing of the sort, and felt safe walking around the streets day and night. We wandered foolishly through some dark alleys late at night, maybe we were lucky. The only uneasiness I experienced was when a shoe-shiner was nearby. These guys would get around in balaclavas and definitely gave me the goosebumps.
Now my eyes were looking northwards, it was time to start making my way to the Amazon Basin. First stop was a small town called Coroico. However, the only route to Coroico was via the infamous "Death Road". Apparently the amount of fatal accidents that occur on this mountain descdending dirt road gives it the proud title of "World's Most Dangerous Road". So I decided, I'd rather keep my life in my own hands and mountain bike down.
Cheeky Bugger
The image that's seen all over South America. Looks like someone doesn't dig it. Then leave my safety in the hands of some crazy bus driver. The fact that the dirt road is single lane, with buses and trucks going both ways, the choice was made pretty easy. Let me just say, it was very fast and heck of a lot of fun. Flying down a 64km stretch of road, that descends over 3000m in altitude. Dodging buses, trucks, and other riders. No-one died; though there was a close call, with an american guy nearly stepping off one of the huge drop-offs when we were taking a breather.
One of the added bonuses of the mountain biking adventure is ending up in a small town called Coroico. Only 6 of our group of thirty decided to stick around, with the remainder boarding the bus back to La Paz. The less gringo's around the better I say. And the lack of gringo's around the town was pleasantly noticeable. It really was a tranquil little town, a small main square with obligatory hippy grooving the day away. As much as I enjoyed La Paz, I found Coroico alot more appealing. Maybe a year in quiet little Strandhill could explain this affection.
The highlight of Coroico
Copacabana
Copacabana(Bolivia) from above. Very mediterrenean like setting was the hostel we stayed in. Actually, an isolated retreat is probably a more accurate description than a hostel. And it was another hot tip from Pedros "The Greek". It was situated 20mins walk away from town further up the mountainside. Still kicking about with Johnny and Flick, along with an english girl Karen. We chose one of the small cabins that are available and it was just perfect. Two single beds and a small kitchen down the bottom, with a ladder to a loft with a double mattress. We'd step out our door and take in picturesque views of the surrounding mountains and valleys below. Everything was a lush and subtropical green, with mucho flora and fauna to check out whilst dozing in hammocks and deckchairs. We were in our own little bio-sphere, unable to see or hear any of the cabins, as they were spread out over the thick jungle like landscape. After four or so days it was a difficult decision to tear myself away from this wondrous place. The kind of place I could easily spend an indefinite length of time, learning spanish and not much else at all.
I had reunited with Kyles, working
Copacabana Crew
A few nights hanging with this lot was plenty. The freaky brazilian in the middle drove most nuts along one of the dirt roads above Coroico. Along with Karen and myself, the three of us were headed to Rurrenebaque. Or "Rurre", which is much quicker to say and type. Rurre was 15hours north by bus, with a lot of the WMDR still to descend. Now I was thinking of writing this whole blog about that bus ride and how torturous it was. The smell on first entering the bus, the tyre blow-out, The bumpy descent down the hellish road at breakneck speed, the near head-on with a utility coming round the bend on the wrong side of the single lane road, the kitten, the distorted ear-drum twisting sounds coming from the speakers overhead long into the night. It was really a test of one's strength of will and sanity.
However we made it to Rurre. Formed a group of eight with other familiar faces, and used the power of our large group as bargaining power for the negotiations that lay before us. We all decided to do the Pampas tour. And managed to get a deal that would cost us 16usd a day. Absolute bargain! The Pampas was amazing, involving a 3 day canoe trip up one of
Fab 4
Great time had with Johnny, Flick and Pedros throughout Bolivia and beyond. the nearby rivers in the Amazon Basin. We got to see quite alot of unusual wildlife including; Caiman Alligators, pink dolphins, monkeys, some giant rat-like creatures, as well as piranha fishing, and Anaconda hunting. Couldn't find one unfortunately. Managed to get nailed quite severly by mozzies also. Refer to that great shot of Alistair after getting mauled all over his back. After 3 days of mozzies I decided to give the jungle tour a miss, and boarded a flight for Santa Cruz. Where I chilled for a few days with the Toucans in our hostel in preperation for my next long bus journey's down into Argentina. And ever closer to that long awaited reunion with my brother.
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andy
non-member comment
awesome
hey dan, lovin the stories and pics mate, keep em comin! sounds like an epic adventure... good for you mate. look forward to the next gripping installment, you know I love a good story! big up bro, Andy