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Published: March 29th 2008
Liz
Our Kiwi Rider Girl in CuscoHi I am having majour problems loading photos, when I get it sorted I will load more...Cheers, Rosco
Hola again,
Left La Paz, climbed out of the city gaining around 600m from downtown to the tollgate at the top. Hadn’t been able to see Charlie but Rosco and Gerardo were seeing him today to follow progress with his Doctors & Lance & Zane in the truck were staying another day and night in La Paz with them.
Chaos and bedlam is a conservative description of the traffic leaving La Paz. It was indescribable, an hour later we emerged from the seething mass of cars, trucks, buses, police blowing whistles and hightailed out of town avoiding dogs and people intent on committing suicide. Minor repairs required to my bike as overheating in traffic so with Greg´s help we bypassed the fan switch so it ran all the time to keep it cooler - another problem hopefully solved.
We made good progress on good roads which, as we approached the Tiquina straits across a narrow neck of Lake Titicaca it got even better. Motorcyclists heaven, winding up and down hills with fantastic views of the lake. All day we had
Colca Canyon Road
The road snaking down the Colca Canyon area been passing hundreds of Easter Pilgrims on foot and bicycle heading to a Good Friday event at Copacabana. After some discussion whether we were on the correct road, a 70 year old German riding a BMW/KTM hybrid sidecar outfit assured us we were. Shortly after we boarded the ferry at Tiquina carefully manouvering our bikes to avoid the huge gaps between the planks forming the floor. A pleasant 15 minute crossing watching some of the other 14 ferrys backwards and forwards laden with buses cars, bicycles, tourists, animals and what-have-you. Climbing out of Tequina towards Copacabana we experienced even more perfect roads, windy, fast not too much traffic and fabulous views of the lake and the Eygyptian look alike dows sailing and fishing. We arrived at Copocabana on the lake shore for a pleasant lunch in a quaint hotel restaurant right on the water. Many people paddling boats but no-one swimming I guess due to the water temperature. A short ride after lunch bought us to the Bolivian Customs border where we stamped and signed our way out of Bolivia, changed some money and then within 500m reached the Peruvian border where for 45 minutes we repeated all the formalities
At the cross roads
Right to Lima, Left to Araquipa with very helpful authorities. At the Police check the attitude was even more jovial and helpful probably to soften us up for our first experince here of being asked for money which after much negotiating and laughing when I suggested it was Cerveza Soles - beer money (they agreed) we paid between PS20 ($NZ10) & $US10 each. (The next day they told Rosco, Gerardo etc that we had all paid $US10 so that was now the going rate! However given previous experience $10 to oil the wheels seemed great value for money.
We rode on towards Puno with nothing untoward except for many potholes (which the Police had warned us about) and bad sunstrike. 1.5 hours and 1 more Police check later we were lead to the Centro Plaza of Puno by a friendly local on a scooter who we had asked for directions. A beautiful old (at least 400 years) city which was notable for a clean tidy appearance (after Bolivia anything was clean & tidy) huge military/Police presence and the mandatory old church on the Plaza. We had a great meal in a Great (by Name & nature) restaurant right on the square and an early evening after
Tunnell
Tunnel on Colca road a stroll through the shopping precinct which was a mixture of old and new and very interesting.
The next morning we set off on a tour to the floating islands (without Keith who we left in the care of a local Doctor and Nurse who came to the hotel at our request to sort out his persistence stomach problems- would you get this service in Auckland on Good Friday at 7am?. We crossed to the islands amongst the papyrus type reeds (can’t remember the correct local name) to view 2 islands - 1 smallish with 6 families living aboard and the other larger complete with accommodation and a restaurant. The Reeds turn out to be very versatile - they build the Island ( a new one every 10 years) make houses from them and also eat part of them. They have small fish farms on each island where they raise mainly Trout for consumption and sale and I think manage to exist from Tourism . Very interesting to see - they say the lake water is pure and they drink it, however there was no mention of their toilet facilites??.
Back to Puno to find Keith 90% better and ready for lunch which we enjoyed in a small traditional courtyard restaurant for a leisurely couple of hours. Alan Keith and myself then hired a Tuk Tuk for a 2 hour tour of the city and sights. We visited an old (c1861) steam boat built on the Clyde then dismantled and shipped, railed and hauled to the lake and reassembled over a period of 6 years. (Were these people persistant or what?) We met aboard an ex workmate of Billy Connelly´s from the shipyards who was there on a trip to see another ship that was on the lake that had been built in their yard. Also visited the Libertado Hotel built on an what was an island (for political prisoners in the 1920s and 30s (hence the ironic name) It is now connected to the mainland by a causeway where we saw dozens of wild Guinea Pigs scurrying about - quite different from the domestic version which are bred here to eat.
This hotel was very luxurious with spectacular views out to the floating islands we had just visited and back to the city of Puno. Back in Puno we watched a Good Friday parade of the Black Madonna, Christ on a cross dripping blood and petals falling continually from the top of his head (is this a miracle?) and a glass coffin with a figure in it. Lots of dirge like music and drums banging- enough to give all the local kids nightmares and keep the collection plates full.
After some shoe shine experiences in the Plaza the group decided on our recommendation to dine at the "Great" restaurant which was again equal to its name.
The next morning we left Puno and headed for our next location of Cusco. An uneventful trip but with great scenery and roads. A few tired people on this trip of around 350kms so we stopped a few times for the national drink of Coke and some dried bread.
The Hotel we stayed at in Cusco was the Eco Hotel on the the Avenue de Sol and although very modern and beautifully presented allowed us to take our bikes through their main foyer and park in the internal courtyard. Cusco is a fabulous old city with a brilliant Centro Historico. 2 Very old churches and surrounded on 4 sides by beautiful old buildings. We dined in a restaurant overlooking the Centro and watched the locals (families, lovers etc) walking, meeting and enjoying a pleasant evening out as a few hundred mini taxis circulated the square plying their trade. All very interesting, & romantic. Peru seems a completely different world from Bolivia where everyone is dirt poor, have no idea about hygiene, picking up rubbish etc. Here it is civilized and in the case of Cusco - sophisticated. The only minor thing that spoils all these places a bit is every 2nd shop is an internet cafe - bit like real estate agents in Tgn!
The following morning with our bikes secured at the hotel we set off by coach with our guide David (an Anthropoligist I think - very knowledgeable and interesting) to visit the Inca ruins near Cusco - Sacsayhuaman. This was a fantastic example of Inca building skills with some of the larger rocks weighing (estimated) up to 100 tonnes. The place was built as a religious centre and although they fought one of their final battles there with the Spaniards, was never constructed as a fortress. The reason many of these Inca buildings are in ruins is that the Spaniards stripped them to build their churches, garrisons houses etc. There was also an embalming facility nearby which our guide explained was for the upper class deceased. They were variously emptied - some bits fed to the pumas in a pit below, some burnt and then replaced in the body, the brains were mashed by an impliment up the nose and then they were finally embalmed and at some later date taken in a cermonial manner to a special area in the Sacred Valley for burial. The lower classes got a shorter version and buried in a local plot. The Incas belief was that they were reincarnated up to 107 times improving each time (hope for me yet)
We then proceeded through the Sacred Valley (Very green and scenic)and after a beautiful lunch at a garden restaurant we visited Oyllantambo the site of more Inca ruins and terraces. Here we saw and climbed spectacular steps and viewed storage buildings on the opposite cliff and heard more information regarding the Incas beliefs and knowledge. The Incas knew the Earth was round and revolved around the sun, they also built the cties around Cusco in a very specific manner. For those of you interested you can google the subject paying particular attention to the recent research of a German Woman Scholar who has shown with the aid of GPS and satellite photos that if you draw a large square around Cusco as the centre that Macchu Pichu is built on one corner and 3 other citys are built on each of the corners. If lines are drawn bisecting the square and then extended, other Inca Citys are built exactly equidistant from the centre. How did they manage all this without the aid of GPS, Satellite photos etc?. How did they push/drag 100 ton rocks up slopes etc. Our guide and a subsequent guide were very adept at fudging these issues which to us shows that no-one really knows or as I believe they had these sophisticated tools and the internet etc ! Make up your own mind. As you can imagine created some stimulating discussions and some really interesting questions are raised (I can feel a few hours internet research coming on)
The next day we returned to this area from our local Hotel in the large town of Urubamba to catch the train to Macchu Picchu. After lunch at Aguas Caliente ( Hot water) we caught a bus from this spa town to Machu Picchu travelling up a dirt switch back road (passing many of the 22 strong fleet of buses they are running) to finally see the much renowned Inca "not so ruined" (as the Spaniards never made it here) world famous wonder. The history here is that when the Spaniards arrived in 1533 they were gradually moving across Peru defeating the Incas at each town and raping and pillaging as they went. Macchu Picchu is a religious centre and the Incas thought to protect it and themselves they would flee deeper into the Amazon jungle wth all their belongings. They did this abondoning Macchu Picchu to the elements not to be rediscovered until 1911 by Hiram Bingham an American (Although many locals still knew of its existence) When Bingham rediscovered MP it was overgrown by the jungle and apart from Llamas grazing was unused. The thatched roofs of the houses had rotted and unfortunately the trees had puhsed some of the rocks out of shape. At some later stage when clearing the site, fire was used to remove the vegetation and this also damaged the rocks further - many exploding in the heat.
Many visitors including many people arriving from the Inca trail wander around without a guide and hence miss many of the explanations of the significance of different types of construction, beliefs of the Incas and many "tall storys" which seems to be the local guides way of saying "we dont really know" Alltogether very interesting. After returning to Aguas Calients to our hotel we soaked in the hot pools and Alan, Keith and myself resolved to revisit MP the following day - a freeday.
The following day we left Aguas Caliente early and arriving at Mach Picchu, we climbed Wayna Picchu which is 2700m from Machu Picchu, which is at 2400m Doesn´t sound a great distance but the climb was 45mins of virtually vertical steps (Inca Built) to reach the top. Stayed up there in misty drizzle for 1.5Hrs waiting for clouds to lift which then allowed us to see the view and Machu Picchu directly below. We descended in drizzle again to Machu Picchu and then walked 20mins to an Inca Bridge - impressive built from stones on the edge of a precipice of 100s of meters. After this we then climbed to the gate of the Sun (back to 2700m) which is the main entrance from the Inca Trail and in Inca days the only entrance. This is also the gate that the first sun on 21st June shines through onto Wayna Picchu opposite telling the Incas that this is the Winter Solstice.
As you can imagine we were pretty exhausted by this time (knee held up well) as this is all at reasonable altitude. We bused back down to Aguas Caliente had lunch, showered and caught up with some of the others who keeping Alecs and Charlies best Scots traditions alive, had managed to find a bar with a 4 Pisco Sours for the price of 1 - happy hour special. By the time we joined them they were talking bollocks and drinking another for the road which was strange as we were travelling back to Oyllantambo by train that evening! Aguas Cliente must be in the Guiness book of records for the most restaurants and bars per square metre and being the end of season competition was hot with touts outside each one trying to solicit business.
That evening we boarded a train to Oyllantambo (entertained en route by a traditional local dancer) and then by bus back to Cusco. On the bus we passed a lake near Oyllantambo where our guide told us that some 8 years previous some locals had discovered a frog the size of a VW car. They had unfortunately killed it and cut it up taking no photos as proof and now the lake level was dropping mysteriously. We dont know what they smoke in this region but we would sure like to try some!!
The following morning we were back on the bikes for a 400km ride to Chivay in the Colca Canyon area. Our departure from Cusco was marred somewhat by the theft from the ute of 2 bags containing tools, first aid gear and some of Gerardos gear. However its all replaceable so another lesson learned - we cannot leave our gear unattended for a moment even in broad daylight.
This ride was through beautiful scenery with greenery, lakes and except for the varying qualities of road very enjoyable. From South Island type sealed roads to gravel and then new sealed road and back to gravel we experienced it all, including some stretches of bone shaking pot-holed gravel road. All up a great trip especially when we stopped in the small town of Yuari where quickly a crowd of around 40 or 50 people gathered to marvel at these "loco Gringos" travelling on motos through their region.
The Colca Canyon is longer deeper and wider than the Grand Canyon and has some fantastic rock formations, many resembling skyscrapers, buildings and all manner of shapes depending on your imagination. Arriving in Chivay our 2nd to last Peruvian stopover we spent a night in the hotel being entertained by a local Peruvian band and Lance who proved to be a fantastic South American dancer a talent that thus far had been well hidden!!
The next day being a rest day we spent a few hours replacing bolts and other items that had been shaken off our bikes, repaired a holed radiator on my bike and then visited the local markets for a haircut (Keith and myself) and some shopping. This was completed by a visit to the local hot springs and a restaurant meal at a local pizzeria where for most of the evening we were the only guests.
Today we head to Arequipa around 320kms away with a 4900m pass to negotiate.
Hasta la Vista Mooy Bueno!
Mike V
Cusco to Araquipa....
Well after leaving Cusco a lot lighter in the luggage department, we had a long reasonably demanding ride to Chivay. A lot of the high mountain road has been sealed since I was here in 2005. We left Cusco at 8.30 am and arrived in Chivay at 5.15pm. Our hotel was an oasis amongst the dirt and squalor of Chivay. We had two nights here as there was a bit of maintenance to catch up on. There were air filters being cleaned and replaced, tyre pressures being checked, oil to top up motors, replacing lost bolts and a general wash and clean.
After all this maintenance a group of us went off to the hot pools, now that was a bloody good decision, we lazed about in the pool for an hour or so and I for one had to have a small nap when we returned to our hotel.
The next leg of our adventure would bring us to Araquipa. As Gerardo needed to get to Araquipa to replace some of his stolen stuff, it was decided that along with Tom, Cristian, Lance and the truck, with Klaus as a sleeping partner (he was not feeling well) would head directly to Arequipa (160km) While the rest of us, including Zane on Klaus’s moto, would come the long way around the Colca Canyon (320km).
What a ride that turned out to be, we left Chivay at 8.15 and by 11.30 we had not completed 100kms, but the scenery was to die for, many riders saw the condors flying the updraughts, maybe I was concentrating too much on the challenging road as I never saw any!!
We have another night here and then head to Chile and our stop in Arica, where we will have to give the truck an oil change.
I will try and download some more photos of the truck on the Andagala section of our adventure.
Cheers, for now, Rosco
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Kyne Larkin
non-member comment
Awesome blog Mike, if the car industry takes a downturn, might I suggest a new career as a travel journalist? Also good to hear your knee is holding up, nice work. Keep an eye on Dad for me would ya?