The Inca Train (Yes, we cheated)!

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We decided to break up our bus ride from Puno to Cusco and opted for a tour bus that stoped at sights of interest along the way. The English speaking tour guide was pretty good but did insist on interupting us every 5 minutes to point out random things like cement factories and passing trains! Although some of the stops were dull, 10 minutes being pushed around a museum for instance, we did apreciate the opportunity to get off the bus and stretch our legs. One of the more interesting places was a sight of Inca ruins at Raqchi where we got the chance to walk around looking at some of the architecture and baths. In a small random town we spent 15 minutes playing with Lamas and Alpacas which was really cool, we got to give the older ones leaves and grass and bottle feed the babies.

By the time we reached Cusco we were pretty tired and not at all in the mood to deal with the hoards of people at the bus station offering the usual taxis, hotels and tours so we quickly jumped in a cab and headed to a hotel that we had heard was positioned right in the middle of town. Inti Wasi is a pretty nice place but we managed to strick gold when we were offered the best room in the place. We were shocked to find a gorgeous room with balconies looking over the plaza an en suite bathroom, cable T.V and get this, a dressing room with wicker chairs and coffee table! Just the place to unwind and catch up on some sleep.

When we finally got the chance to look around the town we were really suprised at how beautiful it was. The main plaza has not one but two grand churches, water fountains and corner to corner picturesque buildings and cobbled streets. Since the discovery of Machu Picchu in the early 20th century Cusco has become the gateway for people wishing to visit the sight and hence the city, like many others we have visited, has become very touristy. Cities are not normally our thing but Cusco won us over, yes its full of tourists but it does mean that you can eat at fantastic resteraunts, chat to masses of interesting people and find an ATM that excepts your card! After relaxing for a day we booked ourself onto a 2 day, one night trip up to Machu Picchu and joined the hoards of other foreigners on the train to Aguas Calientes or otherwise known as Machu Picchu Town.

The town is settled in the bottom of a valley surrounded by towering mountains and mystical cloud forests. Its the kind of setting that takes your breath away but unfortunately there isn't much of a chance to have one of those personal moments of contemplation. From the moment you step off the train you begin running the gauntlet through the mass of craft stalls and street vendors. Our friend Sue likend it to something from 'It's a knockout' and she couldn't have been closer to the mark! Thankfully our package included a pre-booked night in a hotel and there was a guy to meet us off the train so all we had to do was follow him through the town and then collapse in a heap with a free cold drink at the other end.

The advantage of staying the night in town is that you can get up very early and catch one of the first buses up to the sight (first bus 5.30am) and have the chance to see the sun rise and get some photos before the train brings the day trippers at around 10.15am. We got our bus at 6.00am and were greated at the sumit with thick fog! Our guide, who was pretty useless, was having a pretty hard time pointing our anything as there was nothing to see! After about an hour the fog started to rise and we managed our first intermitent glimpses of the lost city of the Incas. The fog although anoying at first did give the whole experience a kind of magical feel. Soon the sun was shinning brightly and we started our walking tour around the sight. Rich and I both found that after 2 hours on our tour that we hadn't learnt a thing. Our guide was determined to run around a top speed giving us as little detail as possible so it was no shock that not one of our group of 11 tipped her at the end. As the sight began filling up with people a small group of us found a quiet terrace and sat in the shade and took in the view around us. It was simply spectacular.

By mid day the sun was boiling and we headed back to town in search of a cold beer and some shade. It was then back on the afternoon train to Cusco and yet more beers with some new friends.

We have now booked ourselves on a bus to Nazca to take a plane over the famous Nazca Lines, we will fill you in with the details soon.

B & R

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