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Published: April 26th 2011
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Finally it was time to set off to meet up with my group again and I was packed off into a taxi to take the ride from Cusco to the place the trains leave for Machu Pichu. After a slight hitch, finding the usual road was shut for repairs, entailing a long winding down the hillside and back up the hillside via a different route detour, we got on our way. I was then clock watching the whole way hoping this unexpected detour wouldn't make me miss the train. I was feeling a strange mix of relieved to be out of Cusco and getting back to my holiday proper, but also anxious about meeting up with the group again and hoping it wouldn't make me too sad about having missed the Inca Trail.
Along the way I happened to see a paraglider and this reminded me about a promise I'd made myself after my trip to Nepal where I'd done a tandem paradglide. I had promised myself that I'd have some lessons when I got back to the UK and even got as far as looking up about it on the tinternet, but had never done anything concrete about going
for it. This Peruvian paraglider had given me a way out of feeling upset about missing the Inca Trail. I'd give myself some things to look forward to when I got back home as a way of both avoiding the usual post holiday blues but also as a way of combatting the 'feeling sorry for myself' about the Inca Trail miss. So I started making myself a plan of action. Also added to the list was a promise to book on a short walking holiday somewhere mountainous later in the year, maybe the Monte Blanc circuit or similar. Also to get away from Norfolk on a few short breaks, using my kid free weekends more productively. A few others made the list, I won't bore you with them all now, but enough to make me feel more positive as I rattled along the bumpy, dusty roads in the battered old taxi.
We finally arrived and again found our way blocked! It seemed obsticles were the order of the day. I was bundled into a tuk tuk to get me down to the train station and on arriving there was smiley Simon waving hello. He'd been walking a different route
to the Inca Trail on his own as he'd booked too late to get a permit for the Inca Trail but with an entourage of porter, cook and guide. He hadn't actually got as far as Machu Pichu either on this route so would be taking the train with me instead.
The train journey was great, winding its way through the mountains right next to a raging torrent of a river and huge soaring peaks on each side. Way up high we could see snowy tops (the windows in the roof of the train helped with seeing these!). On arrival in Machu Pichu town we set off to find our hotel and settle in to wait for the wanderers to return. I was still pretty knackered so ended up falling asleep until they arrived. It was interesting to hear about all their adventures and wasn't as bad as I'd feared re feeling sad about missing the trek. They mostly seemed obsessed with the state of the campsites and toilets rather than the walk itself and that wasn't the bit I'd been particularly looking forward to anyway.
And so early to bed ready for any early start the next
day when we'd be heading off to see the famous Machu Pichu.
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