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Published: September 23rd 2007
You hear a lot of scare stories when travelling around South America and although nothing adverse has happened to us, it is sensible to take precautions. This is why Becky stuffed her bra full of our US dollars, which looked like a very strange boob job, when we crossed the border into Peru. As it turned out the crossing was quick, easy and hassle free. In case you were wondering, she now carries her money in a purse like everyone else.
If Bolivia is the poorest country in South America then Peru could easily claim to be the most touristy. Mind you, as we were on the gringo trail then it wasn’t really a big surprise. We started off in Puno, on the Peruvian side of Lake Titicaca. The town itself is nothing special, although we did find a great little cake shop, plus Linda and Penny were still travelling with us which was great. Even better was that there wasn´t a swan/flamingo pedalo to be seen. Hallelujah!!
We used Puno as base to head to the islands of Lake Titicaca, starting with the Uros Islands - floating islands made of reeds. They are tied down to prevent them
floating away during the wet season. They were really unusual, if somewhat touristy. Mind you, despite clinging to traditional ways we did spot a satellite dish and a colour TV. I guess there is no escape from South American Idol.
The next stop and where we spent one night was Isla Amantani. This island is less visited although you wouldn’t realise it, as when we walked up to the temple for sunrise there were women everywhere trying to sell hats, gloves, scarves and other local (or not so local) goods.
We spent the night at a home stay with a local family. We had hoped that this would be a great opportunity to work on our Spanish. It was disappointing therefore that despite our best efforts to start up a conversation our hosts would only speak in Quechua. That is until they tried to sell us their hats, gloves, scarves etc when their Spanish miraculously became perfect, with a few English words thrown in for good measure. Needless to say, the language reverted to Quechua as soon as we relented and bought something.
Still, we got to dress up in local outfits and had a "dance off".
Our hosts were not particularly complementary when fitting Becky for her outfit, although it is not really a shock as the local women are really short. We felt pretty stupid but had a good laugh.
The last island that we visited and surprisingly the most authentic was Isla Taquile. As we walked around the island it was interesting to see how the catholic/colonial culture has integrated with local traditions, as was evident in the archway to the main square. When the country was conquered local traditions did not disappear, far from it, they just merged.
On Isla Taquile both men and woman all still wear traditional dress. Whilst it has been commonplace to see women in traditional clothing, few men do the same. It was pointed out to us how you could tell the difference between a single man and a married one - by the colouring of their hat and the fact that only married men are permitted to carry pouches in which they keep coca leaves. All the girls took notice of who was single, although no-one seemed too keen to hook up with a local. After lunch and the 538 steps down to the boat
(Gregor counted them and was out by 11) most people were shattered and slept. Well, tried to sleep. Our mini-kumuka tour group passed the time by playing charades. We were a bit noisy but it was very funny.
Barely had Linda and Penny left us and we were joined by new travel companions - in the form of Becky’s parents. They travelled with us for two and a half weeks. We met up in Arequipa, Peru´s second largest city. The main square is dominated by the cathedral and many of the streets retain some historic charm.
In terms of sightseeing, our favourite place was the Santa Catalina monastery. It is huge, a city within a city. Families paid a significant dowry (equivalent to about US$50,000 today) for their second daughter to go there. The idea was that it would ensure their succession to heaven. The girls were dropped off at about 12 years of age and, as it is a cloister monastery, once they were admitted it was forbidden to step outside of the walls again or to return to their families. The convent was originally constructed at the time of the Spanish Inquisition and it seems that
given the options for women at the time it was not necessarily a bad life - though not the hedonistic lifestyle referred to in some guidebooks. It was fascinating. Plus we topped it off nicely by savouring the heavenly cakes. With food that good then we would join too.
Another interesting thing we did in Arequipa was to visit Juanita, the ice princess. She was a young child from an upper class family that was deemed the most beautiful and pure amongst her peers. Thus she was suitably qualified to be sacrificed to the God of the Mountains by the Incas. Harsh!! Yet it was considered a great honour at the time. Sacrificial offerings were not uncommon but what makes her unique is that her body is almost perfectly preserved even now, 500 years after her death. Some museums in South America are not the best but this one was excellent, giving you a good understanding about how and why she died as well as allowing you to see the body.
From Arequipa we headed to Colca Canyon, the world’s second deepest canyon by 168m - the deepest is the next one along and the depth has been
subject to a longstanding dispute. It was gorgeous. We did a three day trek and spent two nights at the base. One of these nights was spent at the Oasis, which was unusually lush and green unlike most of the rest of the area. Our stay there was notable for two reasons. Firstly, we had a great meal but on the strict orders of our guide had to guard our table for the whole day - it got taken within a minute of us leaving. Secondly, Gregor played football; it was a pretty unusual place to play. Unfortunately, his team lost to the guides. We got up at 3.30 am on the last day to climb up the side of the canyon - no mean feat as you ascend 2,000m in about 3 hours!! Becky and her parents were not feeling 100% unfortunately and took the option of riding up on a mule - not for the faint-hearted as the mules were a bit kamikase and kept veering to the edges where there was a sheer drop! Gregor walked up with the guides, and managed the climb in impressive time, although his calves were like bricks afterwards.
At the
top we headed to Cruz del Condor to watch the condors rise up in the thermals. We were lucky enough to see 25+ of these magnificent birds, with about 14 of them gliding in the air simutaneously at one point. It was truly breathtaking.
There was another protest on when we headed back to Arequipa. We had grown used to protests by now, as they seem to occur all the time. This one though was the first to really affect us. It was a protest about political corruption as a result of rising prices for basic goods. The protestors had barricaded the main roads into the city, so we took a back road along a dodgy dirt track. Despite our precautions we came across a group of locals who had barricaded part of the road with a dumper truck and with stones. They stood in the street throwing glass bottles and stones at us. Fortunately, our guide managed to sweet talk/bribe them into letting us past; with Becky’s mum having to pretend that she was sick and needed to be rushed to hospital. Early the next morning the authorities were so worried about the protest getting out of hand
that there were soldiers and police in full riot gear sleeping out at the airport.
From Arequipa we flew to Cusco, the capital of the Incas and tourist central. If you can ignore the constant tourist touting and tat shops then it is an incredibly beautiful city with loads of historical buildings. We took a trip to the Sacred Valley one day, and for the only time in Peru had a rubbish guide. Unfortunately, the first half of the day was a complete waste, turning into a glorified shopping trip. Then there was the lunch fiasco, where every person on the bus seemed to be dropped off at different restaurants - we were last, about an hour later than the first people. Fortunately, Ollantaytambo made it worthwhile. It is a really impressive Inca site in the shape of a llama and helped give us an insight into this amazing culture, including the importance of astronomy, craftsmanship and religion. Whilst in Cusco Gregor extended his liking for local cuisine and ended up eating guinea pig (it tastes a bit like partridge and similarly has virtually no meat on it).
The main reason to go to Cusco was to go
on the 4 day Inca Trail, which was absolutely superb. The trip itinery was basically walk, eat, sleep, eat, eat more, sleep ... we were really spoilt for food. Our group consisted of 15 guests and 20 porters, a chef and two guides. We had a three course meal for lunch, then afternoon tea with a mountain of popcorn at 5pm followed by another three course meal for dinner. Becky expected to lose weight during the trip but there was too much good food for that!
The second day was a lot harder than the first one, as we scaled Dead Woman’s Pass which tops out at 4,220m (over 12,500 feet). We went up 1,200m that day, most of which is large steps. So, the food was very necessary - especially the popcorn!! Still, the views were amazing. The third day got even better, passing various impressive Inca ruins and different areas of vegitation and two other dramatic passes. We also had our first view of Machupicchu, in the distance and barely visible - still there it was. As the majority of the distance had been covered when we reached camp on the third night we tucked into some
well deserved beers.
Machupicchu itself was fantastic and certainly lived up to expectations. You are not able to get through the checkpoint until 5.30am, so it wasn’t too early a start as we camped pretty close. Our first proper view of the site was when we reached the Sun Gate. It just opens up in front of you, shielded in mist at times as it was so early in the morning - which just added to the mystique.
We had wanted to climb up Wayna Picchu, which is the mountain just behind the site, but unfortunately it was full shortly after we arrived at about 7am. They only allow 400 people to climb up each day and, contrary to what we thought, people coming by train were able to reach the main site before the people who were walking and had started queuing for Wayna Picchu from 5.30am!! It was a bit of a shame but at least it meant that we had more time to tour around the site. We are glad that we walked, as you would miss most of the experience if you went straight there. The other Inca sites that we have seen are
good and a lot less touristy but Machupicchu is still the most dramatic and impressive one and well worth visiting. Sadly, only foreign tourists seem to visit the site, as it is too expensive for most Peruvians, and even people from other South American countries.
Back in Cusco we were glad to have a hot shower at last and to put on some clean clothes. Wet wipes and deodorant is fine for a few days but it isn’t the same as a real shower. As the group got on so well, virtually everyone met up for a celebratory drink that evening.
The next day we visited Sacshuayamun, pronounced "sexy woman". This is another Inca ruin, located just outside of Cusco. The experts are not sure if it was originally built as a place of worship or it was a fortress - although it was definitely used as a fortress during an uprising against the Spanish, after they had conquered the area. These are the largest stones of any Incan ruins, some of which are over 12m high and weigh over 200 tons each!! They all fit together perfectly and you can’t even fit a piece of paper between
them.
The day after we sadly waved goodbye to Becky’s parents and set off for Lima. Although Lima was made famous as an exotic destination by the Paddington Bear stories, it is a bit of a dump. Due to a coastal mist and the pollution we never saw the sky the whole time that we were there, nor can you for months during the year. We like the sky so it was a bit depressing. We stayed in Miraflores, which is an upmarket suburb with lots of shops, bars and restaurants, and is actually quite nice. To be fair, we didn’t really get out and explore Lima but people we talked to hated the place and didn’t have anything good to say about it, so our enthusiasm to tour around was pretty limited. Becky’s highlight was being able to buy the new Harry Potter book: That pretty much says it all.
Our final destination in Peru was Huaraz, about 7 hours drive north of Lima in the mountains. It was a stunning area. The city itself is okay. It isn’t going to win any beauty awards but was small enough to get around and big enough to have
all that you needed. Plus, there were some great restaurants, especially Cafe Andina which we loved. It is relaxed, with great food and drinks and a really fun atmosphere.
We took full advantage of being out of a city for a bit and spent a day mountain biking (Gregor went twice), horse riding and two days hill walking - one close to the lovely Lazy Dog Inn and another hiking up to Laguna 69 in the Huascaran National Park (the lake has a stupid name but is pretty high at 4,500m and well worth the walk, as it is in a crater surrounded by snow capped mountains, and has bright blue water and a waterfall dropping into it).
Gregor loved the fact that he got to go proper mountain biking, beginning with a steep and gruesome hill climb from about 3,000m to close to 4,000m, known as the ´shopping cart´ because most people end up pushing their bikes up. Once at the top, and pretty knackered, there were some superb single track descents. Julio, the guide, said that you don’t get as much fun out of it unless you climb steeply first and certainly do not appreciate it
as much. He was absolutely right. It was brilliant!!! In fact all of the activities we did were superb and the mountains are unbelievable. The photos do not do the place justice. Huaraz, Cordillera Negro and Cordillera Blanca are breathtaking.
Continuing our trip up the Andes, our next stop is Ecuador and the enchanting Islas de la Galapagos.
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Stu
non-member comment
Beardy
Hi Gregs the photos look amazing...including your beard! Proper job - I like! You look identical to WW Mitchell in photos of his at your age!!! Speak to you next Wednesday -hope you have a good and safe trip back. Stu