Advertisement
Published: August 7th 2006
Edit Blog Post
We crossed the border into Peru from Chile in an old train that was locked shut whilst we crossed the border, we now know how cattle feel in the back of the trucks. When we finally got of the train and out of the station we were greeted by the same hustle and bustle we had experienced in Asia. We actually realised how much we have missed it since travelling through Australia, New Zealand and Chile. We arrived in Tacna, the border town on the Peruvian side and ventured into the town for a bite to eat as we had a couple of hours to spare until our bus to Arequipa. and were met by a barrage of protesters marching through the streets with the police and army keeping a watchful eye, and telling us to stay out of the way.
We had an eventful journey to Arequipa, first of all being videoed boarding the bus, then when we were sat down, then being stopped about 4 times by police for security checks, we thought the Taliban were in town.
On arrival in Arequipa, a beautiful old city, and set about exploring the back streets. We visited the Andean
Museum where a 550 year old mummy of a girl around aged 12 was on display. She is kept at 19 degress below zero to preserve her. She was a sacrifice to appease the wrath the gods as were thousands of young children who were specially chosen for this - it was actually somewhat of a privilege as the Incas believed that those sacrificed became gods themselves.
Next stop was Cusco to visit
Machu Picchu, a fortress city of the ancient Incas at an altitude of 2350 metres above sea level. We went to Machu Picchu by train as we didn´t fancy the 4 day hike along the inca trail especially at high altitude. The train journey was excellent although we have to say the whole day was rather tiring - we set off at 6am for a 4 hour ride through some truly magnificent scenery, walked around as much of Machu Picchu as we could in 4 hours and then the 4 hour return journey. It was a great site to see, and thinking about the way in which it was built, the manpower and strength required is phenomenal. One of the highlights was the small troops of llamas
wandering around chewing grass - great lawnmowers.
Our stay in Cusco was rounded off with a taste of the traditional Peruvian dish - roasted guinea pig - looks cute, tastes great!
Our next journey, we decided to catch the train to Puno located on lake Titicaca, we had a great insight to how the locals lived away from the tourist towns, still using ass and carts to work in the fields, women with their babies strapped to their backs herding sheep and llamas. The train journey was very enjoyable and the quality of the food was unexpected- a 3 course meal for 12 bucks which was as good as any posh restaurant we have been to. The UK rail system would benefit from a little bit of Peruvian know how and customer service.
Our arrival in Puno was met with a barrage of people tring to get us into guest houses, taxi drivers touting for business and people trying to sell us tours etc. The highlight of Puno is definitely the floating islands of the
Uros people small reed islands of about 2 metres thick which house around one extended family each. The first recordings of these islands
were around 500 years ago, but they have been there alot longer according to the tribes people. The island are actually constucted out of the root of the reed which acts as a bouyancy aid then around 2 metres of reeds are placed on top. A layer of reeds are added about every 2 months, the islands take about 8 months to a year to build and last around 40 years before they sink.
Peru is beautiful, with beautiful people and the hustle and bustle of Asia. We hope to return to explore the northen part - lots to see.
Our next trip was to cross the border into Bolivia and head to La Paz the capital which was a nightmare, buses cancelled, new buses with urine leaking out of the toilet, forming a river down the aisle, swapping buses 3 times and a general balls up of everything - this is what makes travelling all the more fun - it´s all part of the experience!!
Advertisement
Tot: 0.048s; Tpl: 0.011s; cc: 8; qc: 23; dbt: 0.0191s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Paul
non-member comment
Blimey! On board catering looks distinctly superior to anything Jamie Oliver might want to scare up. Fascinating to get an insight on the reed islands on Titicaca - others have also raved about them on similar world travels - thanks for reminding. So where's next from here?