Only three hours to fly down the coast to Santiago. Looking out over the Andrs was amazing. So vast and intricate, mostly sand and pale orange rocks, looking like a mottled and crumpled bedspread, with the ocassional snow covered peak rising above its neighbours. Little sign of habitation, it makes the Lake District look like the landscape of a model train set. Santiago airport is small in terms of only one terminal, but it packs a shopping punch. The kids had a home schooling lesson on Easter Island, which lies some 2000 miles off the coast of Chile. Because of the time zone changes, we leave being 3 hours behind the UK and arrive 13 hours ahead. How's the body clock supposed to know what's going on?... read more

Headed into Ica for a meal on a strip of hotels that were I the back of beyond and reached down dusty trails lined with hovels and people washing clothes in the water run off channel. It was a meat fest all round and Cas has taken a shine to the yellow sauce which comes out with most meals. I have found a recipe and will try to make some back at home. Great to get out of the sun as the restaurant forecourt was shaded under huge grape vines. We got to Lima around 7pm and it was just a short taxi ride back to Casa De M'Abuela hotel, the one we stayed in two weeks ago when we first arrived. We all feel that we're much more in tune with the whole travelling thing ... read more

A poolside rendition of Happy Birthday to You and a cream covered chocolate cake. We bought Ed a magnetic travel set in a smart little wooden case. He was very pleased with it and we played two games. He won the first and I won the second, so he's keen to play a decider. The afternoon was spent larking around in the pool playing some games. Shortly off for a birthday tea.... read more

We all woke up about half an hour before the bus arrived in Nazca. Ed was very excited as he's turned eleven. The hotel was only a two minute walk from the bus station and it was great that they let us into our room so early. Ed asked if we could go back to Encantada for breakfast and they were just opening the metal shutters when we turned up at 8.00. We had a small bag of prezzies and cards for Ed to open and he was very chuffed with them all. He had spaghetti bolognese for breakfast and, much to my amusement, Cas' order turned out to be a bowl of tinned peaches. However, she was very happy with her Cappuccino and Frappuccino as the coffee overall has been lack lustre. Back to the ... read more

One last dip in the hot spring pools and we were off again. Colca canyon was the last destination before we start to retrace our steps, which are well over 1000 bus miles to return back to Lima. We took another taxi this mornings, a 3 1/2 hour trip through the Salinas y Aguada Blanca, a vast expanse of strange shaped volcanoes, giant looking sandpits, herds of Llamas and Alpacas and bizarre rock formations perched almost unbelievably on top of sheer rock faces. Then, at the very top of the pass where you could see El Misti, the 19,000 ft volcano that overlooks our destination, Arequipar, there were hundreds of these little stone piles. Not conucal cairns as we know them, but single stone balanced upon single stone and so on. They looked like minature people ... read more