Lake Titicaca: Cusco: Machu Pichu

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Well what to write. I have been away from the blog for 2 weeks, and have so much to write about. Obviously alot of it centred on Machu Pichu and the trek I completed to it, which ended up alot more eventful then even I had thought possible. But before I get onto that I will briefly write about my stops between La Paz and Cusco, which centred around Lake Titicaca.

Lake Titicaca
Lake Titicaca, stradles the border between Bolivia and Peru and is one of the highest lakes in South America, at an altitude of 3820m, it is 230km long and 97km, but more importantly then those figures it is an enchanting and beautiful waterway. The first stop was Copacabana on the Bolivian side. It is a touristy town but as that meant trout dinners for less then 2 pounds, splashing aound on the lake on peddleboats, and browsing the markets it wasnt a bad thing.

Isle De Sol
From Copacabana we caught the ferry to Isle De Sol, the largest island in Lake Titicaca. It is also significant as it is seen as being the birthplace of Inca Mythology. Accordingly there are a number of Inca ruins on the island. The most impressive being the Chincana complex, which is siutated on the northern tip of the island and affords lovely views onto the lake. But to be honest we were on Isle De Sol to chill out and though we visited the ruins we spent most of of our time on the northern end of the island sunbathing on the beach - yards away from our beachside hostel, which cost less then 2 pounds per night.

On the second day we treked 3 hours to the Southern end of the island. Again the views were fantastic, but given that the photos do better justice then my descriptions i'll write about another surreal event that I experienced on the Southern end of the island, our dinner that evening.

Walking across the island I had seen alot of sheep and lambs, now lamb is my favourite meat yet I have not been able to purchase it at all. I spoke of my concerns to a Kiwi guy, Heath, who I knew. He was a farmer and he said that if we could buy a live lamb he could kill, skin, gut, and butcher it. The girl I have been travelling with since La Paz, Sam, speaks good Spanish, so in the space of 4 hours we had acquired a lamb (though in the end an old women killed, skinned, and gutted it for us, Heath still butchered it though), a place to have a bbq, firewood for the bbq, and a restaurant that would cook us side dishes. It was probably one of the most memorable meals I have ever had, aided by the beautiful setting, and the good company.

Leaving Bolivia
The next day we caught the ferry and the bus to Puno, which while still on Lake Titicaca is in Peru. It brought an end to my 3 weeks in Bolivia. I really enjoyed my time there, everyday seemed to entail another surreal experience be it being down a mine, cycling down a dangerous road, killing a lamb. The landscape was so varied from Jungle, to Lake, to Salt Flats. Indeed the only constant was the high altitude. Its a poor and politically divided country - typified by the graffiti everywhere for and against the President Evo Mendes, and for and against the new constitution. It still has alot of issues to address with the wider world regarding the gowing of Coca. To the wider world it is solely used to manufacture Cocaine, but to the Bolivians that is a Western perversion of an ancient crop. However, one thing is sure, the roads are the worst I have ever travelled on!

Puno
Only one night was spent here, in this far from attractive town on a less then attractive stretch of the lake, and that was to spend half a day visiting the floating islands. These are islands built out of reeds that people "live" on. Historically this was done because they had been forced off their land and living on the lake provided safety, now in this age there is no purpose except to milk it for cash. I didn´t enjoy the tour and how the whole culture had been subverted into a money making exercise. Indeed the highlight of that day was leaving Puno on a luxury Peruvian bus along perfectly paved roads to head to Cusco.

Cusco
Cusco was the capital of the Inca kingdon but following the arrival of the Spanish became the grand colonial city it remains today. Both Inca ruins and colonial buildings remain in what is still an incredibly petty, and also lively place. It therefore has enough attractions in its own right but is more famous for being the starting point for treks to Machu Pichu.

I arrived at the weekend and partied with friends. I also booked my trek, and tried to sort out all the supplies that I would need. As the number of people who are allowed to do the official Inca Trail is limited and places book up months in advance (and are very expensive) I had to choose an alternative trek.

I went on the Salkantay trek, and booked with 5 other people I knew, so that at least I knew what ever happened I would have good company. The Salkantay trek lasts 5 days 4 nights, and is over 70km long (the Inca trail is just over 40km). It takes you past the Salkantay mountain, which is 6270m high and has never been climbed. It is one of the highest and most dramatic peaks in th region. The trek like the Inca trail finishes at Machu Pichu.


Salkantay Trek
We were meant to start Monday morning but the threat of a strike and a blocking of the roads on Monday morning meant we had one and half hours on Sunday night to pack what we needed for the trek and say our goodbyes. We then drove to the trek starting point and 30 of us dossed down on the floor in the outhouse of some restaurant.

Day 1
The 30 of us were split up and I was fortunate to be in a group of 11, it was my 5 friends, an English girl, a Brazillian couple, and a German couple. It was a good group, which certainly helped as the treked developed. The first day was pretty straightforward we treked up to our base camp at 3,400 metres at the back of the valley, in the shade of Mount Salkantay. The last 2 hours of the trek were spent in the rain, and given the altitude the camp was very cold so that night was largely spent huddled together in the tents.

Day 2
In the morning we climbed up to 4,450 metres, which marked the top of pass. It was difficult to breathe because of the altitude but the weather was kind and we were afforded beautiful views of the mountain. At the top of the pass we took photos and observed local rituals such as laying 3 Coca leaves, under a stone at the top of the pass. All was good. It was after lunch and as we begun our descent to the next base camp that things went awry. We had cooks who travelled with us and made us our food. Sanitary conditions must not have been properly observed as all but 3 of us came down with food poisoning after lunch. For me this meant vomiting, and by the time we reached camp I was feverish and went straight to bed.

Day 3
I woke up and had stopped being sick and the ferver had passed, but despite this I had no appetite and was drained of energy. I was not the only one feeling this way, but we had no option but to go on. Unfotunately the gods also werent kind to us and accompanied our 6 hour morning trek with rain almost the whole way. This turned the path into a mud bath and meant that you had to constantly concentrate on where you were putting your feet. Its fair to say this 6 hours was a miserable time for all concerned. Fortunately, there was no treking that afternoon (some would say 6 hours in a morning is enough anyway!) and that evening we went to hot springs near the town of Santa Teresa. There we could ease our achingly muscles in a series of hot pools, in what was a surprisingly developed complex.

Day 4
This was in my opinion the nicest day of the trek. We were finally blessed with good weather, it was sunny without being too hot for treking. We treked for 6 hours along first a stoney road and then a train track to Agua Calentes, the town at the base of Machu Pichu. Walking along the train track we were afforded our first sight of Machu Pichu, high in the mountains, and the famous mountain that looks down on it, Wayna Pichu. This raised everyones spirits further. In Agua Callentes we stayed in a hostel, which after 4 nights of camping was heaven.

Day 5
We had a 4am start to make the steep climb up to Machu Pichu. The climb was going to be hardwork anyway but the fact I had been throwing up again the previous night meant my overwhelming emotion was one of misery. We had to get up this early because only 400 people are allowed to climb up Wayna Pichu and tickets our issued on a first come first served basis. That early in the morning there is still alot of cloud and mist shrouding the site so as we got our guided tour I felt drained and underwhelmed. However, after we grabbed some breakfast and the clouds lifted, and I got to see Machu Pichu in all its glory that all changed. Being there was like being in a photo. You see so many photos of Machu Pichu it felt all very surreal. Its no exaggeration to say it is an amazing place and worth all the hardship! Even in my drained physical state I managed to complete the 40 minute climb up Wanya Pichu, where you felt like you were literally ontop of the world. From there we treked back down to Agua Callentes, had lunch, and caught the train and bus back to Cusco for some well deserved relaxation.

And Finally
1) One of our group, a Kiwi lad called Matt, has been having a photo taken of himself in Speedos in every country. He thought the perfect Peru shot would be at Machu Pichu. However, after he had stripped off and a photo taken he was apprehended by guards and unceremoniously kicked out. All of us had our cameras reviewed and the photos deleted. Apparently public displays of (almost) nudity at Machu Pichu our very much frowned upon

2) Interestingly the Inca flag is a rainbow flag, very similar to the Gay pride flag. Its pretty strange to see it fly from public buildings.

Photo Links
Machu Pichu
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=107388&id=519122783&l=2bb7a281b6
Salkantay Trek
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=107378&id=519122783&l=be3d324cec
Lake Titicaca
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=108035&id=519122783&l=1a92f215ba

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