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Published: November 1st 2008
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Cusco
Cusco is a very quaint litlle place high up in the andes in southern Peru. With cobbled streets grand churches and lots of peruvian culture. The first couple of days we stayed here was spent acclimatizing and peparing for our trip and saving money so not a great deal to talk about other than the amazing view from our hostel and the the dinners we made for one pound a head (spag bowl and saussage and mash, mash was very spectacularly made by james in a blender for lack of mashing implement).
The Trek
Day one On the moring of the 24th we were up at 4am (bit of a shock to the system!) to catch our bus to the starting point of the trek, Mollepata (2900m). Once there we had a light breakfast and started off into the beautiful sunny day. With great views of far off mountaing and comments like "this looks just like wales" we headed upwards for a solid four or five hours where we met our first surprise, lunch! On the crest of the mountainside two tents were set up (one for cooks one for us) aswell as little individual water bowls towels and
soap for all 13 on the trek. Once washed up we sat down inside the tent where we proceded to have a three course lunch! An avacado starter, a very good tomato soup with garlic bread and then a massive buffet of chicken rice potato vegtables which even us malnurished boys couldnt finish!
After lunch we set off again with very full stomachs, no sooner had we taken two steps when the heaven opened and the sky urinated all over us! This continued for the next three hours and only stopped when we got to camp making for a wet and pretty miserable afternoon! When we arrived at Soraypampa (3850m) light was just fading and the freezing glacial wind was blowing down on us, but our campsite under the mighty Salkantay (savage) mountain had already been set up. The porters had given us hot water in our wash bowls and we soon changed out of soaking wet gear and headed for a four course dinner that somehow topped lunch and finished with the chef entering the tent and flambaying 15 bannas for dessert! After a hard day walking (climbing a litlle under 1000m and covering 17kms) and a couple of
bottles of spiced rum everyone was out like a light despite the freeing tempreatures!
Day Two We awoke early to a clearer sky and a breakfast that didnt dissapoint even after yesterdays lunch and dinner! This morning was the hardest part of the trek in terms of hight gained so the guides gave us some coca leaves with a special 'black stone' which helps with altitude sickness and regulating your breathing, you fold up the stone in a handful of leaves and stick it in your cheek to let your saliva absorb its properties. Some of the group thought it was excellent personally it just made me wanna vomit and hindered more than helped! After 3+ hours of steep uphill we reached the salkantay pass (4510m) unfortunately the clouds were in and the views were only part of what they could have been! After a coca tea and cheese roll served by one of the porters who had been waiting for us we headed down into a misty valley and didt see a whole lot untill lunch! After lunch we decended into 'the cloud forest' where the views started to reapper again all the way untill we reached camp
for the night and the heavens opened as we sat down for a well earned cervesa (beer).
Day Three Again awakig about 6 o clock we headed down for the whole day following the river all the way into jungle areas and ending up in La Playa for a late lunch. As a group we decided on the optional ride down to Santa Teressa where there are some hot springs we could go to for the evening. The ride down ended up being the cheep option of a man and his truck so we piled in porters, equipment, us and luggage for a rather hairy ride down for what was a much needed relax after 3days of hard walking.
Day Four This moring we got a minivan back up the mountain where we stated one of the hardest parts of the trek a three hour steep uphill climb to a view point of Machu Picchu followed by an even steeper decent down to the short train to Aguas Calientes (the town below Machu Picchu). This was one of the best days views and weather wise as the photos show.
Machu Picchu This was the ay we had
been waiting for and we were up t 4 to have our last breakfast and get the bus up to be in Machu Picchu for the sunrise. An awsome spectacle and the photos really say the rest, apart from the climb up the small mountain Waynapicchu which was hard work and pretty scary in most parts due to the sheer 1000m drops on most sides!
After several hours at machu picchu we haeded down for some food and our train back to Cusco. The train was a nice change from buses untill we came across a posh 1st class train broken down on the tracks next to us, shortly after we pulled up next to them all our lights went out and about half an hour later the 1st class train pulled away. Sevral hours later still sitting in the dark in the middle of nowhere we managed to find out that they had taken our engine as theirs was broken and they were first class! Very unhappy we continued to wait untill eventually a lower class train than us arrived and a similar situation occurred and we were off again arriving back 3hours late!
Back in Cusco
Not
a lot to say here other than some nights out and several large english breakfasts!
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