Would you like fries with your guinea pig madam_

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So, I have reached Lima, capital city of Peru and am currently afflicted with Peruvian swine flu… actually that’s probably not true but it makes for dramatic effect. The reality is I have succumbed to a very nasty ‘dolor de garganta’ - sore throat to you and me which makes me sound like Honor Blackman on acid. Feel as rough as a badger´s arse so im guzzling paracetamol and the Peruvian equivalent of Lemsip ‘ tastes even worse than chichi but when overlanding there is not time to be sick so Im resolutely ignoring the fact I feel pants and hoping the cold will go away as quickly as it appeared.

Last time i left you, i was in Arequippa on the verge of trying Peru´s famous ´cuy´ - guinea pig: the gastronomic equivalent of a bungee jump. I approached this culinary abyss with a degree of trepidation but fellow gourmands Tanya and Fiona were up for the taste sensation. Presented whole, this rodent had been spatchcocked and tossed (no pun intended) into a deep fat fryer so that even its claws were crispy. Im always game for some foodie adventure but been i couldn’t manage the head complete with whiskers. Tastewise im afraid it was disappointing. Extremely fatty and bony I confess i did not get the same frisson devouring the crackling of Patches (or he could have been called Squeak) as say a good crispy chunk of pork crackling. However we did it - those of a squeamish disposition or vegetarian inclination may need to avert their gaze when the photos appear on FB.

I digress with this gastronomic aside….after our Andean adventures high in the mountains and Machhu Picchu we returned to Cusco and recovered with massages and pamperings. Onwards we drove all the way for a night in a “Peruvian homestay” in Raqchi - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raqchi, a wholly “false” experience. My Mum will know what i mean when i say : Papa Ouzo!!

Raqchi is a small artesanal village and we were lucky enough (cough ahem) to “…enjoy some of the ceremonial aspects of village life as well as much singing and dancing and the opportunity to buy some of the beautiful made and decorated pottery…”. These old Peruvian women have been doing this for years - dressing in their finest traditional garb and getting the gringos to dance sing and part with their sols . Gosh, I do sound like a hardened old cynic don’t i! To be fair, proceeds of the stay go to the local community - with which they can do all manner of things. My host Julia, was a lovely lady complete with a real cow in the back yard but was also funding her eldest daughter “Fanny” to study in Prague. Go figure….

Moving swiftly on, we moved next onto Chivay - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chivay - gateway to the Colca Canyon where after 8 hrs in Cameron the Truck we headed straight to the thermal springs and floated at 3600m in the 39degree waters. Once the hoards of Peruvian teenagers had departed and the sun started to go down, it was muchos tranquillo and a good nightcap prior to our 5am start the next day. With an extremely loud and talkative guide who kept up his dawn monologue for over 1 hour we drove along the Rio Colca which snakes its way through the Colca Valley into the Colca Canyon - the deepest canyon in the world. http://images.google.co.uk/images?q=colca+canyon&hl=es&um=1&sa=2&start=0

Twice as deep as the Grand Canyon, this precipitous gorge at its deepest point is over 4000m and is home to the majestic Andean condor - the world’s largest bird. Bumping along the dirt track to Cruz del Condor we perched on tumbling rocks to await the early morning appearance of this avial (is that a word I have just made up?) king of the air. With a wingspan of over 3 metres and living to a hefty 60 years plus, these birds use the morning thermals in the canyon to swoop and glide through the air in search of carrion. http://images.google.co.uk/images?hl=es&um=1&sa=1&q=andean+condor&aq=f&oq=&start=0

I got some incredible shots of these mighty creatures (google images - you aint seen nothin’!) and may even have to submit to the next Wildlife photographer of the Year and see if I can better my 5 semi final pics from last year http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=57012&id=691995235&l=3952614eba

We are continuing northwards now, into south central Peru and have dropped to sea level so the road hugs the Pacific Ocean on one side whilst on the other, sand dunes of a pale magnolia colour rise and fall in the wind. Further inland, the desiccated earth lies unyielding but there are secrets in this barren, inhospitable landscape… the Nazca area is dotted with cemeteries dating back to way before Christ. We stopped at Chauchilla --- a cemetery renowned for its pre-inca mummies and discovered in the 1920s. The graves were nearly all looted way before that and bones lie over the site along with shards of pottery and bits of mummified cloth. 13 tombs have been excavated and mummies shrouded in burial robes complete with dreadlocked hair sit exposed looking up at you from their ancient graves. http://images.google.co.uk/images?hl=es&um=1&resnum=0&q=chauchilla+cemetery&ie=UTF-8&ei=UboAS8iPK4bQngeb6b0S&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=4&ved=0CCIQsAQwAw

It was quite bizarre - the arid environment has ensured continued preservation and they are far more intact than the Egyptian mummies of the pharaohs I saw in Cairo last year or even the famous Juanita mummy (http://images.google.co.uk/images?hl=es&q=juanita%20mummy&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wi) , we visited in Arequippa - the young Inca girl sacrificed at the summit of the 6300m Ampato volcano as an offering to the gods.

Camping in the grounds of a hotel in Nazca, most of the Group went up in a tiny plane to view the enigmatic Nazca Lines http://images.google.co.uk/images?hl=es&um=1&sa=1&q=Nazca+Lines&aq=f&oq=&start=0 .

Not having had the best of histories with flying (Air disaster 1 - Aeroflot - London to Moscow - crash landing due to cockpit windscreen shattering. Air disaster number 2 - London to Pakistan - marooned on runway whilst IRA mortar bombed Heathrow), I opted to stay by the hotel’s pool and watch the hummingbirds and vermillion chested flycatchers http://images.google.co.uk/images?hl=es&um=1&sa=1&q=vermillion+chested+flycatchers&btnG=Buscar+im%C3%A1genes&aq=null&oq=&start=0 !

The Nazca lines are a mystery - etched into the desert they have remained there for spectators to marvel at the huge drawings - its not known whether they are astronomical or worshipful offerings to the gods… I caught a glimpse of them the following day from the Miardor - not a great view but with the accident rate for the flights disturbingly high I thought best not to be third time unlucky!!

From Nasca we scooted across to the tiny oasis town of Huacachina which sits surrounded by the enormous sand dunes of the Paracas Desert. Here we waited for the ferocious 36 + temps to lessen and also to meet with a fellow dragoman truck heading south in the opposite direction for an afternoon of sandboarding and dune bashing. Zooming into the desert on these buggies was lots of fun - far better than a similar experience in Dubai. http://www.andeanperutrekking.com/images/desert-adventures-adrenaline-experience.jpg

These dunes were gigantic and very steep so it took me a while but eventually I girded my loins and I did it! Headfirst, face down on the board off I scooted down the side of these massive sand mountains….the fun rolled on into the evening where a bonfire was built amidst the dunes and we sat up til the wee small hours drinking copious amounts of Pisco - the national drink of Peru, an evil clear strong brandy. Mixed with coke, it’s a lethal combination which got some of the group so annihilated they were unable to urinate standing up and one (she shall remain nameless) needed rescuing from the amorous attentions of a short fat Peruvian buggy driver - you know who you are!! Tanya and I put them both to bed and in the recovery position - bed being, the sand floor of the dunes under a clear night sky full of stars.

Woke feeling pretty goddam rough myself - am sure the Pisco brought my cold out so my experience of the Ballestas Islands http://images.google.com.pe/images?hl=es&um=1&sa=3&q=Ballestas+Islands+ was marred somewhat by a hangover as well as imminent illness….and my useless sealegs. How the heck will I cope 8 days at sea in the Galapagos Islands…Bali - bring the Dramamine please!!

Part of the Paracas National Park Reserve http://images.google.com.pe/images?hl=es&um=1&sa=1&q=Paracas+National+Park+Reserve&aq=f&oq=&start=0 , they are considered one of the most important marine reserves in the world with thousands of sea birds and sea lions….known as the Poor Man’s Galapagos, they are stunning. Penguins, pelicans and loads of other birds who I cannot identify…..

Right, im being hurried off this computer so shall say adios for now. Tomo we leave Lima and head further North…I shall not be sad to depart - it’s a wholly unattractive city - well, the small bit I have seen. Bring on the Amazon and the Cordillera Blanca - northwards we go!

Hannah x

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