Blogs from Peru, South America - page 13

9th & 10th June (rest days) After our intensive two days in the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu, now followed two rest days. Rest days? I make it sound like we’re participating in a sports tournament!! We both woke refreshed after having a relatively undisturbed night’s sleep. I only woke up twice which was a huge improvement on the first couple of nights spent in Cusco. We had no plans today. A lazy day suited us fine. We went down for breakfast at 09:45. Pat and Peter, the couple who had hired the car, still had the ‘do not disturb’ sign on their door so some people were even having a lazier day than us!!! Over breakfast we met Emma and David. They had been with us for certain excursions but for their Machu Picchu tour, ... read more

6th June – Free day Hallelujah! We finally had a better night’s sleep. Hopefully, we must be gradually acclimatising. The itinerary has had to be shuffled around today. We should have been going to the Sacred Valley but there is a one-day general strike today so, we have another free day and tomorrow, which should have been ‘at leisure’, we will visit the Sacred Valley instead. I asked the hotel concierge what was the strike regarding? He just simply answered ‘Everything!!’ It’s nice to know that the electorate, the world over, have the same level of respect for their politicians!!! (this blog even has satire!!) At breakfast, a man who we had never seen before passed me as he was leaving the dining area. He was probably in his mid to late 60s and wore a ... read more

2ndJune 2019 – Touch down Lima. Only a few weeks after the end of our round the world odyssey via Australia, New Zealand and the South Pacific, we once again cancelled the papers, paid the window cleaner for the next two weeks and ensured all our favourite TV programmes were selected to record!! On this occasion we planned to leave our sea legs in the cupboard at home. We wouldn’t be needing them as traveling over water would be kept to a minimum. Instead we would need our altitude legs but as we don’t possess any, we had to revisit our cupboard as our sea legs would have to do. We were ready for our biggest challenge yet. Peru. Machu Picchu and Lake Titicaca, both high in the Andes, where the air is pure and clean. ... read more

This has certainly been a spectacular 3 months for us. Quito, Galapagos, Selva Amazon Lodge, Cuenca, Barranco/Lima & now 12 days on the road to Nazca and beyond. The schedule is hectic. Many days start at 5.30am and involve plenty of walking, climbing and scrambling, mostly at altitude. I can’t say enough good things about Peru Tourism. We looked at their suggested tours then custom built our own 12 day trip. They looked after everything...transportation, transfers, accommodation, guides entrance fees and many of the meals. All the hotels have been top notch, way above what we would normally book. And the cost a very reasonable $5300US for the 2 of us. No, I’m not on their payroll! 3 Panoramas above, 5 second delay between each: 1. The Andes Mountains behind Arequipa. Misti is the perfectly shaped ... read more

In hindsight we could have spent less time here and found another place in Peru for a week or so. We found Lima too big, busy and crowded for our liking, particularly after the charm of Cuenca. Traffic in and around Lima is brutal so we avoided taxis and Uber and walked, 75km last week. The apartment was excellent and of all the districts we felt Barranco was the most genuine and the best bet for us. There are 6 panoramas in the section above. They change every 5 seconds. 1. Barranco beach on a hot weekend. Too crowded for us. Reminded us of Sauble Beach on a long weekend in summer. 2. An Incan inspired wall mural in Barranco. 3. Plaza de Armas in central Lima. 4. From Miraflores, looking south to Barranco. 5.Huaca Pucllana. ... read more