Peru

20^th (contd)

Our flight to Lima left on time, and for the first time in a long time, we had in seat entertainment! And with English movies J We both watched movies for the 5 hours it took to get to Lima. Our luggage took AGES to come off the plane, but finally after an hour waiting patiently by the carousel our bags emerged. Our next guide was waiting for us outside and we were taken to our hotel. It is situated in a more tourist area called Miraflores, meaning look at the flowers. I personally did not see many, but who knows. It is once again really early in the morning, so after checking into our hotel we slept.

21^st

Woke just before 10am so we could have breakfast. The room smell really badly of smoke, grrr smokers, followed by a very basic breakfast as most items had run out and were not being replaced. Decided to go for a walk to try and find a laundry to properly wash our clothes. We found 4 different places, all except one was going to take more than 2 days – not acceptable. And the one that could do the same day closed at 6:30. We have a city tour starting at 2pm, and they normally take 4 – 5 hours, so it would be too risky to even leave it here. Oh well, continue hand washing. We stopped at a supermarket called Vivanda, which is very modern and has a great selection of food and drinks. We chose some things for lunch and proceeded to go and eat it on the roof of our hotel.

The city tour guide picked us up at 2pm and took us to see the Historical Center, Plaza Mayor which is the main square, the Government Palace, Archbishop’s palace, city hall, some old streets with colonial mansions and the San Francisco Convent where we went underground and saw the catacombs. They were a little weird as archaeologists had dug up areas and stacked the bones in patterns which looked bery unnatural. We also made a stop on the coast to see the Pacific ocean and “Love Park” where there is a huge statue of two people kissing. There were cliffs along the coast and paragliders were making the most of the excellent on-shore breeze. If we had more time we were going to have a go, but it did not work out. We were dropped off at our hotel where we sorted out our bags before dinner was ready at 7pm. Ate in the hotel as we were tired and wanted an early night. Decided to go to an internet place across the road and update the blog and send some photos. Found that international phone calls were cheap, so Chris called home. 20minutes cost around $3 NZ dollars so very happy! Back to the smelly room to try and sleep.

22^nd

Early wake up of 5:30am with a pick up at 6:15am. We were dropped off at the bus station and were on our way at 7am to Ica. The bus ride takes about 4 hours and a half and goes via the town of Paracas. They had movies in English with Spanish subtitles so that made the journey go faster and kept us from looking out the window too much as we are sure the bus driver was trying to kill us. Too many near misses and at one time we were next to a truck with an oncoming truck flashing his lights like mad – not fun! I think we value our lives more than the bus driver does L Got to our hotel and we can’t check in until 3pm so we put our bags in storage and wondered around the complex for half an hour. At 12pm we were picked up and taken to the local airport which was basically behind our hotel. An airport tax of US$11 for who know what and then on board our Cessna aeroplane with 6 Chinese tourists. Well it didn’t take long and the guy next to Chris was airsick and the girl next to me didn’t look to good either for most of the flight. After about 20min we reached the Nazca lines and were flown over each of the mysterious designs etched into the desert. Apparently they are about 1500 years old and have survived mainly due to the fact that this area only gets an average rainfall of 3mm a year. Our favourites were the spider, hummingbird and monkey. The total flight time was about and hour and a quarter and Chris must have been bored at some stage as he worked out the fuel consumption was one pound every 10 seconds. Back to the hotel for a late lunch and finally being able to check in. The rooms are big but there is no air-conditioning only a fan, it is a bit cooler than Lima so should be ok. Lots of people at the hotel and getting to sleep is not easy.

23^rd

Another early wake up at 6am for a 6:45 departure on the bus. A quick breakfast which wasn’t that great but better than Lima. On the bus and about a half an hour trip to Paracas were we will board our boat to the Ballestas Islands. There are loads of Pelicans on the beach near the pier with locals feeding them what looks like anchovies. However they are always looking for tourists and cameras so that the hat can come off and money can be offered. Enough tourists around that we didn’t get harassed before hopping on our boat. The boat takes 44 people and has two 200hp engines. On our way to the islands we stopped just outside the bay where another Nazca drawing has been found off a candelabra on the side of the cliff. Loads of cormorants and seagulls fishing as we approach the islands. At first sight all you see is black and brown, then as you get closer you realise these are actually birds – millions of them sitting on the island. There are seagulls, four types of cormorants, penguins, terns, pelicans and sealions. The sealions are in mating season at the moment and can have up to 5 females during this period. As we round the first island we spot the second and houses which are on top of the second island. Apparently two people live on the island to protect it and every 3 years the guano is collected off the islands for export to America, South America and Australia. Yuck! It smells really bad and I have no idea how any one can live with that smell 24/7. Total trip time is about 2 hours on the boat and then we are back at the pier after spotting one dolphin on the way back. Bought an ice-cream while we waited for another couple and then boarded our bus back to Ica. We got back to our hotel just before 12pm and packed our bags, showered before checking out at 1pm. Apparently there is not much else to do in Ica other than go into town which is not very big and doesn’t have much so we stayed at the hotel. Our pick up is at 7:45pm for a bus ride at 8:30pm to Arequipa. Not looking forward to it as I doubt we will sleep on the bus and probably won’t be able to check in when we get there. Decided to go for lunch, play some outdoor chess – which I am really bad at, so chris won – I had a swim in the pool and we lounged around the pool area trying not to get too bored.

Picked up at 7:45 and taken to the bus station. Our bus was only 15mins late so no big deal. We were seated on the bottom level at the back, so with the curtains draw, it was very dark. We both slept a little, however no where near as much as needed. The roads were very twisty and there are a lot of trucks. They are slower than the bus, so as typical, the buses do much overtaking, and sometimes they shouldn’t. To be awoken by the sound of horns followed by heavy braking is not great for the blood pressure.

24th

We arrived alive at around 8:15am the following morning in Arequipa. Collected our bags and met our new guide. Our guide suggested we go and check into our hotel, have a shower and freshen up, then at 9:30 do our city tour. Sandy and I were not too keen on the city tour so soon after such little sleep, however our guide said that it typically rains after lunch so it would be much better if we did. We agreed. We got to our room and our jaws hit the floor. We had been upgraded to a suite! It had a lounge area and bar, with a separate bedroom and separate bathroom. In addition to this, it also had an enclosed balcony that looked out over one of the nicest city squares in Peru! So after a great hot shower and some clean clothes, we were a little more refreshed and ready for the tour.

We asked our guide if we could make the visits to the churches a little shorter than usual as we have seen many by now and although nice to look at, they start to look similar. He smiled and said that he had learnt a few weeks ago that these types of tours get called ABC tours. Sandy and I looked at each other blankly, and he proceeded to say Another Bloody Church tour. We were a little taken aback by this as we know that most people here are very religious we thought that our guide certainly was. But still he saw the lighter side in it and appreciated that not all tourists wanted to see every church in the country. We saw a nice view over the city with terraced areas for farming beside the Rio Chile, before heading to the Cathedral by the main square – Plaza de Armas. You never know what is behind a closed door, and for once, we were both taken aback by the Cathedral. First, it was HUGE, second, the amount of paintings on the walls and white rock used for construction made this church very impressive. We were then shown some of the precious artefacts in the church, and they come only second to King Tut’s crown! There were over 180 diamonds in one cluster alone on a large gold ornament! Unfortunately no photos were allowed, but believe me it was impressive.

Off to the convict where the nuns lived/still live – Santa Catalina Convent. This was more interesting than anticipated as it is a city within a city. There are dorm rooms, houses with the original cooking ovens and accessories, fountains, roads and shops. It was closed to the public for over 400 years until 1970, when an earthquake damaged a lot of the area. Tourism was taken as an option to raise money for repairs. It took over an hour to wander around and explore. Interestingly it was only for the wealthiest families to send their second daughter to and was considered to be a great honour for the family. The first daughter goes to the convent for schooling until 12, where the second daughter stays for life. It was amazing to see bowls made from porous rock for water purification (4-5hrs/litre), washing machines, ovens, cooking and baking tins etc. Also all beds were underneath arch’s for earthquake safety.

Walked around the city a bit and found a place to eat – Plaza de Ekekko (Place of the gods we think it translates to). We had a trio of meats – Alpaca, beef and ostrich which were all good, followed by an excellent chocolate milkshake. On the way back to the hotel we found a laundry to do our clothes in 4hrs and for only 4 soles /kg. Yay, first time in a while they get washed properly!

We found a Radio Shack on the way back, so have the opportunity get some screw drivers to perhaps fix our broken lens. We went on the internet in our hotel room and managed to find the service instructions for our lens. $8 for a very detailed document so very happy. They looked rather complicated, but not impossible so we went and got the screwdrivers. It took about an hour to fix the lens and it went without any problems. Certainly could not have done it without the instructions. Turns out that an internal screw had worked loose and was jamming the zoom mechanism. After putting it back together and testing it, we were very happy to have it working again! Off to pick up our laundry, download the photos, packed our bags and went to the hotel restaurant for our complimentary Pisco Sour. The restaurant overlooks the main square, so was very nice with all the night lighting.

25^th

We got a wakeup call at 6:30 and after a quick breakfast we were picked up for our Colca Canyon visit. We left our main bags at the hotel and took only our day packs. It took 5hrs to get to Chivay which is a town a few hours from the canyon. On the way we stopped to see Lamas and Alpacas and got some coca sweets which turn out to be really good, and are supposed to help with altitude issues. We are going from 2500m to a maximum of 4910m, before descending a little to Chivay. We saw Mishi Volcano under cloud, got hailed on for a short time, stopped to make an offering to the “pacho mama” – mother earth, when we were at 4800m. It is said that by placing 3 coco leaves under a pyramid of rocks will give us protection during our travels. We also passed some wetland area at around 4000m where we saw Andean Coots - a type of duck. We passed through Ohukuru crater where Pakachara animals were, they are a type of rabbit with a tail up to 50cm long. The locals kill them for meat, but have an easy time as by simply feeding them bananas they become paralyzed! A quick stop at 4910m to look out at mountains covered in cloud. Onto Chivay for lunch where Sandy and I were dropped at a different restaurant to everyone else – strange but oh well, we had booked things ages ago. The food was great, another buffet of traditional foods. Very tasty meats and lots of salads. The restaurant overlooked the main square of Chivay and it was great to sit and watch the local going’s on. An hour for lunch, then off to our hotel, The Casa Andina Colca, which is another nice hotel. We had an hour before going to the hot springs. Nice hot springs so was great to relax for an hour or so. The outside pools were much nicer than inside as the air was cool and it was raining a little. Back to the hotel for dinner and sleep.

26^th

An early start for our trip out to see Condors and a view of the canyon. The Colca canyon is 4160m deep and was created by a geological fault and erosion. Lots of Andenese (stepped terraces) and terrace agriculture on the sides of the canyon. The weather looked promising for a good view of the canyon if we went there first, so we headed to the farthest point first and would then stop at various places on the way back. We had a walk to a viewpoint overlooking the river, which was a very long way below. The sound of the river was easily heard from where we were. On the way back we saw 6 condors flying around, but at a distance. The condors have a wingspan of 3m and stand 1.5m tall. They weigh about 14kgs and generally fly at a height of 7000m but roost at about 5000m. The condor only reproduces at 10 years old and has two eggs which are incubated for only 2 months before the baby cracks its egg. However they stay in the nest for a further 8 months before leaving. Another stop at a city called Maca where there was another church. Also a man and woman with two giant Kestrals. We both got our picture taken with the bird on our arm, and also on Chris’s head! A very large bird and it was a little concerning with the Talons wrapping half way around your arm. Still, they were very gentle and had excellent balance. The road back to Chivay was terrible, and causes the trip to take over twice as long as needed. There is so little maintenance that vehicles use which ever side of the road looks better than the other. Back to Chivay for lunch at the same restaurant (had guinea pig, alpaca, cocoa tea and the usual beef and chicken) before starting our trip back to Arequipa. On the way back it started to snow so the roads got very slippery. A bus ahead of us lost control and flipped onto its side! Nobody was hurt luckily and the bus was still able to drive. We took 2 passengers with us back to the city. Our driver was great and took his time in the dangerous areas. We were all relieved to be below the snow line and get safely back to our hotel.

27^th

Our transfer to the airport picked us up and got us there in 15mins. Our guide said we could go direct to Cusco, rather than transfer through Lima as our tickets were, however the check in person was not keen on re-printing the tickets, so we did not end up doing it. The flight to Lima was only an hour and 20mins, but by the time we got off the plane, we had 20mins to get onto our next flight! A hurried treck through the airport and we got to our departure gate, and found our connecting flight had been cancelled – EEK! Thankfully everyone had been allocated onto other flights and ours was only 20mins later, so no problem after all. Arrived in Cusco before lunch and got to our hotel. No parcel from DHL L Starting to get concerned about getting our replacement lens. Checked our email and found customs has not released it. Dinner at the Inca grill in the plaza de armas.

28^th

Sleep in this morning and then off to find a post office to get rid of some excess luggage – 6kgs! A quick lunch at a restaurant in the happy plaza or plaza regocijo before our tour. This afternoon we have a city tour of Cusco and the ruins on the outskirts of the city. First a visit to Qorikancha or Temple of the sun which has two of the four temples intact as the rest was destroyed by the Spanish. This is a recurring theme throughout the inca temples. The four temples represent the cardinal points : North, South, West and East. It has a number of the stone blocks used to mould iron. It also had a double door jamb with a rock carved with 14 edges. Then off to the main Cathedral in the plaza de armas. This is a huge cathedral with three sections to it and loads of gold and silver. One of the alters is carved from one piece of stone and weighs about 85 tonnes. Then we were off to the outskirts of Cusco. First stop is Sachahuman (pronounced sexy women – even though we got told we weren’t suppose to say it like that), anyway this is a huge fortress with 100 tonne blocks of stone to create the walls. Also has a wonderful view of the city J On towards Tambomachay with road stop views of Pukapukara. Tambomachay is a 5 minute walk from the gate and is called the “baths of the inca”. It has the four windows depicting the four cardinal points and was a water source for the inca.

Back to our hotel and off for a massage. Managed to convince Chris to join me and had the best massage for s/ 20 or about NZ$8 for 1 hour. Went to a local pub called the cross keys and met up with some guys from the UK, Chris and Ross, sat talking for ages and having a few drinks.

29^th

Early morning – a lot earlier than we thought 4am wake up! After a night out this was pretty tough. Caught the train from Cusco to Machu Picchu which takes about 4 and a bit hours. Arrived at lunch time and took the bus up to the entrance. Checked into our hotel – the sanctuary lodge – very flash! Dropped our bags in our room and off for our tour of Machu Picchu. It’s a weird feeling when you first get there, as you have seen so many documentaries on it that you feel you aren’t really there for a while. We had a tour around all the main areas of Machu Picchu – condor temple, royal tomb, upper and lower class areas, agricultural area, temple of three windows, ceremonial rock, main square, the fountain and the tower. After our tour we wandered around for another 15 minutes before our stomachs got the best of us. Back to the hotel for lunch – wow the best meal yet! After lunch we grabbed our cameras and decided to do the walk to the sun gate which is the last portion of the inca trail. About a 2 and a half hour walk return from memory. At the top is the main gate to machu picchu with a wonderful view down the valley. There are also two other temples on the way up and a very friendly llama. Chris seems to have a way with animals as once he gave the llama a bit of grass it followed us for about half the walk back down. Back in Machu Picchu we walked across to the guardhouse and took the classic photo of MP. Saw another sign for a walk to the Inca bridge so decided to do this – oh my gosh!!!! This is a crazy walk and I seriously stopped a few times thinking I had to turn round. Basically the path is about 0.5m wide and is a shear cliff down the side. There are no safety barriers or anything and about a 400m drop straight down to the Urubamba river. We finally made it to the bridge, well as far as you could possibly go, as the path had had a landslide and the last bit doesn’t exist anymore. The bridge is insane these guys had balls of steel to walk across this bridge and apparently it is built into the rock. A bit of a faster walk back – don’t know why but I just wanted to get out of there – not good for the nerves. Back in MP and we decided to go for another walk around the site before retiring for the day. A really nice dinner before bed.

1^st March

Decided not to get up for sunrise at 6am and stay in bed until 8am. Breakfast and then bought a second ticket to MP so we could do the walk up Wayna Picchu. By the time we got to the entrance it was already at about 115 people. They only let in 400 people a day. Started our walk which is suppose to take about an hour and a bit up. This was a lot worse than the inca bridge walk plus the trail was a bit wet. Made it to the top and met some ozzies – really awesome to have some people to talk to and keep our minds of the drop of the edge of the mountain. To get right to the top you go through the tiniest cave and basically have to squeeze out the other end. The view was slightly misted over when we got to the top but it cleared every now and then. Eleanor and Chris took the easy way back to the main route down and Will and I took a different path. Well after thinking we had found a different peak it turns out it was the same place but we did get to the house at the top. The down side to going the other way was coming back down to where Chris and Eleanor were – I thought I was going to die a few times on the way down. Well the walk down didn’t seem as bad as we expected but probably due to the amount of yacking on the way down. Met up with the UK guys we met in Cusco on the way down – they weren’t looking to good and we couldn’t really give them any motivation other than the view.

Down at the bottom and we wondered around MP again with Eleanor and Will talking like mad – I think you go a bit third world crazy with the lack of finding others to talk to. Said our goodbyes and back to the hotel for lunch before our train to Ollantaytambo which took about an hour and a half. Stayed in a great hotel, the Casa Andina, until they put people in the room above us. The ceiling must have been paper thin as the people above were so loud with footsteps and luggage being dragged around from 3am!

2^nd

Very tired after little sleep. Got our transfer to the Pisac Market where we met up with Condor Travel again. An hour walking though the market was quite enjoyable seeing the colourful clothes and trinkets on display. There was also an area selling local fruits and vegetables so got to see different things on offer. Stopped for lunch before heading to Ollantaytambo, an Inca Fortress. A couple of hundred steps later and we arrived at the top. A nice view over the town and we got to see how the Inca’s moved, cut and handled the giant stones. Lunch at a restaurant in Ollantaytambo town and then headed back to Cusco and arrived around 4:30. Checked back into our hotel and found that we still do not have our camera lens. Getting a little stressed about it now as we leave in the day after tomorrow. Went and got Sandy a massage and grabbed some dinner at a cheap chicken place – 8 soles ($2.3NZ) for half a chicken and fries!

3^rd

A day in the hotel, both feeling tired and a bit sick. Hopefully the rest will fix things. Decided to go get some lunch and found a place that has a two course meal and coke for s/ 10! Also went and got some medicine to get rid of our colds. A lazy day watching tv and sorting out our luggage, getting our laundry done.

4^th

6am wake up for breakfast and then our transfer to our bus to Puno. A long day of about 9 hours travelling on a bus made for small people. We stopped in 5 different places along the way which broke the trip up quite a lotJ Our first stop was at Andahuaylillas for a tour of the church, after the visit we wondered around the main square. Next stop was Raqchi where we went to see an Incan supreme church with a city of an estimated 700 incan inhabitants. Would have been quite an impressive building in its day. Next lunch at Sichuani and then off to La Raya which is the highest point of the bus ride at about 4300m in the Andean plains. In Pukara we visited the Pre-Inca Museum which has a number of the statues and ceramics which have been found in the area. No more stops and we are in Puno. Picked up at the bus station and taken to our hotel. A fantastic view of the lake from our room. Dinner, check e-mail and then bed. Still no news on our camera stuff – other than customs no thinks we were trying to cheat them by not declaring the memory chip inside the camera! This is really getting ridiculous, they are getting picky over a $20 item.