Cuzco and the Sacred Valley Tour

Cuzco is a great city. It´s principal business is tourism and most people who visit are usually planning to do the Inca trail or Machu Picchu.

On the first night we arrived it was a girl from the trips birthday (Susie) so we went to an absolutely fantastic restaurant called the Fallen Angel. The decor which was all created by the owner reminded me a lot of Dali - for example the tables were bathtubs with goldfish swimming in them with a glass top. There was also a massive silver angel in the courtyard.

After a nice steak (imported from Argentina) we went on to an Irish pub (you could buy Guiness in cans) then onto a club.

The next day we had free to look around and get ready for the trail. I bought a green Poncho as someone knicked my jacket - it´s very stylish as you´ll see from the photos.

The next day we set out for the trail. As well as your personal backpack you are allowed a duffel bag of 5KG which includes your sleeping bag - the porters carry this bag for you - more about the porters later.

The Sacred Valley Tour involved visiting lots of ruins on the way to the start of the Inca trail.

The first stop was ruins called Sacsayhuaman - this site had a great panaramic view of Cusco.

Next we stopped at a Llama farm and craft centre.



We also stopped at a place called Pisaq where there were more ruins including a huge Inca cemetary built up in the rocks as well as an irrigation system.

What´s hard to understand is that not much is known about the sites - i.e. exactly what they were for, when they were abandoned etc - quite often there are more ruins nearby these sites but there is no funding to excavate them.

We briefly visited a huge caft market in Pisaq before moving on for lunch at Urubamba.

Our final stop of the day was Ollantaytambo where we would stay before starting the Inca trail early the following day.

There were more ruins to look around and we had the chance to get stocked up with coco leaves (legal in Peru) to combat the altitude sickness and walking sticks.
We all got a good nights rest ready to start the trail.

Puno plus Taquile, Amantani and Uros Islands

Well we left Bolivia and entered Peru - back to normal roads.

We had a great lunch stop on the shore of Lake Titicaca. Lake Titicaca is the world´s highest navigable lake and often seemed more like sea than lake.

We stayed overnight in Puno on the lake shore before doing a tour of the islands.

The first island we visited was Taquile island. We walked across the island to the main square. It was like travelling back in time all the people wore traditional costumes. Only the men are allowed to knit and they make loads of hats and scarfs - it´s a strange site to see them busy with their needles.

We had a meal on the island before heading back to the boat.

On the next island I stayed overnight with a family.



The accomodation was very basic but the family made me very welcome. They had no electricity or running water. When you arrive they present you with a woolen cap which they use to recognise you later in the evening.

We played football with the locals - no easy task because of the altitude - needless to say the tourists lost. The locals speak an indian language called Quechua and we were given a crash course.

Next we had food with the family - soup, potatoes and rice and some mint tea. Then we had a party in the village hall in the evening where I met up with the rest of the group and their host families. We all had to dress in the traditional costumes which was a good laugh. We danced with the locals and listened to the Peruvian band.



Next morning we were up bright and earlier for the journey back to Puno. On the way back we visited the Uros, a group of about 40 artificial islands made of floating reeds. People actually live on these reeds - the reeds are used for everything - house and boat building, eating and burning for cooking.

La Paz and Death Road

I just wanted to start this post by thanking everyone for the comments they are appreciated - keep them coming.

La Paz is the highest capital city in the world (3600 meters above sea level)- quite an impressive place but very overcrowded - it took ages to get anywhere as there were serious traffic jams when we were there as there were parades.

The hotel was spot on with glass panel windows looking out over the city and hot showers!!

We took a city tour on the first day which gave a really good overview of the city - again there was a real contrast between the rich and poor parts of town.

We had lunch at Burger King!

There were alot of markets to look around - craft markets and copies of designer goods. There was even a Witches Market where you could buy all sorts of lucky charms and "special" ingredients - llama's embryos, armadillo's bodies or frog powder - exactly what I was looking for!.

There was even a section of market for booze where you could buy all types of Whiskey and Vodka for peanuts. They were even selling vodka in gallon containers for about 3 pounds.

We had lunch as a group in a restaurant called "Mungos" - the food was excellent

The next day was probably my best day of the trip so far - Death Road.

Basically it was mountain biking down the most dangerous road in the World - Death Road - descending from 4633 meters above sea level to just over 1700m in a couple of hours at break neck speed. The road is extremely steep narrow, muddy, and has huge drops of over 1000m. There have been many accidents and deaths on the road hence it´s name.

Well we hadn´t even made it onto Death Road proper before I managed to fall off - We were still on tarmac getting used to the bikes. Martin a friend of mine slipped on some oil and came slidding past scraping off layers of skin as he went as he had shorts on - I turned to see what was happening and took my eyes off the road - next thing I knew I was upside down in a ditch. I dusted myself down and got back on - I only realised how badly I had hurt my wrist at the end of the road - but no long term damage.

The views on the way down were incredible - I would ocaissionaly glance over the edge at the drops. The weather changed so much on the way down and there were even waterfalls cascading down onto the road. About half way down our support vehicle had to double back as a landslide had wiped out a section of road (landslides will become a recurring feature in this blog I think!!). We had to clamber over the landslide carrying our bikes - quite a task! When we got to the bottom we had a nice lunch at a hotel with a swimming pool. When we finally made it back to La Paz I was exhausted!

For those of you who enjoyed the yellow mining suit here I am sporting a cheeky red number, there´s also a view of Death Road.

Uyuni

Well after quite a journey we arrived in Uyuni - it was raining and the whole place seemed like a half built ghost town. Fortunately our hostel was spot on and there was no need to leave it as there was an American run Pizzeria attached.

We were woken up early with the Bolivian national anthem which is played every morning - if you are out in the street you must stand still and remove your hat!!

We did a full day tour of the salt flats which were absolutely incredible.

The first stop was a strange one - it was a train graveyard. There were loads of British and US trains just left there to rot. The most interesting one (for you train spotters) was an engine that was actually robbed by Butch Casidy and The Sundance Kid.



Next stop was a salt factory the salt is farmed, dried and mixed with iodine by the local workers. The conditions in the factory were bad and we saw a nine year old girl working with her father to bag the salt.



We drove onto the flats (which are huge!) for the first photo stop. We then drove further out to a hotel made entirely out of salt. Then on for another hour and a half right accross the flats to Fish Island where we stopped for lunch - a llama bbq. LLama actually tastes nice - a bit like pork I thought. Fish Island was covered in Cacti and we climbed to the top for an even better view of the flats. After lunch we travelled back accross the flats for even more photo stops - the landscape was just incredible.









On the way back we randomly stopped at some strange caves. The girls got a shock when we went inside one to be confronted by loads of mummies. Finally we got back to the hotel and chilled out before another Pizza from Minuteman!

Patosi - Take One

We visited Patosi twice. On the first visit our guide recommended a good restaurant 4060. Some of the restaurants looked decidedly dodgy with dead animals hanging up in the windows or little pokey holes however 4060 was top quality - you will be pleased to now I had my first lasagne!!

Patosi is a mining town, originally it was a silver mining town, there is a small amount of silver still there but now other minerals are extracted.

Some of us did a mine tour. We got kitted out in overalls and a lamp. Then we went to the miners market. Believe it or not here we were actually allowed to buy plastic explosive. We also bought some alcohol (98% proof) and Cocoa leaves as presents for the miners.



Before we went into the mines we were allowed to blow up our explosive. We all stood in a circle then lit the fuses. Each one supposedly had a 2 minute fuse so we cleared the area sharpish.





Then we went on to the mines the conditions there were bad there were no locomotives as they were considered too expensive so all the carts were pushed by hand. There was a strange god down there that all the miners still pray to, Tio Diablo (devil uncle) and they leave offerings for protection.

I was allowed to climb down to the face were some miners were working and hauling up the ore in baskets.

When we got back from the mine tour we had a long drive to Uyuni. I was really tired but the bus turned into a party bus with everyone getting hammered to break up the journey. There was dancing in the aisles and karoke. I felt like a right old man with a headache.

Towards the end of the journey we stopped by a lake full of flamingos.

Tupiza - Bolivia

Well my first experiences of Bolivia were certainly an eye opener. Once we crossed the border from Argentina it was amazing how much things changed. Bolivia is a poor country and at first most of the roads we were travelling on were dirt tracks. They were supposedly building a new road on top of the old road and there were loads of diversions. It had been raining and at one of the diversions our truck got completely stuck in the mud. We all had to get off and luckily the truck made it out of the mud and up the hill under its own steam. There were also a lot of Bolivian truck drivers stuck but they were happy just to wait for the mud to dry out!!

We stopped off at Tupiza on the way to Patosi. The scenary reminded me of the wold west or a Road Runner cartoon. It was quite a small town and the whole group couldn´t fit into one restaurant. It was St Patrick´s and there is one Irish girl in our group who we helped celebrate (it would be rude not to!). We managed to find this Karoke bar (no Guiness though!) complete with glitter balls and shell suited clientel - top quality!

Salta, Argentina

Salta was a refreshing change after Asuncion. It´s a very flat city but supposedly has the largest church bell tower in South America - if you look very closely you can see this in the foreground in the picture above.

We have spent three days in total here.

The first day was free for site seeing and shopping. I tried some local market food which was actally OK - Tamale and some local cheese.

In the afternoon I went up on the cable car and got some great views of the city. I walked back down to get some exercise.

In the evening we went out for a Steak at one of the Footprint Guide recommendations. It was one of the best steaks I´ve ever had - (Dad and Steven I bet you are jealous when you see the photos) - they gave us free Champagne and Empanadas (which are like mini meat pasties) to start. In fact the steaks were so good that even one of the veggie girls had one!! The local Argentinian red wine was good too (made with the Malbec grape)but possibly the best thing was that it worked out at under 5 pounds per person!!

The next day was whitewater rafting and nearly the whole group went along. I´ve ordered a photo CD of the day so will hopefuly be able to upload some shots. It took me a while to get into it but once I did I really enjoyed it - we rafted for about 12 kms down the river. It was a grade 3 course (intermediate) There were some good rapids but our team managed not to capsize the raft. It was a long day but everyone enjoyed themselves and the rafting organisers cooked us a BBQ (more steak yet again!!). On the evening we went out for a few drinks for the tour leaders birthday. There´s a good bar in the central square called Time Bar where you can sit outside and watch the world go by.

We were delayed for a day in Salta but will head out tomorrow towards Uyuni in Bolivia. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid were supposedly killed in a shoot out in a bank near here.

Finaly I´ve included a photo of the campsite at Salta. There was good news and bad news when we arrived - the good news was that the campsite has the largest outdoor swimming pool in the southern hemisphere - the bad news was that it was off season so was empty!!!

Asuncion Paraguay

Well because of the problems at the border we were going to miss this place out - it was definately an experience.

It is a city of contrasts and although there is a lot of poverty in the city which hits you straight away, there are also a lot of luxurious colonial buildings and a modern conference centre.



The hotel was great and it was fantastic to be able to get some washing done after so many camping stops.

We also had a nice meal and a cracking night out - it was a good night to bond as a group as nearly everyone came out and got hammered. The club we ended up in was a bit dodgy - I wore my Sunderland top which is the same colours as the Paraguay top so everyone was asking me questions about it.

There isn´t a great deal to see in the city and we strayed into a shanty town and I must admit although we were 3 blokes I still felt uncomfortable especially as my two colleagues had decided to wear Argentina tops for the day (think Sunderland / Newcastle rivalry times 10 with guns) - so after lots of strange looks and being shouted at we managed to slip away. There was also shed loads of couterfit goods and you get pestered all the time - looky looky man style.

I bought a Paraguay top.

The other night in Paraguay was spoiled a bit as one of the girls had her Camera snatched by a kid on a bike. I didn´t see it happen but was able to help explain to the Police what had happened but it took ages.

Also whilst in Paraguay we visited some Jesuite ruins. These were missionaries who came from Europe to minister to the Guarani indians. The indians were nomadic but in the Jesuite missions they were able to set up communities with Schools, hospitals etc. Unfortunately both the Spanish and Portugues settlers felt threatened by the growing populations of these missions and would attack them. Eventualy the Jesuites were driven out and the Churches and buildings were ransacked. Here´s a photo of the ruins.



I got roped in to help translate as the guide we had couldn´t speak English - well as you can imagine Jesuit ministries and indian settlements are one of my specialist subjects!!

We left Paraguay bright and early for two days on the road to get back into Argentina and to Salta. We camped next to a service station but what looked like big dead beetles by day became flying Cockroaches at night - the toilets (which were rank to start with) got filled by these things - I think we were all pleased to get back on the road. I was not pleased to discover however that whilst kicking sand at the cockroaches I was being bitten by Sand Fleas leaving my feet and legs covered in bites which have swelled up and itch.

Anyway after negotiating the delightful border stops we have grown to love and 12 hours driving we arrived at Salta in Argentina.

I should add that I have perfected the art of sleeping and reading on the bus!! I can now sleep at will and have just finished my first book Angels and Demons.

I have also learnt a card game Hearts - which I´m pretty sure Kelly, Kelly and Loiue spent a whole night trying to teach me!!

I´ll tell you a bit about Salta and the Argentinian Steaks and wine in the next entry.

Foz do Iguaçu / Cataratas del Iguazú

Here are some photos from the Iguazú Falls. One side is in Brazil and the other in Argentina.
They are pretty impressive.
You can find out more information here:

Iguazu Falls Photo Gallery

There are some mad Racoon type animals running around as well and they chase the tourists.



We did a jeep safari and a water tour where you got soaked under the falls:



We were all fed up with camping so we upgraded to a hotel with smimming pool and all ordered Pizza for dinner.

There was also a bird park next to the falls which we visited which were pretty good. Check out the Toucan:



From Brazil we were supposed to go to Paraguay then back to the falls in Argentina en route however the border was closed. We found out there was a few reasons for this - a massive drugs bust and the government taking revenge on the taxi and bus drivers who´d held a protest blocking the border the day before.

Border crossings have been random and you can never predict how long it´s going to take and what proceedure to follow.

Any way due to the problems at the border we had to re-route to get to Paraguay but we eventually made it.

Rio to Paraty

Well the journey begins.

After about 15 hours flying and loosing my bags in Madrid of all places, finding them in lost baggage and making the gate with 5 mins to spare I finally arrived in Rio. Just got time to see a few sites in Rio including Copacabana beach and the Statue of Christ. We left Rio and travelled 4 hours up the coast to an old colonial town called Paraty. We are camping tonight - hope the rain holds off - more as it happpens....



Here´s a shot of the streets of Paraty - at high tide they get washed by the sea.