Bolivia

Copacabana (or just Copa) was our next stop on Lake Titicaka, on the Bolivian/Peru border (we were the Bolivian side). This is the highest natural lake in the world and again an important site for the Incans. It was believed that this was the birthplace of the world and all life had come from here.

Sunset in Copa

The Isla del Sol and Isla de la Lunar (literally the island of the sun and island of the moon) are on the lake. We went on a day visit to the Isla del Sol. After being dropped off on the northern side of the island we had a choice to make. We could either mooch around the Northern side and then catch the boat to the Southern side and do the same OR we could walk from one end to the other over a 5 hour period and then catch the oat back to town. Guess which one Alana decided we were doing!

The trek along the island was quite enjoyable although the sun was quite oppresive and the trek itself took us longer than we had first thought it would. The views were nice and it was good to be able to walk together at our own pace.

Bloody woman!

Alana....sorry, I mean a Llama!!

From Copacabana it was a short bus journey (3 hours) to the Bolivian capital of La Paz.

When we arrived we immediately looked into going to the jungle and pampas. We were told about a boat trip that took us down the river visiting the 3 different types of jungle – the cloud forest, semi tropical jungle and then finally the tropical rainforest. Brilliant! The only problem was it only went on Wednesday and needed 6 people. It was Thursday and there were (including us) only 4 people confirmed! We decided to wait for a week in La Paz as there would surely be more people interested in a weeks time. Plus there was plenty to do in La Paz to keep us occupied.

La Paz

The first tour we did in La Paz was the 'Worlds Most Dangerous Road'. This used to be one of the main roads to La Paz but there were often accidents where motorists would plunge to their deaths 600m below after coming off the side of the one laned road.

We were going on bikes. In the rain. Thankfully the bikes looked to be in pretty good nick and had hydraulic breaks and good tyres. We were also given helmets and elbow/knee pads and gloves to help protect us should we fall off.......the bike that is, not the road!

The tour started on a tarmaced piece of road towards the WMDR so we could get used to the bikes etc. This was fun in itself as it was more than steep enough to get some great speed up without peddling and hoon around the corners.

The WMDR however was a completely different different kettle of fish. It was essentially a track with stones and boulders scattered throughout the desent along with a few waterfalls and rivers running across it. This may not have been the best idea!!

It was fun though and although the views were again a little spoiled it probably made it safer as we were able to concentrate more on the ride and our safety. There have been 28 deaths on the road (well probably the valley below!) since 2008 so the concetration was needed.

The road with waterfalls sweeping across it.

Its a long way down!

The ride was great fun and although our only just dry shoes were once again soaked we would both do it again.

As, while I am writing this I am being looked at over my shoulder, I'll have to conceed that Alana was faster than me and hooned down the road at breakneck speed, even saying at one point that she would like to get into down hill mountain biking!!Bloody idiot!!

Ready for anything!

That night we met up with a couple of Aussies we had met on our trek and went out drinking with them.They were flying out in a couple of days time going back to reality so a big night was needed. It was had!

After getting home a little worse for wear at 5:30am we spent most of the day in bed. When we eventually did get up it was only to go out for dinner with them to the Steak House as they flew out the following morning.

We had an awesome meat platter with steak, Llama, chicken, black pudding, chorizo and ribs accompanied with fries and as much salad as we could eat. Awesome!

The next trip we did was to Chacaltaya (a mountain) and the Lunar Valley.

Chacaltaya used to be the worlds highest ski resort but due to global warming this is no longer the case. In 1940 there was 1km of snow recorded at the resort, in 1980 ½km and now they are lucky to get a metre. Apparently it hardly ever snows........hardly ever that is, unless Alana and Dan are visiting!!

Instead of rain, this time the amazing views of Lake Titicaca, La Paz and Huayna Potosi (a 6088m peak thats popular to climb) were blocked by snow! We did however get to appreciate some of the different coloured lakes on the way up (due to iron, copper and lead deposits from the ground)before heading off to the Lunar Valley.

At the top

Some of the lakes.

The Lunar Valley was located just outside La Paz and has rock formations sculpted by the wind and rain that look (funnily enough) like the moons landscape.

Where's Wally?

OUCH!

A cheeky moon at moon valley!

It had almost been a week of us waiting in La Paz and apart from the drinking, eating and tours we had also managed to get me a haircut (basically shaved on a Number 3 as the barber couldnt understand English and my Spanglish does not go as far as explaining how I want my hair cut!) and visit the witches market. It was now the moment of truth, could we go on our boat tour?

No. We couldnt!

Unfortunately no one else was interested in the boat tour, however the company could offer a rafting trip, following the same course along the river but taking a little more time (2 days). We decided that this was the best option we had, not wanting to get the bus to Rurrenabaque (the Jungle and Pampas) and not being able to fly both ways. 

How naive we were!

Dried Llama fetuses in the witches market - good luck if buried under your house apparently!

A stall in the market.

Machu Picchu

Our apologies for the break in updates, the internet connection in Bolivia was too slow to even try updating, plus we were busy with all sorts of adventures that you will read about shortly.

A brief overview of the BEST coldest, wettest most miserable days of our lives!

We had to get to Cusco a couple of days in advance for our trek to acclimnatise to the altitude so we would not get sick on the trek. We spènt this time looking around Cusco which itself is a beautiful city and buying some souveniers........Alana purchased a new jumper that was so big and woolly it also meant we had to purchase a new bag to keep it in!!

A view from the main square.

Another view from around town

The famous 12 sided stone......go on, count them up!

The Trek

Day One.

We started pretty early at about 5:20am. As any of you that know Alana and I we weren´t the most sociable of people on the trek at this hour! We continued on a bus to a small town and had breakfast, bought some sweets (Snickers and Skittles which would later become lifesavers!!) and a walking stick. This was the single most important and best purchase I have EVER made!
Once breakfast was over and everyone had introduced themselves we continued to the beginning of the trek.
It was an easy trek on the first day with plenty of stops so the guides could gauge everyones fitness. I managed to keep up a relatively good pace even though I was carrying both Alana's and my stuff and 5 litres of water giving the backpack a combined weight of about 20kg's (2 backpack Norton has nothing on me!!).
Even though it was an easy walk we soon learned the difference between gringo flat (actually flat) and Inca flat (steady inclines).......we soon learned to hate Inca flat!!

Our group at the beginning of the trail

She had almost had enough!!

One of the Inca sites on day one

Day Two (The challenge day)

After the good weather of yesterday we awoke o what would become a common occurrence.....rain, well actually a misty fog with intermittent rain. This was actually quite welcome because within 10 minutes we were sweating horrendously as we munched on our coca leaves (taste not recommended!!) and began to climb 1200metres up to 4200metres above sea level. The beginning of the day wasn't too bad but then we hit 'Dead Womans Pass'. This was a killer! We trudged slowly but surely up these steps refuelling with Skittles that were immediately burnt off.....all the while I was STILL carrying the backpack which I was rapidly becoming to loath!

The little engine that could!

At the top (4200m). The smiles were Skittle fueled....we were buggered!!

Unfortunately as it had been raining (as visible from the photo above) after all our hardwork there was no rewarding view at the top of the pass, our reward came in the form of now being able to go downhill to our camp. This however was probably worse on the legs than going up, but nothing was going to stop us now we had the end in our sights! I couldn't wait to get this bag off me, have a cup of tea and possibly change into some dry clothes (rather than the current ones that were drenched not only with rain but also sweat!).

Our camp on day two. It brightened up as soon as we arrived!

Day Three

We were awoken early again by our guide and our 'tent service' (basically being woken up and offered a tea, coffee, hot chocolate or coca tea at the door of our tent – something I could get used to Alana!!) and set about getting ready for what was meant to be the most beautiful day.

After yet another amazing breakfast we set off on what was to be a far easier day then yesterday. We only had two small passes to cover and a bit of 'Inca flat' before we set about our descent on a staircase that is affectionately known as the 'Gringo Killer'!

Unfortunately after a bright and hopeful start it began to rain again and the clouds and mist set in meaning we were unable to view any of the spectacular scenery that is common on this day of the trek. It did however make us view the beauty that was immediately around us. There were many flowers and plants flanking the trail along with the mountain itself. The others on the trek were of course treated to yet another day of Dan and Alana beauty so they were happy at least!

After our lunch stop we had to pass through the Inca caves where they had carved their route through the rocks to continue their route to Machu Picchu. These were pretty cool although slightly slippy in the wet. We also visited an Incan fortress which was also impressive. They had good planning when it came to where the wanted to place important buildings. Often they are in a position to survey surrounding landscape for miles and in some instances are almost impenetrable.

Eventually we hit the Gringo Killer, which thankfully turned out to be a little easier than expected. Most of our group made such good time that we decided to take the longer route to the camp and visit another Incan site.

When we arrived at the final campsite we were able to have a hot shower (we didnt bother) and have a cold beer (we did bother!!) before having an early night ready for our extremely early start the following day.

Day Four.

As there are many tourists and tour groups along the trail it is important to be up early enough to be one of the first groups to make it to Machu Picchu and hopefully get some good pictures without too many other people in the background.

We started at 3:30am. Yes. Thats right. 3:30am!! In the rain. We quickly made our way to the gate ready to start day four of the trail and were lucky enough to be the third group to arrive meaning we were able to shelter from the rain while all the other groups stood out in it while we waited for the gate to open at 5:30am.

Due to the amount of rain, the gate was late opening as an official had to run along the trail and ensure there had been no landslides during the night. The trail had been closed for the two days previously due to this and the tours had had to descend down the hill and follow the train tracks around to the local town and then bus to Machu Picchu adding an extra two hours to their time and obviously a making it a disappointing way to end the trail.

As soon as the gates opened and we were able to go we were off to a flying start. The weight in the backpack giving me extra momentum, sometimes scarily so. I was doing well and not far behind Alana and the others at the front of our group, overtaking the other tours in front of us and making good time until I hit the climb to the Sun Gate. It was only about 50 steps but they were incredibly steep......I was almost on my hands and knees crawling up them!

The amazing view from the Sun Gate!

The view from this point of the trail is again supposed to be stunning but due to the rain (it was pouring down by now) we were unable to see anything. Before I had time to catch my breath Alana informed me we were off again and we continued our sprint to Machu Picchu.

When we arrived, although soaking wet and completely knackered the view was well worth it and we were exrtremely glad we had decided to go on the trek rather than get the bus. Alana and '1 incredibly heavy backpack Norton' had made it!!

After waiting for the rest of our group to arrive we were taken on a tour of the site. Im not going to lie, it was miserable. Although the tour was really good we were all tired, cold and completely soaked. Even our waterproof shoes were now squelching as we walked around.

After the tour was complete we spent about another 2 hours walking around on our own, although we didnt climb Wayna Picchu (the mountain in the background) as the clouds kept coming in and making visibility almost impossible.

We bused down the hill to the local town (Aguas Caliente) and headed to the hot springs to warm up for a couple of hours, before heading back to Cusco on the train and bus, eventually arriving at 2:30am after an extremely long but most satisfying day.

You may be wondering why the trail to Machu Picchu is so long and hard, or maybe you're not but I'm going to tell you anyway.

Only royalty and important Incan figures were allowed to follow the trail we took. They believed that the higher they climbed the closer they were to their gods and therefore the more divine they could become. Commoners that visited Machu Picchu would climb afar quicker and easier path to the summit.

Although, the site is quite large the main inhabitors were religious figures and Incan astrologers. They experimented a lot with growing different crops at altitudes they were normally unable to grow at (usually coca) and studied the stars intently.

As you may have noted above (I believe I mention it once or twice) I was carrying a heavy backpack throughout the trek which certainly took its toll, however there have been many other people carrying far bigger loads along this trail that deserve a mention.

Firstly were the Incan slaves who would have carried the Incan leaders on thrones along this path when they deemed it necessary to visit Machu Picchu, which must have been overwhelming. The second group of people were our (and other groups) porters who would literally run along the trail carrying twice the weight I was and set up our camp and make our meals. They are incredibly fit and worked tirelessly for us, always with a smile and always with a 'Hola' as they passed!

Our chef Eddy with the cake he had made for our last night. The food was amazing throughout the trip!

Peru

Mancora for New Year!! We arrive in the small fishing village type town after another fun bus journey and our first land border crossing of the trip in the sunshine......yes, finally, SUNSHINE!!
We pre-booked our hostel, which it turns out is more like a resort than a hostel! We didnt have to pay at the bar (everything went on a tab....dangerous!) and although we were right on the beach we were fenced in and had a nice pool, bar and hammocks to relax in.

View from our room

The hostel!!



It was a hard few days!!

 It was nice to relax and enjoy the sunshine for a few days with the odd cerveza......well, maybe a few more than the odd one! A couple of nights before New Year we had a couple of relaxing drinks after dinner. We were just having a couple of beers until happy hour rolled round....a couple of vodka´s...no harm there right?? Normally, probably not but when the shots were 50ml standards and Alana had the equivalent of 250mls/8+ shots in about 40mins plus the previous beers it didnt make for a pretty end of the evening!! Well, so I'm told, I passed out as she hugged the toilet.......

The next few days were spent chilling out by the pool and enjoying the sunshine.
New Year rolled round and we got set for a big night. Once dressed in yellow and gold (the colours for Peruvian New Year - to symbolise Incan colours and prosperity for the coming year) we headed to the bar and started slowly, watching a group of Aussies do Centurion/the hundy-club finishing at 8:30pm!! God only knows how they managed to carry on till 5am!!
We were quite sensible and only got a little drunk, socialised and danced the night away! It was a great night and we met a lot of good people.

From Mancora we went to Lima. Although a massive city, we both quite liked it. We visited the Catacombs at Monasterio de San Francisco and saw the collections of bones from the 70,000 plus people that have been buried there.
After strolling around we went for a nice lunch where we had the most amazing cerviche (raw fish with lime and chilli) and our first pisco sour (the national cocktail). In the afternoon we went down to the coast and walked through Parque Del Amor (Park of Love).

Monasterio de San Francisco

Huacachina was the next stop. A tiny town surrounding a lagoon in the middle of the desert surrounded by mountainous sand dunes. We only spent the one day there but had a great time going dune buggying and sand boarding.

Next stop was Nazca for a flight over the 'Nazca Lines', we were all booked in and ready to go but when we arrived we were told that we were unable to fly! Apparently there was an accident a couple of months ago and so the government brought in a lot of new safety requirements. This meant that out of 18 companies that used to do the tour only 3 were now still in business!! On the day we arrived there were only 2 companies working as the other was grounded for maintenance. We asked to be booked in for the following day but they were only able to secure one place. Alana kindly let me take the spot, however when we arrived the following day and took the flight there was infact a space free next to me!! NOT HAPPY! Apparently they leave open spots for people that just turn up to the airport and are willing to pay horrendous amounts of money!!
The flight itself was quite good but it was difficult to enjoy it fully while bouncing around and trying to take photos of the different pictures in the desert. Only the hummingbird was clearly visible, the others were sometimes a little difficult to make out but it was great to see them in real life rather than on National Geographic!

The Hummingbird

The Spider

From Nazca we headed on yet anbother long bus journey to Cusco ready to start our Machu Picchu trip!

Ecuador

Quito

We arrived in Quito for Christmas Eve and arived at our hostel......our dark, dank, horrendously overpriced hostel! Given the prospect of spending Christmas Day in this place we opted for going on a tour to the Otavalo Markets - the largest open air markets in South America - visiting a few other places en route including a chance to stop and take a picture on the Equator line.
We had a quiet Christmas Eve night with only a quick Margarita and a meatfest of a burger and went to bed early.
Christmas Day came but alas, Father Christmas obviously got lost on his way to find us as my stocking was empty!
We joined the tour on a surprisingly full bus first stopping at a shop that made models and figurines. They were crap! Remember FIMO when you were younger, the dough that was baked in the oven......well this place made a living from it.
We then went to a bakery to see and old clay oven in progress......but actually we didnt because there was no baking going on(!) and then on to the Equator line. This was a brief stop but quite interesting. Equador is the only country on which the Equator runs over a glacier and is the best one for astrology as it has fixed points on the horizon, everywhere else is too flat or dense with jungle.

At the Equator as marked by GPS

Having Christmas in both hemisphere's!!

The markets were quite good with all sorts of touristy tat for sale by indignious sellers. We bought Alana a bag, Alpaca wool jumper and the two of us some art work. We even came across some Alpaca fur hats.......which I may well still purchase (much to Alana's horror!!).

Should it be this one??

This one?

Or maybe.......

On the way back we stopped at a lake before going back to Quito for Christmas dinner. We cooked our own at the hostel thinking nowhere would be open (turns out loads of places were because only 45% of Ecuador is Roman Catholic) and had steak and veg.....well we thought it was steak, on reflection it may well have been some old car tyre!
A bit of a disappointing Christmas, but these things happen and we still had New Year to come!!

We also went south to the town of Cuenca. Old Colonial style buildings and really chilled out. Had we have had longer apparently the surrounding mountains and jungle are pretty amazing!
It had a nice river we walked along to some old Incan ruins before visitng the museum to see shrunken heads!
Another highlight of Cuenca (for Alana!!) was me ordering a 'Chocolate Especial' - from the hot chocolate menu - thinking that it would be hot chocolate with marshmellow, cream, maybe even a couple of hundreds and thousands.......but no.What I actually received (as Alana laughed at my crushingly disappointed face) was a hot chocolate with cheese! YES! Thats right, CHEESE!! Its actually a speciality here but to be honest I didnt find it that special!!

Travelling from Cuenca on to Mancora in Peru for New Year was an interesting/nerve racking experience. We travelled for about 4 hours on a wet, muddy single lane dirt road with drops of 100-200m on one side. Meeting other vehicles coming the other way was interesting as we inched past the other vehicles and fish tailed around corners in the mud. We did eventually make it back on to paved road and finally to the Peruvian border!

The river in Cuenca

Not fallen out yet!!