Peru

10th Feb
Our journey began with difficulty simply getting away from Chagauramas – a traffic jam stretched for miles preventing anyone arriving or leaving the bay.  The cause of the traffic problem was intoxicated party animals from the all night “Carnival” street party which was due to finish at 11am.  A local advised us not to depart for 1.5hrs we should then have a faster escape.  We left at 12.30pm and found a couple from a visiting yacht waiting at the bus stop - we waited with them and displayed our local knowledge of how to obtain a ride to the city - that resembled two hot, sweaty, dusty looking cruisers flagging down any car, bus, horse or donkey and pleading for a ride.  A "red" striped maxi taxi took pity on us and stopped  The four of us piled into the large aircon taxi and chatted and chatted and chatted - 2hrs later (it would normally take 30 mins) we had run out of things to say but at least we did it in comfort.  Passing a few smashed cars, sleepy people wandering about and rubbish everywhere - it resembled a disaster site.  The driver refused any payment for our trip as he was out of his "area".

The airport bus does not run on weekends so we took another red striped maxi taxi - we should have thought about that decision a little longer .....  the local maxi taxis go through the small towns rather than take the express way, small towns hold their own parades during Carnival and close off the main roads sending the taxis via extremely narrow streets with many speed bumps - 1.5hr later we were dumped on the side of the road and told to take a taxi from this point to the airport -  we took the least dilapidated one.  A very inexpensive way to access the airport if you have time on your hands and a patient nature - it also helps to be a tad deaf or have ear plugs.  We reached the airport with time to spare - strange how it took us 3.5hrs to travel the 30 odd kms to the airport and 2.5 hours to travel from Trinidad to Panama :-).

Don spent some time before we left setting up a spy camera in the cockpit - apparently we can access the picture remotely so I guess if we see a jelly fish or smiling turtle swimming by then we know we have problems :-)

The flight was a little weird – the plane turned all the lights off for the entire trip and you know the drill where they assure you a row of lights will illuminate in the event of power failure – the purpose of these lights to guide the passengers to the exits – well they do work – ours were on the entire trip – a bit spooky – when we landed the entire plane load of passengers clapped – maybe sometimes it is better not to speak the language.  We stayed overnight in Panama – in some ways it was comforting to be in familiar surroundings.

LIMA
11th Feb
Upon arrival in Lima our first lesson was how to choose your taxi ride – firstly walk past the choice of taxis and surreptitiously glance sideways to check the feasibility of the vehicle surviving the 20 min trip without any necessary part falling off then grab that one before someone else does because complete vehicles are few and far between.

Our accommodation in the historical section of Lima was excellent – a room with large balcony, 1 double bed and 2 singles and large private bathroom to ourselves.  The only downside is we are literally surrounded by paintings depicting renaissance themes and busts all staring at us as we shower and sleep – I constantly feel like someone is looking at me.  The hotel is huge, rambling and extremely interesting – artwork covers every blank wall space and statues every corner.  The internal stairway leads to the roof top which is overgrown with vines, has a café, 3 resident tortoises and a pair of peacocks  The peacocks sit on the top railing of the stairway with their bottoms hanging over the stairwell, so wear a hat while climbing.  This hostel is clean and friendly and exceptional for the cost of $10 each.

We are in the centre of Lima's historical area. The Cathedral, Palacio de Gobierno, the Archibishop's palace, Palacio Nacional and other important buildings are here, plus numerous restaurants and shopping opportunities. Nearby Plaza Mayor is the exact location where Francisco Pizarro founded Lima on January 18, 1535, He named it City of the Kings, but the Quecchua and Aymara names for the location persisted and gave it the name of Lima.

We are minutes away from the main Parque de Armas which is surrounded by Government House the Cathedral Church and Monastery of St Francis of Assis.  We paid $1.50 for an English speaking tour of the Monastery (second oldest church in Peru).  The tour was amazing – built in 16th century, tiles that were hand painted in Spain, transported to Peru and then took a further 19 years to lay around the courtyard.  Earthquakes have done very little damage to this amazing structure.  Recent discovery shows original paintings underneath the plaster covering the walls which in turn are supporting large original oils from the early period. The library was musty, dusty and incredible with some texts dating back to the conquistadors.  Many are slowly disintegrating – copies are kept in secure environmentally controlled areas meanwhile the humidity is taking its toll on the original texts.  The domes are made from cedar as is most of the infrastructure – all pressure fixed.

The catacombs are a labyrinth of arched low tunnels with low lighting.  On both sides are troughs containing an estimated 70,000 bones from people buried there.  Mostly femurs and skulls can be seen as the smaller bones have disintegrated – these troughs are many metres deep.  Peruvians believe that a skull in the house protects the home and the inhabitants so it is not uncommon to see great aunt Mildred sitting on the fridge keeping an eye on boys skimping on their homework and girls spending too much time on their cell phones ?

As we descended down the brick pathway ducking our heads (as Peruvians are much shorter in statue than us), a Church service was in progress above us.  One of the Franciscans was singing a beautiful hymn in Latin which resonated inside the tunnels and gave us the feeling of intruders. Such an amazing experience.

12th Feb
The second day we continued in the religion theory and visited the oldest Church in Peru, Saint Dominic Priory which was founded in 1535.  Whilst not as large as the Monasterio de San Francisco it is still a spectacular sight.  We were fortunate to be in the right place at the right time and were invited to climb the bell tower – 6 of us trudged up the many steps – all rough cut, different widths and heights to the top and were rewarded with a spectacular view of Lima.  It appears all the buildings are made from the same stone as the entire city is beige coloured with some front facia painted in mint green, burnt orange, mustard yellow.

That afternoon we went for a long walk to Parque de la Reserva known to us as “fountain park” – a large park with 14 different fountains with a Disneyland feel.  The fountains have coloured lights at night, some are designed for the children to play under, others to walk through the centre.  The main attraction is a colourful light show using the fountain sprays as a movie screen showing scenes from Swan Lake and other ballets, Tinkerbell made an appearance – the entire show was quite incredible.  We walked back to our accommodation and felt very safe the entire way – the Peruvians seem to come out during the cool of the evening as the streets are crowded and all shops open until very late.  We ate dinner in a local comida – fried chicken again – we stopped to check the menu and the elderly man beckoned us inside with such enthusiasm that we felt guilty wanting to walk on by – I had noticed that his seats had been packed away and the stoves turned off but he assured us he had dinner ready !!  Once we made our choice our host was replaced by an ancient man who sat on a stool and began to scrape potatoes – I knew I should have ordered rice and not papas fritas !!  He took such loving care and was so gentle with each potato, we assumed we would be fed by breakfast time.  Chicken appears on every menu – we will be clucking by the time we get back to the boat.

13th Feb
Breakfast menus usually contain the choice of  “Continental” or “American” – the American menu always consists of  2 bread rolls with jam and tea or coffee.  We struck a good café which gave us 2 bread rolls, 2 pieces of toast, ham and eggs, coffee and fresh juice – wonderful !!  8 Soles (<$3).  Needless to say 2 bread rolls and 2 pieces of toast was beyond me !!!  I wonder why Peruvians think Americans eat nothing but bread rolls for breakfast !!  I am hanging out for cereal and yogurt.

We decided to visit the city of Arequipa next and slowly make our way higher in elevation to give our bodies a chance to acclimatise.  The 16hr journey to Arequipa went quickly – the buses have seats that lay back 160 degrees so you can try to sleep.  The few hours of daylight were uninspiring as the view was constantly of barren grey landscape, the only thing that changed was the height of the mountains in the background and the sea on the right hand side.  Arriving in Arequipa was wonderful, it is known as the White City because the buildings are made of Sillar, a volcanic stone.  UNESCO declared the city centre a World Heritage site.

AREQUIPA

Went to our hotel and were told to explore until 11am when our room would be ready – we arrived back at 11am and still no room – some time later we were told the person who had our room was ill and in the hospital and had not returned to put his clothes away – we declined another room as the hotel was less than expected and found a marginally better alternative.

A visit to the Monasterio d Santa Catalina was a highlight. Built in 1579 it is a city within a city. Sister Ana de los Angeles Montegudo was a nun who lived in the convent until her death in 1686.  In 1985 she was beatified by Pope John Paul II. Various miracles and predictions are attributed to her. Sister Ana’s cell and personal effects still exist inside the convent.

Twice as deep as the Grand Canyon, the Colca Canyon, which is located just 100 miles outside of Arequipa, is where flocks of tourists come to see the great Andean condors. The largest flying land birds on the planet, they are truly magnificent to see up close.

We had read about a walk down into the world’s second deepest canyon at 3191m “Canyon de Colca” – the deepest “Canyon de Cotahuasia” is 168 m deeper and next door but very difficult to access.  Canyon de Colca is twice as deep as the Grand Canyon.  Don and I obviously had not diagnosed our depreciating abilities in the fitness category and happily signed up for a 3 day 2 night hike.  “You'll be covering quite a change in altitude on day one of your Colca Canyon trip: starting at 2300m in Arequipa, you'll climb to a mountain pass at 4800m before descending into the Colca Valley at 3500m”.

Don had eaten a bad piece of tomato the previous evening and had quite severe food poisoning, pale and shaken he progressed down the slope step by step.  That night he burned with fever while I ate his share of the evening meal.  Our accommodation was with host families who provided wonderful home cooked “typical” food – mostly soup followed by rice, alpaca meat and vegetables – pancakes for breakfast.  The second day’s hike was along the canyon floor to hotel type accommodation with a swimming pool – it is aptly named the “Oasis”.  Early the next morning the rest of our group began the steep 3.5hr climb back to the rim – Don and I stayed in bed for 30 mins longer then hopped on the back of mules and began a terrifying bumpy ride up a steep, rocky and precariously narrow track to the top of the canyon.  I was too scared to let go of my saddle to take photos.

At breakfast after the hike a young backpacking couple gushed over our success in hiking the Colca Canyon exclaiming “I think it is amazing that at your age you are still out and about doing this stuff”.  I was stymied – exactly when did I become of “that age” – I hadn’t noticed – how confronting.  In the weeks to come we had a few more such comments – I really didn’t know Don and I were so old and decrepit.  The mottled mirror in our dark bathroom still shows me as young and beautiful although slightly blurry ?

PUNO 15th Feb

Our next destination was South American’s largest lake and the highest navigable lake in the world “Lake Titicaca” in Puno. Our hotel was a mark above our usual – a family owned and run enterprise and I think we were the only guests.  I should have made a mental note when the receptionist was constantly covered head to toe in leather boots, woollen coat and at times a scarf – apparently heaters are an unknown luxury in these parts and we froze.  Blankets here are similar to a floor mat at home – extremely heavy so much so that you have to get someone to lift the blankets up in order to roll over.  We attempted to request an electrical heater explaining that we were cold but this request was followed by lots of smiling and the offering of yet another floor mat.  Just so you get the idea the staff at the restaurant were clothed in sheepskin coats while we froze, eating our meal as quickly as possible to get back to our floor mats.

22nd Feb

After a cold restless night we packed our bags and caught a moto taxi (a 3 wheel motorbike surrounded by either a soft material or hard shell with a seat for passengers - like a tuk-tuk) to the ferry dock.  Within seconds we were surrounded by touts trying to sell us a ticket on their questionable boat along with food, water and anything else you can imagine – before we knew what was happening Don and I were on a boat (his wallet a little lighter) and the smoky noisy engine was being coaxed into starting.

Uros

The first island we visited was Uros – an island made of reeds.  The purpose of the island settlements was originally defensive, and if a threat arose they could be moved.

The islets are made of totora reeds, which grow in the lake. The dense roots that the plants develop and interweave form a natural layer called Khili (about one to two meters thick) that support the islands. They are anchored with ropes attached to sticks driven into the bottom of the lake. The reeds at the bottoms of the islands rot away fairly quickly, so new reeds are added to the top constantly, about every three months.  The islands last about thirty years.
Much of the Uros' diet and medicine also revolve around the same totora reeds used to construct the islands. When a reed is pulled, the white bottom is often eaten for iodine. This prevents goitres. This white part of the reed is called the chullo. Like the Andean people of Peru rely on the Coca Leaf for relief from a harsh climate and hunger, the Uros rely on the Totora reeds in the same way. When in pain, the reed is wrapped around the place in pain to absorb it. Also if it is hot outside, they roll the white part of the reed in their hands and split it open, placing the reed on their forehead. In this stage, it is very cool to the touch. The white part of the reed is also used to help ease alcohol-related hangovers. It is a primary source of food. They also make a reed flower tea.

Amaranti

The second island was Amaranti where our host family met us at the wharf, took us to their home and fed us a wonderful lunch – homemade vegetable soup and rice after which we walked to the highest point on the island for a spectacular view of the Lake.  In order to be a host family the premises must be inspected and facilities suitable to visitors provided.  We had a lovely room with adequate bedding – the bathroom consisted of a normal flushing toilet and shower – the downside being these facilities had never been connected to water therefore a large bucket of water was provided for flushing and I am not sure what we were suppose to do about washing ….

23rd Feb

We said goodbye to our host family and boarded the “locals” boat to the peninsula a ride of about 1 hour.   These lovingly cared for dilapidated old leaky boats that spew diesel smoke over passengers and stall now and then are kept afloat by a prayer and we were glad to be back on terra firma.  Once we arrived there was nothing but a muddy dirt road – the locals began walking so we followed.  Eventually a minibus in similar state to the boat came roaring down the rough dirt road and squeezed us all in – backpacks, bundles of goods to sell at market and locals – many locals !!  The driver dropped us off at the bus station where we were lucky enough to get seats on a bus leaving for Cusco in 1 hour.

The buses in Peru are notorious for accidents and travellers are warned to only take the more expensive “luxury” tourist buses that boast 2 drivers exchanging driving positions every 3 hours on the long overnight routes.  We did notice that most buses spend more time on the wrong side of the road – why is that so ??  They speed along regardless of the narrow winding roads only to find a vehicle meeting them head on – we were a little freaked when we passed a horrendous bus crash – the bus on the wrong side of the road and the car unrecognisable with the dead lined up along the side of the road – the authorities had not arrived as yet and the passengers were wandering around in a state of shock in the freezing temperatures.  Very sad.

CUSCO

Cusco is the heart of the once mighty Inca empire.  We loved this city, its history, archaeological sites, people and amazing topography.  The ancient narrow cobble stone streets so steep that sometimes the taxis cannot make it up and have to reverse back down.  Many a time we had to squeeze into a doorway so a vehicle could pass.

24th Feb

A guided tour of the “Sacred Valley” was incredible, taking a full day to immerse in Inca citadels of Pisac and Ollantaytambo along the Rio Urubamba.  Pisac’s hilltop citadel lies above the village on a plateau with a plunging gorge on either side.  At the top of the terraces is the ceremonial centre with an Intihuatana (hitching post of the sun), ceremonial baths and military area.  Ollantaytambo is at an elevation of 2800m and the best example of Inca city planning.  Its narrow cobble stone streets have been continuously inhabited for 700 years.  A few hours at each site simply was not enough.

25th Feb

Museums around Cusco with typical dancing show at night.

26th Feb

Today we travelled to Aquas Caliente the small touristy town that serves tourists wanting to visit the historical site of Machu Picchu.  This village is nestled in the deep valley below Machu Picchu and enclosed by towering walls of stone and cloud forest bordered by two very fast flowing rivers.  It mainly consists of cheap accommodation and restaurants all competing for your patronage.  Restaurant alley is narrow (there are no cars or bikes in Aguas Caliente) stone paved stepped street and each restaurant has a person out front to encourage you into their restaurant.  We were virtually pulled into one restaurant and ended up with a touristico menu – we had stuffed avocado which was huge and amazingly good followed by grilled chicken for me and trout for Don, both accompanied by rice, chips and salad, also a real fruit juice to wash it all down all at the exorbitant price of $5. We only managed to eat half of the servings.

27th Feb

Today we visited Machu Picchu – what can I say except wow !!  It was everything I had hoped for and more.  We left to catch the first bus of the day at 5.30am for the 20 minute bus ride up the zigzag road to the entrance to the Inca site.  We ooed and ahhhed as the sun rose over the site and found it difficult to believe that we were actually in Machu Picchu – a life long dream for me.

Our ticket included a guided tour for 2 hrs so we walked around the mountain side until 8am then followed our guide who spoke good English which was a nice change.  After the tour finished we climbed Wayna Picchu – an imposing steep mountain at the back of the Inca site.  The hike was strenuous and the views wonderful.  Near vertical 6” steps took us back down – scary !!!
We continued walking around until we could no longer climb  – we didn’t really want to leave the site although we had been there for 9 hrs – the site does not allow any food to be taken in nor does it have any toilets – you must leave the site, use bathroom and restaurant (with inflated prices) then re-enter.

Returned to hotel, caught bus at 9pm for Peurto Maldonado

PEURTO MALDONADO

Everything we read said you should not catch a bus to Peurto Maldonado but we wanted to see of the Amazon and this was the closest place to view the river and forests so off we went.  The road had been upgraded and once again it was an overnight ride – for some reason most of the bus rides are overnight.  We did see many landslides blocking half the road which seem to be a recurring problem in Peru, we had to stop many times to allow the flow of traffic to pass around mud and boulders.

This tiny town sits at the gateway to Bolivia and Brazil with a tributary of the Amazon river running at great speed through the centre of town and bordered by the Amazon jungle.  Don and I appeared to be the only tourists in town – it is low season and the town is not particularly pretty – more muddy and sad.  We stayed at the only hostel in town and booked a jungle tour to Lake Sandval of 2 days, 1 night with a host family on the lake.  The canoe ride was fun – we shot down the river like a bullet, trees and large palm leaves passing us by.  The canoes are powered by lawn mower motors with 3 metre long shafts and tiny propellers on the end – the driver can lift the shaft easily to avoid hitting debris in the water and place it back in the water anywhere within 240 degrees which enables the steerage of the canoe.  When our guide provided us with rubber boots I should have asked a few more in depth questions ……  mud, mud and more mud – we hiked for hours in calf deep mud – I suppose I should have expected there to be some mud in the Amazonian jungle during the wet season but this much mud ????  At times our foot came up followed by a loud rude noise, other times quietly without the boot attached – I wonder how many rubber boots are buried deep in the mud never to be seen again.  The heat, humidity and insects did not add to the pleasure.  It was with great relief that we reached the canoe and fell exhausted onto the wooden seats while our guide rowed silently along canals and the lake looking for animals.

We were the only guests on this tour and our guide did not let up for a minute – he had us traipsing through jungle at various times of the day to see different animals and plants – a canoe ride at night was a highlight spotting the red glow of caiman eyes (croc).  Guests often swim in the lake to get ride of some of the mud and sweat – the host family and guide go into the water first and hit the water with paddles to scare away any caimans and piranhas  - I decided that I wasn’t that desperate for a muddy swim.

The hand sized tarantula was definitely a highlight – it gave me the creeps – I was rather paranoid checking my single bed with Tinkerbell doona cover (Don had Mickey Mouse) for snakes, spiders etc.

Our holiday time was running out so we flew from Puerto Maldonaldo to Lima, stayed in the more touristy popular area of Miraflores then back to Trinidad.

I find I am now ambivalent regarding  more travel, I have been to Machu Picchu, a dream I never envisioned would come true and anything else pales in comparison – I know that sounds narrow as I am sure Europe has so much to offer ………