Bolivian Blog

Due to some technical gremlins with my laptop and the slow speed of the internet in Bolivia, I may not be able to update my blog for the next two weeks or so. If my laptop holds together, it will probably be text only updates due to the slow internet speeds. I will try my best, as Bolivia is going to be one exciting country!

All the best, Anthony

Copacabana, Bolivia

Machupicchu

Considered one of the seven wonders of the world, Machupicchu is probably the most famous tourist attraction in South America and no trip to Peru would be complete without a visit. After the Lares Trek, we took the tourist train to Machu Picchu Pueblo, the small tourist town at the foot of the mountain. It was then a case of staying overnight in the town ahead of a very early start to ensure we could get into the site when it opened at 06:00. As with other big tourist attractions, the main issue with Machupicchu is the sheer number of visitors each day, where approximately 3,500 people are allowed in per day. It also gets really hot as the day goes on and therefore it is best to get in nice and early before the big crowds.

For the first two hours or so we had a guided tour of the main parts of the site, which was good as there is no explanation of what things are within the site. Unfortunately as the Incas left no written records (they had no written language), what the site was actually used for is unknown, but they think it was a sacred home for high class women and girls. As with many ancient sites, such as Petra in Jordan and Persepolis in Iran, it is best not to get too caught up in why they were built, but rather appreciate the amazing architecture that has survived.

After the tour we had the opportunity to climb Waynapicchu, the sacred mountain overlooking the site. Not an easy climb, with large stone steps, but a great view from the top. The recommended ‘there and back’ time is approximately 2 hours, so I set myself the challenge of completing the accent and descent within an hour. 50 minutes later a very sweaty Anthony was back at the start point (I know it is not a race, but I could not resist being the first to summit and get back down again).

After Waynapicchu I possibly foolishly decided to check out the famous Sun Gate, which is located at the absolute opposite end of the site and again involves a lot of climbing. Not as spectacular view this time, but I did not want to miss this famous feature as I will not be coming back.

So is Machupicchu worth coming all this way for? Yes, but I am not sure I would agree that it is one of the ‘7 wonders of the world’ The most spectacular aspect is the setting, with high mountains all around you and the buildings built into the mountain itself. A unique experience, but not my highlight of Peru. After Cusco we are heading to Lake Titicaca and the Mysterious ruins of Sillustani. Then it is into Bolivia, the most undeveloped country in South America. 

Anthony  

Classic shot of Machupicchu, with Waynapicchu in the background

Inca building with interlocking stones (basically a giant lego set)

View from Waynapicchu

 

Lares Trek

The highlight of my time in Cusco was the opportunity to go trekking up in the Andes for 3 days on route to Machupicchu. Rather than go on the classic Inca Trail, where you will be trekking with 500 other tourists, I decided to go on a more cultural and quieter trek which takes you through a number of small villages and where you have the opportunity to see how the local Quechua people live.

Day 1 was a very relaxed start to the trek as we had the opportunity to visit the natural hot springs at Lares, close to the start of the trek. A good opportunity to relax your muscles ahead of all of the walking. After a dip and nice lunch, it was uphill for about 1 ½ hours to our campsite at the village of Quishuarani. We camped in the grounds of a local family, so you had the opportunity to see what a typical farming house was like. Dirt floor, mud brick construction and guinea pigs running everywhere. A bit different to your normal British farmhouse. Due to the cold weather above 3,000 meters the only crop that really grows are potatoes and therefore farming consists of potatoes and livestock; sheep, cows and lamas.

We had 14 km to cover on day 2 with lots of uphill and therefore it was an early start with a 5:30 wake up call and 6:30 departure. A really nice aspect of the trek was how well we were looked after by the local guides, cooks and porters. You were woken up with a cup of fresh coca tea (tea made with coca leaves), had a bowl of hot water for a quick wash and all of the normal camping chores (putting up the tent, washing up etc) were done for you. The food was also good considering the basic equipment the chef had to work with and lack of fresh food available.

Day 2 was the big one where we had to climb to a pass at 4,650 meters and then descend to our camp at Cancha Cancha at 3,900 meters. The actual walking was not too tough, but being above 4,000 meters makes a huge difference with altitude leaving you short of breath after the smallest of exertions. Thankfully we were rewarded at the pass with an amazing view of snow capped mountains as far as the eye could see. The weather throughout the trek was excellent, which makes a big difference when you are trekking in high mountains and ensured some great photos.

After a difficult descent on loose stone and scree, we reached our campsite at about 14:00 after 7 ½ hours of walking. Thankfully we had the rest of the afternoon to recover our strength for tomorrow. In the evening we had a Peruvian style barbeque which involved a whole sheep and potatoes being cooked with hot stones for about an hour. Not something I would recommend at home as making the oven was quite a process, but it was interesting to see a style of cooking unchanged for over 500 years.

In Cancha Cancha we camped in the grounds of the local school and therefore had the opportunity to meet some of the school children before they started lessons. Up in these mountain villages everyone speaks Quechuan (the main native language of Peru), with most people only understanding basic Spanish. Unfortunately as with a lot of native languages Quechuan is not supported by the Peruvian government and therefore is in danger of dying out in the next 100 years or so.

We had about 4 hours of walking on day 3, but thankfully it was all downhill to the town of Fundo Huaran. As we descended in a glacial river valley it was amazing to see the ecosystem change, with fertile farmland and thick green forest below 3,500 metres. After a nice lunch at Fundo Huaran it was into the coach and off to Ollantaytambo where we were catching a train to Machupicchu. I will cover Machupicchu in my next blog.

As most of you will know, I really enjoy mountain trekking and therefore the Lares Trek was definitely my highlight of South America so far. The scenery was amazing, the local people really friendly and you got to see the real Andean Peru away from all the tourists. A truly magical 3 days.

Anthony   

First camp site

Inquisative lamas

Group photo at the high pass

Stunning mountain scenery

Photo with local porters and cooks

Chinchilla

Nuns, mummies and lots of sand

Hello from Arequipa, Southern Peru. It has been quite an eventful few days since leaving Lima, so this blog may be quite a long one.

Paracas National Reserve

First stop after the chaos of the capital was Paracas National Reserve, a desert peninsula with a vast array of marine bird life. In the park we bushcamped on the beach, which was nice if a bit chilly when the sun went down. Rather than go on another boat trip bird watching, I decided to hire a bike and explore the area around Paracas. Give me a bike, rather than a boat any day of the week!

Huacachina

Next stop was Huacachina, a small oasis in the middle of the desert surrounded by the largest sand dunes I have ever seen. The big attraction here is to go sand boarding, which basically involves sliding down huge sand dune on a bit of wood. Great fun even if you do get sand absolutely everywhere. After sliding down some huge dunes, we spent the night out in the dune, which was good, but not really a proper desert ‘night under the stars’ experience as you are still close to Ica, a major town on the coast (you could even see the May Day fireworks from our camp). The big V8 dune buggies you go out in were however great fun!

Nazca

Nazca lines next. Cut into the stony desert 22km north of the town Nazca, the Nazca lines are a huge tourist attraction in Peru and something they are very proud of (a bit like Stonehenge back home). No one really knows why they were created nearly 3,000 year ago, but the current thinking is that they are offerings dedicated to the worship of water and fertility, these two elements being paramount to the coastal people in this arid environment. Personally I like the rather odd theory put forward in 1980 that the lines are the tracks of running contests?

Close to Nazca is also the cemetery of Chauchilla where grave robbers have unearthed an amazing collection of 1000+ year old mummies. Bit of a macabre tourist attraction, but very interesting where the dry desert environment has perfectly preserved the bodies. Their hair was probably the most impressive feature, where many of the mummies had the most amazing long dreadlocks.

Puerto Inca

Our final day by the beach, where we camped next to the Inca ruins of Puerto Inca, the main port for Cuzco. Apparently on the 240 km road to Cuzco, there was a staging post every 7 km so that with a change of runner at every post, messages could be sent in 24 hours. My highlight of Puerto Inca was taking a sea kayak out into the bay to ride some really rather large waves. Good fun.

Arequipa

After a number of days on the coast, it was back into the mountains to Arequipa, a very pretty colonial city in the shadow of El Misti volcano. The city has many fine Spanish buildings and is the main commercial hub in Southern Peru. I have one free day to explore the city and therefore decided to visit the two big attractions; Santa Catalina Convent and the Museo Santuarios Andinos, home to ‘Juanita’ the Inca ice princess.

Sanat Catalina Convent is a huge site in the heart of the city where 450 nuns use to live in total isolation from the outside world. Quite a strange place to visit, but very interesting none the less.

The Museo Santuarios Andinos was more my type of thing. A small, but fascinating museum explaining the Inca tradition of human sacrifices to appease the mountain gods. The highlight of the museum is ‘Juanita’ the frozen Inca princess found on Mount Ampato. She was a beautiful 12-14 year old girl who from the age of 3 knew that she was destined to be sacrificed to the gods. She was found perfectly preserved in 1995 at the top of Mount Ampato, a nearby 5,000+m peak. It is strange to think that the Inca believed so strongly in human sacrifices, but presumably they had their reasons.

Tomorrow we leave Arequipa on route to Cuzco, ancient capital of the Inca empire.

Anthony

There is a surprising amount of sand in Peru

Giant sand dune



Huacachina

Nazca lines; upside down tree

Mummies at Chauchilla

Cemetery at Chauchilla 

Santa Catalina Convent

Arequipa Cathedral