Monday, 01 XI 2010
I arrived in Lima bright and early. With the help of a taxi (12 PEN) I found Edison's house around 6:30am. Him and two other friends didn't go to sleep yet after a last night's party. We opened few more beers and the party got extended to about 10:30am when we had breakfast. I slept a bit on the bus so I decided to see centro with Iris (French couchsurfer) and the rest went to sleep.
Today was a holiday so most tourist places were closed. We were able to visit Monastery San Francisco (7 PEN) which was really cool. Super old library, murals on the walls, catacombs with bones of about 2500 people, wooden carved ceilings and so on. Also, we went to the museum of Inquisicion (free). It was small and showed a bit of torture techniques and few other things. Other than that we wandered around the city streets visiting few plazas and observing the people.
I finally got tired after walking a lot and night travel. We got to see a bit of Lima by night and went back to Edison's house to rest.
Tuesday, 02 XI 2010
Slow start at 11am hehe. First thing I went with Iris and Oziel to get tickets for further travel. They were going to leave today and me on Thursday. Afterwards we finally had breakfast/lunch at 1:30pm as I almost died of hunger.
We went to Miraflores, by the beach where we visited Parque de Enamorados and watched paragliders taking of the cliff over the ocean (150 PEN for 10 min).
Lima is huge and you need to allow lots of time for transportation. My new friends needed to get their luggage and catch their buses so we headed back. Traffic was horrible and if at one point we wouldn't get off the bus and take a taxi they wouldn't have made it.
Another slow start day with breakfast at 11am. Today Edison showed me around Callao. The area by the ocean is very peaceful, quiet with nice old buildings. Good to relax and run away from the city noise and the traffic.
Later on we went through Miraflores to Centro. There we met up with three couchsurfers that were looking to stay at Edison's. We went to the Circuito Magico del Agua (4 PEN wed-sun). It have 13 different fountains that play with the water and illuminate in bunch of different colors. There is also a show where lasers and images are dancing around the mist of water accompanied by strong stream outbursts and stuff. One fountain randomly shoots out walls of water streams where kids and even adults run around trying to get to the center without getting wet. Many don't succeed staying dry hehe. Fun to watch :) The whole park is pretty cool. This was one of the reasons I stayed a day extra.
After a late chifa we went back to the house where we made pisco sour. That thing is preeeeeeeetty tasty jeje
Thursday, 04 XI 2010
I guess it's a habit here to get up late in Lima. I had a bus to Cuzco at 3pm (100 PEN - 21h). All I did before is went with Edison to centro to get a hyped up Turron de Santo Domingo. Layered cookie with sweet sticky filling. It was only ok since I was expecting something extraordinary.
Friday, 05 XI 2010
I'm still on the same bus that I got on yesterday. I paid a bit extra to be on the lower level which has bigger seats and recline more (160 deg). The whole trip took 22h so little more comfort goes a long way. I arrived in Cuzco around 2pm.
I took a bus to centro (0.80 PEN) and went to the information to find out more current info about the sites and how to get there. I didn't have a couchsurfing host but luckily Ronny accepted my request while I was traveling. After settling down I took off for a short round around town.
Cuzco is a very nice town but it seems like there is more tourists than locals. It is a big downside as you're being offered to buy something or get a massage at every step. I just stopped answering "no, gracias" altogether and just continue walking.
At Ronnie's I met Manuel from Austria. He was heading out to Machu Pichu tomorrow so I decided to join him.
There are few ways to go to the famous Inca ruins.
First one is to walk one of the Inca trails that usually take around 4-5 days. For some you need a reservations weeks in advance.
Second and most expansive one is to take a train directly from Cuzco to Aguas Calientes where the cheapest ticket is about $50 only one way and takes about 3:30h. The train have a monopoly because there are no roads that go to Aguas Calientes. There is no way I'll be supporting this robbery and it's too much for me anyway.
Third way is to take a bus to Ollantaytambo. From there take a still super expansive train for what it is for $34, one way of course, or hike the train tracks for 30km.
Another way is to take a bus to Santa Maria (15-20 PEN), then another one to Santa Teresa (10 PEN) and finally a colectivo to Hydroelectrica (5-8 PEN - 30 min). From the last stop you have a 10km walk on the railroad tracks (2-2:30h) or you can take a train ($12).
I chose the last option with a slight modification. Instead of taking all three transports I bought a seat on a minibus with one of the tour companies directly to Hydroelectrica for 105 PEN for a round trip. I could have paid a bit less taking public transportation but on a third day I wanted to hike Putucusi and still be able to get back to Cuzco that day. Otherwise I would have to start heading back first thing in the morning.
I was pretty tired after traveling from Lima and didn't have plans to go out anywhere at night. Oziel, who I've met in Lima gave me a call so plans created themselves and I went to meet him with Manuel. Like I mentioned before Cuzco is filled with tourist and we did not succeed in finding a locals bar. In the one we stayed till late had beer pong, beer bong and the theme was pajama party.
Saturday, 06 XI 2010
Oziel decided to join us for our trip as well. The minibus picked us up around 7:30am. The road to THE city has begun.
The trip supposed to take 7h. We stopped for quick breakfast and had to wait for an hour for a section of the road to open. Due to major road improvements it is closed 7:30am-12:00pm and 1:00pm-6:00pm. No vehicle can pass and there is no detour to go around. Waiting is all you got. Of course we stopped for lunch as well and finally arrived in Hydroelectrica around 5pm.
With not much daylight left we started our 10km hike. It followed train tracks so the route was flat and had a special cool feeling as we were going somewhere where there are no roads. In the middle of our hike it got dark. Rain followed soon after with a force. It soaked us in minutes and there was nowhere to hide. Cold, wet and a bit miserable we arrived in Aguas Calientes past 7pm. We found a hostal for 15 PEN and headed out to find some hot food. It is a touristy town so everything is more expensive not to mention that everything has to come by train. We finally found a Menu at one Chifa for 10 PEN but they gave us this special menu only when we were about to leave hehe because the single entrees were kinda pricy. Warm soup and some hot tea on the end did the trick to make us feel good.
The real joy and excitement I got is once the hot water came out of the shower YEAH!!! I didn't have hot shower for sooooooooooo long (about three weeks). I was in heaven and did not want to get out LOL.
Sunday, 07 XI 2010
We left our hostal at 4:30am to get to the bridge by 5am and start climbing up to the main entrance (126 PEN). Once we got there at 4:50am the bridge was already open. Not knowing how many people are ahead of us we started going really fast as we wanted to climb Wayna Picchu as well. There were stairs upon stairs with people huffing and puffing. Even though it was pretty early I made an excellent choice of leaving my sweater at the hostal. After passing quite a few people I got to the top at 5:25am just to find out there was no need to rush it. There were only about 25-30 people in front of me and they let 400 people climb Wayna Picchu daily. Manuel followed shortly but Oziel was nowhere to be found.
Finally inside, finally here and ??? YES, this place is magical!!! Even though there are quite a bit of people it still WOWs you. What I really liked that you can wander around and get in between the rocks almost everywhere.
We hiked Wayna Picchu with the first group at 7am to avoid high heat at 10am. It's super steep but the views are well worth it. I will not say much more because this place is a must see. Truly amazing.
Funny thing when we got stuck behind old and fat group of Americans. They were going one by one up these small stairs to look at something from above. One grandpa obviously did not want to walk up the five or six steps and just asked his buddy: "What is there??? Bunch of rocks?!" MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAH I thought I'm gonna die of laughter LOL Oh grandpa...
The sun was shining high whole day and were wandering around till 4pm. It would be really cool and probably pretty magical to camp overnight in the ruins.
Monday, 08 XI 2010
Oziel did not have the condition to hike such steep mountains everyday so he opted out of the stroll up Putucusi. Yesterday some told us that the trail is a bit destroyed because in various place you have to climb ladders and ropes. Instead of scarring us off it made it sound so much more adventurous and fun hehe. The trail was climbing fast up almost vertical slopes. Some ladders were broken and we had to climb only with the help of steel cables = FUN!!! That was the best part actually. It took us only 45min to get to the peak. There was one couple there who camped there. There is only one tiny spot for a small tent. I'm sure it had to be great. From Putucusi you have a not so distant view of Machu Picchu. This was a great morning hike.
Our micro was picking us up at 2pm in Hydroelectrica so at a leisurely pace we headed back on the train tracks. You just have to watch for the train once crossing the tunnels. The ride back was long and we got back to Cuzco after 10pm.
After the fact I found out that there IS a trek I could have done all the way to Machu Picchu without any guides and big groups. It is the only one left without any controls in place. It is the Salkantay trek which you can do with a tour if you so desire. This trek takes 4-6 days passing by some awesome mountains. If I only knew I would have done it. But beware because in the next few months they will put controls on that trail and nobody will be able to hike it without a certified guide.
Putucusi:
Aguas Calientes:
Tuesday, 09 XI 2010
I parted ways with Oziel and Manuel as they left for Bolivia. Buen viaje amigos!
There was one more couch surfer at Ronnie's named Ian from Denver, Colorado. What a coincidence as this is a very possible place for me to move after this trip. From what he told me it looks like a good spot for me and my high adrenaline hobbies.
I had to buy a Boleto Turistico for 130 PEN which includes 16 archeological sites and museums in and around Cuzco. We joined forces and went to Pikillacta first. They are pre Inca Wari ruins. It was a big complex without much to offer. After seeing few pre Inca ruins I came to conclusion I don't need to see any more because all of them are similar. Just walls and bunch of scattered rocks. I can be my own guide as the predictions made are very simple without almost anything to back them up.
From there we went to Tipon. You have to take a taxi up to the ruins (10 PEN) or spend a long time walking up the hill. It is an Inca site with terraces and elaborate irrigation system. They were pretty smart and resourceful these Inkas hehe. The site was pretty interesting with almost no people. We didn't think there was much more higher up but once we went up more cool ruins rose from the ground.
City or village of Tipon is famous for the furry cute cuy (guinea pig). Well, I wanted to experience new things so we decided to give it a lick. As soon as we saw them roasting on the fire with the mouths wide open as if screaming for help we couldn't help but have second thoughts. They are served whole with paws, head and all. Bubbly skin from the heat did not look too appetizing. They looked like they were roasted alive. "PETA would be pissed." Oh well, this is it. We can't let 30 PEN each go to waste. Let me just say that I felt pretty cannibalistic trying to eat it. There isn't that much meat so you have to eat around the small bones and skin is really tough to chew through. Ian had it much worse as he had a pet guinea pig called Fluffy in the past. The piggies were stuffed with some green veggies that I didn't like the taste of and which saturated the meet. Needles to say this experience wasn't the most pleasant and I really don't have to eat cuy again.
That evening Ian left westward and I went for a performance of folkloric dances. It was interesting and fun to watch. Colorful costumes and fast pace energetic music.
Pikillacta:
Tipon:
Wednesday, 10 XI 2010
Today I decided to go to Pisaq and took a bus there for 1h (3 PEN). It's a complex of Inca ruins scattered around the mountain. I chose the less tiring option of visiting the place. With two other people I took a taxi (15 PEN) to the very top and started walking down hitting them one by one. They were nicely preserved and quite a bit of them to wander around in. It took me about 2:30h to get to town again.
On the way back I got off early at Tambomachay which was about 8km away from Cuzco. It was where the important Inca went for some leisure time and bathe in the bath tubs. There is very little to see.
Right next to it were the ruins of Pukapukara which served as a place for the servants and military to stay in and wait till the VIP Incas get nice and clean.
Not too long of a walk from there I visited Q'enqo with some rooms carved into the huge burried rock.
The last sight on this path back to Cuzco was Saqsayhuaman. It was also the biggest and most interesting. I would wander around in the labyrynthic passages carved into the complex of huge rocks that wouldn't protrude from the ground not too high. There was also an arena and building remains close by. On the other side of a huge flat field there was a fortified complex like a castle. Perfectly shaped humongous rocks weighing tons would fit perfectly without any gaps and imperfections. It will remain a mystery how did they constructed that and how many people probably died acting as sliding grease.
Right next to this complex there is a huge white statue of Jesus overlooking the town.
Pisaq:
Tambomachay, Puca Pucara, Q´enqo:
Saqsayhuaman:
Thursday, 11 XI 2010
I decided to stay one more day in Cuzco and see the city, churches and some museums. The interesting one was the Inca museum (10 PEN) which wasn't included in boleto turistico.
I left that night to Arequipa at 8:30pm (35 PEN - 10h).
Friday, 12 XI 2010
I didn't really care much of the city and the main reason to come here was to visit canyon Colca.
You can do it by yourself by taking a bus to Cabanaconbe (16 PEN - 6h). Don't forget 35 PEN entrance fee. Sleep there, wake up early and catch a taxi to the mirador Cruz del Condor for 3 PEN at 6am. This way you get there before all the tours and you have more chances to see the majestic condors fly over your head. Then if you want you can walk down to the bottom of the canyon where you will find a green oasis with palms and swimming pools. You will stay there with super basic cabins with dirt for a floor and no electricity (15 PEN). Next day you'll wake up and start hiking at dawn to beat the sun and heat with it as the trail is steep. It takes about 2:30-3:00h to get back to the top.
I felt pretty indifferent and gave in into taking the tour. Two day tour with transport, food and a night in the oasis did cost me 100 PEN. This wasn't much more if I would have done it myself.
The tour did more or less the above itinerary with few more stops at different points of interests.
Saturday, 13 XI 2010
The pick up for the canyon Colca tour was at 3:30am. I woke up at 2am with a war happening in my stomach. Not to get into much details I spend the rest of the time waiting for my tour in the bathroom. I don't know if it was a good idea to go but I did. It was about 5h ride with a stop for breakfast. I was in hell. Sharp stomach pains would fluctuate up and down the whole way. I was beginning to worry that it wasn't a simple stomach upset. I took some painkillers and we went further.
Unfortunately we only saw one condor and not even that close. This supposed to be the highlight of the trip when these big birds reaching a wing span of 3m (10ft) soar above your head with featherlike ease. We were the unlucky group and there was nothing we could have done.
Around 11am we started to head down into the canyon. Let me just tell you that even though this canyon is about twice the depth of Grand Canyon it's got nothing on it. With Grand Canyon you have flat ground on top and a huge hole that plummet down and it makes you go WOW!!! Colca canyon on the other hand looks like any other valley. It is nice but I was hugely disappointed. I was expecting something amazing and it didn't deliver.
The way down was steep, hot and very dusty. I'd rather go up first and get a reward of amazing views that stretch forever then see it first and then go down just to come up again when you are tired. If not for the cool people in my group I would be pretty bored. Luckily my stomach troubles decreased just to uneasiness which was manageable.
We finally arrived at the oasis around 6pm. This group wasn't the fastest and the sun disappeared behind the rim of the canyon. It wasn't as hot as you would think without the sun and only two other guys besides me jumped into the pool. It took only about 5min before we jumped out as it was getting uncomfortable. What a shame because it would be nice to chill at the pool and in the hammocks right next to it.
After candlelight dinner we went to sleep because the wake up was gonna be before dawn.
Sunday, 14 XI 2010
Wake up was at 4:30am and we headed up the canyon walls at 5am to beat the heat. The climb is steep and took some 2:30h and some 3h. After that we had breakfast in Cabanaconde and went back to Arequipa. Along the way we stopped to see a stone map of the canyon and some graves situated high on the mountain face. As a last stop we visited hot springs at La Calera (10 PEN). Even though it was hot it was very relaxing to take a dip and shower after. It was especially convenient for me since I was traveling on an overnight bus to Puno at 11pm (6h - 25 PEN).
Really I could have skipped this tour and Arequipa altogether. If not for the people in my group I wouldn't enjoy it much. Maybe the flying condors would have made it worthwhile but that didn't happen so I can't say. I realize I have high standards for nature but I don't think this was the case here. To be fair the canyon was nice but nothing so special.
Monday, 15 XI 2010
I was hoping my stomach episodes ended but boy was I wrong. The bus ride was a nightmare with fluctuating pains and not working bathroom on board. Somehow I made it.
I had a two day tour booked around lake Titicaca (140 PEN). It is the highest and navigable lake in the world at 3,810 m.a.s.l. (12,500ft). First we headed out with a small boat to floating islands Uros. They are entirely made out of totora and if not anchored they would float around. Every so often the vilagers have to add another layers of totora because the islands sink very slowly. They make a lot of things from that plant and even eat it. I can't say it tasted awesome. It was spongy and a bit refreshing but the taste was pretty bland. We didn't stay for too long. They told us how they construct the islands and showed us how they lived. It was cool but it looked like it was made only for tourists; spotless and organized.
We left for the Amantani island where we were going to sleep along with 4000 inhabitants. These 3h seemed like they were never gonna end. The boat was really small and hence couldn't go fast against the waves. I was hating life due to my stomach pains. On the island they divided us in groups of two or three and assigned a villager with which we will stay the night with. I was going to stay with Cerafina.
First I went to the clinic where I received antibiotics for stomach infection (5 PEN - visit; 2 PEN - antibiotics). There was a hike to the top of the mountains planned to watch the sunset. There was just no way for me to go even though I really wanted to. I went to sleep instead. I saw pictures and I missed out on some cool views.
I woke up in time for the fiesta. We got dressed in local clothing and went to a dance hall. I was expecting to see a folkloric dance performance but that didn't happen. There was a live band comprised of young boys. They were playing very cool though. I couldn't but almost everybody else got pulled out to the dance floor where they were led in a snake or just turned their hips left and right. All the dancing looked almost the same but it was lively and probably fun. Although some of the villagers had this look "Oh my god, here we go again" and "Are we done yet?" on their faces. Again, super touristic.
I left early and went to sleep feeling like shit and hoping I will feel better tomorrow.
Islas Uros:
Isla Amantani:
Tuesday, 16 XI 2010
To my great joy I felt pretty good HURRA!!! For breakfast we had crepes and shortly after headed out to yet another island called Taquile (1h).
All we did there is hiked up from one side, wandered around the central plaza and visited weaving factory (it was actually just a store). We learned a bit about the culture and ate lunch. Interestingly the men weave as much as women. We descended the other side of the island and were back in Puno around 4pm.
Some people that I've met earlier said that home stay with the locals was really cool thing to do so that's why I did the tour. Would I recommend it to others? NO... Maybe if you'd spend more time with the family, help them in daily tasks and interacted for few days that would be really cool. This trip was too short for that and hence I did not have to do it. If I would do it again all I would is take a boat to Uros islands. Even though it looks fake it was a cool thing to see. You can skip the other islands.
I still had some daylight left so I went to visit Yavari. It was an oldest steam ship on Lake Titicaca and a part of its flotilla. It was very small and not what I was expecting but it was free so who cares.
Isla Taquile:
Puno:
Peru is a very interesting country rich in culture and many ruins worth visiting. I fell in love with its high mountains. I will have to come back and get lost in them for months on end. People are nice and everything went according to plan.
I WILL be back Peru!!!
Disregard this, some glitch --->The ongoing problem with big cities that I despise.
