Considering it had been a boozy night last night with the group and the still high altitude, I woke up well, after a good nights sleep. The hotel in Puno was clean and the beds comfy. It also had great showers with lots of hot water.

We left Puno at 8am for the drive to Cusco. On the way we stopped at Sillustani which is a burial ground above the stunning Lake Umayo. Here 28 stone burial towers, representing a city of the dead which pre dated and co - insided with the inca empire. Our guide walked us through this area and as well as talking about the burial tombs we stopped at the Sun Temple which is supposed to have mystical powers. She explained there had been many sightings of UFOs in the area especially around winter solstice (June 21st). We were all encouraged to make a non material wish while standing in a group circle in the middle of the Sun Temple. Let's see if mine comes true :)

After a couple of hours here, we hit the road again to Cusco, stopping at a very busy, dirty and non touristy town on the way, who's name escapes me. Seriously this town was rough and I loved it. I know most tourists would have refused to get out of the truck as to be honest on the face of things it looked a little daunting and we looked totally out of place. I also knew though our guides would not lead us wrong and after wandering around looking at the local market and trying to find a good (cleanish) place to eat, Betsy and I settled on a chicken shop which served rotisserie chicken and chips. $3 got us each a soup to start with (complete with a chicken foot in the broth which I politely left) a quarter a roast chicken and chips and a small side salad (which neither of us trusted, or ate). The food was tasty and we both just prayed we would not get sick. We waked back to the truck with Betsy taking a ton of photos (I must get copies of those) and bought some fruits from one of the market stalls.

The last part of the journey up to Cusco was 4 hours of driving. Luckily it went pretty fast, I really enjoy just watching on going life as we pass by towns and villages. We had a bathroom stop on the way and there was a lady selling fresh donuts on the street. She did a great business since pretty much everyone on the trunk wanted donuts, we cleared her out!

On entering Cusco we drove up to the cities Christ figure so we could look down onto Cusco. Actually the city was smaller than I was imagining, but then I guess I was comparing it to La Paz. We arrived at the hotel (seems friendly and nice), and went out with some of the group for dinner.