Cusco - the heart of the once-mighty Inca Empire and a world away from my first experience of Peru - it´s gorgeous. Tiny cobbled streets and alleyways, barely wide enough for one small car, fill the valley it is nestled in and expand up into the slopes.

Cusco town centre is based around the Plaza de Armas - a square complete with fountain, benches and grassed areas. On two sides of the square stands the intricately designed Coricancha temple and the cathedral and opposite this the edges are lined with shops, bars, cafes and restaurants alike. Moving away from the Plaza, the pattern of shops and cafes continues but hotels and hostels are also thrown into the mix and this continues high up into the hillsides.

The town is extremely touristic; on every street corner I am bombarded with ladies offering waxxing (or woxxing, as they like to pronounce it) and massage sessions, men selling paintings and children selling finger puppets and dolls. It does get a little annoying but it´s all part of being in Cusco - the cheapness certainly makes it all worthwhile.

I was welcomed to Cusco with a clear blue sky and a warm sun and five days on, it hasn´t changed since. And if the fabulous weather isn´t enough, I am paying just six pounds per night for my accommodation and my first meal, at Jack´s Cafe, which consisted of a Coca-Cola, a fillet-steak sandwich with chips and salad, finishing with a vanilla milkshake and cookie for desert, cost me just six pounds too! Don´t even get me started on the what the shops have to offer!