We left our backpacks at Hostel Mallqui and set off with overnight bags to the office of the tour company, just down the road. We were then walked round to Plaza San Francisco to get on the bus. There were heaps of people waiting around and it was a bit confusing who was with which company and who was getting on which bus - it all seemed a bit mix and match. We were supposed to be on a bus with an English speaking guide but were eventually put on a bus completely full of Spanish speakers. It seemed like the wrong bus, but David asked and the guide said he would talk in both Spanish and English. Turned out that David was the only one on the bus wanting guiding in English.

Waiting for the bus to leave, David decided to have mouthful of coca leaves because we would be going up in altitude during the day and he learned a valuable lesson on the chewing of coca leaves. The alkali stone he bought with the leaves at market a few days earlier was different to the one in the 'tourist' packages and he bit off a bit too much. Once this had dissolved into the saliva, it was akin to having a mouthful of acid. Trouble is, chewing coca leaves will numb your mouth, to an extent, similar to that of a dentist's injection. What wasn't immediately clear to David was it wasn't a numbing effect in his mouth, it was a burning. And burning to the point it removed a layer of skin from gums, cheek and tongue. If there was a positive side then his teeth might be a shade or two whiter.

The first stop was at a handicraft market, the same stuff as everywhere else so it was treated as a bathroom stop more than a shopping expedition.

Next stop was a very scenic viewpoint of the valley, the river and Andes mountains looming high above.

When we arrived in Pisac, we were hoping to stop at the market, as advised by our tour agency, because it's a huge market used by locals to buy and sell everything, but we were taken to a Silversmith instead. This tour bus obviously got good kickbacks from the vendors.

We were taken up the hillside of Pisac afterwards for a tour of the Pisac Ruins which was once an Inca citadel. The site was massive with big terraces built at a 95 degree angle to withstand earthquakes. This particular city was where people lived as opposed to being a ceremonial site. There were a honeycomb of tombs built into the cliff behind the city. Cities were built in elevated positions to be closer to the upper world and the Gods they worshipped. It also provided an element of protection from enemies and their terraced crops would not be prone to flood.

We had a lunch stop in Urubamba, but we hadn't booked and prepaid for the buffet lunch which was lucky. David's mouth, following the coca leaves lesson, was causing him grief to the point that even drinking water brought on a fresh bout of pain. Bizarrely, a cold beer had a soothing effect so we sat out in the sun with a drink while the rest of the group ate lunch.

After the lunch break, we were taken to the Ollantaytambo Ruins. This Inca complex was built as both a temple and a fortress. This was the last point of protection on the Inca Trail before it reaches Machu Picchu. It was also one of the few places where the conquistadors lost a major battle to the Manco Inca.

We walked up the terraces, puffing and panting due to the altitude and and number of steps, to the Temple of Sun. We were able to stay behind and explore more of the huge complex because were leaving the tour to stay overnight.

The tour wasn't that great but we had bought it as means of transport and being only about $4 more than the local bus it still seemed better value because we got to stop on the way and we took a more scenic route through the valley.

Ollantaytambo, itself, is a tiny cobblestoned, Inca planned, village that probably hasn't changed that much in 700 years. What look like roads on a map of the village are in fact small alleyways that can barely have two people walking side by side. This of course adds to the charm and we were happy to walk a few blocks through the 'streets' to Hostel Chayana Wasi. It was a nice little hostel with an owner full of local information that he wanted to impart.

We went out for a wander around and to look for some dinner but got disturbed by local secondary kids' dance displays in a variety of very colourful, traditional clothing. It seemed that every class was given a particular costume and they had a few minutes to perform a traditional dance in front of the villagers and tourists in the main plaza.

The recommended local restaurant was unfortunately closed because it was a Sunday but we found a small restaurant with a wood fired pizza oven. It was quiet when we went in and we chose a table next to the warm oven. All of a sudden it got very busy and thankfully our pizza was cooked and served because the service started to get a bit chaotic.

We stopped in at a little shop on the way back to buy some water and it seemed to also serve as a watering hole for the locals. A few guys were standing round drinking beer that they had bought from the shop.

We noticed that there were lots of police around the streets even though the village has a population of only 2,000 people. Maybe it's because of demonstrations in nearby villages that caused our Inca Jungle Trip to be canceled.

Back in the hostel we had a cup of tea to warm us up before retiring to bed for the evening. It was a bit cold but thankfully the bed had heaps of blankets and there were still some spare on the side.