My mother's friend Susanne gives us a lift to the airport. We take a flight from Alicante to Barcelona and arrive around 11 pm. Our flight leaves 6 am next morning and we fly via Amsterdam to Lima. So here I am again in the Barcelona airport, at the exact same spot where I said goodbye to the class from Norway, only a short time ago. We have something to eat and have a look around the deserted airport and eventually find a nice spot under a staircase where we lie down to rest until it's time to check in. The large backpacks make a good backrest and we nap the hours away until morning. When KLM is finally ready to check people in we are first in line and happy to leave our big packs with them. The flight from Amsterdam takes about 12 hours, and though we are entertained with our own individual screen and remote, by the end we're really done with the experience. Off course the swine flu people want to have a word, and when we've all out of our seats and have taken the hand luggage from the overhead compartment, we're told that we have to sit down again and the swine flu people want to come around and talk to each individual passenger. Several hundred passengers. People sit down and frantic mothers try to console their crying children, the flight attendants look at each other in exasperation but try to show a brave face to the passengers. People sit down heavily in their chairs again, only to receive another message. It's all right, everyone can disembark, let someone know if you feel sick.

Jubilantly we disembark only to have our spirits dampened again by the very long q to be let into the country. At least we can stand and breathe a different set of oxygen particles.

Wow, I'm in a different country and a different continent even. About ten years ago, in an Indian restaurant in Fredrikstad, Norway - with my friend Benedikte, we were cooking up plans to go to Peru and to see Machu Picchu. Our dreams were big and sparkling, our wallets however, empty. Maybe we could win the lottery? I still have the books I bought about the sacred sights of Peru in my apartment. They're still in the attic, collecting dust. I didn't know I would get this chance when I left Norway in August so I guess I will read the books when I get back.

We are met in the airport by a driver with our last name on a sign. I love it, no hassle. He takes us to the part of Lima called Miraflores and to our hotel. The ride there is nice, but the most obvious thing about this place is the mist. They also have auto rickshaws here, so I feel quite at home. We immediately love our hotel, and the roses in the garden make a very welcoming statement. We unpack and plan to check out one of the many excellent restaurants in the area. Maybe surprisingly, Peru has a highly esteemed cuisine, made up of new twists to old Peruvian recipes and international food as well. We choose a restaurant, but we only need a little shut-eye first, we've been on the road for ages...

The nap becomes an all night slumber and the restaurants will have to wait. We're ready for breakfast the next morning at 5 am, and enjoy the fresh start of the day. We take a taxi to central Lima. It's a Saturday and we're also the first people in Plaza the Armas. It's so nice and we enjoy the quiet square, encircled as it is by Lima Cathedral and other beautiful buildings. As the day marches on we make our way down the high-street and to another big plaza. People are friendly and we receive many greetings. My mother approves of the way men give me attention, they are very gentlemen like. We make our way to Chinatown and enjoy tea and cake and a wander through many market halls, but we don't find anything exciting. Approaching noon, many people gather outside the house of a high-powered politicians house to see the change of guards, at one side of Plaza de Armas - the central square. We enjoy the dance and showing off for a while and then retreat into the Cathedral with it's welcoming respite from the sun.

The following days we explore Miraflores and find the huge Inca Market. Now we're talking, anything llama or alpaca and fakes are here, jewellery with Inca symbolism, ponchos, scarves, shawls, mittens, hats and so much more. We're going to the Andes so we get some warm things to wear.

Also, we manage to stay awake long enough in the evenings to sample some restaurants in the evening and we get a taste of the famous Pisco Sour - the drink that many people start their meal with. It's really nice. Seafood is big here by the coast, and we go to a restaurant on the pier on one of our last evenings in Lima. And we hear that Norway has won the Eurovision Song Contest. Hurrah. And we celebrated the Norwegian independence day in Lima. Hurrah.