Hi all!

Well we made it through the Inca Trail safe and sound! It was tough enough but luckily we were well prepared for the altitude etc so not too many problems at all. Our muscles have just about recovered at this stage so we're back on the road again....we arrived in Bolivia this morning.

The Inca Trail is the original route from the city of Cusco (the centre of the Inca Kingdom) to the ancient city of Machu Picchu and is approx. 42 Km. Machu Picchu is one of the new wonders of the world and is known as the "lost city of the Incas". The Inca people began as a tribe in Peru and started to expand in 1438 AD. They conquered many neighbouring civilisations and eventually spread as far north as Colombia and as far south as Chile. At the height of their power (around 1530) the Spanish invaded their regions and started to conquer them. The new Spanish rulers treated the native people terribly and tried to destroy all of their traditions. The Spanish tried to destroy all the Inca cities but never discovered Machu Picchu because it was hidden deep in the Andes. Rumours of a lost city remained but Machu Picchu was only rediscovered in the early 1900's. Our guide filled us in on a lot of the history and because of his Inca roots he really brought it to life!

Day 1 eased us into the trail with a lovely scenic hike filled with lots of old Inca ruins. We hiked for 12km and this gave us an opportunity to get to know our group a bit better. There was 12 of us in total, from places like Canada, America, Australia and Belgium. A fantastic bunch of people who really added to the whole trip. Day 2 was a different kettle of fish altogether! We climbed 1200m in the morning (to a max. of 4200m) which was really tough as the altitude totally saps your energy and breathing is difficult. Hence the reason for Coca leaves which we were stuffing into our mouths constantly. 25 kg of Coca leaves are only enough to make 1g of cocaine apparently whereas sucking on a few just helps a bit with the altitude! The 600m descent in the afternoon was a godsend!

What goes up must come down!After climbing to 3800m on day 3 we hopped skipped and slipped down what the porters (the local guys that carried our food and tents etc.) refer to as the 'gringo killer'.... a trail including approx. 1,400 steep uneven steps! Fortunately these gringos managed it without killing ourselves!

Finally, Day 4! We got up at 4.30 am and hiked for a final 2 hours before catching our first glimpse of Machu Picchu. The sun had risen just before we saw it and all the cloud had cleared to give us a fantastic view! Of course the camera went into overdrive at this point and we continued to snap away as we walked the final hour to the entrance. It really was a spectacular sight and the joy was multiplied a thousand fold by knowing the effort we had put in to get there.

Along the way both of us experienced our own personal challenges....Linda's struggle to understand how the toilets (a hole in the ground) at the campsites worked and my constant battle with my blood sucking enemies (mosquitoes and sandflies). Despite these obstacles, we both had a fantastic time on the trail and Machu Picchu topped off the whole thing for us. We now have a new found admiration for all that have completed the trek and have just a little bit less admiration for the 'lazies' who get the train!

Pictures of the trek and of Cusco will follow soon.

Keep in touch, Lots of love,

Ger and Linda