Cusco, Puno and Farewell Peru

"We have a saying in the trade ... "If you need to go to the loo, go to Peru"", Maria, Royal Free Travel Clinic

Wonderful woman Maria.She stuck us with no less than 11 needles protecting us against the big bad world, but I don't think even she knew how right she was when she delivered us the above delightful information.Still, it's been character-building to say the least and it is, we understand, all part of being an intrepid explorer.I comfort myself daily with the assumption that Christopher Columbus probably had his fair share of "toilet issues", even if they didn't make it into the history books.

Toilet talk aside, there is one thing more that I need to do before I launch into our final Peru blog.Poor Dean is rather concerned that because I wrote the first blog, people have assumed that I have also written the subsequent instalments.Rather than claim the glory for his brilliant writing, I must hold up my hands and admit to not having written a single word since the first chapter. I set it up and got it going, but Dean has developed an enthusiasm for the blog which I could only match with a vague sense of having homework to do. I watched him pour over the blog for hours in Cusco, uploading photos, providing witty captions.Finally I wrestled the laptop from his hands and tempted him out into the sunlight and down to the pub for a beer, where he promptly pulled out paper and pen and suggested we "brainstorm" for the blog about Cusco, in case we forget any detail of our stay there.Anyway, I won't bore you with the saga that we now fondly refer to as "Cusco-gate" - save to say Dean has reluctantly handed me back the reigns and assigned me the final Peru blog.I hope not to disappoint...

CUSCO

We were in Cusco for the best part of 3 weeks, with the Inca Trek in the middle.From the moment we arrived in Cusco we loved it.Dean in particular was thrilled with our first day discovery of The Cross Keys Pub, where he enjoyed a steak after a long and trying bus journey.

Cusco is vibrant and busy and full of tourists but you can't help but love it.It's a jumbled mix of colonial style buildings, cobbled streets, quaint plazas, bohemian artisanal quarters, cathedrals and churches.It is best explored by foot, provided you make sure to venture beyond the immediate vicinity of the main Plaza de Armas, as most of the best bits lie a bit further out.It seems there is always something going on there too.The day we arrived the locals were celebrating El Corpus Christi - the square was packed full of people, with bands and processions slowly squeezing their way between the crowds.The following day was Inti Raymi, the celebration of the sun god, with a ceremony held at the local Inca site of Sacsayhuaman.The day after that we became captivated by a steady flow of cool, young travellers being squashed into taxis with their bongos and fire poi ropes, only to later discover there was a Brazilian trance festival happening a short way from Cusco.

Forsaking the trance festival for a more traditional tourist approach, in our first week in Cusco we crammed in a few of the obvious tours: a City Tour, Tour of the Sacred Valley and trip to Moras and Moray.The first two tours were led by a lovely lady called Edith who had a wonderful shrill way of announcing it was time to move on, "ED-DEETS GROUP, TOURISTS PLEASE, THIS WAY".She had a lot of passion for her culture and Inca history which made her a great guide with seemingly endless information and facts (although we were a bit dubious about her top tip for curing your baby's poorly tummy - feed it a teaspoon of its own urine...).Our favourite bits were Sacsayhuaman (Dean got endless enjoyment out of the fact this is pronounced vaguely like "sexy woman" said in a stupid voice).Sacsayhuaman is a vast area containing many majestic ruins, including a sacred water temple where the water is believed to have healing properties and is referred to as the Fountain of Youth (we made sure to splash a bit on our faces!).The sacred valley was very beautiful, although we got herded quite swiftly from place to place.The Inca ruins at Ollantaytambo are spectacular.You climb up 200 steps past the terraces which are key to Incan architecture and can be found all over Peru.Carved into mountains the terraces vary in height and had 2 main purposes: to provide a sort of stepped foundation and support for the domestic area built at the top and also for the Incans agricultural needs, being planted with potatoes, corn etc.From the top of the terraces at Ollantaytambo you turn round and look out at the mountain opposite, the profile of which is said to show the face of an Incan King.A little further on are some huge stones which were carried miles from a quarry on a nearby mountain and were intended to be part of an astrology tower - but it was never completed due to the arrival of the Spaniards.

The Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire is a theme you can't escape whilst visiting Peru.The finger was pointed at the pesky Spanish so much by our various guides that we started to joke "if in doubt blame the Spanish".However reading up on the subject later it's easy to see why the Peruvians hold a grudge.The Spanish came to Peru to plunder the wealth of the Incas (gold, silver and precious stones) and to conquer their vast lands; with them they brought disease and war which eventually led to the demise of the Incas.Peru is hugely proud of its Inca ancestry and grateful for any scrap of the ancient culture which the Spanish didn't manage to get their hands on.

The rest of our time in Cusco, either side of the trek, was spent wandering around just taking it all in.There are numerous tourist-friendly haunts to retreat to: two English pubs (Cross Keys and The Real McCoy), Irish pub (Paddy's), Other pub (Norton Rat's) and loads of "cool, international" cafes and bars.We did eventually get recommended the one road where you could get a more traditional meal for a more traditional price: soup, main and a drink for 10 soles (about £2.50).Walking around you get used to uttering "no, gracias" every few steps as the main plaza in particular is crowded with locals trying to sell you jumpers, bags, jewellery, postcards, paintings, massages - pretty much anything they can think of to sell you.The streets are also full of tour operators, all calling out for your business, all running exactly the same tours.It seems just about anyone can get a shop and start selling tours and bus tickets.

In our effort to get away from all this one afternoon we stumbled upon quite a large indoor market which was divided into various sections: fruit juice, meat, flowers, vegetables, homewares, etc. We bravely sampled a fruit juice at one of the many stalls, much to the amusement of a smartly dressed old guy who was already sat there.He proceeded to talk at us for a few minutes, chuckling to himself as he went.We couldn't understand a word he said (we think he was speaking the traditional Andean language of Quecha rather than Spanish), and were left with the distinct feeling he was laughing at us, but he seemed harmless enough so we smiled along like dumb tourists.

Finally after a few days recovering from the trek, it was time to leave Cusco and make our way to Puno.Thankfully the protests had stopped whilst we were in Cusco so the roads were clear and we happily boarded a Huayruro bus (a departure from the Cruz del Sur buses we'd been taking everywhere as we learnt there were a hundred different buses all running the same routes, but most of them cheaper than Cruz and the service was still pretty good) and set off on the 7hr journey to Puno.It's a strange feeling that comes over you when you've spent a certain amount of time in once place, a sort of stale restlessness, so despite loving Cusco we did feel slightly like we'd outstayed our welcome and were glad to continue onto the next place.

PUNO

Puno was pleasantly smaller and calmer after the bustle of Cusco.Located next to Lake Titicaca, there is a cool breeze that blows through the town, making it quite chilly but a lot fresher than Cusco which could feel heavy with car fumes.We were only in Puno for 2 nights, giving us enough time to do a trip out to the Uros Islands and Taquile.

The Uros Islands are a group of over 60 manmade floating islands.Before going on the trip we had somehow picked up on the air of cynicism which surrounds the islands, whether from reading about them or from hearing what other travellers had to say.The fact is that as fascinating as the islands are, their main function these days is that of a tourist attraction and some people would even have you believe that everything you see is merely part of a performance designed specially for us foreigners.But Dean and I put our cynicism aside and strangely found ourselves loving the Uros Islands despite the very obvious display that the locals put on.

The islands are made by first building large blocks made out of the roots of Tortora reeds (looks like blocks of black soil).They tie these blocks together in groups of 4 and anchor them to the bed of the lake - these provide the floating foundation for the islands.On top of these blocks they pile layer after layer of reeds, up to 2 metres in depth and this is the surface of the island.Each island is no more than 20 or 30 foot square and they are all lined up in 2 rows, creating a sort of river between them.Each island has up to 10 families living on it, in one-room huts also made from the reeds, with one man elected the island "captain".There are no toilets on the islands, instead there is a specific island floating somewhere in the area which is specifically designated the toilet island!This was a bit of a sticking point for me, I found it almost unbearable the thought that if they needed the loo they had to ROW to another island.Our guide joked that if they had a poorly tummy they just had to row that bit faster - hilarious.

We reached our particular island by boat and stepped off onto the reeds which are unnervingly spongy and uneven under foot.We were greeted by the island captain and several women all dressed in very brightly coloured clothes.They explained to us how the islands are made and then we were invited to look inside their homes - literally one room with a large mattress in one corner where the whole family sleeps and other possessions lined up at the other end (including the TV - most impressively they have solar power on the islands, just enough to afford them the luxury of their favourite soaps?)Magically, by the time we stepped out of the small home, the women had whipped out their wares and we were suddenly obliged to consider buying something.

I realise at this point, it's easy to see why the whole place seems like a tourist trap, BUT there is something wonderful about the people who live on the islands.These were some of the friendliest, most interesting people we've met so far on our travels.Regardless of whether they earn their keep these days by enticing boats of tourists out for clearly rehearsed demonstrations, these islands and this way of life is still very real.No doubt with a few upgrades along the way life on the islands is easier than it was in the past and quite possibly they could all choose to up and move to the mainland if they wanted.But the fact is they choose to maintain their lives on these floating islands and they seem pretty proud of and content with life in their floating kingdom.The captain of the island explained to us that when there is cause for celebration, such as a wedding, they tie some of the islands together, using their reed boats to bridge any gaps and then all get together for a party.There is a school on one of the islands too so they really do have an entire community operating out there on the reeds.Basically Dean and I found it all pretty fascinating and bought into it completely (and also bought ourselves a small brightly coloured blanket from the woman whose home we'd visited - it seemed only right after we'd tramped around her little reed hut!)

Back on the boat we eventually headed off for Taquile Island which was truly beautiful.There are overnight tours which you can do which include staying a night on this or another island and this is apparently the best way to experience the tranquillity of the place.Instead we hopped off the boat and walked for 40mins up to the small main square of the island.The views were incredible - the water was clear blue and very inviting in the sunshine, and we could see Bolivia in the distance on the other side of the lake.The island was like a small paradise, lush greenery and fields all around and very peaceful.We had a traditional lunch here (soup, followed by trout) and then were treated to some traditional song and dance.Before I knew it I had been hoiked to my feet by an elderly little Peruvian lady and she was spinning and turning me faster than I could keep up (especially on a full stomach and at such high altitude!).It was all very nice.Then it was back on the boat for the long slow ride back to Puno (the boats they use for these Lake Titicaca trips crawl along so slowly you'd be better off swimming).All in all I think we enjoyed this tour very much.

Our last night in Puno was also our last night in Peru and what better way to celebrate the end of our time in the country than with a nice plate of Guinea Pig.Having initially looked forward to sampling the delicacy, Dean had slowly developed a slight distaste for the thought of it, especially as we realised that it is served just as it is, a whole guinea pig, teeth, eyes and claws, on a plate.But on finding a restaurant that wasn't charging an arm and a leg for the dish, Dean rediscovered his desire to try it.Now, I'll admit I wasn't taken with the idea of trying it that much, I didn't feel exactly repulsed by the idea but I had decided I could live without it.As soon as this guinea pig arrived at the table Dean started to go a little green and regretted his decision.Bravely, he cut into his dinner (which was quite stringy) and informed me "I will have nightmares about this later".Despite the rather grotesque presentation, the meat tasted like fried chicken and wasn't too unpleasant and Dean finished the lot, although I'm not sure he felt too good about it.

With Guinea Pig safely crossed of the list of things to do in Peru, we got on a bus the next day from Puno and headed for the border crossing at Yungayo.We'd paid peanuts for our bus journey and were slightly anxious about how the whole border crossing would go (having read about scams to charge tourists an illegal entry fee).But it couldn't have been easier.We hopped off the bus on the Peru side, queued for a few minutes and got a few stamps to say we'd left Peru.Then we walked across the border (losing an hour as Bolivia is an hour ahead of Peru - Dean and I got very excited about this later, contemplating how we'd "gone to the future" and if we were to run back across the border to Peru we'd be going back in time ... and then if we ran back across to Bolivia again we'd be going "back to the future" ... its been just the two of us for 5 weeks now, don't judge us!)On the Bolivia side we queued again, but not for long and got a stamp and small paper visa to say we'd entered Bolivia and had 30 days to spend here.Job done!Back on the bus, where all our bags had been the whole time, completely unchecked by any officials or anything and we were off to Copacabana.

FAREWELL PERU

And so here we are now in Bolivia.We're actually in La Paz now and soon heading off into the jungle, but I'll gladly return the Blog reigns to Dean to fill you in on the joy that was Copacabana.Peru was incredible and it's weird to think we're in a different country now after a whole month spent treading the tourist/Inca trail there.Of the things that have left a lasting impression, the people are probably top of the list.The women are simply fantastic in their traditional dress.The materials are brightly coloured, they wear numerous jumpers or cardies with huge skirts over lots of petticoats.And of course the hats: wide-brim, narrow brim, high square top or small bowler hat, worn straight up on top of the head, or at a jaunty angle to keep out the sun ... there is no end to the glamour of the traditional hats worn by the Peruvian women.On top of that they all carry the traditional brightly coloured blanket sling on their backs, filled with anything from wood, to children.Sometimes the size of the parcel on their backs is bigger than the women themselves and on many occasions I've been wheezing my way up a hill only to be overtaken by a small Peruvian woman, trotting along with a huge bundle on her back.

Another characteristic of Peru has been the constant "Sell, Sell" atmosphere that you encounter everywhere you go.In every town or city the roads are lined with the locals and their various stalls.These stalls can carry anything: fruit, fresh juice, bread, fried foods, nuts, knitted goods, sweets, jewellery ... we even saw a few shameless women waiting outside a school with their stalls of sweets and stationery, ready to rob the youngsters of their pocket money.It seems just about anyone with a few ingredients and a makeshift grill can set up shop on the side of the road ... and all the locals stop for a bite to eat or cup of juice on their way from A to B.

The roads and traffic as we have mentioned before are a pretty overwhelming experience too.The Peruvians just can't get anywhere quick enough in their banged up, old rattling vehicles and if you haven't got your hand on the horn you're not really from Peru.The only way to cross the road is to position yourself next to a local and run when they run.

The food has been great.Its very wholesome but also very filling - every meal practically is preceded by soup and the staples of their diet are meat, potatoes and rice.Often you will get all 3 of these on one plate.I think our record was a meal on one of the treks where the soup had pasta in it, followed by a meal with meat, rice, potatoes and possibly even some more pasta...The coastal areas are mad hot on Ceviche (marinated fish) and Trout too.And juice seems to be extremely popular - especially had freshly squeezed from a street stall.

All in all Peru has been really fascinating.Its incredible to experience such a different way of life: from the obvious stuff, like the history, culture, traditional dress and food to the little things.Like the mongrel dogs which roam the streets in packs like they own the place, the multitude of officials in uniforms (traffic police, tourist police, national police) all with whistles that they blow constantly (not annoying at all), the tiny, pokey shops that exist through the smallest, pokiest doorways (we once looked through a doorway in Cusco to see a man in a small, dark wonky room surrounded on all sides, from floor to ceiling by typewriters which he was apparently fixing/selling and down the alleyway next to his "shop" was a man sat at a sewing machine ready to mend anything you could bring him), and everywhere you go all the cosmetic products are kept under lock and key - deodorant and face wash, highly thievable goods in Peru apparently.

Anyway, I've waffled on for long enough and Dean is chomping at the bit to get writing about Bolivia.Until next time...

K