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Hola everybody. We are currently situated in Cusco, which is a city in southeastern Peru, near the Urubamba (Sacred Valley) of the Andes mountain range. The altitude of the city is around 3,500 m (11,500 feet). You can pretty much skydive from this height. The last two weeks have been action packed. They have contained some of my best and worst travelling experiences since I left back in November. This article is about bad journeys, illness, Inca Trails and unbelievable lost cities set in the great Andes range. If you fancy a bit of that then please read on. I left the last journal in the city of Iquique, which was a place that I couldnt wait to leave. We got ourselves on a pretty swish Carma bus and headed to Arica, the border of Chile. We stayed there for the night in our cable TV, private rooms. Pretty cheap too if I remember correctly. Not a bad place but nothing to write home about.The next morning we woke early to catch the train across the border to Peru. Our eventual destination would be Cusco. Little did we realize that this was to be the start of the longest, most tiring and generally the hardest traveling day we have experienced so far. The day started off badly when we arrived at the train station. Apparently the one and only train across the border had been cancelled because some people had been throwing objects at the windows. So we headed to the bus terminal to get across the border. Here we were greeted by a number of taxi men each hassling to take us across for 3 or 4 pounds each. We decided to take the cheaper option of the bus. Here we were warned not to give our passports to anyone in Peru. The bus journey itself was not too bad. Just a couple of hours to get to the town of Tacna on the border of Peru. We headed straight for the bus offices to book our bus to Cusco from here. Our bus would be at 7.00pm, we would arrive in Cusco at about 2.00pm the next day. The time was 11.00am. We had 8 hours or so to kill. We decided to head into town for some lunch. It turned out this would also be our dinner and breakfast for the next day. One of the first things we noticed about Peru is that the people hassle you a lot more than in Chile. We decided to visit a restaurant recommended by the bus people and we all accidentally ordered raw fish for our lunch. We hoped this would not turn out to be a big mistake as we were about to get on a 20 hour bus journey with no toilet.The wait for the bus was tedious, combined with panic when we realized that our bags had been left in the bus office, which now appeared closed. Luckily someone turned up just before our departure. So, I headed for the 20 hour bus journey armed with just a pack of peanuts. This would turn out to be the bus journey from hell.Having experienced the luxury of Carma buses in Chile for cheap prices, we had high expectations for this bus. The bus did not meet these expectations. No toilet was the major issue. This was realized when after an hour of driving, we stopped at some waste land. It became clear that this was the first toilet stop. But not just for our bus. There were approximately 30 or 40 buses lined up here for the same purpose. As I looked out of the window, hundreds of people were scattered around, like dogs marking their spot. Even women were squatting into the darkness. The journey seemed to go on and on and on. Sleep was almost impossible with the lack of leg room. Obviously the seats were designed for the shorter Peruvians. I think Willetts had the worst experience. Across the aisle was seated a big sweaty Peruvian man with about 3 or 4 giant sacks. Throughout the night he would get up and start rummaging around in his sacks, sticking his arse in Willetts face. He would then move up and down the bus trying to sell some stale old bread to anyone who appeared awake. That’s Peru for you. When I finally managed to get some sleep the bus stopped about 7.00am and we all had to get off for it to be cleaned. The rest of the journey dragged on. At one point when the headache had just kicked in, they started blasting out Peruvian music as loud as possible. The songs are pretty much all the same. It was torture. I could also feel the lack of oxygen as we climbed higher and higher into the mountains. This is something you get used to and is why we arrived in Cusco 5 days before starting the Inca trail. Finally we arrived in Cusco after a horrific journey. Luckily we had a hostel sorted and were also being collected. However, just before making our way to bed, we were taken up by an eager and annoying young Peruvian lad. He spent the next hour offering all kinds of different things i.e. tours. Eventually we gave in just so we could get some sleep.We slept from about 6.00pm and didn’t wake up until 9 or 10.00pm the next morning. The greatest sleep of all time. The next five days were spent exploring Cusco through walking around the city square and a tour which took us to the many sights. We learned that Cusco was the the historic capital of the sun-worshipping Inca empire. It was also believed that the city was originally designed to be the shape of a Puma. In 1533 the first Spaniards arrived in the city. They undertook the construction of a new city on the foundations of the old Inca city, replacing temples with churches and palaces with mansions for the conquerors. In the Qorikancha you can still see the remains of the Inca temples. The stones are fantastically carved so they fit together perfectly. However, the Spaniards never found out about the lost city of Machu Picchu so were unable to destroy it. We would be visiting this magical place on the fourth and final day of the Inca Trail.Unfortunately a few days before the Inca trail, the dreaded thing happened. I got the s***s. This was despite eating at fairly descent restaurants and not drinking any tap water. It even made me think back to the raw fish experience. Despite this I was still looking forward to the Inca trail because the car pollution and constant hassling of people on the streets in Cusco was getting to me. There is a beautiful square in Cusco where the cathedral overlooks. However, you will probably get hassled every few seconds there. People and kids trying to shine your shoes, sell you food, postcards, finger puppets, tours, paintings etc. When it starts raining they will even have crappy rain coats. We even saw kids in the street doing cartwheels when the traffic stops. Its constant day and night. I was looking forward to getting into the mountains.INCA TRAILDay OneThe pick up from the hostel was at 5.20pm, meaning an early wake up. We then had a 2 hour coach journey to the starting point. On the way we had breakfast at a café. It was here that I realized that my bout of s***s had not ended. I was beginning to worry as the Inca trail is not supposed to be easy for fully healthy people. Anyway, we made it to the starting point and met our guide, assistant guide and the rest of our group. The first day is 12km but fairly flat, with a little up hill. We walked mainly next to a river and the mountain range looked brilliant. After lunch time I really started to feel my illness. I took some immodium and hoped for the best. By the time we got to the camp sight around 4.00pm I went straight to bed and didn’t get up for dinnerDay TwoWake up call is at 5.30am. They bring a cup of tea or coffee to your tent. We then had breakfast, however I only ate porridge as I wasn’t hungry. I had noticed that every time I ate, my stomach seemed to swell up as well. We then met all the porters and the cook. These are the guys that carry all the food, water, tents and other equipment. We also hired personal porters to carry sleeping stuff and a few clothes. We then set off at about 7.00pm for what was the most challenging day of the Inca Trail. 12km all uphill until the last 1 to 2km. It was a grueling day. I managed to get to lunch feeling pretty nakerd but still ok. I couldn’t eat any lunch so I just had one of my snickers bars. The second half of the day my energy levels completely ran out. I really struggled for the final 1 to 2 hours uphill but eventually managed to reach the highest point of the trek. This was a great moment. The views were absolutely amazing. It was another 1 hour down hill to our second camp. Here I had some lunch and then went to bed again at 3.00pm without having dinner. I just couldn’t seem to eat anything.Day ThreeWake up call again at 5.30pm. I felt a little better today so decided to have a bit of breakfast. Today was the longest walk at 16km. The first couple of hours involved climbing the second peak. I was glad to get this out of the way early before my energy levels ran low. We then visited some Inca ruins before reaching our early lunch destination. This was the first meal I really enjoyed because I felt much better. The resident doctor in the group (Alan) had started to get my illness, which made me laugh. I felt like I was passing on the buck. The walk after lunch was by far the best of the trip. The views were mind blowing. We were higher than the clouds and the weather was gorgeous. It was also the first time I really felt well enough to appreciate where I was. The last three hours were down hill to camp. On route we saw the doctor with water in one hand and toilet roll in the other. He looked in a terrible state. Later we found out that when he had gone to the toilet by the cliff edge, the ground suddenly gave way. Luckily he managed to hold on to a tree. We joked that if he had fell, he would have been found at the bottom with his pants around his ankles covered in his own feces. Brilliant. We arrived at our final camp around 5.00pm for afternoon tea. I even made dinner that night, which was delicious. Lamb in a sauce, sweet potatoes and chicken with mince sauce. Everyone went to bed after dinner because tomorrow we would be waking up at 3.40am so we could be one of the first in Machu PicchuDay FourThe dreaded wake up call came at 3.40am. It was pitch black so everyone had their torches out. It was pretty much carnage. All the camp sites were awake, trying to be the first to the check point. We managed to be the second group there at 4.45am. Here we had to wait till 5.30am for the check point to open, just as the sun was starting to rise. It was then a case of fastest ones to the sun gate, which is where you get your first sight of Machu Picchu. It was an hour and a half of fast paced walking uphill, overtaking pissed off people. About five of us made it there before anyone else. And there it was. The lost city of Machu Picchu, situated right on the top of a mountain. Unbelievable. We had the first morning view. The weather again was great as often this view is obstructed by clouds. After taking pictures, we made our way to this great city. We had completed the Inca TrailMachu Picchu We had two hours being shown around the city by our guide. Machu Picchuis a well-preserved Inca ruin located at 2,430 m (7,970 ft) on a mountain ridge. Forgotten for centuries by the outside world, although not by locals, it was brought back to international attention by archaeologist Hiram Bingham who rediscovered it in 1911. It is probably the most familiar symbol of the Inca Empire. The site has a large palace and temples dedicated to Inca deities around a courtyard, with other buildings for support staff. It is estimated that a maximum of only about 750 people resided in Machu Picchu at any one time. Nothing about the Inca people is certain because they never wrote anything down.We left Machu Picchu just as all the tourists were arriving from Cusco. Having done the Inca trail, we were able to see the city before the 2 thousand tourists had arrived. We went to the nearby town of Agias Calientes for a well deserved beer and a steak meal. Later we got the 4 hour train back to Cusco.My overall experienceThe Inca trail is a memory to savor and without doubt one of the best things I have done on my trip. Parts of the trip were extremely challenging, especially days when I wasn’t feeling my best. However, I felt this definitely added to overall sense of achievement. Day 2 was most challenging and day 3 was most enjoyable for me. Machu Picchu was amazing, but the journey, I feel, was the main part and what I will most remember about the Inca Trail. That and seeing a big morning crap sitting next to the toilet. How he missed ill never know. The guides and porters were super and how the chef made up such delicious meals in these circumstances I just don’t know. We also had a great bunch of people in our group from all around the world. I would recommend Peru Treks to anyone thinking of doing this unbelievable trek. DO IT So that’s pretty much it for now. Except I still don’t feel 100% and am currently taking medication for parasites in my stomach. We are off to Bolivia next where the hygiene levels are even worse. Its apparently a banker for the s***s. GREAAAAAAAAATHope I havent bored you to death
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