¡Hola!

Our last stop in Peru was Puno: a typically Peruvian sort of city that enjoys a lot of tourism solely thanks to its location on the side of Lake Titicaca, and its proximity to the floating reed islands.The latter are inhabited by a community of people, called the Uros, whose ancestors decided to build their houses out of the totora reeds growing out in the lake to get away from the aggressive Collas and Incas.Despite now being very commercialised, it was a unique experience, and the local's rehearsed routines, showing us how they prepared their food, built their houses and made their handicrafts, were quite entertaining.The traditional dress of the women was amazingly bright against the strawy backdrop of their villages and made for some great photos.Some of their handcraft, such as the rich tapestries, were also the best we have seen, but unfortunately we didn't have enough cash on us to buy them - Sarah's quest for tapestries of similar quality continues.

After visiting the floating islands we headed to a restaurant, with an English girl we'd met called Tasha, to try out Guinea Pig.We had promised ourselves we would try it in Peru, and Puno was our last chance.Luckily for us it was a lot cheaper here than elsewhere, and so we ordered it to nibble at, alongside three normal lunches.This was a good idea, since there was barely enough meat on it to cover a water biscuit, and what was there was fairly greasy and unappetising.Bizarrely, Guinea Pig is a delicacy in Peru that is enjoyed only once or twice a year; having tried it we're not sure what all the fuss is about.What was particularly gross was the way in which ist was presented on the plate, as if freshly run over - teeth still in situ - with its bottom jaw split and spread out to permit easy access to the jowls - apparently a choice piece of meat.

In the evening we went to a great bar called 'Kamizaraky' ('Hello' in the local Uros dialect), which was full of characters on both sides of the bar.It was there that we met two British guys who had just finished driving down from Lima, on some of the world's most treacherous roads, in a tuk-tuk!They were supposed to go all the way to Paraguay in it, but their organisation had messed up the paperwork and they weren't allowed to take the bikes into Bolivia, bringing a premature end to their crazy expedition.

On reflection, we had to admit that Peru had been unexpectedly good.We knew very little about the country before we arrived, other than a bit about Machu Picchu in the South, and we'd assumed the trip down there from Ecuador would be fairly uneventful.Yet with every stop we made Peru surprised us, either through the good nature of the locals, the food, the culture, the desert, the mountains, the city life or the totally unique archaeological sites; there is a little bit of everything in Peru, and the locals are wonderfully relaxed and make you feel right at home.

R&M

x