well everyone it official we have actually made it back from the inca trail alive and we are now back in cusco where we started 5 days ago - not going to lie, we are sore, very very tired, covered in blisters and find any form of movement quite impossible, but god are we happy!

are first day of the tour we left cusco on a mini bus and were taken to a local community around here which gap (are tour oerpators) work with - we got to spend some time with the people in the village (sian also managed to attract a child who would simply not let go of her hand and we were quite concerned we were going to have to take home with us or leave sian in the village!) it was really lovely and we were able to buy souvenirs and even went to a local bar/pub where we could sample some local alcohol made and play games with our group (we obviously had to watch alexs alcohol intake after his birthday as did not want a repeat of that!) it was here that we were first introuduced to s.american toilets at there best, disgusting is the only word for it, out came the anti bacterial spray and its barely been away since! we both had small breakdowns but little did we know that this was only going to get worse!

we also did a bit of walking on the first day through some incan ruins, it was half the way up these which are guide kept referring to as ´such an easy walk´, completely out of breath and soaking wet from the rain that the full extenet of what we were about to undertake hit us, this was not going to be pretty at all.

so then the first day of the hike was upon us - we got up and didnt shower (shock horror i know! no straightners, not hairdryer, nothing) and put on what can only be referred to as some seriously sexy hiking clothes and the boots which we have now come to despise, personally i think we still managed to look pretty hot but alex assured us of other wise and as im sure you will see from the photograhpic evidence we were not at our best - it was such an odd feeling leaving knowing that for the next four days we would be sleeping in tents in the andes. after a small bus journey we got to the check point where we had our passports stamped to officially start the inca trail, it was here that we saw our porters who were to be carrying all of our stuff (other than a small day bag) through the whole trail for us, those guys literally put us to shame, they carry about 25kg each on there backs and run the trail so they can get to each of our stopping places a long time before we do to set everything up. So then the first day of ´trekking´ began, walking sticks in hand we began the ´warm up day´. It was tough but somehow we made it to lunch. We were completely shocked when we were served our first meal, it was three courses of food you would have been over the moon to get in a restaurant, it was completely mental that a chef was cooking all of this on the side of a mountain! we had a food tent to all sit in, proper cutlery and were constantly provided with any drinks or anythign else we needed! hardly slumming it! after another afternoon of walking we made it to our first campsite for the night, and it was time to meet casa de sian and sophie our new smelly, uncomfortable and generally disgusting home for the next three nights. got to say i just do not understand how people manage to sleep in tents on concrete in horrible sleeping bags but i think we both managed to average a couple of hours every night. that night we had our team briefing for the second day which we had been told was the day of hell, and it didnt disappoint!

basically we spent the whole second day cursing our bright idea to spend a ridiculous amount of money to put ourselves on the side of a mountain in the pouring rain with nothing to do other than climb endless stone stairs which at that altitude literally makes you want to keel over every few steps. but we did it and eventually reached ´dead womans pass´obviously aptly named as neither of us thought we were ever going to be able to catch our breath again after that lovely experience. we actaully had such a good time, all three of us were always smiling. however that night we had to return to our lovely tent with nothing but drenched clothes to welcome us. everything down to our underwear was soaking! its a slight understatement to say that this made us slightly sulky so we zipped oursleved in the tent for half an hour before dinner, turned on leona on the ipod and had a little cuddle and resurfaced far happier.

the next day we woke up to start the third and longest day and were welcomed (as always) with a knock on the tent from a porter offering us a hot drink. after covering our feet in plasters to help the blisters and attempting to smother ourselves in deodrant to hide the smell of no showering for days we put on the least wet of our clothes and once again set off. although a really long day, especially with aching bodies it was once again really fun and we kept spurred on by the promise of a hot shower and beer at the third campsite! cant explain how much that kept you moving. that night we went to the bar for a few drinks (with clean hair and bodies, amazing!) to celebrate reaching this point and also one of the groups birthdays but couldnt be too late to bed as had to be up at 4

when the knock came on the tent for our final morning we were so relieved but also massively excited for the day ahead we set off for what were were inccorectly told was going to be a small stroll ( was actually another massive climb including a bit they call the elevator steps which were practically vertical) to the sun gate. climbing for 4 days was so difficult but that view really made it all worth it. lots of hugs and high fives at the top and everyone was in such an amazing mood. the sky was so clear and were were so lucky seeing as its the rainy season. we then walked down to machu pichu itself, which was really quite an emotional experience, finally finishing that massive walk coupled with such an incredible sight was quite overwhelming. after a short tour we headed to get the train home, it was all over....

or so we thought..... We got the bus into town, had a nice leisurely lunch and i happened to comment that i thought it was slightly odd that no trains seemed to have passed in the whole time we had been there. it was shortly after this that our guide entered the restaurant looking less than happy, in fact he looked near tears. he then had to explain to us that some local farmers had chose today to strike regarding poor conditions and had blockaded the train tracks, there is no possible way to travel to this town other by train so basically we were stuck. all anyone had been talking about was taking a hot shower and putting on new clothes and we were so excited about the night we had planned to go out, the whole table just went silent. apparently in these situations the tour group is not liable to help you and the plan was to find a hotel we could all stay in for the night and simply catch the train tomorrow. however it was then we were told that the strike might go on for days and our options were either to leave tonight or have a 12 hr hike the next day. so we chose tonight. this included a 2 hour walk down the train tracks carrying everything including our duffel bags which the porters had been carrying, it was seriously dangerous and at one point when were screaming while stepping carefully over a very frail iron bridge which was above white water rapids we did wonder what the hell was going on. we finally made it to where a mini bus was picking us up. we literally were all wedged on to this bus, no seat belts or proper seats. We were told it was to be a 40 min journey... 2 hrs later ( after diverting round a landslide, was it never going to end? after me and sian attempting to keep everyone happy by singing old mcdonald of the most scary bus jounrey of our lives in the pitch black hanging of the side of a mountain, we arrived in where our other bus was to pick us up. i have no idea where were were at all but basically all there was was a little sandwich shop and tonnes of fellow stranded travellers all fighting to get spaces on the few buses that were returning to cusco that night. after a small wait there we then all piled on to another bus for a 6 hour jounrey to cusco and arrived back at the hotel around 3.30 - what a day, all 24hrs of it! after a quick high five we fell asleep immediately.

today we can hardly walk but like the hardcore heroes we are we will force ourselves to go out dancing with the rest of our group tonight - the group have all been amazing and we seem to have reached a level of over sharing with each other that most people dont find in years of knowing each other, squat toilets and dodgy tummies seem to have that effect.

SH xxx

So a quick update from the male lone ranger…

As you´ve been hearing all about our little South American adventure solely from the girls, I thought I would add a few words of my own.

Firstly, you have to take what they say about me with a pinch of salt. I don´t want to imply that they have exaggerated certain events, but frankly they have! I just wanted to clarify that.

Contrary to that, we have been having an awesome time, and travelling with Sian and Soph is for the most part a doddle! Within a day they were without make-up, a shock on my part but an even greater one on theirs, and within a week they were really letting themselves go, in particular they were relaxing their strict hair straightening and blow drying routine which I had been woken up by every morning without fail! They even tried to straighten my hair but hit some fierce resistance, and duly let it go.

Even more of a shock was how they coped with the INCA Trail. They didn´t hold back with their initial worries - hiking, sleeping in tents (Soph has insisted she´ll never do it again!), not showering for days, etc. etc. - the list was endless. But to give them their due they excelled on the trek, so much so that even I was proud of them. And the biggest bonus was that they didn´t moan! Mums, Dads, siblings and friends should all be proud (Sian didn´t just tell me to write this!).

Let´s be honest though they are best amigos and need their ´girly time´ as I have come to call it. Lads you can understand where I´m coming from, and occasionally taking refuge in the bar with other males is keeping me sane! My limited Spanish has come in use a lot when haggling for taxis, ordering bevies, and generally finding our way round - Sian even admitted she found me ´somewhat attractive´ when I turn on my Spanish accent. Needless to say I now make sure she´s out of earshot!

I´m slowly turning them into seasoned travellers (a very slow process indeed), and so far we have encountered few problems. Needless to say there will undoubtedly be trials and tribulations ahead and I am preparing myself for them accordingly (the psychiatrist is booked!).

Until next time…