yep. thats me at the bottom of this huge inca construction theyve found. it was hard work getting down and much harder getting upagain... my lungs are really missing sea level quality oxygenised air!! so im in cusco as u can see from the pics. im very well. this town-city is amazing. totally what i wamted from s america- allbeit with a a few too many tourists for my liking. it makes it safer i guess but also less special and people are constantly trying to sell u stuff. ive been good so far. bought this poncho today tho from a tiny inca village. couldnt resist, cost 35 soles which is about 11 us dollars. and its alpalca wool which is so soft!! no anniemay, the alpalcas werent hurt... enough of my shopping. so i had a goopd couple of days in lima. we had to be up horris early for our flight to cusco which was then delayed of course because of the fog. got here yday morning, had an orientation tour from our kiwi guide kylie then settled into our surprisingly nice hotel. big rooms and pretty courtyard. the hot water isnt reliable but what ya gonna do! i slept a while after that. im afraid altitude like this really hurts, climbing stairs is exhausting and u just cant breathe enough. aparently ill acclimatise tho i wasnt loads better today... then wewent out for a nice dinner after another tour meeting. slept very well tho up early for todays tour. ul see from the pics what we toured. needless to say it was unimaginable... spent some time browsing the multitude of tourist stores. a woman has gone home to knit me a pair of gloves in my size this evening. 7 soles- 2 dollars! theyre cute and purple mittens andhave lamas on them so hope they turn up tomorrow. and weve been to an exciting restaurant tonight for ginea pig. was interesting. fatty rather than meaty but worth a try. the food in general has been great actually- better than id expected. sorry to lora and other veggies reading this but its a local delicacy. tried alpalca kebabs too, actually much nicer. then headed to the highest irish bar in the world . off to bed now. just wanted to update you. im well, a little sunburnt as the sun is intense so high up. ollie the octopus and i have made some good friends as you can see. ollie pics mainly for chris benefit as he bought me my travel campanion. busy busy busy. off white water rafting tomorrow. then meeting about the inca trail and we have to get all packed for it before we go to bed weds night. we give 5 kilos to the porter of our stuff and carry some day provisions , leaving the rest here but have to decide what to take and not..... you know how bad i am at packing light. but as i can barely climb stairs its a good motiuvator! just to say sorry but i may be uncontactable for a few days. i start the trek on fri morning- yes my birthday will be hard work!! and not back to civilisation till tues. ill get online if i can..... love to all, sianyxxx