As has become our custom, we kicked off our time in Cusco with a free walking tour. Unfortunately this time it was in the pouring rain but nonetheless it was still very enjoyable and interesting; we discovered that the name Cusco is derived from the Quechua word q'osqo which means belly button (because it was considered to be the centre of the world), had probably the best pisco sour to date (sorry Chile, Peru wins), and learned to play a tune on a tiny guitar called a charango. We had a bash at panpipes too but struggled - it's a lot harder than it looks. We also got a great tip from our guide to try the Peruvian (i.e. free) entrance to Saqsayhuaman, some Inca ruins just outside of town, which basically just involved walking past the main entrance and cutting across a field. We were lucky with a lovely sunny day (rare in Cusco) so got to have a little picnic amongst the ruins before heading up to see the Christ Redeemer statue - all without having to cough up for the extortionate tourist ticket which would have set us back the equivalent of 3 nights' accommodation. We're getting good at this travelling thing!

In the days before setting off on the Inca Trail, we also wanted to visit the Sacred Valley but didn't feel like being herded around on an organised tour and we'd ruled out rafting based on information that you pass a number of villages en route that discard their waste directly into the river (Lonely Planet advice was to close your mouth if you fall in). So instead we decided to do some mountain biking there. We found a friendly guide who'd just started his own company and ended up with a private trip which was great because it meant we could go at our own pace - which in my case was very slowly. The trip had been described as a "downhill bike assault" and, naively, I had expected something similar to Bolivia's death road - i.e. an actual road. In fact we were cycling down narrow rocky gorges along the edge of a mountain most of the way. Gerard was in his element, as was the guide (who seemed to be in it as much for his own enjoyment as for ours) but it was really not my thing - I definitely prefer to be at a less challenging angle than 45 degrees. On the plus side, we got an amazing view of the Moray terraces and the Sacred Valley was drenched in sunshine all day while there was hail in Cusco so at least we won on weather.

Not so on the Inca Trail! Although when you plan a 4-day trek through the mountains during rainy season, I suppose you have to expect some cloud. Despite the obstructed views we had an amazing time, very much thanks to our awesome group and guides. We walked a lot, we laughed a lot, we looked at Inca ruins a lot, and we ate a lot - the food was incredible, the chef did wonders with a gas stove, even managing to whip up a sponge cake on the last evening! No doubt another contributor to our enjoyment was the fact that we were well-rested; this was my first real experience of camping and I was a bit nervous that I might hate it, especially when we discovered that we had to spend an extra night in a tent because of a strike in Cusco (apparently not uncommon). As it turned out though we were totally spoiled, getting woken up with coca tea in bed in the mornings and having a whole team of guys carrying and setting up all of our stuff. In fact the only thing that made us feel like we were slumming it was not being able to shower for 4.5 days - nothing a hat and some deodorant couldn't fix!

Unlike the Ciudad Perdida, the Inca Trail was very much about the destination and not just the journey (although that was also incredible). On our last day we were up at 3am, had a 2-hour wait at a checkpoint and a very brisk walk to the famous Sun Gate with its glorious view of... cloud. It was a bit of an anticlimax but we didn't have much time to dwell on it as Gerard and I had signed up to climb Huayna Picchu (the peak behind the ruins in all the postcard pics of Machu Picchu) at 7am so we had to race down the mountain to make sure we got there in time. We stormed up, taking out our frustration on the ridiculously steep steps, and just as we got to the top we saw the fog start to clear - after 45 minutes of elation over the ever-improving view, we got our first clear shot of the ruins from an angle that many don't see and which, in our opinion, was the most beautiful. By the time we got back down, the sun was blazing so naturally my stubborn ways forced me to ignore my tired legs and walk back up to the Sun Gate just to see what I'd missed (not much as it turned out) while Gerard sensibly enjoyed the view from a lower point. All in all an amazing 4 days and definitely a highlight of the whole trip.

After a "rest" day in Cusco which involved a lie-in and some serious organisation of buses and hostels for our last week in South America, we booked in another trip with our downhill biking guy. This time I was promised a road on a tailor-made trip that involved a 75km descent from the top of a mountain in the Sacred Valley called Abra Ampraes (going from 4,500m to 1,800m). It was unexpectedly one of the nicest things we've done; the scenery was incredible, we didn't see any other gringos (quite an achievement in this neck of the woods), and we finished the whole thing off with a visit to the Lares hot springs which helped to soothe the residual aches and pains from the Inca Trail. We had a small glitch on the way home when the "driver" (read: taxi) ran out of petrol and we were all forced to get out and walk up the mountain until we hit a road where thankfully we managed to catch a collectivo (minibus) going in our direction. We rejoined the driver at the nearest petrol station and made it back to Cusco without further dramas but of course after all this our hot springs-induced relaxation had faded somewhat. Which gave us the perfect excuse to spring for a bargain massage too. So good.

Our other big indulgence in Cusco has been food. We'd heard a lot about Peruvian food being the best in South America and Cusco was the first place that justified that rumour. Being a tourist hotspot, there are also a lot of restaurants catering to international tastes and we guiltily succumbed to our first Indian in over 6 months (alpaca curry - awesome!) It made me think about other home comforts I've been missing, amongst which family and friends rank the highest of course but there are also a few silly things like my electric toothbrush (sad but true), seatbelts, peanut butter, reliably hot showers, decent internet connection... All of which will hopefully soften the blow when our adventures in South America are over in a few days :(