Well, I've made it back from or inca trail and had a wonderful time, although I think it may take a little while for my muscles and body to recover! We didn't do the "classic inca trail" but instead did a less touristy version which actually went higher. It was great as the scenery was amazing an we only saw one other group of foreigners throughout the 3 days hiking. We stayed in little villages and used the school classroom as a building where we could eat and shelter slightly from the cold temperatures which reached at least -10! It didn't prove to be much shelter though as windows were missing, and no heating existed of course, but it was better than nothing. We were able to interact with the communities and gave out clothes to them which we had funded. Their excited faces lit up as we gave them out and they were so pleased with them. We also had a Quechuan lesson after the snacks one evening before supper and we learnt with Quechuan style teaching repeating words after our teacher over and over again. We covered a lot of vocabulary in a short space of time, so not too much has stuck which is a shame, but can still manage 'good evening' and 'thankyou'. The crew all looked after us aamazingly well, and it's hard to believe how fit they all were at that altitude. Each day after waking us up with a cup of coca tea at 5 or six in the morning they laid on brekkie for us. After we set out on our hike they packed up all the tents for us and loaded up our llamas and horses with that and all the cooking equipment. We then found them overtaking us a few hours later and then met them at our lunch site where lunch was ready and waiting for us! After we set off again after lunch they would have to pack up all the cooking equipment and then we would see them overtaking us shortly and we then met them at the campsite in the early evening with all the tents already set out for us again. Perfect! The hiking at altitude and up the mountains was really hard work. Luckily I didn't get too ill from the altitude and it was only as we hiked up to 4900m on the 2nd day that I had a headache passing over the high pass. After taking photos we quickly started to make our way down and all of us felt better and less dizzy. Now back in Cusco again the altitude isn't really that noticeable. After camping for three nights at baltic temperatures and waking up with ice on the tents, it was wonderful to sleep in one layer of clothes (instead of everything I had with me) and in the comfort of a bed in a hostel.... luxury! We stayed in a town close to Machu Picchu so we could set off early on the train to get there. When we arrived it was so misty you couldn't see any of the mountains which surrounded it which was a shame. After having a guided tour round the site and being a bit dissapointed the cloud started to lift and we were able to see it in it's true glory. The background scenery was absolutely stunning and the vast scale of the inca site became apparent and we were able to understand why it was considered one of the modern wonders of the world. Now back in Cusco again we had big processions yesterday for Inti Raymi. The dancing and music was great and we were able to get a great place to watch it all in the main square. Now part two of the trip is about to begin. New people joined us for the inca trail, and people are leaving us tonight. Tomorrow we will be meeting Gus, our new truck and will be out on the road again making our way to Bolivia. Think that's about it for the update. Tilly x xx