Hello all, sending lots of love from La Paz, Bolivia. We made it! Left Peru 2 days ago (boo) and crossed the boarder (two huts with fairly suspect looking guards in them) and entered Bolivia! Only half an hour spent at the boarder as opposed to the 4 and a half spent at the Ecuador/Peru boarder so all has started very well. I am currently sat in our hotel feeling pretty sorry for myself as I have a fever, boooo. But it is the perfect time to sort out the blog; a silver lining to the illness cloud!

Our last week in Peru was fantastic: Inca Trail, Machu Picchu and Lake Titikaka.

The Inca Trail. Oh my goodness. It was such hard work! But the most amazing experience. Day 1 everyone was full of beans, especially a couple of the lads who were setting a frighteningly fast pace and overtaking our guide. This worried me; walking at that pace for 4 days would kill me for sure. But after a telling off (of sorts) they slowed marginally, but kept up a quick enough pace that we finished each days treking way before predicted time. Lovely. This meant more time at each campsite to sleep, rest blistered feet, eat, and play cards.

Day 1 was relatively easy (apart from the ridiculous speed at which we were powering at) with a fair few stops for Inca ruins, but day 2 saw us encounter Dead Woman´s Pass, named so due to the amount of people who die climbing up it. Joking. The mountain looks like a woman aparently, and upon reaching the top you find her nipple. Anyway, the pass was situated at 4,200m; we trekked for 7Km, climbing 1200m to reach the pass. Haaard work. All was going well until nearing the top when the alititude kicked in and breathing became hard. However, I plugged in my ipod and Legally Blonde the Musical helped me climb the last 200m. Cheers Elle. The second we reached the top it absolutely chucked it down, which meant that climbing down on slippery Inca Trail rocks was a safety hazard. Sexy ponchos on. Concentration needed. Reaching the campsite was absolutely heavenly after day 2.

The campsites- we had the most AMAZING team of porters, chefs and guides looking after us. Upon reaching the campsite we had to do absolutely b***** all. The tents were set up for us, food ready and waiting (breakfast, snacks, lunch, afternoon tea and dinner all provided and all so yum), and our duffle bags there for us to collect. A team of 19 porters practically ran the trail with absolutely everything strapped to their backs, whilst we struggled to breathe. Amazing amazing men. The oldest, Juan, was 67 years old. Woweeee. We were awoken each morning with a cup of coca tea in bed. We couldn´t have done it without them.

Throughout day 3 we went through many different climates and terrains- the scenery was stunning. A couple more passes saw us reach 3950m and pass through lots of cloud forest- beautiful. We also stopped at more Inca ruins- amazing structures which our guide Ray explained to us clueless tourists. Day 3, all well and good until the Gringo Killer. Gringo= white person. A 5km trek, easy, right? But this was all steps, dropping 1000m to a height of 2600m above sea level. Not fun. I have never had problems with my knees but after that section of the trek they were not happy with me at all. Again, a relief to reach the campsite.

Our final day saw us rise at 3am to get breakfast and get ready for the final day of trekking at sunrise. The trek was lovely; fairly flat (heaven) and at 2700m so breathing was fine. The scenery was stunning, like a film set, and the sun rising over the mountains was so special. An amazing end to the trail. We reached the famous Sun Gate to catch our first glimpse of Machu Picchu; it is huge! So much bigger than expected. The Lost City of the Incas really is a City, and it´s still so amazingly intact and together. Temples, housing, quarries, storage, agricultural areas- they had it all! Such a special place. Walking the final 2km up to the site was strange; having seen it so many times on post cards and the internet etc, Machu Picchu and the fact that we had made it there seemed unreal. The feeling of reaching our goal, one of the seven new wonders of the world, after 4 hard days was absolutely awesome.

We took the classic photograph, had a toilet stop with a sit down toilet (OMG!!!), and ate a chocolate brownie to celebrate. Seeing other people puffed out from climbing the hills at the site made me feel very proud of us all for completing the trail: they do not know the meaning of puffed out. Haha. WELL DONE TEAM. We did good. :)

The next couple of days spent in Cuzco were recovery days. We all embarked on the 24 hour challenge upon returning from Machu Picchu; we got up at 3am, so that only meant staying up until 3am the next day. I managed 23 hours of the challenge. At 2am I was dead to the world in Mythology; falling asleep in a nightclub is not my style so I sensibly went to bed. Didn´t fancy staying up with the few locos people sat staring at a countdown timer on their phones. Not cool lads!

Cuzco is really beautiful, a lovely city to wander around, so we went for food and trips to the markets and just took it easy for the next couple of days before heading to Puno.

Our time at Puno was spent on Lake Titikaka, visiting the reed islands and Amantani island to spend the night with a local family. It was a really special experience and one that will always stay with me. The boat was SO SLOW. This meant lots of napping, sunbathing and reading, which wasn´t a bad thing. We first reached one of the reed islands; a floating island with 6 families living on about 70m sq of floating, woven reeds. Really the most bizarre existance. Unreal. I don´t know how they don´t go mad or end up killing each other. Thomas, the leader, did however show us that he had no grey hairs at 60 years old! I guess there is not much to worry about when you live in the middle of a lake. And also, Philip Schofield was there! How´s that for a celeb spot!

Our next stop was Amantani Island. We arrived and met our host families (we were staying with Natividad and her husband, Santiago, their daughter, Olga, and her 5 children- a busy household!). To be able to experience another way of life and to be welcomed into a household where they wanted to share their way of life with you was pretty cool. The boys played football in the afternoon against the local lads, and us girls went for a hot chocolate with Baileys- living it up! In the evening, we had dinner with our host families and then were dressed in local dress and danced to local live music in their village hall; it was lots of fun and a fantastic experience.

Leaving in the morning we said goodbye and headed to Taquile Island for some food and a wander around. The views were stunning. Lake Titikaka is absolutely enormous- too huge to imagine, even after visiting a small section of it. Once back in Puno we headed out for a meal and were greeted by lots of little witches and cats and zombies: halloween! All the kids were dressed up and Puno was busy busy. Feliz Halloween chicos.

The next day we were up early and on our way to La Paz. Unfortunately we said goodbye to some of my very best friends the other day which was so so sad. There were lots and lots of tears. I will miss my girlies, Desiree, Isabelle and Lea, soooo much, but we have lots more to look forward to. Very excited for what Bolivia has to offer and even more excited for Argentina. Can´t believe I have less than 3 weeks left though, then on to Australia. Time is going so quickly!

Hope all is well at home. So much love being sent to you all. Mwassies. Big kisses. Think of you often.

xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx