Jamie & Henry's Holidays, Cruises & Travel

Woke early. Very excited but also very nervous. Had we packed the right things? Would we cope with it all? What would the rest of the group be like? We expect everyone else was having similar thoughts that morning. Caught the 10.05 flight from Stavanger to London. Heathrow was horrible: dark, crowded, hot and noisy and we had a long time to wait before meeting everyone at 15.30. Everyone seemed nice, a great mix of personalities. A flight from London to Madrid first then a long flight from Madrid to Lima. Lima airport was a bit stressful but quite civilised. We had some trouble sorting out a bill in the coffee shop with some of the group paying in dollars and some in Nuevo soles. This was our first brush with the confusion of using two currencies innPeru - made even more confusing by the fact that ‘dollars’ and ‘soles’ sound very similar in Spanish – but it was something we were to become used to. Had a short flight to Cusco with wonderful views of the Andes. Not all the seats had life jackets. The sign for my seat said ‘Use bottom cushion for flotation’ and the safety video said “In case the flotation device is a seat cushion put your arms around it and hold onto the handles” Luckily we didn’t need to!

I had my first drink of Inca Cola on the flight. Henry had lemonade. It looked like carbonated urine but (luckily) tasted a bit like Tizer. The plane flew around Cusco in a curve before landing on what looked like an impossibly short runway. Getting off the plane the sharp, bright colours and the clear air was overwhelming. We walked (sedately, mustn’t rush at altitude) into the terminal building, thankfully retrieved our baggage and struggled out with it to the two buses which were waiting to take us to the hotel. All the luggage went up onto the roof of the smaller bus. Brightly dressed women swarmed around us selling hats and jewellery and handing small packets of coca leaves, costing s/1, in through the windows of the bus. As I’d read that chewing coca leaves helps relieve the effects of altitude I bought some but didn’t really know then what to do with them. Tried chewing a few but they tasted like rather elderly bay leaves. Found out later that you are not supposed to swallow them but give five or six leaves a quick chew, tuck the wad into your cheek and just swallow the juice from them.

We have a lot to learn….

Our hotel looked a bit unfinished when we arrived but was actually being improved and the inside was very welcoming. We all collapsed around small tables and were served coca tea –
not to everyone’s taste but I liked it; better than the leaves anyway!

We found our roommates and set off to inspect our rooms. They were lovely; spacious, light and clean with huge beds, large tv’s, and a modern, Scandinavian style bathroom. We soon found out that these stylish bathrooms did not always supply hot water and, of course, had the ubiquitous bucket for the used loo paper but these were minor inconveniences.

Lunch was at 13.30 although our body clocks were telling us otherwise. After this most people ventured out into Cusco for some sightseeing. The road up to the main square – the Plaza de Armas – was a gentle hill but had us puffing and moving much more slowly than usual. Cusco is
3360m (11,000ft) above sea level and the air is thin. We saw lots to amuse and amaze us. Paid a couple of soles to take a photo of a brightly dressed lady with her daughter and a lamb and fought off lots of eager young boys selling postcards and paintings. One of them told us he was the Pablo Picasso of Cusco!

We went into the cathedral and borrowed MP3 players for a guided tour. Learnt how the Spanish had managed to graft Catholicism onto the existing Inca beliefs to make it more acceptable (in the same way in which they built most of their churches on top of Inca temple foundations). The decorations were splendidly overblown and lavish with much use of mirrors, gold and silver. There was an amazing painting of an earthquake devastating the Plaza de Armes and another of the last supper with a cuy (guinea pig) as the central dish rather than bread, and avocadoes and mangos on the table. There were several different Madonnas in their elaborate side chapels all looking like toilet roll covers and we saw a statue of St. Anthony to whom women pray when they want a husband. There were lots of written appeals at his feet and apparently every Friday he is turned upside down in order to remind him of these requests!

We also saw the Black Jesus: an icon of huge significance to the people of Cusco. He is reputed to have stopped an earthquake by being paraded around. Back at the hotel we managed to stay awake for the evening meal at 19.00 and then collapsed into bed.

Woke up feeling terrible. Head pounding, very nauseous, bad tummy…Henry was fine. Altitude sickness feels a lot like a terrible hangover. Crawled down to breakfast but couldn’t really eat anything. Most other people seemed bright-eyed and bushytailed but perhaps I only saw the ones who were feeling okay. We left the hotel at 8.00 on two buses again and drove up above Cusco to an Inca site called Tambo Machay which was probably a site for water worship. We were introduced to our Peruvian guides: Wilfredo, José Luis and Danny from the tour company SAS (South American Sites).

We walked downhill to Puca Pucara which means ‘Red Fort’. Beautiful views from here and a good vantage point for the Incas to protect the area. Walked further down in the direction of Cusco and stopped for our lunch in a wooded area. Had our first taste of how we were to be spoilt on the trek. There was a Peruvian band playing to greet us; three toilet tents; bowls of water with soap and towels; a splendid buffet and a long tent, with tables, stools and table
cloths, for us to eat in. I was feeling much better and hungry after my meagre breakfast so was able to do justice to the lunch and washed it down with Inca Cola and coca tea. Lots of stray dogs running around hoping for titbits. After lunch we were introduced to some more of the people who will be looking after us on the trek.

Then we continued downhill to a large Inca site called Sacsayhuaman (and pronounced disrespectfully as ‘Sexy Woman’ by all the guides). This was an amazing place with massive stones which originated in quarries 10km away. How the Incas cut and shaped them, let alone moved them, is wonderful to contemplate. They left small gaps between the larger stones to allow for heat expansion and so enable the walls to withstand earthquakes. This is one reason why the incredible, mortar-less Inca walls still stand today while much of the Spanish architecture has suffered. There is a mound known as the Inca’s throne but also called the sliding place because of the long, smooth channels in the rocks down which the local children slide. There is a theory that the Incas also brought their children here to play and, by observing them, decided on their future place in society. If they seemed to be fast runners for example then they might become chasquies: the messengers who ran the trails connecting the Inca
Empire together or if they built things with stones then they might become architects.

We walked through a short but pitch-dark tunnel before climbing up to look down on what may have been the main part of a garrison. This large area is shaped like puma’s head with its massive zigzag walls representing the raised hackles and the street pattern of Cusco below it is
(or was before it expanded) laid out in the shape of a puma’s body. We walked down into the city and back to the hotel for showers (some of them hot; others not!) and a change of clothes before walking up to a Peruvian restaurant in a street close to the cathedral to have a meal together. Henry and I tried a small piece of roasted cuy – rather gamey.

Down to breakfast at 7.00 and then had to persuade everything back into our bags as we were leaving the hotel today. Had a long scenic drive to Pisac stopping on the way for photos of the Sacred Valley with the Urubamba River winding through it. Pisachas a famous craft market – lively and colourful - so there were good shopping opportunities Stopped in Urubamba town for lunch in a buffet-style restaurant then on to the home of a local family to taste chicha. This is maize beer and when you see a house with a red plastic bag tied to the end of a long stick you know they are selling it. Went into a primitive bake house and were served chichi from large vats. We also tried a version made with strawberries. The guides explained to us that it is customary to make a little offering to Pachamama, the earth-mother, before you drink. This involves pouring a little chichi onto the ground. Saw the family’s guinea pig collection: about sixty of them in assorted colours and sizes all running around in a stable and eating maize stalks.

Wilfredo told us that families often keep huge numbers (his grandmother had 300) and may share the house with them so that they act like living and edible insulation!.

From here we went on to Ollantaytambo which is halfway between Cusco and Machu Picchu (tambo means resting place) and was where we were staying that night. Ollantaytambo is Wilfredo’s home town. It is small and unspoilt and dominated by a huge, unfinished Inca Sun temple. Most of the inhabitants still live in original Inca dwellings. The beautiful mountain opposite the temple has the face of the harvest god carved into it as well as Inca granaries placed high up where the wind could keep the stored food cool. The massive stones of the sun temple were brought from seven kilometres away across the valley. The cultivation on the valley floor is laid out in a shape of a pyramid and Ollantaytambo itself has the shape of a llama. It was a bit of a challenge to climb up to the sun temple (lots of steps) but we all managed it and, afterwards, were entertained by some children from the mountain villages singing to us. We had a quick look around the market; stopping at the stall run by Wilfredo’s mother and buying a book about the Sacred Valley written by his brother.

We then went to Ollantaytambo lodge where we were staying and had a long talk from the guides about the whole of the trek which was really a bit too much for tired brains to take in. It began to thunder and we had some heavy rain that evening but most of us ventured out to eat in one of the many little restaurants in the town.

Tomorrow we were to start the Inca Trail proper and before bed we had to sort out our ‘essentials’ for the trek because we could only take eight kilos with us. We were all given a special bag to pack this in which the porters on the trek would carry for us! These bags had to be weighed and many of us were over the eight kilos and had to think (and pack) again.

Up at 5.30, breakfast at 6. A beautiful morning after last night’s rain: clear skies and sunshine. Today we were to start the real Inca trail. It is not that long - only 43km - but you walk up 2150m and down 2100m so it’s tough. We left at 7 and were driven up the valley to K82 (the tiny settlements only have the names of their point on the railway track) to start the trek. We had to go through the official checkpoint and cross the river on a suspension bridge. The walking was not too bad today as we were not too high - although we were getting wise to Wilfredo. If he described the terrain in advance as ‘undulating’ we could expect to struggle. I’m not sure where he got this optimistic word from but I suspect he used it tactfully to avoid being honest about how much we would have to work. There was one particularly hot and steep bit of the path and Wilfredo did play his queña (a type of Andean recorder) to encourage us up. Lots of steps today and lots of humming birds. Had a good view of the spectacular Inca site, Huillca Raccay. Stopped for a wonderful lunch in two large tents by a cooling stream. It was windy so the porters were actually holding the tents down from the outside!

We camped at Huanllabamba and met our two-person sleeping tents for the first time. The evening was a bit chilly but we sat outside and had a quiz. Dinner was delicious. Went to bed at 19.30 because I was exhausted and had another early start in the morning. Not many people slept well due partly to the altitude and partly due to the fact that the tents were pitched on a slight slope and we kept sliding down in the night. I woke up in the night and read my watch upside down so thought it was morning! Luckily went back to sleep.

Up at 5.45. Henry and I discovered that we had rolled on our bladders (our rucksack ones not our actual ones) in the night and quite a lot of things were a bit wet (including this book). Set off at 7. Lots of climbing today and really spectacular views. Every time I checked my watch I was amazed to find it still so early.

The altitude was beginning to make the walking tough but the porters just ran past us carrying not only most of our personal gear but also all our food, tents, tables, stools, crockery, cutlery, cooking equipment, washing bowls etc. One even had a tray of fresh eggs balanced on top of his huge pack. They were all very heavily laden and somehow the smallest, oldest ones always seemed to be carrying the most. As they went past our only job was to get out of the way so our walking would be punctuated by cries of ‘Porters!’ or ‘Chasquis!’ from the people behind. As they passed us there were always big smiles, high 5’s and calls of ‘Hola’. It all made me feel very guilty and uncomfortable until it was explained to me that the porters are mountain farmers
who are very pleased to be able to supplement their scarce income in this way. Also they now have a union and strict rules about the weight they can carry. I still felt quite bad about it though.

As we climbed the altitude really began to slow us down. The guides gave us some alcohol – just to inhale – made from Amazonian flowers. It is meant to help your breathing. Lunch was at a beautiful plateau called Llulluchapampa with views across the valley of a snow-capped 5,200m mountain. After lunch came the challenge of Dead Women Pass. At 4,200m this was the highest point on the trek and the climb up to it was gruelling. Towards the top every step was hard and we had to follow the guides’ advice to stop frequently and take three deep, slow breaths. Everyone made it and there were many congratulations and emotional moments at the top. Wilfredo played ‘El Condor Pasa’ on his queña and, suddenly, a real condor was gliding
overhead. Much excitement as this is considered a fortuitous sign.

The way down was a steep, three hour slog with lots of steps and then rain to welcome us into camp at Pacomayo. Everyone was very tired and most of us found it difficult to eat dinner (although it was all delicious as usual). We had walked for ten hours or more and tomorrow would be an even longer day with two more passes to go over.

Firstly, we both have to apologise for the sudden halt in posting and the radio silence for the last year (God has it been that long!). Henry works for a travel company and so can get asked to relocate to the other side of the world in a matter of weeks, and that is what happened last February. After Henry worked for 3 months in India we decided to continue traveling around South East Asia for the rest of the year as we have never been there before. We had an absolutely great time, but it poses a bit of a problem now. I want to continue writing up our Peru trip, but Henry is very keen to blog about the SE Asia trip so that our friends and family can learn what we have been up to.

We have come to a compromise and so the result will likely be a back and forth mix of the two, so we again apologise in advance if its a bit difficult to follow, but it should hopefully entertain!

Picking up where we left off...

A very cloudy start to the morning and a steep uphill climb to the lovely Inca site of Runca Raccay where we performed a ritual, involving three coca leaves, for Pachamama. The weather stayed cloudy which meant that we didn’t see many views but it was nice and cool for walking. We had our lunch at the second pass, in the mist. When I looked down at my place setting I saw that one of the waiters had folded our paper napkins into lotus flowers. For someone used to getting a squashed sandwich and an apple out of her rucksack for mountain-top lunches this was truly a bizarre and unbelievable sight. We tracked down the porter/waiter responsible and gave him a quick burst of applause.

After lunch we pushed on towards the third pass through sub-tropical jungle with orchids, thick moss and creepers. At one stage we passed through an Inca tunnel where the guides had great fun hiding in a niche and jumping out at people as they came cautiously through. At the top of the third pass the cloud cleared enough for us to catch a glimpse of the Quechua rainbow flag on top of Machu Picchu mountain. We then walked to the beautiful Inca site of Phuyu Pata Marca (meaning ‘Cloud Level Town’) with its amazing stone work. This site was possibly associated with Inca water worship or astronomy.

After that we had another tough descent with loads and loads of steps to our campsite at Huinay Huauna (meaning ‘Forever Young’ and named after a species of orchid). This is where the Trekkers’ Hotel is and is a very busy campsite being just outside the Machu Picchu Sanctuary. Our porters had secured for us probably the best area for our tents with heart-stopping views out into the surrounding mountains. Everyone was exultant as we had met the challenge of the Inca Trail and would be at Intipunka (The Sun Gate) tomorrow morning. We had a brilliant time sitting around outside before dinner drinking lots of beers and making everyone do ‘Cheers!’ (or ‘Salut’!) around the whole circle and shouting ‘Mind the Beers!’ idiotically every time anyone went near the crowd of full beer bottles on the ground (you had to be there!). Dinner lovely again and a bit of silly dancing afterwards. Early start again tomorrow.