RUINS, RIOTS, STAMPEDES, SNOW, BLISTERS AND RUM!

Hi everyone,

Here we are, having returned from our 4 day trek, and there´s lots to tell!

We set off from Cusco really early on Tuesday morning (5.30am) and had a fairly long journey by bus to our starting point on the Lares trek, funnily enough at a town called "Lares". We had a really tough start........ a 20 min hike up a gentle hill, to some hot springs!! Some people got right in, but some of us just paddled....... it didn´t seem quite right only 20 minutes into our 4 day adventure!

After that we had a lovely lunch prepared by our porters (it´s a hard life) and that was just the beginning of some incredible meals, including popcorn, pancakes, quinoa porridge (a type of grain) and so much more besides. It was truly amazing what they managed to produce from nowhere as we trekked, and nobody ever went hungry!

Well, after our lovely lunch we then began the actual trek, spending 3 hours which was generally gentle and not too severely uphill. We passed gorgeous dirty faced kids who seemed to pop up out of absolutely nowhere to say hello and see if we had any treats to give them. There we were in all sorts of fleece and goretex layers, and they had sandals and bare legs, (but warm ponchos)scampering around oblivious to the cold and winds. There were lots of tiny hamlets that we walked through, and we often met ladies and small children with a blanket spread out on the mud, selling home produced crafts. There were many sights and sounds, colours and smells as we trekked, and all authentic and traditional. It was a real cultural experience.

When we arrived at our campsite the tents were already all up, and really warm sleeping bags, thick mats and even a small pillow were waiting for us..... our porters were the real heroes of our trek. We were given hot water to wash with, then tea and snacks, followed later by soup and a really substantial main course. Later we a had a special and very delicious fruit tea (made with fresh juices) which was turned into "Macho Te" by adding varying quantities of rum. We all went to bed that evening with glowing faces and warm toes........lovely!

After a surprisingly warm and good sleep (thanks to very snuggly sleeping bags and an llama blanket) we were up and away by 7am, ready for the hardest day of our trek. Some of our group were quite unwell due to the effects of altitude sickness, stomach bugs etc but thankfully both of us were absolutely fine, thanks probably to having been at altitude for a couple of weeks already.

Our group was a mixed bag, of different ages although we were two of the oldest there! There were people from the US, Ireland, and England..... not really that mixed (far less so than on our Kumuka trip) and we generally had a really good time as a group.

So, back to the trek. Weather so far had been pretty cold, overcast and frequent rain showers, and that continued through the second day, but it was even colder as we climbed even higher. We trekked uphill for 4 or so hours, seeing some amazing people and places again, and eating lots of chocolate bars! Imagine huffing and puffing up the hills when these tiny local scamps run past as if there isn´t even a hill......... but at least we can blame our inexperience at altitude for some of it. Apparently it takes over a year to fully acclimatise to living at altitude - that´s our excuse and we´re sticking to it!

The last part of our uphill stage was the hardest, being rather steep and at the end of 4 hours trekking up 700 meters (taking us from 3,700m to 4,400m around the same level as Everest Base Camp). When we got to the top there were great celebrations, even though we were being pelted by hailstones at the time. We built a cairn to mark our safe passage, and then began the descent part of our trek. After another gorgeous lunch in the middle of absolutely nowhere, we had another 4 hour trek down quite rocky and loose paths. We´d both hired walking poles and were very glad of them for both the up and down hill sections that day.

Camp was such a welcome sight, and there were varying degress of blisters and sore feet amongst the group, but yet again both of us were absolutely fine, for which we are incredibly thankful! After yet another great night´s sleep, we were meant to leave at 5am but weren´t even woken up until 7pm...... the reason to be explained later on........

It was amazing to wake up all warm and snuggly only to open the tent flap and see thick frost on the grass....brrrrr.......but for the first time we had blue skies and the sun was shining- hurrah!!
We then had a 5 hour trek, mainly downhill again, and it was so warm that Linda even took the legs off her walking trousers......shorts at last, hurrah. We handed out supplies of crayons, books and other items to a group of school children, which was a really weird experience because they are all so desperate for anything they can get. They were so cute, colourful and gorgeous (despite the caked on mud and grime).... if we´d had room in our packs we might have smuggled a couple home!

So, after the last major part of our trek we arrived in an Inca town called Ollantaytambo, in time for a late lunch and a final farewell to our wonderful porters, who worked so hard and did so much for us all the way along the trek. Then the fun really began.... it turned out that we´d had a lie in because the train we were meant to get originally to Agua Calientes had been delayed due to local strikes (a different stike to the one that had blocked our journey from Puno to Cusco!).

We were given some free time to look around Olló before gathering for our train, so most of us headed up to the market square. It seemed weird that every shop and cafe seemed to be closing, but we just thought it was probably to do with siesta for a litle while....but then it became clear that everyone had shut up shop and was gathering in the square for a peaceful protest. However, before we knew it, a police van arrived and loads of police in riot gear swarmed out and then things really kicked off. Tear gas was thrown, and we saw people being beaten with batons in the square. One of our group came out of a shop without knowing what was happening and got tear gas in her eyes, whilst witnessing a severe beating of one local man who was later carried away in a blanket with his face mashed in.

Needless to say the place was in uproar..... and all this was happening just whilst Linda was sitting at the side of the square attempting to zip the legs back on to her trousers....good timing. Penny was concerned that now was a good time to move, but Linda had one shoe off, her bag open and a leg half zipped...... you can picture the scene as people were running towards us screaming and shouting, and Linda carries on zipping her legs on!!

Although it was a really thing to witness it was clear that, as tourists, we were never at risk....the police knew who they were after..... but it certainly wasn´t pleasant and left a few people quite shaken by it. Before this experienec, whenever we saw groups of police on the streets it was a really reassuring site, but now whenever we see a few the pulse quickens until we see the absence of riot gear!

We then had a 5 hour, very squashed and jostled wait at the train station, because everything was in chaos (including protestors sitting on the train track to stop a train leaving). To cut a long story short, our 4.20pm train left at 10.30pm, but with about 4 trains worth of people on it...... we had a lovely journey sitting on the floor with other members of our group some of whom were half cut after drinking 5 bottles of rum between them!

We were sooooo glad to arrive in Agua Calientes, even though it was 12.30am. After getting to our hotel and finding it fully booked, then began another trek to a different hotel, where we finally got to bed at 1.30am, having travelled for 3 days with no showers, wearing the same clothes etc etc. After a really long sleep (NOT!) we were up again at 4.30 to have breakfast (at the other hotel!) before getting a bus up to Machu Picchu...... at long last, we were definitely going to get there, as it really was in doubt the previous day, because the only way to reach Agua Calientes is by train!

What can we say? It was truly amazing. Even the journey up was stunning, as the darkness started to lift and we could see the imposing Andean mountains all around us - Wow! As we arrived at MP not many people were ahead of us, so we were soon into the site and able to see the amazing views for ourselves at long last, a new wonder of the world!

Our guide, Dicber, took us on guided tour around the whole site, and then we had some free time to wander around, sit, soak up the atmosphere, and for a few mad people the opportunity to climb up Wanapicchi, a very steep prearious and slippery mountain that gives an amazing view. We decided against it in favour of actually seeing the place up close and personal rather than spending an hour watching the feet of the person in front of you!

By the end of our time there we really felt like we´d explored it well, and were so glad for our early start. By the time we were ready to leave the place was heaving with tourists and there were no peaceful spots anymore. The afternoon consisted of a little bit of shopping at the market and then a treat..... we went to the hot springs and soothed away some of the aches and pains from our trek......luvverly.

Our train journey back to Ollantaytambo was very uneventful (thankfully) with incredible scenery and comfy seats! A transfer onto a coach then had us back at Cusco last night by 8.30pm, for which we are incredibly thankful. It was straight back to our hostal and straight to bed....... and boy did we sleep!

Today we´re taking it easy, funnily enough, and might even treat ourselves to a massage later before meeting our friends Becky & Gregor for dinner. Tomorrow we´re off on a day tour of the Sacred Valley (we´ve seen a bit on our tour, but there´s lots more to see) and then off to Arequipa on Monday. There we hope to visit Colca Canyon and see the mighty condors - we´ll hear all about it tonight from Becky & Gregor who´ve been on a 3 day trek there.

Well, another long entry, hope you´re eyes haven´t crossed from yet another long entry, but we thought you´d want to hear about yet another amazing trip that we´ve experienced here. Only a week left now and then no more entries....... it all seems very sad.

Watch out for some more photos on Flickr, we´ll get some uploaded as soon as we can.

Bye for now,

Penny & Linda xx