Machu Picchu - Bless you!!

I did it! I did the Inca trail so nur! Thats for the benefit of the ZILLIONS of backpackers who go "what, the proper inca trail? Who did you book it with eh? Hmm?" In a we-dont-believe-you kinda way. Thats because the flippin thing is booked up like two or more months in advance now and eager beaver me had booked it in March. But then its seems I have paid nearly double for the pleasure of sorting it in the UK so maybe you have to pay for certainty.

Anyway there isnt much to tell you - though that doesnt mean it wasnt fantastic. The scenery, Andes mountains, hard death climb to Dead Womans Pass and actually walking through the sun gate were all things I will remember for the rest of my life. I got me a stick (bamboo, its this smelly backpackers season must have) and looked the true intrepid traveller. But I'll keep the 'man, isnt life beautiful, think the world is so big and me so small' thoughts to my written diary...

Highlights
* the mountains, just jaw droppingly beautiful
* the company, forgotten is the annoying American from last year and is remembered six amazing americanos in his place
* the sun gate
* the 'I did it' factor
* spotting a condor flying above Machu Picchu
* the hot spas after smelling for 3 days

Lowlights
* the toilets (a plastic toilet in a tent, with a carrier bag to catch the contents. It stunk. I walked in and then walked out because I thought there must have been some sort of mistake)
* camping in the cold of a night in the mountains
* loosing my train ticket to get out of Aguas Calientes back to Cusco and costing me 40 bucks
* the insect bites - maddeningly itchy still. Want to rip my legs off
* the incident of the Crispy Shins

To clarify the last low light well the last day of the trek got very HOT. Clever me slapped on the suncream but failed to cover the exposed calfs n shins. Result was the worst case of sunburn anyone has ever seen EVER. Really sore. The kind that makes people screw up their faces and whistle. The kind that makes you feel guilty as well as sore. Sorry mum...

So since last friday Ive been in the drinking Black Hole that is Cusco. The hostel, Loki is 7 weeks old and is fast becoming legendary for it being run by friendly pissheads and taking in friendly pissheads. And then no one can leave. A guy called Darren has been here 3 weeks and he still hasnt seen Machu Pichu which he said was the only reason he came to South America. Thus there are many of us in the bar muttering '...fucking Cusco...' as we down another beer.

Better finish this off, gotter meet some people down the pub...

Not quite the hottest spot north of Havana

Well ages ago I was in Copacobana but i havent been in to update this thing. Will be brief anyway.. (yeah right)

So I left my lovely Spanish teacher Maria behind in La Paz after four days of Charades because she couldnt speak a word of the old Anglais so I have no idea if what im saying is even friendly, never mind correct, and then got me on the bus to Copa (in Spanish. Yes check me out indeed)

The only 'Gringa' on the bus and it took like, 4 hours when it should have taken two. Arrived in rainy Copacobana in the dark and was poached by a small lady to go to her hostal. But better than me wandering around in the dark. Missed the pal I had lined up through the Thorn Tree Forum {LP} so took myself off to a groovy bar called Nemos where I ordered in Spanish and the guy behind the bar (who looked like Jesus) answered in a Somerset twang. Chilled out, watched a band and left when some people started to twig I was on my lonesome - a bit tipsy after 3 coronas.

Next day Im lucky enough to meet the prospective pal (whom I had missed the night before) Ben from Melbourne who was also nursing a hangover with the sentence of a lovely ride on Lake Titicaca to Isla del Sol. Met someone who talks as much - and as animatedly - as I do, and before long we were firm pals. That night was a bit of a messy one where I then aquired the ski couple Nick & Claire and all in all Copacobana was a right laugh. On the sunday the whole village turns out with their clean and shiny cars and dresses them in flowers & garlands and gets them blessed in front of the main church. I have no idea why but its probably because of the way they drive in the mountains. Really pretty anyway.

Half way through the Sunday theres a power cut all over the whole village. Pitch black by 6pm, then the rains set in - oooh it was like the war! Hee hee. The locals didnt seem too bothered and it was all business as usual serving food cooked on gas stoves and candles everywhere. It was pretty cool.

Said Adios to Benny Boy and set off with Nick & Claire to Puno, and therefore a new country - Peru baby! Puno saved all of its rain just for us (and the little parade they had on Lima Calle) and we sorted out a trip to the Reed Islands etc.

Islands made of Reeds dont feel as safe as they dont look. Then the boat journey from hell as Lake Titicaca kicked up 3 meter waves and nearly capsized our barge like boat- i was totally sea sick - it took 3 hours to arrive at an unintersting island to spend 2 hours there only to do 3 hours back. Nice! Blurgh.

Left the lovely Claire and Nick behind and headed to Cusco where I was to meet my pals Id left in Bolivia. I gets changed, goes to Paddys irish bar on the main plaza and enter the pub blissfully unaware that im 24 hours early to meet me pals. As soon as I walk through the door I meet the gaze of a person I recognise from work. Well you cant go anywhere can you? Ben - an actor - was on his way to Puno an hour from then. Me not realising im a saddo with no friends budged him up and had a drink. End result was someone informing me it was the 14th not the 15th but by then i had aquired some lovely irish pisshead friends. Late night number one.

Met the girls the next night to say my final sorry goodbyes and had late night number two {details have to be sketchy Im afraid}.

Errr well Friday I was feeling 'a little under the weather' and stayed in. Still hadnt seen much of Cusco...

Saturday I had to meet my inca trail group and Im FULL of cold, sore throat, the lot... grumpy as you like in order to meet the group of canadians, english, japanese, and six, yes SIX Americanos, that were to be part of my pilgrimage to Machu Picchu.

No one sat too near for fear of the lurgy...

Pass the salt

Well, just reading back and you realise that you miss bits dontcha? Like the miners in Potosi look like they are sucking snooker balls because the keep their cheeks packed with coca leaves - and they dont eat all day, just swig from 97% alcohol in little plastic bottles (could be nail varnish remover) and chew those leaves. They must be off their tits!! Anyway there was a bit of a debate about whether coca leaves are cocaine - a Danish guy training to be a doctor said it was, our tour guide Siri was angered and said it wasnt and so we all just stuffed a load in our mouths and hoped for the 'legal in this country' best. It mings and numbs your mouth - you decide.

Annnnyway Potosi was ages ago. After that we set of for the Salar y Uyuni salt deserts. Ummm how can I describe it? Its like going to a slightly warmer Antartica - with white plains as far as the eye can see - dotted with mountains. But all the white is salt. Its mad. Booked into the closed-but-not-if-our-tour-leader-has-anything-to-do-with-it Salt Hotel. Its smack bang in the middle of the plains with all of the above all around it. We are in land locked Bolivia but this place used to be the sea.
Wow.
The 'Hotel' was more like a cottage with a lot of rooms. The floor was an inch thick in salt, the tables, armchairs and beds were also salt. And my GOD was it FREEZING. Just one fire drum in the reception cum dining area. So we all naturally stood around it waiting for dinner. As part of our local tour we had aquired a cook in the shape of Marina. Shy, smiley and always attired in the traditional big skirt n petticotes and a brown Bowler hat (worn at jaunty angle) she supplied the best meals of the tour. We loved her and wanted to keep her.
After this we staggered out into the minus temp night time and were totally blown away by the FANTASTIC galaxy above us. Everyone just stood there going 'f··k me!! I Mean F··K ME!!!!' getting sore necks. I think the reflection of the white floors just made everything.. brighter. Five minutes of awe though and everyone had to go back in to get warm again.

Silly part of the night was salsa-ing to ipod-supplied music in the dining area, lit by candle light and kicking up salt. I dont think the eskimos do it like this but it warmed us up before climbing on the mattress covered salt slabs and hiding from the cold. Morning was an ordeal. Try getting your bottom out for a pee in that place - could turn it to icicles!

Spent the day exploring the plains - and it wasnt enough to visit the godforsaken men of the mines, we now came to the godforsaken men of the salt deserts. We'd drive for like, 40 minutes and then pull up to a series of small salt pyramids and there would be one guy, in a jumper, no gloves but a balaclava over the whole of his face (scary looking) digging away. A little bike perched aside a shovel. And a little hut made of salt. This is where he lives for 5 nights of the week with tins of soup and hard bread. He peddals his little bike back to Uyuni town, assumingly to get arseholed. No music, company, heat. It must turn you a bit strange? Surley?

Continuing the salt theme we went to a salt factory. Grim, bleak working condtions - the men crush the stuff, the women bag it. Into either red bags or blue bags. The salt is the same but one is more expensive than the other ;) Haaaayyyy who said the the Bolivians arent business savvy?

Climed up to see a volcanoe. Winded meself. Nuff said there. Night in a slightly warmer place (ie not somewhere made of salt) and got pissed on a glass & half of vino tinto due to altitude (has its uses).

Left Uyuni on the horrific night train to La Paz at midnight. Starting to think I will never be warm again. Get off train to catch 3 hour bus to La Paz and at lunch time we make it. Then one of our tour gets her bag nicked. So there you go -incident number one- hope I dont clock up too many of those.

So now im in La Paz, got here Sunday. It is, as is most stuff in Bolivia, weird. Its in the middle of a load of mountains, has crazy traffic jams and peaceful protesting in the square in front of the San Fransisco church. A huge snowpeaked mountain overlooks the city and all around it are the favela type slum areas on the steep walls. I didnt really imagine La Paz before I got here, but if I tried it wouldnt have looked like this.

So, finishing off, ive split from the group (bye laydeez - see some of you in Cusco) and im staying here learning Spanish. Which is hard as I dont know any and my teacher doesnt speak English? And ive had food poisoning waa-hayy! Had to happen sooner or later eh?