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Faye and Michelle's Big Adventure
Hey all, below is a recap on the last week in our ever exciting lives... Jealous much?
So following our late night drinking session with the Inca trail girls, we spent the next couple of days recuperating in Cuzco. We were supposed to go on a city tour of Cuzco the morning after but upon waking up and realizing we were both still hammered, we faked a late night hospital dash to the tour agent in order to go the following day! It worked and we spent the following day visiting some Inca ruins, followed by some more Inca ruins and then finished the day off with yes..more Inca ruins. The day was made that much more special by the fact our tour guide couldnt speak a lick of English and our sapanish hasnt progressed much further than 'no gracias'. It was ok though as our wonderful Machu Picchu guide had given us loads of info on Inca history the week before. We spent the next few days in Cuzco trying to avoid the ever increasing rain storms. It seemed to rain non stop and on top of that the buses were all on strike so we didnt end up leaving for Nazca until the night of the 23rd. We decided to take an overnight bus to save on hostel cost and went all out and opted for the cheapest bus possible, a Palomino coach that would take approx 12 hours. Lordy do we wish we hadnt! After 45 minutes of sheer mayhem while everyone and their dog pushed and shoved their way on to the bus we set off. Due to Fayes travel sickness we got seats at the very front so as she could see where we were driving and doesnt feel as nauseous. It turns out however that the seats at the front are designed for those without legs. We didnt even have enough room for our knees let alone legspace! We set off at about 8pm by which time the rain in Cuzco was really pelting down heavy. The roads were completely flooded and we could see cars with their tyres completely immersed in water. We´d previously heard that the road from Cuzco was not great with lots of turns and zigzags around the mountains. The bus was packed full with an assortment of crying babies, spluttering old men and unwashed bodies. Just when we thought it couldnt get any worse the lady to our right began to puke in to a sick bag that we were given at the start of the journey (along with being told to fasten our seatbelts!) The poor lady was making the most God awful gurgling noises and the bus reeked of cat food when she was done..We both felt so sorry for her as even I was queasy at the constant winding driving. Needless to say neither of us got any sleep and arrived into Nazca over 15 hours later looking the worst for wear. Nazca was completely different to Cuzco. Its much hotter as its closer to the coast and the terrain is very desert like. The town is also much smaller with just one main street for restauants/bars and a main plaza that looks like it is only half done. Shockingly the following morning we were informed by our hostel manager that the weather in Cuzco had worsened and reports were coming through of severe landslides in Machu Picchu. The Inca trail that we had been on 7 days before had to be closed and there was already reports of a guide and tourist been killed on the trail. Thousands of tourists were trapped on the trail and in and around Machu Picchu and had to be airlifted to Cusco which had also suffered damage due to the weather. Faye had been saying just the night before that she was surprised there werent any landslides what with how bad the weather was. We were really shocked to hear all of this and felt relieved that we had not been caught up in the worst of it. The 25th of January was my 27th birthday and we started the day with a lovely breakfast at a local restaurant we´d eaten at the the previous night. We then headed out to the mirador, a viewing point overlooking some of the Nazca lines. Although the most popular way to view the lines is by aircraft we had heard mixed reviews from people regarding visiblitly and flight bumpiness so we both decided we didnt want to do it. From the Mirador we managed to see 3 of the shapes, the frog, the lizard and the tree. The surroundings were more spectacular for me however than the lines themselves. Its just desert and sand dune mountains for miles at every angle. The heat was bordering on unbearable so we headed to our next point of interest, The Nazca Lines Hotel. Or more importanly the hotel swimming pool (which was humongous!) We spent the afternoon drinking beers and cocktails and had a spot of lunch to top it all off. It was so relaxing that we spent the next 3 days doing exactly the same thing! The evening of my birthday we headed out for a lovely meal and many glasses of wine :-)
Following our relaxing days spent lounging by the pool we eventually dragged our arses from the sunbeds and headed on a bus to Arequipa. Neither of us ever wanted to experience a bus ride like the one from Cuzco so we spent a little extra money and went with a better more comfortable coach company. What a difference it was! We had special foot rests to stretch our legs as far they would go and were provided with pillows and a blanket! We even had an English speaking movie on the tv screens. Our night was made all the better by the fact earlier in the evening we checked our bank account and there was an extra 600 pounds in it! Previously it had shown as a pending balance so we assumed it was already spent., As we never use the card we hadnt checked the account for ages. We quickly transferred it to our regular account for fear it was a mistake. Added to the small tax rebate I had recently recieved, we now have almost double the daily budget we had before!
So after a relatively comfortable night we arrived into Arequipa on the morning of the 28th. The city is really beautiful and is the second largest in Peru next to Lima. Our hostel was situated right off the main plaza and surrounding it are spectacular views of mountains and the famous El Misti Volcano. Our hostel was also amazing. There had been a mix up with our reservation so instead of a twin with shared bathroom we ended up blagging a 5 bed room with private bathroom for 10 pounds! The hostel also had a roof terrace, 3 tv rooms and a fully equipped kitchen which meant Faye got to do what she loves best, cooking! And I got to do what I love best, eating Fayes cooking! Seeing as we had a bunch of relaxing days in Nazca we got straight back into trip mode and booked a 2 day tour of Colca Canyon for the following morning.
We had a super early start and drove 3.5 hours to a small town called Chivay which is close to the Canyon. Along the way we stopped at a national park and took photos of Peruvian animals called Vicunas and also reached an altitude at one point of 4900 metres. We could immediately feel the strain in breathing and stopped for an emergency cup of coca tea. Once in Chivay, Faye and I had a wander around the very small town. Its more of stop over town than anything else to allow for an early start to Colca Canyon which is better for Andean Condor spotting! In the afternoon we travelled up to some natural hot springs which were over 38 degrees in temperature. We spent a couple of hours there drinking beers and relaxing in the giant baths. Its funny sitting there sweating in bikinis when everyone outside the pool is wrapped up in winter jackets and wooly hats!! That evening our tour guide took us to a local restaurant where they had a live band and dancers specific to the Chivay area to watch over a bottle of red wine. The next morning we were up at 5.00 am and the bottle of wine didnt feel like such a great idea after all!
On the way to the canyon we were warned by our guide that seeing the Andean Condors isnt always guaranteed and after the disappointments of our sloth escapades we werent very optimistic. However, within minutes of arriving at the canyon one flew right by our view point and over the next hour we managed to see 7 and Faye got some very good shots.
Following a great trip and successful bird watching (how sad are we) we headed back to Arequipa and spent the night getting drun on the roof terrace of our hostel overlooking the city. The next day we didnt do much as we had an early bus ride on the Monday booked. Faye made us a beautiful dinner that evening and we spent the rest of the night preening ourselves in our big double room overlooking the main plaza. Yesterday we took yet another bus and headed to Puno (Lake Titicaca) where we are now. As it was only a short 6 hour bus ride we got the cheapest possible and again we got what we paid for. The bus was filthy and Faye was brave enough to venture into the toilets which she described as the worst she has ever seen. However we got to sit at the front and got to look at all the scenery during the ride. We booked inot an equally filthy hostel but it was 50 soles (peruvian money) cheaper than any other hostel we could find so didnt care too much. We took our newly aquired money and added another 150 soles and went out and got completely rat arsed at a tiny rock pub in the centre of Puno. The night ended well after midnight and only after copious amounts of wine and the 2 of us writing our families names all over the bar walls (you are allowed!). Faye also thought it was hilarious to write on her own forehead and the forehead of our new 65 year old Canadian friend called John and both of them spent the rest of the evening with green lovehearts on their faces.
So thats our week so far. Tomorrow we head to the floating Uros Islands for a couple of days so we will catch up when we return...
So following our late night drinking session with the Inca trail girls, we spent the next couple of days recuperating in Cuzco. We were supposed to go on a city tour of Cuzco the morning after but upon waking up and realizing we were both still hammered, we faked a late night hospital dash to the tour agent in order to go the following day! It worked and we spent the following day visiting some Inca ruins, followed by some more Inca ruins and then finished the day off with yes..more Inca ruins. The day was made that much more special by the fact our tour guide couldnt speak a lick of English and our sapanish hasnt progressed much further than 'no gracias'. It was ok though as our wonderful Machu Picchu guide had given us loads of info on Inca history the week before. We spent the next few days in Cuzco trying to avoid the ever increasing rain storms. It seemed to rain non stop and on top of that the buses were all on strike so we didnt end up leaving for Nazca until the night of the 23rd. We decided to take an overnight bus to save on hostel cost and went all out and opted for the cheapest bus possible, a Palomino coach that would take approx 12 hours. Lordy do we wish we hadnt! After 45 minutes of sheer mayhem while everyone and their dog pushed and shoved their way on to the bus we set off. Due to Fayes travel sickness we got seats at the very front so as she could see where we were driving and doesnt feel as nauseous. It turns out however that the seats at the front are designed for those without legs. We didnt even have enough room for our knees let alone legspace! We set off at about 8pm by which time the rain in Cuzco was really pelting down heavy. The roads were completely flooded and we could see cars with their tyres completely immersed in water. We´d previously heard that the road from Cuzco was not great with lots of turns and zigzags around the mountains. The bus was packed full with an assortment of crying babies, spluttering old men and unwashed bodies. Just when we thought it couldnt get any worse the lady to our right began to puke in to a sick bag that we were given at the start of the journey (along with being told to fasten our seatbelts!) The poor lady was making the most God awful gurgling noises and the bus reeked of cat food when she was done..We both felt so sorry for her as even I was queasy at the constant winding driving. Needless to say neither of us got any sleep and arrived into Nazca over 15 hours later looking the worst for wear. Nazca was completely different to Cuzco. Its much hotter as its closer to the coast and the terrain is very desert like. The town is also much smaller with just one main street for restauants/bars and a main plaza that looks like it is only half done. Shockingly the following morning we were informed by our hostel manager that the weather in Cuzco had worsened and reports were coming through of severe landslides in Machu Picchu. The Inca trail that we had been on 7 days before had to be closed and there was already reports of a guide and tourist been killed on the trail. Thousands of tourists were trapped on the trail and in and around Machu Picchu and had to be airlifted to Cusco which had also suffered damage due to the weather. Faye had been saying just the night before that she was surprised there werent any landslides what with how bad the weather was. We were really shocked to hear all of this and felt relieved that we had not been caught up in the worst of it. The 25th of January was my 27th birthday and we started the day with a lovely breakfast at a local restaurant we´d eaten at the the previous night. We then headed out to the mirador, a viewing point overlooking some of the Nazca lines. Although the most popular way to view the lines is by aircraft we had heard mixed reviews from people regarding visiblitly and flight bumpiness so we both decided we didnt want to do it. From the Mirador we managed to see 3 of the shapes, the frog, the lizard and the tree. The surroundings were more spectacular for me however than the lines themselves. Its just desert and sand dune mountains for miles at every angle. The heat was bordering on unbearable so we headed to our next point of interest, The Nazca Lines Hotel. Or more importanly the hotel swimming pool (which was humongous!) We spent the afternoon drinking beers and cocktails and had a spot of lunch to top it all off. It was so relaxing that we spent the next 3 days doing exactly the same thing! The evening of my birthday we headed out for a lovely meal and many glasses of wine :-)
Following our relaxing days spent lounging by the pool we eventually dragged our arses from the sunbeds and headed on a bus to Arequipa. Neither of us ever wanted to experience a bus ride like the one from Cuzco so we spent a little extra money and went with a better more comfortable coach company. What a difference it was! We had special foot rests to stretch our legs as far they would go and were provided with pillows and a blanket! We even had an English speaking movie on the tv screens. Our night was made all the better by the fact earlier in the evening we checked our bank account and there was an extra 600 pounds in it! Previously it had shown as a pending balance so we assumed it was already spent., As we never use the card we hadnt checked the account for ages. We quickly transferred it to our regular account for fear it was a mistake. Added to the small tax rebate I had recently recieved, we now have almost double the daily budget we had before!
So after a relatively comfortable night we arrived into Arequipa on the morning of the 28th. The city is really beautiful and is the second largest in Peru next to Lima. Our hostel was situated right off the main plaza and surrounding it are spectacular views of mountains and the famous El Misti Volcano. Our hostel was also amazing. There had been a mix up with our reservation so instead of a twin with shared bathroom we ended up blagging a 5 bed room with private bathroom for 10 pounds! The hostel also had a roof terrace, 3 tv rooms and a fully equipped kitchen which meant Faye got to do what she loves best, cooking! And I got to do what I love best, eating Fayes cooking! Seeing as we had a bunch of relaxing days in Nazca we got straight back into trip mode and booked a 2 day tour of Colca Canyon for the following morning.
We had a super early start and drove 3.5 hours to a small town called Chivay which is close to the Canyon. Along the way we stopped at a national park and took photos of Peruvian animals called Vicunas and also reached an altitude at one point of 4900 metres. We could immediately feel the strain in breathing and stopped for an emergency cup of coca tea. Once in Chivay, Faye and I had a wander around the very small town. Its more of stop over town than anything else to allow for an early start to Colca Canyon which is better for Andean Condor spotting! In the afternoon we travelled up to some natural hot springs which were over 38 degrees in temperature. We spent a couple of hours there drinking beers and relaxing in the giant baths. Its funny sitting there sweating in bikinis when everyone outside the pool is wrapped up in winter jackets and wooly hats!! That evening our tour guide took us to a local restaurant where they had a live band and dancers specific to the Chivay area to watch over a bottle of red wine. The next morning we were up at 5.00 am and the bottle of wine didnt feel like such a great idea after all!
On the way to the canyon we were warned by our guide that seeing the Andean Condors isnt always guaranteed and after the disappointments of our sloth escapades we werent very optimistic. However, within minutes of arriving at the canyon one flew right by our view point and over the next hour we managed to see 7 and Faye got some very good shots.
Following a great trip and successful bird watching (how sad are we) we headed back to Arequipa and spent the night getting drun on the roof terrace of our hostel overlooking the city. The next day we didnt do much as we had an early bus ride on the Monday booked. Faye made us a beautiful dinner that evening and we spent the rest of the night preening ourselves in our big double room overlooking the main plaza. Yesterday we took yet another bus and headed to Puno (Lake Titicaca) where we are now. As it was only a short 6 hour bus ride we got the cheapest possible and again we got what we paid for. The bus was filthy and Faye was brave enough to venture into the toilets which she described as the worst she has ever seen. However we got to sit at the front and got to look at all the scenery during the ride. We booked inot an equally filthy hostel but it was 50 soles (peruvian money) cheaper than any other hostel we could find so didnt care too much. We took our newly aquired money and added another 150 soles and went out and got completely rat arsed at a tiny rock pub in the centre of Puno. The night ended well after midnight and only after copious amounts of wine and the 2 of us writing our families names all over the bar walls (you are allowed!). Faye also thought it was hilarious to write on her own forehead and the forehead of our new 65 year old Canadian friend called John and both of them spent the rest of the evening with green lovehearts on their faces.
So thats our week so far. Tomorrow we head to the floating Uros Islands for a couple of days so we will catch up when we return...
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