Well Im in Peru. I survived the death road in Bolivia. 6 hours of plunging downhill on a mountain bike with certain death just inches away. Im glad I went for the most expensive operator, the bikes were first rate. Some of the drop offs were hundreds of metres. The guide scared the crap out of us all by recounting the various accidents that previous tourists had had. I rode the brakes all the way down!

After La Paz, I went to Lake Titicaca. This is the highest freshwater lake in the world apparently, at 3800 metres above sea level. It is half in Bolivia and half in Peru. As the Peruvians say, Peru gets the Titi and Bolivia gets the caca. Personally I dont get the joke. Anyway, the water is so blue and the air so clear. It is absolutely beautiful beyond words. I rented some motorbikes with a couple of other blokes, and in typical south american fashion, off we raced without helmets or insurance. Ive only ridden a bike on one previous occasion in my life! One of the guys brakes didnt work either. Fortunatly mine was ok! Wow, what beautiful views and great fun racing the bikes over the dirt roads high above the lake.

I am now in Cusco which was the centre of Inca operations. Beautiful city with spanish collonial architecture set within boulder like Inca walls. The highlight of this area is Machu Pichu, the lost city of the Incas. Abandoned in the 16th Century and only rediscovered in 1911, perched high on a mountain surrounded by cloud forest. I decided upon the 5 day trek, and I have to say it is one of the best things I have ever done. Life changing almost. The combination of the amazing scenery and the amazing people that I met was just incredible. You make friends very quickly when you travel, and can make some very meaningful connections with people. We climbed up to an altitude of 4800 metres surrounded by high snow covered peaks, glaciers, and soaring condors. The air is so thin at this altitude that you are slowed down to a slow walk up the steep slopes. We then descended into hot steamy jungle, palm trees, banana, avocado, lemon trees, vines, beautiful orchids, parrots etc. Stunning. On the 5th day, we set off at 4.30 in the morning and climbed 1600 Inca steps up to the lost city which was shrouded in fog. As the fog burned off, the city was slowly revealed and we realised we were high on a jagged mountain surrounded by Inca ruins. Words dont do justice! We spent most of the day walking around the ruins, limping most of the way as by this time out legs and feet were in tatters. then we returned by train to Cusco.

Last night I ate a Guinnea pig. It looked horrible, but I had a few beers while waiting for my order to arrive to give me a bit of Dutch courage. It looked like a roasted rat. Complete with head, eyes and teeth. The only way to stop myself gagging was just to get stuck in, and you are meant to eat it with your hands, so I ripped the little guy in half, and just started chewing. I almost puked a couple of times, but once I got over the mental barrier, I realised that it actually tasted really good. I even ate the eyeballs, but refused to suck out the brains which is what the Peruvians do. Bon appetite!

Tonight a 20 hour bus ride to Nazca. There are the Nazca lines there which I want to see from a light aircraft. They are huge ancient lines on the ground in which patterns are revealed from the air. Theres a monkey, a human, and all sorts.. very mysterious. check out my photos in the next couple of days when I get the chance to post them up!