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Buenos Tardes,
Since arriving on our 15 hour bus/hike we have spent a few great days in Cusco which is a brilliant ancient Inca City. The architecture is amazing and it is a great place to wander around. Our arrival coincided with the lead up to the biggest festival of the year in the city. Every day saw street parades, fire crackers and a free concert in the square. (We missed the actual festival day due to being on the trek).
We watched the British Lions Rugby with a large pro Lions group in the local Irish Bar last Saturday and will catch the second test tomorrow before leaving for Puno and Lake Titticatta at night (yes, the bus strike is finally over....we hope!).
Monday saw us leave on our four day Inca Jungle Trek to Macchu Piccu (Inca trek is booked up from months in advance and no cancellations are replaced! We took the Lonely Planet´s advice for the best Bargain Tip for Peru.....and booked an alternative Macchu Piccu trek!). The four hour mountain bike ride from a height of 4200m down to 2500m saw us in freezing, wet conditions where we all saturated within minutes and had lost feeling in our hands. It was easily the worst conditons either of us had experienced (and it didn´t help that we had not brought a rain jacket as we´d been assured that it was the dry season! Nat´s hands also turned completely orange due to the crappy bike gloves provided). Once the elevation dropped, the sun came out and the last two hours of the downhill riding was fantastic....it also helped dry out our clothes, although we still needed to light a fire that night to continue this process!!
Day Two saw us hiking along original Inka Trails hugging steep cliffs as we made our way through the Jungle to the Hot Springs which were a welcome relief! At ngiht we were taken to the local Discotecque/nightclub.....our group of seven were the only customers and it is the only time we have been able to enter a club in shorts and walking boots! Surprisingly good music thou, so we danced for a couple of hours to a huge genre of songs, taking advantage of the five hour Happy Hour!
Day Three was more walking, although this time along disused train tracks to Aguas Caliantes (Macchu Piccu village). Three of us from the group took an afternoon hike up Putucusi Mountain which involved climbing up five verticle wooden ladders (the largest 60m long) to reach the summit which had fantastic views over Macchu Piccu. It was our sneak peak for the following day and well worth the climb.
Day Four was the big day. We left the hostel at 4am to climb the 1227 steps up the mountainside to Macchu Piccu. We ended up 6th and 7th in the queue and waited for the gates to open. As soon as they did, we made our way to the entrance to Huayna Piccu Mountain to book our place (only 400 people are allowed up a day) and then wandered around and watched the sunrise over the ruins. We were very lucky having a glorious clear day to enjoy the sunrise. Throughout the 10 hours spent at the site, we had a two hour guided tour, climbed Huayna Piccu which gives a great view overlooking Macchu Piccu (different direction from the previous day) and spent time just soaking in the atmosphere at this unique and special place.
Unfortunately, 25 photos taken at Macchu Piccu have not been recorded on our camera for some unknown reason. Most of these were ones of us in front of the ruins but we still have loads from the day which is a bonus!
Whilst it was never our ´reason´for coming to South America, visiting the ruins was a truely memorable experience, one of those sights that no matter how much you hear about it, it never disappoints!
Now we head South for our last few days in Peru on the floating islands of Lake Titticatta before crossing into Bolivia.... we can´t wait!
Love Mal and Nat
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