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We started the morning early again, I was awake at 5am. We're told it's because of the altitude and our bodies go in and out of sleep because of the oxygen levels.
We got showered and had an early breakfast, they had cornflakes and yoghurt and banana!! Delicious! Just what the doctor ordered, way too much bread for my liking!
We had to pack an overnight bag for tonight and tomorrow we will collect our big rucksacks from the hotel in Arequipa where we are leaving them.
Once we got into the minibus that was taking us through the Colca Canyon and into Chivay; today we were going to reach the highest altitude on our trip - 4990 metres about sea level!!
We went through the canyon, climbing all the way. We reached around 3700 metres above sea level and stopped for cocoa tea and the toilet. The tea is so good but it smells like weed, I like the smell of weed so it's all good for me I suppose! There are so many pretty textiles about the place it's hard to stop myself from buying them all!
Next stop was on the side of the road of what was now the salinas aguada national park where we spotted Peru's sacred and national animal, the vicunas. They're sort of look like a lama but are a lot prettier and more petite with orange coloured fur. Even if you accidentally run over a Vicunas in Peru you can potentially be sent to jail for it.
Here you can buy alpaca wool as a scarf for around 80-100 Peruvian soles, however vicunas wool as a scarf is $800. The locals that live up in the canyon are allowed to take only a certain amount of wool from the animals per year, unlike alpacas.
I'm feeling the attitude a little now in the head, I'm light headed and have a bit of sinus pain but nothing compared some people who are feeling sick aswell.
On the road again we spotted a volcano that was erupting, it didn't have larva coming out of it of course. But it had a huge cloud that you could tell was coming out of it. It first erupted in 1989 and hasn't stopped since!
The inca's used to worship volcanos and would sacrifice young pretty girls as an offering to them. - how delightful of them!
We had to stop in the hills for the train to pass, it was built in the beginning of the 20th century Renzo says. There were three big railway lines built throughout Peru to transport goods and supplies. The UK and USA caught on to the idea of bird poo being a good fertiliser for crops and land so began to trade with Peru which encouraged an economic boom and the railway was used more for transporting bird fertiliser to and from the jungle and highland to the ferry ports.
I began to feel the altitude a little and needed some more oxygen so I tried a few of the cocoa leaves that Scott had bought, I tried them the way Renzo showed us... wrap about 8-10 leaves around a piece of vegetable charcoal stuff and chew, then swallow the saliva until it's all pretty much gone and then spit the remains out about 8-10minutes. Safe to say, I really don't like the cocoa leaves! Plus they make your mouth go numb, I couldn't feel the one side of my tongue for about 30 minutes afterwards! I suppose I can tick that off my drugs list to try though, aye! ;) haha!
We got introduced to a bunch of wild and partially domesticated lamas and alpacas, I thought they were one animal with two different names but turns out they are two different animals! Who knew....
So, Lamas walk with their tails up and have a less hairy face and alpacas don't walk with their tails up and have very hairy faces! (Alpacas are the cute ones, it's a shame that I'm going to indulge in one later on in the trip!)
We finally reached our highest point of the trip, 4990 metres above sea level! That's bloody high if you guys didn't know... oxygen is very sparse (it's a good job I'm used to not having much!) my drugs were at the ready... no not cannabis or cocoa leaves! Ventalin - the good stuff!
The majority of the bus felt light headed and dizzy, we all had to walk very slowly! There were a few that were really poorly and had the sickness and migraines.
Almost all of us had blue lips and had lost our winter glow we had gained since being in Peru. As we climbed back down the other side of the mountain into Chivay town we started to regain consciousness and colour in our faces again.
Chivay was a tiny little town with only 6000 people living in it. The town is the capital of the Colca Canyon and holds the entrance point to the canyon. Before the Spanish invaded there were 60,000 people living throughout the Colca Canyon, now there are just 16,000 people. They invaded because they knew it was the biggest canyon with people and crops so therefore more people to order to work in the mines and other industries for them in Peru and Bolivia.
We went for an all you could eat buffet lunch with traditional food for just 30 Peruvian soles. We even had traditional Peruvian music, It all seems to sound the same to me but Rob bought a CD with a tonne of traditional music on. Each to their own.
We checked into the hotel, everyone runs for the wifi as usual, and this time it's not working - haha!
Our rooms were really nice! Two double beds with three squishy pillows each and a thick duvet, the bed was also very comfortable!
Scott was inspecting the plumbing and the finishings to the bathroom - as usual. It's a tradition of his it seems. It's very fascinating yet strange to watch him smiling to himself, hold onto all the pipes and run his finger across the seal of the sink, etc. etc. etc. It's like watching a creature in its habitat, quite content!
We chilled out for an hour or so in the lobby before getting ready to al go to the natural hot springs in the valley.
It was windy and getting a little cooler at about 4pm now, we are about 2500 metres above sea level I believe. So a little lower than Arequipa.
We walked down to the springs, they were natural but small. Renzo was expecting them to be busy because it's a national holiday here worshiping some virgin girl god. However, they were quiet with only a few locals there. So we all jumped in and enjoyed the 35-38 degree heat and of course had an ice cold beer to cool us all down in there. It was really peaceful and relaxing, Scott was having a heart to heart with Renzo about watches and I was selling Bali to an Ozzie which was strange because it seems as though every Australian has been there... except this one of course.
It was pretty damn cold getting out of the hot springs but at least it stopped us sweating when putting all of our layers back on!
We had a slow and out of breathe walk back up the hill.
We all went back to the hotel for an hour or so and dried our wet costumes on the electric heater provided for us. Personally I don't know what everyone is complaining at.. we have a fantastic bed, good plumbing (according to Scott) and a damn good electric heater! Who cares about no tele or wifi when you have home comforts like that! And may I add.... we have a god damn HAIRDRYER! I mean I thought I wouldn't see one of these for at least another two weeks, and by that time I would have no hair left to dry because t all comes out in my wet comb.
(Zoë I feel you with the non-hair drying situation and hair loss! I am now totally on your wave length!)
Afterwards we went to a restaurant in the main square just down the small pathway from our hotel, there was music playing and loads of people in their traditional Peruvian outfits, it was so cool!
We went into a restaurant that had all sorts of food so people could have small amounts if they were still full or big amounts if they were hungry - what ever they liked! For us and the majority of the group we headed back and had an early night because we had to be at breakfast and checked out by 6am tomorrow for our excursion and you just know that when you have to get up you won't want to get up.
There was a festival and music parade beginning at 10pm but I think only around 3-4 people were stopping up to go out and see it.
...I forgot to mention the nationalities of our group!
Me and Scott - 'the Brits'
Sara - 'the Italiano'
Jayden, Margaret, Anne & Rob - 'the Canadians'
Lauren - 'the American'
Slavi - 'the Bulgarian, now American'
Georgia, Ben, Nicola, Jess & Lauren - 'the Ozzies'
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