Into Bolivia.....Copacabana

We got a bus from Puno to the border with Bolivia on route to Copacabana.  The bus dropped us off on the Peru side where we had to complete all the exit formalities and change our Peruvian Soles into Bolivianos, then walk across to the Bolivian border and go through all their formalities.  A bit of a faff but we got through ok.

Crossing into Bolivia.

We then got another bus to the beach resort of Copacabana (not to be confused with the place in the Barry Manilow song -  that's a beach in Brazil).  Copacabana is a small town on the Bolivian shore of Lake Titicaca.  The town was busy with Bolivians who head up  at the weekend from La Paz to laze on the beach and have BBQ's.  Its is a very picturesque place with some very good restaurant's and great views.  We found ourselves a nice hostel and then went for a walk along the beach before a couple of beers.

Its a tough life !!!

Copacabana Prom.

In the evening we went for a hike up the hill (behind Gillian in the photo above), to watch the sun set over the lake.  It was amazing.

Sunset over Lake Titicaca.

The next day we took a day trip to the Isla del Sol (Island of the Sun).  After a 2 hour 'cruise' on a rickety boat we were dropped off at the north end of the island at 11am and arranged for it to pick us up at the south end at 3:30pm.    It was quite a tough 10k hike passing Inca ruins, secluded bays and small villages, with the path rising to a peak at 4000 M asl.  On the island we could really appreciate the size of the lake, we couldn't see the shores and it did feel like being at sea.

Isla del Sol.

Isla del Sol.

Isla del Sol.

Isla del Sol.

Llamas on the beach.

Next stop on our trip was to the hustle and bustle  of  Bolivia's capital city La Paz.  Heard lots of good and bad things about the place, so we gotta find out ourselves.

Lake Titicaca

After our trek to Machu Picchu it was time to relax and head to the beach, which in the Andes is Lake Titicaca, the highest navigable lake in the world apparently !!!!

We got our favourite bus company, "Cruz del Sur" to take us on a lovely day trip to the city of Puno on the shores of the lake.  The trip was very nice and it stopped a few times to let us off and have a quick tour around some sights on route.

Cruzin' again !!!!

Off for a spin !!!

 Don't know which is the cutest ?

Woolly goods for sale.

We stayed at a lovely hostel in Puno which was more of a home stay with a family.  Egdar and his wife were very welcoming and had tea ready for us when we arrived.  They also had a lovable dog called Matilda.

Edgar and his wife.

We went our for a day trip to the Floating Reed Islands at Uros where the islanders make there own islands out of  reeds.  They live, hunt, work and play out on these islands, only heading to the mainland to get supplies.  There are schools and even clinics on the Islands.  They have their own local fashion and the ladies wear very colourful costumes.  They are also very good sales people and you leave with lots of hand woven goods !!!!

Uros floating Island.

Island Chief demonstrates how the Islands are build.

The Local Talent !!

Looking over the Islands.

A Reid boat.

Relaxing at the Hostel.

Well Puno would be our last destination in Peru, as the next day we are heading to the Border to cross over to Bolivia firstly to the beach resort of Copacabana, then onto the capital city La Paz.

We have had a great time in Peru, a very diverse country: Mountains, Glaciers, Jungles and Lakes.  Many different types of people from different backgrounds and all of them friendly and welcoming.  I think we could have quite easily spent 6 months in Peru alone !!!!!!

Salkantay trek to Machu Picchu.

After our relaxing time in Ollaytaytambo is was time to get out into the mountains and do some trekking.  We were unable to book onto the Inca trail, as it needs to be booked months in advance but we found another trek that took our fancy, the High Inca Trail or the Salkantay Trek.
We were picked up at 4am from Cuzco, and after a long drive, we arrived at the trail head at Mollepata, only starting at 3400M asl !.  We were lucky again to have great people on our group, Dave and Lee from London , and Robin and Emy a couple of journalists from the UK working in Brazil.

Our Trekking group and Apu Salkantay.

The first day was a toughie.  Peruvian Treks don't seem to bother with acclimatization, they just give you a bag of Coca leaves and off you g1.  We headed up the valley to the pass Abra Salkantay at 4600M,  between 2 huge snow capped mountains Humantay (5810M) and Salkantay (6264M).  It was really tough going - we could only walk a few steps before needing to stop for breath.  Plenty of Coca leaves helped up through it though ;-).

At the Abra Salkantay.

As we descended towards our first camp we got out first sightings of Chinchillas, scampering around the rocks.  Looked a bit like rabbits but couldn’t get close enough for a photo!  Our first camp was at a remote farmstead at the base of of mountain.  It wasn’t too cold in the tent, but we were awoken by a few avalanches from the mountain above.  A bit scary !!!

Alpacas

Humantay.

Our First Camp.

On the second day we descended from the highlands down into the high jungle.  It was nice to be losing altitude and feeling a bit better.  It was also much warmer and lots of different plant life and flowers.

High Jungle region.

We camped the second night at a small village.  Luckily it also had a wee bar so we went up there for a few beers.  We ended up playing cards with the owners daughter who turned out to be a bit of a card shark !!!

Local Card shark !!!!

The third day was quite a short one and involved trekking further down the valley.  There were a few farms on the route so we were able to buy fresh fruit and Inca Kola to replenish our supplies.  We saw lots of different birds and hundreds of butterflies.  A big change from the highlands a few days before.

Andean Shopping Center.

Trekking.

At the end of the day 3 we camped in a small town.  The Bonus here was they had some hot springs which was a great way to end the day.  We had an interesting evening after we returned from the Springs, when we found our guide had decided to get completely plastered and could hardly stand or walk.  Bearing in might we had a 4am start tomorrow morning things were not looking too good!

In the morning we managed to drag a very hungover guide from his tent and march him up the road to start the days trekking.  He was struggling big time, but we managed to keep him going and up the big climb into the next valley.  From here we got our first view of Machu Picchu across the valley.
Cuzco156 – Machu Pichu in the distance.
We then had a massive down hill descent to a hydroelectric power station then a few miles along the railway to the town of Aguas Calientes, which is the town of the base of Machu Pichu.

Start of day 4.

Toward the Hydro Elecrica.

Along the tracks to Aguas Calientes.

In Aguas Calientes we stayed in a hostel, so we could get a good sleep before the 4am hike up to our goal, Machu Picchu !!!!.  We woke very early the next day to rain !!!!!, we couldn't believe it !!!!.  So it was on with the water proofs and head torches and we started the uphill slog to Machu Picchu.  We arrived at the top just as the sun rose and luckily the rain eased off.  It was actually quite good as it made Machu Picchu look very mysterious in the low cloud.

Dean and Gillian at Machu Picchu.

We also climbed the mountain behind Machu Picchu, called Huayna Picchu.  It was about another hours climb.  It turned out to be very technical scramble, especially as it was wet rock.  It was pretty steep also.  Unfortunately the views were not great, but it was a good achievement climbing it.

View from Huayna Picchu.

Don't fall !!!

Ollantaytambo

We decided to take a break from the hustle and bustle of Cuzco and spend a couple of nights in the Sacred Valley at the village of Ollantaytambo.  This is a real gem of a place and we really enjoyed our  stay here.  We stayed a a great hostel KB Tambo, which is also a mountain bike lodge.  The village is a pretty chilled out place with some fantastic restaurants.  Every evening volleyball matches were played in the village square - fun to watch whilst having a beer.
We spent one day hiking to some of the Inca Ruins nearby, and the other day we booked onto a bike trip, where we were taken upto the Abra Malaga (4300M) and cycled back down to Ollantaytambo at 2000M.  It was a fantasic experince, starting from the freezing Veronica Glacier, down through the Andean Highlands past Llama's and Alpacas, through pine forests and into the high jungle.  Luckily it was all downhill, blasting through all the switch backs to the bottom.

Church at the top of the Abra Malaga.

 A cup of coca tea for the cold and altitude.

Ready for the big descent.

Many of the homes on the highlands are similar to Blackhouses on the western isles.

Switchback heaven.

Nice gloves!

More switchbacks.

 Made it to the bottom !!!

And the reward? - Steak and Burritos.

Ollantaytambo Inca Ruins.

(Andean) Border Terrier !!

Cuzco

After Arequipa, we got the overnight bus to probably the most famous city in Peru - Cuzco.  Cuzco is the ancient capital of the Inca people and it translates to "The Navel of the World".  It's also pretty high up clocking in at 3500M asl.  There are lots of  ancient Inca remains scattered around the city.  The main site is called Sacsayhuaman (prononced Sexy Wuman !) which was an old Inca temple.  There are also a lot of Spanish Colonial buildings, churches and cathedrals.  When the Spanish came to Peru and took over Cuzco they destroyed a lot of the Inca building and enforced catholicism on the local people.
We spent 3 days exploring the city, it was very nice but also a bit touristy so we headed off to Ollantytambo in the Sacred Valley for a couple of days for some peace.

Typical Cuzco back Street.

Inca wall at Sacsayhuaman.

Can you see the Llama in the wall ?

Inca Doorway.

Can you see the Puma Paw ?

Overlooking Cuzco.

 Busy Cuzco Street.

Cuzco Plaza