Back in Cusco, briefly - 2nd Feb 2011

Spent the morning trying to research going it alone to Choqueqierao; this turned into a bit of a non-day. In the end we decided to go with a small firm called Cusco Native, who support education programs for Quechua children and who got some good write-ups. We packed up to once again leave Cusco, and got to bed early, ready for our rude awakening at 5.30.

Gran Hotel Machu Picchu in Cusco, our colonial base

Where next? - 1st Feb 2011

So we entered the “worst month” of the rainy season with a gloriously sunny day, getting the slow train back to Ollantaytambo surrounded by excited gringos, and giving our hotly-contested patronage to a small colectivo back to Cusco, and our bags. It was a quiet evening of salad, wine and planning our next trip – a hike around the under-discovered ruins of Choquequirao, for what we expected would be an experience not unlike that which those hiking the Inca Trail in the 70s might have had.

As I write this we are deciding whether to take a tour or to go it alone (with a local guide), a difficult decision as there are pros and cons to both.

Exploring the Picchus - 31st Jan 2011

Up at the unholy hour of 4.15 so that we could join the queue for the first buses up to the Machu Picchu site. There were stacks of peopled queuing already when we arrived at the bus station half an hour later, mostly under the age of 25 and white. There was a sense of keen competition in the air as we were all vying (so we thought) for 400 tickets to climb Huana Picchu – this is the massive mountain that you see behind the ruins in the “classic” Machu Picchu photo (second in popularity only to that photo everyone takes in front of the Taj Mahal!).

First glimpse of MP from on high

Despite a desperate last-minute rush to buy bus tickets (everyone else had done this the night before we discovered), we made it and in fact were among the first into the Huayna Picchu site. It was a clear morning and walking through the centre of Machu Picchu was an intense and magical experience, very much worth the expense and hassle of getting there.

Llamas in the central plaza

Ceremonial Baths

I girded my loins and faced my fear of heights, the climb taking about 3 hours in total up and down the mountain; when we came down for a late breakfast it had started to rain, and soggy tourists were clambering all around the ruins. Despite the rain and the anachronisticly colourful guided tour groups, it was an amazing experience. We rounded the day off by walking back down the mountain, an experience we are still recovering from as I write this more than a day later.

Laur and me near the summit of Huayna Picchu

Sacred Valley from Huayna Picchu

Laur outside caretakers hut, huayna picchu in background

Farewell to a genuine wonder of the world

In the late afternoon, we soaked our aching limbs in the hot mineral baths that gave Aguas Calientes (hot waters) its name, drinking Cusqueno beer with the towering Andes in the background. We rounded off probably my favourite Monday to date, with dinner at an eccentric frenchman’s restaurant – far and away the best food we’d eaten in Peru, picky westerners that we are.

Exploring Ollanta and travelling to Aguas - 30th Jan 2011

This morning we skipped the main ruins at Ollantaytambo, visiting the “free ones” on the mountain next door, meeting and chatting with a friendly local on the way up. After a final tour of the fascinating Inca village below, we were back amongst our gringo brethren, setting off on the tourist train to Aguas Calientes.

Ollanta's living Inca Village

Quechan folk in Ollanta village

Climbing the "free ruins" at Ollanta

Despite the cheesy pan-pipe music, we were engulfed in the staggering, lush mountainous environment  of the Sacred Valley, viewed through train windows specially mounted in the roof so we could see the tops of the mountains.

Aguas Calientes is the closest town to Machu Picchu itself, lying at the base across the river and with a steep hill to ascend. Being next to South America’s greatest attraction, it is naturally a tourist-oriented town, but a comfortable enough place to stay.

We wandered around in the rain until we stumbled across a pleasant hotel hung with dubious, fantasy-inspired art, run by a hippy couple with a jewellery shop next door; bed beckoned as we had a very early start if we were to see Machu Picchu at dawn the next day.

Cusco to Ollantaytambo - 29th Jan 2011

This morning we left Cusco and our luggage at Gran Hotel Machu Picchu again, after a phonecall to the UK to argue with my bank to allow me withdraw my own money outside the UK (mental note, let the bastards know in advance next time!). We took a colectivo for a hair-raising drive to Ollantaytambo with the world’s most time-conscious colectivo driver, who overtook all comers and hurtled around hairpin bends as if evading the law.

We quickly found a modest place to stay, owned by an elderly Quechan man who entertained us for ages explaining local myths and features in the cliff-faces and ruins which surrounded his family-run hostel (complete with bed bugs). After the rain eased, we ventured out to explore the lush and peaceful Ollantaytambo village, built next to towering Inca ruins and terraces.

flowering catcus in Ollanta

After our walk we had dinner with some locals, who were glued to a b-grade horror film hilariously dubbed into Spanish. I had my first taste of the ubiquitous chicken broaster, which went down well at the time but left me with a rumbling tum afterwards. We ended the vening at the Hearts Cafe  - a great project started by a 76-year old british woman to help the local children and old people in dire poverty.

Glorious Ollantaytamba Village and fortress ruins

Good luck offerings on the roofs in Ollanta

Time out in Cusco - 28th Jan 2011

We were up at a reasonable hour to go and buy a tourist ticket for the sites in and around Cusco, but in a pattern that seems set to repeat we decided against it – due in part to prices rising fast when compared to our 10-year-old guidebook (courtesy of my workmate Ingela).

Some of the sites were still available separately, so we visited the Inca Museum then decided we wanted to be out in the sun instead enjoying the scenery. After a modest omelette back at the ranch, we ventured out to try and track down the train station for tickets to the mythical “local train” to Machu Picchu, and to work out what our next steps would be.

We got lost on the way to the relevant train station – and when we found it it was closed and looked like it had been for decades, so we resigned ourselves to joining the tourist hordes. That evening we were feeling like we needed a little relief, and so went out on the town briefly ( always difficult to keep up at 3000 metres above sea level) to a great little bar in the trendy San Blas area, where we were unfortunately the only punters.

The band ‘s singer was a real character, and he had got his friends who ran the venue to record a recent National Geographic tv piece on Inca history, in which he had a starring role. When he appeared the staff in the venue went crazy, especially as he introduced a romantic and completely unnecessary subtext of flirtation into the historical piece which he dubbed Inca Porn. We headed back home, stopping off to hear a great band of Argentian buskers, finally stumbling on a proper folklorica band in a divey pub where we were the only gringos.

Abancay to Cusco - 27th Jan 2011

We awoke early to the sound of traffic and rain in Abancay – but now aware that we were in a dramatic valley surrounded by soaring mountains. We saddled up and headed for the bus station, waiting for two hours while watching Federer get trounced in the Australian Open semi-final.

Abancay in the wet

A 5 hour trip to Cusco was uneventful apart from trying being introduced to choclo con queso (over-sized sweetcorn accompanied by what I think might be llama cheese) - laura liked it but I wasn’t particularly taken. On arrival at the bus station in Cusco we were predictably immediately accosted, and after being touting by even our cab driver, we settled for a  bargained-down room at great place we’d later use as our base for further trips.

In the evening we wandered around the fabulous colonial centre; despite much of Cusco being dominated by tourism it still has a lot of atmosphere and charm. We returned and self-catered – a sure way to deal with the various traveller’s ailments which seemed to be lingering.

Cusco Cathedral and rooftops