Peru

Lima
We didn’t spend much time in Lima as the guide book description gave us the impression that it is a bit of a shit hole. However, we were pleasantly surprised by the old town. There’s a lot of impressive colonial architecture adorning the large squares, and of course, plenty of churches. It also felt safer than billed, although we didn’t wander away from the well policed main areas.

Our hotel was a beautiful, grand building in one of the richer suburbs overlooking the Lima golf course. Unfortunately, it was a hugely popular place for weddings, and our two nights there were interrupted by the constant celebrations of the various wedding parties.

In the bar we were treated to the worst female singer in the world, who was masquerading as the evening’s entertainment. We’ve never heard anyone so poor, even in Kareoke bars, if you exclude me, that is.

Lima is a massive city, home to 8 million personas (notice the Spanish, we’re practically fluent now. Dos cerveza, vino blanco, vino tinto, gin y tonic.) – most of them living in shanty towns clinging to the surrounding hills, and occasionally glimpsed through the smog, dust and mist.

The poverty is never far away. We were approached by one desperate man for money who was literally crying for mercy, poor soul. Our guide called over the police who moved him on. Moments later we were inside an opulent colonial house that had been in the same family for generations. The contrast between rich and poor couldn’t be sharper than here.

Cusco
Cusco is now home to 800,000 people following a population explosion in the last 10 years, but manages to maintain the feel of a small town. In part, I think, to a policy of not allowing buildings to be constructed over six stories high due to concerns over earthquakes. All of the buildings are roofed with the same terracotta tiles, making it very picturesque.

Cusco is our base for exploring the remains of the famous Inca civilisation which was brought to an abrupt end by the Spanish in the 16th century. We didn’t have to travel far for our first glimpse as many of the buildings in the old town where we were staying are built on top of Inca ruins, the dark, smooth granite blocks making up the first few rows.

We spent some time touring the surrounding area visiting Inca rest houses, Inca terraces, and ruined temples. There really is a lot to see. Many of the terraces are still in use today by farmers growing corn or potatoes.

One site, the Zig zag remains, is a major attraction. It has been named “Zig zag” because of the topography of the remains. All of the original names have been lost as the Incas left no written record.

Most of the ruins, except Machu Picchu, have been destroyed by the Spanish, particularly the temples as they were trying to promote Catholicism.

We spent a few hours at a market at Pisac, which was a little disappointing, with everyone selling the same factory produced stuff for tourist consumption. Alpaca jumpers, hats and gloves, Machu Picchu t-shirts, jewellery etc.

Near Cusco is the sacred valley, a fertile farming region and home to lots of ruins. There’s lots of small villages here all making a living out of farming corn or potatoes. The valley is extremely fertile so crops are grown all year round. The buildings are all built from mud bricks, called adobe houses. You’d think that they would wash away in the rainy season, but they are more durable than you would think. They still apparently need fairly major maintenance once a year.

Machu Picchu
Of the many ways to travel to Machu Picchu, including the famous Inca trail, we chose the Hiram Bingham train, named after the American who rediscovered the ruins in 1911.

The trip from Poroy, near Cusco, to Machu Picchu is only 75km, but the train contrives to make this last 3 and a half hours, and you wouldn’t want it to go any quicker as it ambles through some breathtaking scenery. The route runs alongside the Urubamba river as it tumbles violently and impatiently towards the Amazon.

The train is fabulous, all wood paneling and brass. There are only 4 coaches; 2 for the passengers, 1 for the kitchen where the chef knocks out wonderful food, and the last carriage is a lounge and bar with an observation deck. Give the designer a medal.

Feeling wonderfully pampered and privileged, we arrived in Machu Picchu town, and embarked on one of the many coaches that wind their way up to the ruins. Twenty minutes later and we were passing through the entrance gate to receive our first glimpse of this breath-taking place.

Despite its world renown, Machu Picchu surprised us. The first surprise is that it is located in the rainforest, so back into mossie territory. Although considerably lower than Cusco, it feels higher due to the immense, vertical mountains that surround it. It’s a huge site, with terraces stretching to the limits of the mountain that it sits on. Even in the off season, it attracts 1200 visitors a day. Despite this, it is not crowded at all. The other surprise was that it isn’t a let down. It’s hyped so much that we were worried that it wouldn’t live up to expectations, but it is a really miraculous place. If it wasn’t here, for real, you wouldn’t believe it was possible.

It’s actually situated on top of a mountain. God knows why they built it there, as there’s a perfectly good valley floor with accompanying river below. The reason the ruins are so intact is that the Spanish never found it. Apparently, they weren’t too keen on venturing into the jungle.

The Incas liked a step or two, and getting around can be quite tiring, especially given the altitude. Day 1 was OK and we were feeling not too puffed. You need to take great care at the edges of the site as the terraces drop away vertically hundreds of metres to the valley floor below. There’s no safety railings here. God knows how many tourists they ‘lose’ each year. Our guide, the lovely, diminutive Adriana, encouraged us to take on one of the two popular walks that start from the ruins. So, day 2, full of Adriana’s misplaced confidence, we commenced our ascent of Wynu Pichu, which is the mountain that is in the background of all the postcards. It’s not a serious climb requiring rope and tackle, but it is bloody steep, and you need a head for heights. We finally made it to the top after many stops to catch our breath. The views at the top were indeed spectacular, and there are more Inca ruins and terraces here. The archaeologists think that the Incas used it as a look out point. Imagine having to walk up that every day to clock on.

The descent nearly killed us as our legs started turning to jelly, but we eventually made it back to the starting point to proudly enter our names into the log at the gate.

Lake Titicaca
I’ve had a stomach ache for 3 weeks now, and I’ve become fairly well acquainted with Messers Armitage and Shanks. Still, small price to pay for being in such wonderful scenery. My laptop us refusing to boot, making strange clanking noises as if it, too has ingested something it can’t get rid off. It has since made a partial recovery but is still a bit flakey, so if you’re trying to contact us, it’s probably best to copy emails to garyandmags@hotmail.co.uk

We left Cusco by train headed for Puno on the shore of Lake Titicaca. Yes, I thought it was fictional too. This is a wonderful, all day train journey climbing up into the Andean highlands above the tree line, where the only vegetation appears to be a sinewy grass that somehow sustains herds of Alpaca and Lama. The route is guarded on both sides by colossal mountains. We passed through a desperate, half built city in the Altiplano called Juliaca, which allegedly is the commercial centre of the region. All of the buildings are unfinished with steel rods poking skywards from the concrete building blocks to support future floors that will never be built. Peruvians pay more tax on finished buildings, so this is a common site. Mortgages are also extremely rare, so people start building before they have enough funds to finish their home. They build one floor, and then build the next when they have saved up enough funds a few years later. This half finished look makes the place look like a ghost town, expect that the residents forgot to leave.

Lake Titicaca lies between the Andean mountain ranges where they split in two at the Sothern end of Peru. All the rain falling on the mountains runs into the valley between the mountain ranges where it is trapped to form this huge lake.

The lake is shared by Bolivia and Peru, with a maniacal border running across the water. There’s a natural harbour at Puno which is 60% covered in reeds. Some of the people have taken to living in these reeds on floating islands. We visited a couple and were amazed to find a real, working community. We’d expected to find a few families hamming it up for the tourists, re-enacting a lifestyle long since extinguished by modern ‘progress’. But there’s actually 30 or so families living on these reed islands, sustaining themselves mostly by fishing.

Next stop Bolivia which is economically on a par with Tower Hamlets.

Overall Peru Rating

People 7
Food 7
Scenery 10
Inca Ruins 10
Andean Flute music 1