Hostal Rumi Punko Cusco

... nice city.

As the sleep was not the best on the bus we wander back to the hostel to relax and have a kip.
After a rest we headed back out in the early evening, and ended up buying a really nice alpaca rug for 63 s/. ($30NZ). For dinner we went to an international pub over looking the square for an overpriced & ordinary dinner.

... the two main entrances to the old city)... and came back to find the place deserted. Seriously, 3pm and we had the place just about to ourselves (well, apart from the llamas who had definite right of way on the paths) and it all the more amazing for that. Guide books suggest getting there for 5.30am to avoid the crowds - nah, just bring a packed lunch, stick around and get the later train down.

Now - the train down. Wow. We had been upgraded to a ...

... office staff and guides. We take pride in looking after our team and we pay our trekking staff including guides, cooks and porters, wages well above average.



Further, a percentage of our profits go towards funding children’s home-based projects, either organized directly by ourselves or in association with a ...

... for the rest of the trek.

An hour after leaving the lunch site we arrived at a short stop area, it was here the group were huddled for a quick briefing, we were told that although the remainder of the trek was down hill we would now be heading through some dangerous terrain, Jenny was clear that we needed to listen to instructions carefully as the paths we would now be walking would be on the edge of cliffs with some very steep drops, those in the ...

... world working in different kitchens for 2 years.

Apart from eating weird animals and visiting churches, the only thing left to do at the end of day is to pull up a stool at one of the many saloons surounding the Plaza de Armas, and order up a fat bottle of Cusqueña, watch the goat ladies, pastry sellers and whistling traffic police go about their daily busness and smile. I don´t like towns and cities in general, but Cusco has a charm of it´s own....

... word for it. Besides Incan walls Cusco was abundent in clubs and bars. I have a feeling this has to do with the umpteen backpackers who come through the city en route to Maccu Picchu but either way the drink helped you forget about the freezing cold temperatures at night. Final note about Cusco- it is high up. Seriously folks walking up the steep hills required at minimum two rest breaks to catch what limited oxygen there was in the air. It was rather disheartening to see a 70 year ...

... government, its diplomatic missions and consulates, must spend at least 50% of their budget for the purchase of spirits on pisco. A ministerial resolution brought in on 22nd April 2004 decreed that the first Saturday of February of each year was to be celebrated as Pisco Sour day across the nation. In 2007 the National Institute of Peruvian culture declared pisco sour an official part of the cultural heritage of the nation.

Author - Gary Sargent

Yesterday we went to get some lunch on the Plaza de Armas. We chose a spot on a balcony overlooking the plaza. Ordered tequños with guacamole and an omelette. There were tons of people in the plaza and there was a stage and bleachers set up, but nobody sitting by us seemed to know what was going on. Then the coolest parade ever started. Lots of men and women dressed in traditional Peruvian ...