Laramani Hostal Cusco

... in Cusco.

Day 8: Cusco – Aguas Calientes – Machu Picchu – Aguas Calientes (B)

Our transfer will pick you up from your hotel at 6:15 a.m. in order to board your train towards Aguas Calientes village. As soon as you arrive in Aguas Calientes at 10:50a.m we will take you to your hotel for the check-in and pick up your box lunch. Immediately you will board a bus to Machu Picchu where you will have a 2 hours guided ...

I got my second taxi of the vacation from Cusco terminal to Plaza del Armas because I didn´t like the idea of a 2km walk in the rain in a hilly city at this altitude. I wanted a private room while I was doing this ayahuasca thingy so I found one in a hospedaje very close to the Plaza. It was already about 20:00 by this time and I knew I had to fast the next day (if my ceremony was going ahead) so straight after checking in, I went to eat. I just found sone tiny eatery near ...

... end, it was a no brainer really. Also got a bit ahead of ourselves and booked a 2 day mountain bike camping trip for 2 days after we get back off the trek, a bit risky but what the hell. Celebrated with a plate of Alpaca Strogonoff in one of the many Irish bars in town before snacking and packing in readiness for thr following days trek. It then rained for seemingly the first time in ages, chucked it down in fact.

20th - 24th October 2009 (Salkantay Trek)

Day 1: Up at 4am ...

Malaga Alternate Route to Machu Picchu: Inca Jungle



Programme: 3 days / 2 nights



1st DAY: Cusco – Santa Maria.

Early pickup at your hotel 06:00am. To start the trip to the Malaga pass by different attractive locations as part of the Sacred Valley, Urubamba, Ollantaytambo villages ...

... a small boy carrying the entrails of a cow, wrapped up in the stomach of said animal. Kindof puts me off any meat based meals for awhile. Also had some local grog ´cerveche´(poor spelling) - a corn based beverage that has some alcohol in it. The lady was brewing it street side, and despite looking a bit less than sanitary (including scooping insects that laded in the pail), we drank it. So far....so good!!

More tomorrow -

... and straight up. I should have known that it was intense when the guide backed out on coming up with us. The summit was just over 2500mtrs and gave a spectacular view of Machu Picchu.
Machu Picchu was amazing and even more stunning than expected. Something youçll need to experience for yourselves. After the train bus combo back to Cusco Içve had a couple of party nights and am off to Bolivia this evening...

... the tent and sleeping bag it just didnt get warm.

The second day was the hardest. We started walking at around 6.30 in the morning and by about 11am we had reached the top of the Salkantay pass. Our campground was at 3700m above sealevel and the pass was at 4600m. Although that does not seem much in height difference to some (900m), its quite a bit when you consider the overall height above sealevel where breathing becomes quite difficult under exercise.

lever plutot tard (lol), 6h30, ptit dej et nous partons pour achter billet de bus pour puno demain soir.
aprem, cool, taxi et direction les differetns ruines autour de cusco dont saqsahuaman, super joli mais linteret reste difficle sans guide.
retour sur cusco a ...

A gentle start to the day, load the bikes and a pancake breakfast before setting off.
A little bit of a struggle through the one way system, cobbles and potholes to get out of Cuzco. Then a climb out of the valley with all the usual twists and turns.
We reach Pisac and the road signs disappear and we make the wrong choice, the river is on our left but we are on the wrong side of the river going the wrong way. We sort a ourselves out ...

... got word from Henry that the Argentinean and Brazilian girls were struggling and had fallen ill because of the altitude. They were on rented horses on their way to the campsite.

Fortunately everyone did eventually arrive. The porters erected the tents in the rain while we waited under the sheltered tent where we had our dinner and breakfast the following morning. We crept into our tents once they were ready. The porters were so kind ...