Cusco and the Inca Trail..

Arrived in Cusco, bright and early and got a taxi to Southern Comfort hostel.. reputed to be fairly chilled out which suited us perfectly as we were still dying after the Colca Canyon! Apart from some strolls around the city.. --a walk up to the beautiful fountain of San Blas and Ice cream in the Plaza(our first ice cream of SA!) ..We spent alot of Cusco hanging out in the hostel.. The South African manager and his canadian girlfriend, along with their Donegal lodger made us feel really really at home.. We had company as we watched the continual reports on Irelands economic downfall and were told about Paddys..the highest Irish owned pub in SA..Where we had a really nice dinner with Rob and Lindsey(the afformentioned manager and girlfriend!) and a few other really nice dinners after that.. given both the exceptional cheapness, and exceptional deliciousness of the food! A great plus of Southern Comfort , apart from the family and the huge kitchen, was the tv attic.. where spending  a few hours on beanbags watching movies definitely fixed our Canyon muscle pains.. 

On our third day in Cusco we started the Inca trail! We were feeling quite comforted as the previous day when we went to pay our money we were actually invited for a full sit down orientation, with tea and coffee! where ALL questions were answered(no matter how ridiculous) and most importantly, we got our free t-shirts! The trail took 4 days three nights.. and although easier than Colca Canyon in terms of terrain it was more difficult than we had expected after being slightly spoonfed at our orientation! Lets just say we were EXTREMELY glad we chose not to carry our packs ourselves(and a little worried about the mental welfare of those who did!)

The first day was dubbed the 'training day', and the walking was easy enough...with a few stops for info. Seeing the Inca sights along the way was a great advantage as when you got to Macchu Picchu you really had gotten a sense of how the Inca people lived, of the different communities around the Cusco area(there were ruins of communities of builders, of trading posts etc etc)and of the distance travelled between the communities on a regular basis.. Plus walking into Macchu Picchu from above through the Sungate, rather than entering from below, was a huge advantage only the inca trail gives..

So, first day was fairly easy going.. met our group, who were brilliant. Although it was clear on day one that we were all very different by day four it was clear how well we worked together, and how lucky we were.. no dominant personalities but instead a group of really interesting people all very conscientiously living their lives,  ..a Turkish American wall street broker(from a very non wall street broker background), a new york hippy (with great stories of road tripping to the 'Burning Man' festival), two New Zealand friends who had done the trek in 1987 for 5dollars, with no guide and no rules and now were back to do it for a 50th birthday celebration, and English couple in their 30s in their 11month of a year travelling.. these were just some of the personalities we spent our four days with on the trek(and spent our last day with in the pub!)

Second and Third days of the trek were a little more difficult.. second day due to the ascent to Dead Womans pass(4200m above sea level) and third day due to the descent to our campsite.. a beautiful walk but never have I seen so many steep steps.. not such a pleasant thing in the lashing rain! But support was good all the way, and spirits stayed high.. the group at times had to unite against pushy passers by, and were also brought together sharing a celebratory shot of rum at the Dead Woman's Pass(although we are not quite sure the guide did infact 'lose' the bottle on the way to the campsite..as he was decidedly happier upon arrival!).. the second and third evenings were spend playing cards and eating the mountains of delicious food we were continually presented with(including an impromptu birthday cake prepared by the porters at 2400m when they found out about our New Zealand friend's birthday!) and then retiring quite early..as there isnt a huge amount to do at campsites in the dark..and despite 'room service' of tea or coffee to our tents the early morning starts were painful and required as much sleep as possible.. Poor Cass didn't manage to sleep very well in the cold, and so was trekking at a bit of a disadvantage being tired and a bit sick.. but no less cheery or able to talk me down the steps that were so terribly worrying me! And all was worth it at the end of the third and longest day.. arriving at the campsite and being able to buy a sprite, a twix and a beer(the best we'v EVER tasted!) which we drank looking out at the mountain peaks and down Through the cloud blanket at the amazingly beautiful valley below..

Our fourth and last day began with a very early 3am start..although as per usual it was the porters that were to be applauded and admired..(despite the fact they continued to clap for us on arrival to our campsites..it was they who were pitching and dropping tents and running the trek with 25k each on their backs..). We walked through the sungate to Machu Picchu, and my anger at the steps dissolved, as thankfully the view was most definately worth it! After all the info we'd recieved along the way, the inca trail, we'd reached our destination.. a spectacular ruined city,, in what was a far more spectacular setting... definately worth the trek..

Although me and Cass couldnt take the full tour, given the heat and the afformentioned 3am start.. we had a really good wander around before bussing to Aquas Calientes.. the tourist town where everyone lunches after the trek(at very definate tourist prices).. We spent the afternoon having a few(quite a few) celebratory beers with our group and guide before getting the train and bus back to Cusco where we finally parted! Our group met for dinner again the next night, we was a really nice end to what had been an amazing four days..

And me and Cass left them, preparing to head to Copacabana the next day for some more relaxation, and adventure on the Isla Del Sol..