What a strange feeling saying good bye to Katie and Shay last week as they headed off to Chile and London, leaving us alone together! They have been great parents to us as newbies in South America; but it was time for us to leave the nest! The phrase book is being used much more now and we seem to be lapsing into school French.
We have been in Cusco since last Thursday. Its a big city of terracota buildings - very old, extremely narrow streets which are cobbled with a deep drain in the centre. Lots of steps everywhere and we keep discovering new streets. It is the old Inca capital with lots of historical sites, walls etc and right in the middle of the Andes.
Tourism is huge here and we are continually hounded by locals trying to sell us massages, inca pots, woven belts, paintings or take photos of them with their babies tied to their back and clutching a cute lamb or alpaca wearing a colourful head band.
Spent the last few days relaxing and getting used to the altitude of 3400 metres. Haven't had any problems with it, though we do gasp for air when walking up the steep hills. Mark even went for a short run up to a viewpoint before breakfast today and didn't do too badly.
Lst night we weakened and ate a lovely classic roast followed by PG tips tea at an English cafe. They even had copies of some UK newspapers.(The Sun!) Also watched the Barcelona v Manchester united game in a pub with some very enthusastic spanish supporters.
We have been surprised that there are not many Kiwis in Peru. Most backpackers seem to be French. The Peruvians are lovely people and very interested in NZ, though you have to watch you back pocket due to some light fingered folk!
We're heading into the jungle tomorrow, 4 days in an eco-lodge surrounded by a huge range of wild animals and insects - even Tarantulas and snakes - I'm not sure quite why we are going?????
Then onto the Sacred Valley of the Incas and onto the famed Machu Picchu by bus and train - in July it is the centenary of the American discovery of the site.
One surpise about Peru is the food - its is very varied and good quality. A drink of lemonade is freshly squeezed lemons with a topping of egg white on top. The cereals and varieties of corn are very tasty.
We learnt about the local 'Coca' leaf which we often drink as a tea or chew on at breakfast time.. It tastes very pleasant and is very high in vitamins and minerals, helps digestion and wards off altitude sickness plus is one of the original ingredients of Coca Cola. Once treated with various chemicals it becomes cocaine !
Thanks for your emails and messages. Great to be able to keep in touch.
