Well, there´s certainly something wrong with my shoes! After wadding through an Amazonian swamp in my running shoes they have a smell that can clear a room in seconds - must be some sort of tropical bacteria living in there I reckon. I´ll give you all a sniff when we get back if you like - just like rotting meat and certainly not just my sweaty feet!
Apart from that we largely had an idylic trip 1.5hrs up river from Puerto Maldonado in a narrow boat. Just like on the telly, apart from the monkey pee all down my T-shirt. Why me?
Hot and humid with tarantulas and crocigattors a plenty as well as spectacular butterflies and birds....oh yes, and we actually saw walking palm trees in the jungle. They weren´t actually in motion but they can walk on their roots to an area with better light!
Also spotted a huge new suspension bridge under construction in the town as part of the inter-ocean highway through the Amazon Basin. What is the world coming too?
Yesterday we arrived via plane and taxi to the Shangri-la location of the Sacred Valley, back close to Cusco in the high Andes. So nice to be in the mountain air again. Inca temples and ruins all around and the village has been virtually unchanged since Inca times so is very characterful with streams running down open channels in the narrow cobbled streets.
A lovely hostel and lovely people. Jumping on the train to Machu Picchu tomorrow....
Currently working on a solution to getting to Bolivia in a few days time. The Peru/Bolivia border at Lake Titicaca is closed by violent protesters who don´t want mining in the area. Maybe an expensive flight is the only solution??
