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Peru
This is an edited version of our travel log. This second page is about the Inca Trail, Nazca Lines and Cusco.
The text in red is from our online travel log and the blue handwriting is from the travel journal we kept.
June 19, 2005, Lima
Well if you read somewhere is shit in a guidebook you really assume it is. But Lima is actually really nice. Lots of old buildings; which they are starting to do up a bit, very clean and lots of tree and flowers. Also friendly people, we helped someone with what sounded like a geography a level project about tourism in the central square. And its not foggy like everyone says, a very pleasant 23 degrees.
Bit of a shock being on our own after having my dad and Lizzie to guide us everywhere in Brazil, and talk when we didn't understand (well Lizzie anyway). Were a bit scared to get a bus to the centre of Lima as it was not clear where they were all going but in the end jumped into a random car and it was all fine.
Planning to move on tomorrow to the Balastras Islands, a place where they make tonnes of money from collecting bird poo. Also a bird sanctuary so I am going to be very scared!
Hope all is good in England, we have been following cricket progress through a combination of CNN (yes they report it!) and Tim (who reports it better)
18th June
Our initial forays into Lima were neither promising or disastrous, but after a lot of perseverance it seems really nice. We are also quite happy that we have finally managed to buy some replacement wedding rings and have just done a travelling wedding ceremony in the hostel gardens, exchanging travelling vows.
June 20, 2005, Pisco
Hi all
Only Gemma today as Si is a bit ill so he has gone to sleep. Today we have had a hectic but cool day. Its a month since I left work and the first day I have been up early since then. Got up at 6.30am to take a tour to the Balastas Islands. These are called the poor mans Galapagos and as we are now poor we thought it was for us. We got on a speedboat at 8am in the greyest weather I have seen. But the Islands were well worth the windburn! We saw lots of penguins and sea lions close up, both in the water and on rocks. I was very brave and managed to ignore the millions of birds, which literally filled some of the rocks. Hopefully got some good pictures which we will post when we get a chance.
Then this afternoon the same tour guide offered us trip for only 2 pounds more a trip to a nature reserve. We thought we might as well, so off we went not knowing what to expect. I could not have imagined just desert everywhere. It started off still grey and cloudy, which was more weird seeing sand dunes and being told the area only gets 2mm of rain a year. Then it brightened up and we went driving through the desert, which went straight down to the sea. When you looked certain directions all you could see were huge hills which looked like sand but were actually limestone.
This coast could not be more different to the Atlantic in Brazil which had the thickest jungle right down to the beach. Both are very cool
Time to go as I need to find a hotel for tomorrow.
June 22, 2005, Nasca
Hi. I'm back with Gemma at the computer this time. Feeling much better. I think the Peruvians might not have thought the making of their national drink through very well; its made frothy with raw egg whites. But I'm better now 
We went to see the Nasca lines from a plane today. They are quite odd, one of the few things that are almost identical to how they appear on TV. We had a lot of fun in the 6 seater by-plane. If I can try and paint a picture for you all; "OK, everybody. On your right you can see the monkey, on your right, there, the wing is pointing at it. And... Now on your left, right there on your left, the left wing is pointing at it" It was like some crazy roller coaster and we both took around 3 hours to stop feeling sick, but it was worth it. Just!
We are starting to get into Peru now, after being a bit confused for the first few days, but it is a bizarre country. Weird highlights are;
everyone is obsessed with change (monetary), and get upset if you don't pay with the exact money for everything. Most things cost around 1-5 soles, bank machines only dispense 50s or 100s, so you're screwed.
Car horns are used for literally everything while driving,
There was a live sheep in the luggage hold under our coach, that looked at me funny when we put our rucksacks in with it.
Pisco had a pack of dogs roaming the street (preparation for Dehli!)
Still trying to find somewhere to download our pictures..
June 24, 2005, Cusco
We have finally arrived in Cusco (yesterday) after a bit of an epic bus journey from Nasca. It took 16 hours, including breaking down in the middle of the night and waiting for 1 hour for some guys to finish their roadworks.
We slept for about 14 hours last night, but are not suffering too badly from the altitude (3350m).
Today is the old Inca festival of the Sun, there was a big parade with lots of people dressed up and music etc. Tomorrow off to see some Inca ruins in a town nearby.
Si-Pictures are kind of working now, thanks to Gemma shovelling coal into the back of this steam-powered computer. There is not a link on the page yet (I was about to lose my temper at that point). You can see Brazil pics at www.jelly-surprize.co.uk/travelling/photos2.htm (paste it into the address bar). Should sort some more soon.
June 27, 2005, Cusco
We've got back to Cusco this morning after two days in a village called Pisac. We had loads of fun on a smelly local bus for about 45mins, but it did only cost 30p each.
Pisac has some impressive Inca ruins that we trekked up to yesterday, as a practice for the Inca trail. It was about 5-6 hours walking in all and the altitude (3300m) is a real killer. We were passed about half-way up by a git in trainers carrying a small bottle of water and nothing else, who looked like he was out for a bit of a stroll. We thought of Ryan. We got some decent pictures, which I'll try and get on the site soon. We've now put on the ones up to Cusco, links are on the travelling site.
I am compiling a mental summary of Peru, which I'll deliver to you all soon.
Gemma doesn't have anything to say today, but she is sat next to me; grinning. 
like this.
June 30, 2005, Cusco
This will be the last message for a while as we are setting off on the Inca Trail at 4.30am tomorrow. In preparation Si has stayed in bed.
We haven't done much for the last couple of days as I have been ill, but feeling much better now after finding Peruvians chemists also have Vicks vaporub!!
Don't know how much Si is looking forward to spending his birthday in a tent at 3000m but hopefully the worst bits of the trail will be over, with only about 1.5 hours walking on the last day.
Will write more when we get back, hopefully with some pictures as well.
July 5, 2005, Cusco again
Well we made it, and are back in Cusco. Si is posting some pictures of the Inca Trail, which will show it better than I can describe.
Although it was hard work walking the views were well worth the effort. The trail is only 45km- which in 4 days doesn't seem too bad, but the altitude and steepness make it pretty hard going at time. Luckily the hardest bits also have the best views so it is a bit of an incentive.
Inca Trail
The first day was the hardest, walking 10 miles (again not massively far), but up 1500m to 3900m campsite. The last 3 hours were uphill steps, but when we got to the campsite our tent was on the edge of the site, overlooking the valley we had just walked up, full of trees, with snow capped mountains in the distance. It was pretty cold, I slept in all my clothes. Food was great the whole time, 3 course meals for lunch and tea.
1st July
We got up at a very cold 3:30am to get the bus. Around 8am we had a really good breakfast at the start of the trail with all the other people; scrambled eggs sitting outside by a river overlooked by snow-capped mountains is pretty cool! We started at a really quick pace along the river, before climbing up the side of a valley. Before lunch we looked down onto an Inca village, which was some kind of checkpoint on the original trail. At this altitude the scenery was mainly grassy, with some forests.
After lunch we slowed down a bit (thankfully!) and started to climb.
We went completely through the cloud forest, which was quite dense with loads of different kinds of trees and bamboo.
As we climbed further up the steps the view back down the valley to where we had come from was amazing, with views of some of the mountains the Incas worshiped. We eventually reached the campsite at 3,850m and the porters had set up a "honeymoon" tent away from all the others, as we had told them in the introductions we had just got married (in Spanish!).
2nd July
We had breakfast at 7am and set out again to walk up another 400m in altitude to the first pass. This was pretty tough, although we did see a pack of llamas chasing a sheep dog, which was quite fun.
The second day is meant to be the hardest, with the 2 high passes to do. As we stayed 1/2 way up the 1st one we only had another 450m to climb, but again it was straight up. This was the highest point at 4250m (multiply by 3 to get feet for Americans and old people). It was good to have this over by 9.30am on the second day. We then climbed down a long way, having lunch before attempting the second pass. This was OK going, and we had a mountain worshipping ceremony on the top just like the Inca's.
From here we walked down to a small archaeological site where they think the Virgins of the Sun lived. The clouds started to roll in and soon it was really foggy. The campsite was only 30 minutes away, through rainforest out of the clouds. At this point Si started to feel sick, and starting being sick later that night.
July 3rd
My birthday! But sadly a bit of hard day. I had been awake and keeping Gemma awake most of the night either being sick, moaning about being sick, or moaning about feeling sick; but she was still nice to me. She gave me a book on Easter Island for my birthday. We had a fairly easy climb up to the third and final pass and saw some amazing views, as well as passed through some cloud forest, which was like an Indiana Jones set.
As we went over the 3rd pass you got views of all the places we had been, the snow-capped mountains, the cloud forest, grasslands, and down in the valley the rainforest. Luckily this was only 1/2 day's walk so Si could rest.
After arriving at the campsite, which had a café and shower block, I bought a coke and twix and went straight to sleep at about 3pm! Gemma went and visited some impressive ruins where they grew a lot of the food for Machu Piccu and had some beers in the café with the other people in the group.
In the evening the chef made us a honeymoon cake which was really sweet, and very impressive to make a cake in a tent up a mountain. I wished Si had said it was his birthday so we might have got 2!
July 4th
Another early start1 We were up at 4am so we could walk to the final checkpoint on the trail, which opens at 5.30am. Unlike the other parts of the trail, all the groups doing it
came together in one place at the same time, so it was a bit crazy.
Gemma thought the most impressive bit about Machu Piccu was the moment the sun rose up about the surrounding mountains and struck the ruins of the citadel. Turning the ruins from dusky grey to yellow. The ruins were interesting, but fairly confusing as nothing was written down about what anything was, so all the facts are just educated guesses.
Final update-
tomorrow we are leaving for Lake Titicaca. We have decided not to go to Bolivia for now.
This is because we are coming back to Cusco to do a Spanish course for a week which we think will be very helpful- we have 4 hours tuition a day, 2 of which is conversational so it better help.
After this we are going to Chile. We are probably going to cross over to Bolivia to see the Salt Flats, and then make our way down to Santiago. Plan is to spend about a month doing this in time to leave for New Zealand on the 24th August.
July 9, 2005,
Hola, buenos dias amigos.
I was woken up by a noisy dog this morning, its currently 7.30am here on Saturday morning. Just saw three students staggering home wasted.
Gemma is still sensibly in bed.
We´ve been in Puno for the last few days, it is on the shore of lake Titicaca and its really cold. Elevation is about 3900m, apparently it can get down to -25oC at night, although I wouldn't know because I'm in bed.
The train here was really nice. It took 10 hours and went fairly slow, but they had table service and really nice views and the carriages are fairly old, so it was like a bit of civilisation!
The scenery approaching the lake is fairly strange, you climb up about 750m from Cusco and then after a while the mountains flatten out and you are travelling through a vast flat plain at around 4000m.
We haven't really done much exciting since we got here though, although we are planning on going on a short boat ride on the lake later on. Then its back to Cusco to learn Spanish tomorrow.
Footnote to the Inca trail; I wasn't immediately impressed with Maccu Picchu, as my first impression of it was one American girl saying to another "Ohmigod don't you just feel sooo powerful" and several people crying.
July 10th
We took a boat trip on the lake to see an English steam ship that was transported up to the lake in thousands of pieces on the backs of mules before being assembled at the lake.
On another day we went to see some funerary towers at Sillustani. These pre-date the Incas by about 1000 years, but have the same level of construction. The Aymara Indians (who live near the lake) say their ancestors were the clever ones and the Incas made them build all their cities. The Quetchua Indians who live near Cusco and are descended from the Incas don't agree!
July 12, 2005, Cusco again
Hello
2 days into our Spanish course and it is going OK. I just need someone to force me to say things, I know lots of words in Spanish but not how to pronounce them. 2 hours of talking about films and poverty in S America has helped. Doubt we'll be fluent by the end of the week though.
Don´t know where we are going to next, the plan is still Chile but I can't find a direct bus, so may have some more stops in Peru on the way. Usually that would be fine but the strikes (about fuel prices) seem to be getting worse so you cannot guarantee the bus you have a ticket for will travel. This morning the taxis have been on strike, which has been very good as I don't need one. Otherwise as you walk down the street minding your own business they repeatedly beep at you just in case you had no idea what a taxi was and you suddenly might want to take one.
Been in Cusco for 2 weeks and have only found the bakeries and cake shops today!
Si is well (for once) and his Spanish is also improving. We are in a class of 3 with a Swedish guy from San Francisco who seems to speak about 10 languages already so feeling a little inadequate, except he doesn't seem to be very good at Spanish- so much for it being the easiest language in the world!
July 15th
We were both a bit nervous about starting the lessons, but in the end they were very enjoyable and learnt a lot. However they were not the best thing about the school. There are 16 students at the school, who are learning English. They are all chosen from a school in a very poor area of Cusco, and this is an opportunity for them to learn English and go to University, instead of selling postcards or paintings on the street. The one-to-one converations we had with two of the older students, to practise Spanish taught us a lot about how difficult it is to go to university in Peru unless you are rich. It takes up to 5 years to get a basic degree and the tuition fees are roughly the average yearly wage.
I also went on a "real city tour" (Si didn't come). A real chiceria was certainly an interesting experience. It was a tiny courtyard with an adobe building closed on three sides. In the corner was a fire with a huge pot of boiling chica - an alcoholic drink made from germinated corn. Not the strongest or nicest thing I have ever tasted, but the old Peruvian men there seemed to like it.
We also had cooking and salsa lessons at the owner of the school's house. The cooking was good fun, but was were both rubbish at salsa.
July 18, 2005, Tacna
Last day in Peru today, now in Tacna on the border.
We finished the Spanish course, and we just need to start putting it into practice now, which shouldn't be too difficult as no one speaks any other languages here.
On Saturday we decided to go horse riding to see a couple of other Inca sites around Cusco. The horses were pretty small but as neither of us has ridden for about 10 years that was a good thing. They knew the route, and knew when they were allowed to run so it was a bit scary, mine didn't ever want Si's to be in front so it would always cut him up. It was pretty funny once we'd finished. Even have some pictures.
Later on Saturday went out clubbing with the owner of the Spanish school. In future I will note that when someone who I know to speak perfect English tells me you get a JUG of rum for having to pay the entrance fees to the club he does mean jug and not glass. I will also remember it is not a good idea to drink the jug of rum the night before you set off on a 17 hour bus journey.
So the hangovers (Si made the mistake as well) have gone and we are just hanging around this little town which is pretty boring. Should be able to get a taxi over to Chile tomorrow where we are going to do some tours of national parks, and then head to Bolivia.