Long Lost Longworth
 James and the giant Macchu Picchu The most recent travel news includes the unforgettable 4 day inca trail hike to Macchu Picchu and the quite forgettable 5 days that proceeded it. I´ll start with the hike which was probably one of the highlights thus far on the trip. After having signed up for the trek in a hostel in Lima and being given little to no information regarding what we were supposed to bring with us and the details of the trip, a bus finally arrived at our hostel at 7am (an hour late) last Thursday full of not only a bunch of similarly confused- looking travellers, but also a bunch of grungy, hungry-looking peruvians. At first we assumed these locals were just scamming a ride aboard our bus up the mountain, but we soon realized they would be the ones responsible for our livlihood over the next few days; they were the porters who would cook (and carry) our food, set up (and carry) our tents, and do everything else that we lazy foreigners were too weak and lazy to do ourselves. They were between the ages of 18-35 and most of which had wives and children back home that relied on the mere $100 or so they were paid for the 4 day back-breaking trip. I should also add that while us foreigners hiked the trail carrying waterproof backpacks containing clothes and sleeping bags in our gore-tex brandname boots, the porters hobbled along the slippery slopes carrying massive bundles in very worn-down plastic sandals. We almost couldn´t watch as they ran by us, jumping quickly from rock to rock before they could slip and go plumetting down the mountainside! The first half of the first day was mostly spent on the bus, which stopped innumerable times and waited, letting people on and off (something that I noticed happens a lot in China too..hmmm) while the rest of us waited around for someone to tell us what was going on. Finally we arrived at a town where we were told we would be eating lunch with our group before starting the trek to our first campsite. This is when we met the people we would spend the next 4 days hiking with (or rather hiking in front of and waiting around for). There were 2 Spaniards, 2 Jehovah Witness Brits and an Irish couple who were none too impressed that they had been bribed into starting the hike a day early (we later found out they had both badly burnt their feet while biking a few days earlier and hiking was excruciating for them!) There were also 2 guides, one Spanish-speaking and the other ´´English´´ speaking. His name was Walter and if you can picture a Peruvian with long black locks, somewhat reminiscent of Fabio, that was the man in charge who I would have probably placed in a ´Low-Beginner´ English level back at my esl school. While the Spanish guide would stop at nearly every bush, plant and flower to give an indepth explanation of the healing powers and history of the organism, Walter could almost not be bothered to let us know when we were standing right next to an important incan archeological (a word he struggled profusely with) site. Things worked out for the best though, because while the Spaniards and Brits were most interested in the flora and fauna and resting every few 100 meters, we and the Irish were more interested in getting on with it and hiking the inca trail which we had set out to hike so after about the middle of day 2 there was a distinct split in the group and everyone seemed content with the divide. So days were spent climbing up or down (we reached the highest peak at 4300meters on day 2), nights were spent waiting for the porters to make us popcorn and tea for happy hour and then some random peruviany concoction for dinner. We bonded a bit with the porters by playing cards which the youngest one eventually ended up with (we realized he had a bit of a tactic if he wanted something, he´d ask ´How much cost?´ and then work it out in peruvian soles and get a disappointed look on his face. Sadly for him it worked with the pack of cards but not with other items such as Laurens hiking boots). Despite the stormy nights and sometimes saturated sleeping conditions, we slept like the rocks upon which we hiked. However by day 4 when we were woken at 4am to ensure an early arrival at Macchu Picchu, our spirits (and clothes) were dampened by the increasingly cold fog and rain and by the time we finally arrived at our destination (which was also covered in fog and rain) we were almost too exhausted to appreciate it. Almost, but not quite- it was an amazing site, an entire city built up on the side of the mountain centuries ago. We endured the 2 hour saturated tour (although lost the group in the middle of it because we were busy taking a ´Frodo and Sam throwing the ring´ photo and our guide was none too impressed when we finally found them again!) and then despite our sore and aching feet and legs were too cheap to take the bus down to the town of Agua Calientes and trekked another hour to where we met Walter and enjoyed our first non-porter-cooked meal in days. We moped around in the rain until our train finally left later that day, after which we were meant to board a bus for the trip back to Cuzco (for which Walter failed to make arrangments and we basically had to find our own way back- riding with the locals once again!) All in all it was a great trip, we made friends with a few guides along the way and even made plans for a ¨Gringo vs. Peruvian¨ soccer match on Monday. However Lauren fell ill with a bout of flu-fever-dirreah (the latter of which she is still struggling with!) and of course Walter was a no-show, so due to lack of participants the game was called off. The rest of the week has been spent lying low (or rather horizontally in bed watching English movies!) recovering from the trek and the unpleasentries that followed. Thankfully the hostel we´re staying at has been very understanding both of the fact that we´re STILL waiting around for the visa to arrive (I spoke to the delivery company in Lima a few hours ago who assured me it was at last on it´s way although we´re not holding our breath!) and of the fact that ´mucho comida en Peru es malo para viajeros´ ie ´lots of food in Peru is bad for travellers´- gee you don´t say!? Needless to say, we´re both very excited to get the card and get the ···· outta here tomorrow night, hopefully bound for Copacobana, which is supposed to be a nice town on Lake Titicaca (sadly not the Brazilian version quite yet). Enjoy the pictures and email me the latest and greatest when you get a chance xo em
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Diary Photos
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About to start the trek |
 Trekking the inca trail |
 Another little piggy.. |
 Incan dessert |
 Macchu foggy |
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