Day 53 – 13th January. Oh God NO - Bolivia!

The stunning 6,500 meter peaks of the Cordillera Real.


Puno – La Paz (Bolivia). 328 kms.

Total Distance So Far: 13,213 kms

At 8am we arrived at a little office in the backstreets of Puno. The man knew all about us and greeted us warmly. He asked for the said documents and passport. Things were going to smoothly. “where is the yellow fever certificate?” he asked. We said we do not have one. He said it is necessary and could not issue the visa without it. He said we must find a clinic and get the jab. For the next three hours we tried to find a yellow fever centre in Puno, a ramshackle chaotic town of 130,000 people, donkeys and congested streets. Eventually a helpful doctor in one clinic told us where to get the jab. The hospital we next arrived at was not a very pretty place. We were escorted to the inoculations department but the nurse there said they had no yellow fever supplies left until the following week at the earliest. We told here how important it was, but she said there was nothing she could do. Our last resort was to offer cash for a stamped up book. She said no. We insisted and threw some money on the table - pleading. Eventually she filled out a booklet, confirming the non-existent jabs had been done. We thanked her and zoomed back to the consul. Twenty minutes later we had the visa, and were on our way to the Bolivian border 100 kms further south.

It was a lovely drive along the western shores of Lake Titicaca, although the road was perhaps the worst pot-holed, uneven piece of ageing asphalt I have ever ridden on. Teeth-rattling stuff. We could also not find any more of the low-octane (90) leaded petrol. The only fuel on offer was 84 octane. I made a call to Mariano and asked if we could feed this stuff into the trusty Transalp. He said ‘it should be OK, but the bike will get pretty noisey”. He was right, we lost some more power (we were already at 4,000 meters), and it made the Transalp sound like a tank. I don’t know of any other bike though designed for 95-98 octane unleaded fuel, that will run with 84 octane leaded. Very comforting to know when you are in a fix.

The border itself was a chaotic mess of touts trying to sell everything from second hand shoes, to fruit to ponchos. There were plenty of unofficial ‘helpers’ trying to muscle their way in to guide you through the process of which building to get this stamped, and what hut to fill in another useless form. In the end Lidy stayed with the bike to guard it and I did the running around. I even went to immigration to check her out and gave the officer, who had duel jobs – one to stamp passports and the other to watch football – both of our passports. He asked me where the other traveler was. I said guarding the bike outside. He showed me Lidy’s photo page and asked if this was her. I said yes and he stamped it!

The Bolivian side seemed more orderly, and being controlled by 8-10 policemen, all in knee-high black lace-up boots, green uniform, side-arm, and Ray-ban’s. It was something out of a Hollywood movie. After clearing immigration one of the policemen instructed me to follow him into an adjacent building. I knew this was dodgy. He led me to one small cell where there two men stripped down to trousers and two officers inside, the next room had half a dozen more officer smoking and drinking coffee, third room had two beds. He instructed me to sit on one and he sat on the other. He then said ‘Dinero” and put out his hand. I played dumb, and said “Dinero?” what is this for?, the bike? Entry tax?. He replied “No Dinero, no moto Bolivia, no dinero, mucho problema”. What a situation. I gave him US$10. He screwed it up and threw it back at me, and walked out of the room and left me to stew. The guide books all warn about the corrupt police here, but somehow you think it won’t happen to you, and not so blatantly. A few of minutes later he came back in. I decided to give him $50 (a large amount for such a poor country). The main thing was to get past this thieving prick as quickly as possible and without any major issues. He looked at the $50 dollars disapprovingly, and then said “Si, OK”, and led me back outside. We then spent another hour or so completing customs paperwork at another office (without having to bribe or pay anyone) for the bike and set off for La Paz.

My next concern was the road from the border to La Paz. It was a road where many hijackings, robberies and kidnappings take place. We were given advice to follow other traffic but this was not possible as the road was pretty quiet. We therefore just kept a keen look-out and maintained a healthy pace. Bolivia – I wanted to get out of it less that as soon as we got in!

We quickly found this threatening ‘cashola’ scam at the border happened to everyone else we met in the next few days who came in by road from Peru. We later teamed up with some Brits, Canadians and a Brazilian who all had cash demanded in exactly the same way, same room, same style. I would also add the continual road-blocks and ‘unofficial village tolls’ we later suffered in Bolivia, all designed to extract small amounts of cash from folks traveling through, really show just that Bolivia is corrupt from top to bottom. Sadly I met no one who put in a good word for the country. All were VERY happy to leave, and none had any intentions of going back. Oh, and in addition to the corruption it is filthy, with rubbish strewn about everywhere, many locals have serious drink problems, there are shotgun carrying security guards throughout the cities, it stinks, the cities are choked with pollution, the drivers level of skill/safety awareness is appalling, the food is terrible (both Lidy, I and other travelers we met got food poisoning), and the roads are pot-holed or non-existant (mud tracks). I think that gives a fair, honest and complete description of Bolivia before I move on to our days traveling through it.

I will send a letter to the Bolivian Embassy and see what they have to say on the matter.

Sadly, due to all the time messing about today with the trumped up corrupt border officials, we missed the temples at Tiwanako, the first proper civilisation that ruled this whole Lake Titicaca basin some 3,000 years ago, and the people the Inca’s based much of their own society on. This was the only historic site we wanted to see in Bolivia, but arrived an hour after it closed. We pushed on and saw the awesome backdrop of the Cordillera Real with its peaks reaching up to 6,500 meters, as we drew near to La Paz. At last something to make the day worthwhile.

La Paz itself, is a crazy, mad, loud, polluted mass of ageing buildings all heaped on top of each other in a very stunning mountain bowl setting. I was grateful at the bottom of the bowl there was the new part of La Paz, which escaped most of the chaos of the high parts or ‘La Paz Alto’ slums. We settled into our hotel, the Radisson, for 3 nights. It gave us some shelter from the din, along with 5 day-old stale crumbling bread for breakfast!



The day started in the luxurious offices of the Bolivian Consulate in Puno.



Welcome to Bolivia - Just before the Police Officers at the border stripe you for cash!



In the customs office I spent time studying the distance charts for Bolivia roads. I got a shock it, just like the map I bought in La Paz did not list distances in kilometers but instead in 'number of days'. For example I had allowed half a day to travel from Potosi to Villazon, and this chart said two and a half days! Some cells even went up to 7,9 and 11 days!! Could the roads really be that bad?




The shore of Lake Titicaca

Day 53 – 13th January. Oh God NO - Bolivia! Images 1.

The last group of Peruvians we passed camped out next to the shores of the lake before hitting Bolivia.



The shores of Lake Titicaca.




Sadly, the only bit of Tiwanako we saw, the boulders at the entrance.




Our first view of La Paz, sprawling up and down over a range of mountains

Day 52 - Extra Post for Mollie

Hi Mollie, we though this was a good one for you. A town (almost) named after you in the Peruvian mountains!

Day 52 – 12th January. Lake Titicaca.

Cuzco - Puno. 469 kms.

Total Distance So Far: 12,885 kms (11,115 kms by Land, 1,770 kms by Sea)

It was a fantastic ride south-west from Cuzco today. Meandering through the valleys, with small villages and high mountain sides was just very relaxing and picturesque. We covered the distance to Puno on the western shore of Lake Titicaca in no time at all.

At 3,800m the lake is supposed to be the highest lake in the world. I say supposed as I found one at 4,600m in Bolivia a couple of days after writing this. (Perhaps I found a pond!). After dumping our gear in the hotel we took a boat out to the famous floating reed islands. We went to a cluster of islands called The Uros Islands. These islands had supported the Uros people who had been living on the islands for centuries, perhaps up to 1,500 years. It is not known exactly how long, as their history is only passed on verbally and there is nothing written down. We were shown how the people make a new island, and how the tether it to the lake bed. The islanders do not use currency or money, instead they weave, collect reeds, make reed handicrafts and fish and then barter these goods for medical supplies, meat and other essentials at the local Puno market. It was a great experience but I just can not imagine how these people can exist on an island, without electricity (although some have solar power and batteries), no bigger than 15 meters by 30 meters.

It was a great day, then during supper at 10pm…….. Amex called me……... Aparently they had been trying all day to reach me. “Mr O’Neill we are sorry but Miss Suntrarak DOES need a visa to enter Bolivia”. Now, Amex are normally excellent, but this time they came up very short. They were very sorry but the wrong information had been given for some reason. They asked if I was near the Bolivian consulate in Cuzco, to which I replied no and I was over 400 kms south in Puno. I asked what information was required to get the visa as I knew they would want documents which Lidy did not have whilst traveling. “you need bank statements, employers reference, yellow fever inoculation, proof of address/utility bill, onward flight and travel reservations…..”. I interrupted and told her to stop, telling her we have none of these. I said Lidy has her passport, cash, credit card, and Amex could supply the onwards flight and travel details – that’s it. We spent the next 4 hours, with Amex in touch with the Bolivian embassy in Australia (the only one that was open). The Bolivian embassy in Australia understood the predicament we were in and agreed to loosen the rules regarding work reference, bank statements etc. They said they would fax a letter to a consular office they had in Puno and if we go there at 8am they would expedite a visa. They told us to take enough cash $100 a day for each day in Bolivia, hotel confirmations, flight details, and passport.



The inside of one of the 7 or 8 houses that were on each reed island. Conditions are very basic.


The bustling town of Puno on the western shore of Lake Titicaca.


I snapped this bird. It looks like some type of Kingfisher? It was perched on the keep net of the island and the islanders shushed it away when they saw it.


Coming back through the reed channels and into the bay of Puno on the front of the boat was a great end to the day. (A shame about the Amex phone call!)

Day 52 – 12th January. Lake Titicaca. Images 1.

We passed the remains on one of the walls of the Wiracocha (Raqchi) Temple at Sicuani. It was built by the Incas and destroyed by the Spanish along with most Inca, Mayan and Aztec architectural teasures in their search for gold. It must have been a very impressive structure in it's former glory. It was 20 meters high, 92 meters long, and had the largest single roof measuring 2,500 square meters in all of South America. Amazing when you think it is built of mud re-inforced with straw.


The Peruvians just love their llamas


It was strange to see this Pervian kids playing with a Barbie Doll. Most kids of this age we saw tending goats or sheep in the fields.


This farmer certainly has put a lot of TLC into his field, walled in on the side of a hill miles from anywhere.


The road through the mountains to Puno was a dream.

Day 50 & 51 – 10/11th January. Cuzco and Goodbye to Lidy.

One of the two cathedrals located in the busy main plaza.


Cuzco Rest Days. 0 kms.

Total Distance So Far: 12,416 kms (10,646 kms by Land, 1,770 kms by Sea)

Back in Cuzco we wandered around the cobbled streets of the historical centre and marveled at the lovely mix of Inca and Spanish Colonial architecture. It really is a very pretty city. Although they have a habit of changing their one-way system DAILY which can obviously be extremely confusing to the uneducated.

We spent a few hours people-watching in one of the little cafes over-looking the main square. It’s always a good way to get the measure of the place and the people, read, and a good way to update your travel diary. I am also not one for really wandering about inside churches and museums. Lidy finished off her last travel diary entries and we went back to the hotel to pack her things.

THIS IS WHEN ALL THE FUN AND GAMES STARTED.

Arriving at Cuzco about, Lidy was two hours before her flight. At check in we were informed her flight would be 2 hour late. Her flight was from Cuzo to Lima a short one hour hop. Her take off was 6pm and her connecting Iberia flight at Lime was 20:30. We informed the check-in staff that if she took off at 20:00 she would miss her connecting flight. They were sorry but they were Lan Peru and could not help with Lidy’s onward Iberia flight. I called American Express who booked the her Bangkok to Usuahia, the Cuzco to Bangkok return. Amex then informed me they had booked a series of unconnected local tickets and the knock-on effects of this soon became clear. They said they would have to speak to Iberia to see if they would move Lidy’s flight. Iberia would not be in until the next day as it was 10pm in the UK! I needed to leave Cuzco the next Tuesday, and Amex informed us that the next evenings flight was full anyway. There was space on Wednesday’s but Lidy would need to upgrade her ticket class which was a discounted ‘N-Class’ fare, and the cost to change Lidy’s return leg would be £3,480 plus taxes!. I said to Amex there conditions allowed changed at £20 a time. They said that is true but only to aircraft where other ‘N-class’ fares were allowed and the next N-class fare from Lima was on the 18th! I pointed out to Amex that no mention of a severely restricted N-class fair was mentioned, nor was there there mention if one leg was delayed the rest of the onward legs would be put in jeopardy. Amex agreed with me, thankfully, and said they would speak to Iberia and find a solution. In the meantime they confirmed Lidy did not need a VISA for Bolivia so she would continue until La Paz and fly out from there all being well.

It was obviously great to have Lidy, but I knew 95% of the roads in Bolivia were track, it was rainy season, and we were going to be over 4,000 meters throughout the whole time crossing over the Altiplano, so I was a bit concerned. Lidy understandably did not want to be left in Cuzco without a solution. I had given her one rucksack of gear, plus she had her own rucksack and another bag with all her riding gear, which meant the bike was going to be 100 kgs lighter. My only concern was how slowly we might have to go, but if the days were longer it is no great shakes.




The town sits in a natural bowl. It is extending with simple mud-brick houses rising way up the steep slopes of the mountains on all sides.



It looks like this family found it all too much!




A couple of shots showing the hilly narrow roads of Cuzco

Day 50 & 51 – 10/11th January. Cuzco and Goodbye to Lidy. Images 1.

We had our fair share of rain in Cuzco and Machu Picchu. We sat this downpour out in the square, but after 4/5 hours we made a dash back to our hotel. Taxi, like buses are never there when you need one. Luckily we managed to leave Cuzco before a series of landslides covered the train tracks to/from Machu Picchu. This imprisoned about 3,000 tourists there and required the Peruvian air force to airlift food and supplies into the town, and start evacuating the tourists at 500 per day. As I write this the town has been cut-off for a week now, and people are still being airlifted out. Sadly quite a few locals have also died as mudslides have buried several houses.




A typical road in Cuzco heavy with Spanish colonial influences.

Day 48 & 49 – 8/9th January. The Lost City & Sacred Valley.

The Sacred Valley to Machu Picchu and Return to Cuzco. 171 kms.

Total Distance So Far: 12,416 kms


After Patagonia, and Tierra Del Fuego this was the second major goal of the trip. I could not believe it had come round so fast, but we had seen so much and traveled so far since southern Argentina. About 8,000 kms the same distance as London to Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. I hoped Machu Picchu would be everything I had expected, and also hoped we would get a clear view as ALL the people we had met in Cuzco had been terribly disappointed as Machu Picchu and the surrounding mountains had been in permanent cloud when they visited it due to the fact we were in the middle of rainy season. To the locals it is called ‘The City in The Clouds’, I just hoped we would be lucky enough to get a clear view of the famous citadel.

You have to get to Agua Calientes the town where you start the climb up to Machu Picchu, and you can get there by either 1) take a 4-hour train ride from Poroy near Cuzco, or drive north through the Sacred Valley to the last town of Ollantaytambo and then take a train for one and a half hours. We opted to drive through the Sacred Valley to take in the scenery of the old Inca villages.

The other information we got was about the mad scramble to get into Machu Picchu early before the crowds can swamp it, and to make sunrise at 6.15am which was the best time to see the city. At this time the sun can cast its rays across the city onto the mountain at the back of the city. We were told by 11am it is packed, and throughout the afternoon it would be cloudy. This was common knowledge unfortunately. The first buses up the mountain from Agua Calientes to Machu Pichu – a 30 minute ride - started at 5.30am. You could not buy tickets in advance, so people started queuing from 2 to 3am – incredible! Other people left Agua Calientes at 2am and trekked up the 12 km dirt road in the dark which ascended up to 2,600 meters - some 600 meters above the town so they would be first in the queue when the gates to the city were opened.

This all sounded very stressful and not my cup of tea. I knew there must be a better way. Our very helpful concierge in Cuzco, Beto, told me of a small luxury hotel, run by Orient Express, called The Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge. The lodge was perched high up in the mountains in the grounds of ‘The Lost City’ and was just 15 meters from the main entrance. It shared the same views of the mountains that the Incas would have witnessed 500 years earlier. It seemed ideal and was a sure-fire way to beat the queues. It took me (and Beto) about 3 hours to get through to someone at the lodge as they have a very unreliable satellite phone system. Luckily they had a room for the night in question, and could do me a deal as the booking was within 48 hours of arrival. “Great news” I said, “How Much?”. Just $1,375 for the night the young lady said which is a low-season, discounted late-booking price. At $5 peruvian dollars to the pound it worked out to be about £280, I said fine go ahead. It was well worth it. After all it was the second major goal of the trip, and the thought of it being ruined waiting for 6 hours in bus queues trying to get up the mountain at 5am was just too horrendous to contemplate.

The young lady, Stephanie replied, “sorry Mr O’Neill that is $1,375 US dollars not Peruvian dollars for the night”. I said you must joking I want to stay for a night not a week?, to which she then replied perhaps a hostel in Agua Calientes might be more suitable. I gave her a hard luck-story, a run-down of the trip and how I was going to write a photographic book of the trip and that the hotel would be featured prominently. She left me on hold for ten minutes (her satellite phone bill). She returned and said the manager will make a very special offer of US$1000 flat rate including all services. This would include breakfast, lunch and dinner for two in the Michelin starred restaurant, free mini-bar, free bar drinks and free bottles from the extensive wine list. She said it was an extraordinary offer and they would ‘hope’ that my treatment of the hotel would be reflected well in my book. They would also give me one of the 5 rooms (out of 29 at the lodge) which had a view of the site, and surrounding mountains. “Deal” I said, “I’ll see you tomorrow” and put the phone down before she could change her mind.

The next morning climbing out of Cuzco, which sits in a bowl, and riding through The Sacred Valley was really exhilarating. The bike was light, as we had left most of our things at the hotel in Cuzco, which was an old 16th century converted monastery. They were so helpful there. Independent travel can be tricky here, especially lacking GPS maps. There are tracks everywhere and a complete lack of signposts. The maps Beto drew, the concierge from the Casa Andina Hotel were invaluable – we owe him a huge debt.

We traveled about 80 kms through the valley (or valleys) to Ollantaytambo a spectacular old Inca city where the locals still live as their ancestors did. It is described as a living Inca town. The inhabitants maintain many of the old Inca traditions such as still ploughing their fields with foot ploughs, and weaving their own clothes. The exact age of the town is not known, but the town is famous as the place where the Incas scored a decisive victory over the Spanish. Sadly though the Spanish re-conquered it a few years later in 1537 and taught the locals a lesson with a very bloody putting-down of the rebellion.

The Inca stonework survives all around the town, and in the mountains around it. Its streets are like a living museum. We found an old local women and paid here a few pesos to store the bike, and boarded the train to cover the last 30 kms.

The train journey through the mountains alongside turbulent Rio Urubamba was unforgettable. The terrain was just so inhospitable; it really is amazing they managed to squeeze the single-track line in alongside the river. The Inca’s themselves traveled to Machu Picchu along a network of paths that run along the tops of the mountains from Cuzco, and other parts of their wide-ranging empire covering some 30,000 kms. They were just wide enough for a llama train to transport supplies, and are popular to trek with a guide today. It is so remote it is no wonder the Spanish never found Machu Picchu despite over 200 years of searching, hence the name ‘The Lost City’. It is unclear why the Inca abandoned the city in the 1600’s but after they did the foliage took its toll and the city disappeared into Myth and Folklore for some 300 years.

In 1911 explorer, professor and archeologist Hiram Bingham whilst searching for ‘The Lost City’, which many of his peers thought was just a myth, met a local farmer who told him of a city on top of a remote mountain called Machu Picchu. It was impossible to see from the valley floor but Bingham believed the farmer and decided to climb the mountain. He hired the farmer as a guide paying him one Sol (about $0.25c). The other members of his expedition thought it a waste of time, so Bingham set of with a local policeman, and the farmer. Eventually after cutting their way up through 2,000 feet of the steep mountainside of jungle, they arrived at the present day city of Machu Picchu. Even being covered in centuries of growth Bingham described it as being breathtaking.

Sadly after the discovery many scholars said the city should have been full of Inca gold like most of the other Inca cities the Spanish sacked. It is recorded that the Spanish shipped back to Spain 11 tonnes of Inca gold in the 16th century. Many accused Bingham of removing the treasures, which left a black cloud over the rest of his life. This meant he left Peru not as a hero, but one with suspicion attached to his name and never returned again until very late in his life.

Arriving in Agua Calientes, a ramshackled place being developed for tourists as the base point before heading up the mountain to visit Machu Picchu, we heading through the town but had missed the last bus up to the site, and our hotel. The hotel came through and laid on a 48-seat coach on just for Lidy and I. What Service!!

The journey up the winding track, with big views of the mountains was a treat. When we got to the Hotel Stephanie was there to greet us and treated us like royalty. By the time we arrived at 5pm the last tourists were departing back down to Agua Calientes. Having drinks on the terraces looking over Machu Picchu and the surrounding mountains was a peaceful and incredible experience, although 70% of the views were covered in patchy cloud. I just hoped the next day would not be ruined by thousands of tourists and clouds.

The hotel even tried to call the manager of the site to try and get permission for us to be allowed in at 5.30 before the crowds at 6.00 so we could take ‘clean’ shots. Alas it was not allowed without a letter from the Peruvian Tourism Ministry. We had an excellent meal; some great wine and set our alarms for 5am. The lodge had a fantastic atmosphere, and blended into the surroundings very discreetly.

The noise outside woke us and not the alarm. It was dark, raining and at 4.45am trekkers were already queuing outside the gates. We went into panic mode, grabbing a very quick shower, and running outside to join the queue. We were already about 100 people from the front at 5am! I stayed in the queue and Lidy went back in for some fruit and croissants for breakfast whilst we stayed in the queue. It was funny to watch how many other people thought this was a good idea and try to do the same only to be told it was for residents only! By 5.50am there were a good 300 people in the queue who had walked up the hill. The slower walkers who tried to join the queue in the position where some of their faster walking fiends were received severe comments and the security was employed to send these people to the back. Just before 6am the first of about 10 buses arrived carrying about 500 people, and the queue starting running back several hundred meters. There was also a lot of excitement as the rain had stopped and the clouds had lifted.

The Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge was the most expensive hotel room I have ever paid for at £625 a night, even with a discount, but with the generous package of food for two, a fantastic Peruvian wine produced in the Sacred Valley, the quality of the hotel and service we were shown, plus all the hassle and queuing it saved it was MORE than worth it. I could not even begin to image the hassle it must have been like at the bus terminal down in the town below.

At 6am when they opened the gates it took a few seconds to process each person, check passports, had over a completed form, be stamped etc so we knew we had about 30 minutes before the site would be swamped. Luckily we had spoken to one of the rangers and he led us ‘for a small gratuity’ upwards through some old steps next to the entrance through a forested path up about 100 meters to the classic spot where you get the best views of Machu Picchu. Very few other people followed us, with most heading directly forwards. This gave us the time to get some good shots before too many brightly coloured rain coats spoiled the view.

When we got to the top and took in the view it really was an awesome site. Nothing can prepare you for what a truly fantastic sight this is. It is truly breathtaking. I would recommend to anyone to try and see this place in their lifetime. We had a good 20 minutes to take some shots, before the cloud and people started to pile onto the site. To be fair though even when people started to populate the city, being almost a kilometer long it did not really distract too much. The city used to house over a thousand Incas, so a thousand tourists it could cope with. By 8.30am we had walked the whole place and were be glad to depart as more buses were coming, along with the clouds and rain.

It was easily one of the most astonishing sights I have ever seen, quite possible the best. If I could somehow score the sights I have seen in my lifetime nothing would beat it. It certainly struck me with complete awe, and I marvelled at how any civilization could build such a huge and well crafted city high up on such sheer sided mountains. It was the same reaction from Lidy, I know, and a fitting climax to the end of her journey with me. I would love to return one day and walk the Inca trail.

Heading back towards Cuzco, again first by train to Ollantaytambo, then leisurely through the sacred valley we took a few detours and rode through the town of Moray. It was like going back in time. Life here was so basic. We also found out only half the kids here get an education, and that was usually them boys. The young girls had the job of looking after the animals, washing and cooking.

Eventually arriving back in Cuzco, we had a good meal to celebrate the successful completion of getting from Patagonia to The Lost City. The direction would now be south again. Firstly for about 2,500 kms along The Altiplano at an average altitude of 4,000m past Lake Titicaca and through Bolivia, and then the final 2,000 kms through Argentina’s northern regions. Sadly, I had only heard of bad stories so far about Bolivia and the level of police corruption, and hoped they were exaggerated.



The only way to get to Machu Picchu is by train. The journey is stunning.


Agua Calientes, the tourist town at the bottom of the mountain from Machu Picchu.



Typical 'Gunho' Peruvian driving.


Our private coach up the mountain to The Machu Picchu Santuary Lodge.

Day 48 & 49 – 8/9th January. The Lost City & Sacred Valley. Images 1.

The queue to the entrance started at 4.45am, by extremely keen types who had trekked up the mountain in the rain and dark! This is at 5.50am when the first coaches started to arrive. People who pushed in were deal with severely...






Two wide-angle shots of the amazing citadel, with sheer drops of almost 2,000 ft on all sides, and a horseshoe of mountains surrounding the city in the distance.




A shot showing the middle-class workers and higher officials quarters in the foreground.




Across the town green towards The Royal Quarters

Day 48 & 49 – 8/9th January. The Lost City & Sacred Valley. Images 2.

A shot showing the officials quarters on the foreground left, and just a bit of the agricultural workers and servants quarters in the foreground right.



These terraces are just 1m wide and the bottom one has a 600 meter drop to the Urubamba River below.


Lidy showing off the Inca's fine stonework. The gaps on some of the stones are less than 1mm all around, and no cement was used, which is the reason the city stands in perfect condition today. The only parts that have perished are the thatched roofs, and wooden roof beams. Two structures have had these replaced so it is possible to visualise the finished article.





The Incas built a complex system of gravity fed waterways so there was a continual supply of fresh water spread throughout the city for washing, and drinking.

Day 48 & 49 – 8/9th January. The Lost City & Sacred Valley. Images 3.

Three images of the stonework around the observatory used by the Inca priests. It is not known today how they managed to make such perfectly fitted stones without cement or mortar. It is known the Incas had good knowledge of the stars, seasons, sun and moon phases, and used a yearly calander. That is why it is even more surprising the priests carried out frequent sacrifices of young beautiful female to the sun, to royalty and to other important events at Machu Picchu. The poor girls heart was cut out at an altar stone on the site, using a special sacrificial knife, whilst 4 other priests held her down. Early excavations found the remains of 128 young female skeletons. Other bodies of the naturally occurring deaths were buried elsewhere.




The terraces the Incas built were extremely sophisticated. First they had layers of sand, gravel, and rocks and then top soil. This not only meant very fertile land, with good drainage it also prevented soil erosion which is why Inca terraces look in perfect condition even today after 500 years. The water drained from one level onto the next and so on also, being extremely water efficient, and prevented crop spolage when there was too much rain. This multiple draining and water preservation meant they produced 20 tonnes of crops per hectare, which is 10 times higher than modern methods in a flat field using fertilizers today, which only average 2 tonnes per hectare. Because of this old Inca methods are used throughout this region of Peru and is being introduced in other areas of mountainous regions of South America. The drawback is that it is labour intensive, be far more productive. The terraces of Machu Picchu were estimated to be able to produce enough food for twice the population of a 1,000 people allow food to be stored in surplus.

Day 48 & 49 – 8/9th January. The Lost City & Sacred Valley. Images 4.

The llamas keep the terraces in good shape.





We departed just as the crowds started to pour in, and as the citadel disappeared under a blanket of cloud. We were very lucky indeed.