Hola,
Well, I've left Cuzco now, but not before experiencing one more surreal moment in a million surreal moments in my travels.
The day after we got back from the trek, I was taking myself on a tour of the city, wandering the lanes and alleys again, this time without the burden of altitude sickness upon me....fully acclimatised now.
Mid-afternoon, making my way back towards Plaza De Armas, the main square, I noticed a massive throng of people gathered outside the cathedral, spilling onto the streets and everything. Literally minutes later, I hear the distictive sounds of V8 Rally cars approaching the square from the surrounding streets. Burning around the corner comes the leader of the pack, pulling up outside a sponsors banner, immediately swamped by media, the ubiquitous glamour-model grid girl types, and fans and on-lookers. I got caught up in the moment, and NOT being a motor-sports fan, i found myself, camera in hand, trying to get up close for a decent snap of whoever the hell it was that was driving.
After 10 minutes of obligatory interviews and media ops, rally-car dude revs his engine, takes off and heads out the opposite end of the square...Cuzco must have been a completion stage point for some cross-South-American rally of some description.
So, with the clamour over with for the moment, I continue on my walk around the city. Periodically, another car or batch of 3 or 4 come racing through the tiny side streets of Cuzco, curiously along the same streets that I am exploring. I managed some more 'action' shots with iconic Cuzco background, until it got too dark, and headed back to my new hostel.
I had one last day in Cuzco before I had booked on an overnight bus to where I am now, Arequipa. This was to be my 'shopping' days, taking care of souvenirs and gifts. Only it decided to piss down rain all day, so much so that it wasn't worth leaving the hostel. So a day of internet and DVD´s it was then.
Last night, I had one of THE most comfortable bus journeys I have ever had in my life. The South American bus system is pretty good, so far...given that I´ve only had one journey, that may be an early call, but so far, so good.
I had booked an overnight ride, and was advised that being an overnight-er, it was best that i paid a bit extra and got a decent bus company, rather than the local buses with the chickens, sacks of rice and screaming vomit spewing babies taking up all the room.
I took that advice, and boy am i glad i did.
Double decker bus, with seats that recline almost to horizontal - known as 'semi-cama', with a bus-hostess providing you with a meal and complimentary blanket!, DVD playing on the TV screen, in English (with Spanish sub-titles)...it was better than some airlines i have flown!
Another reason for choosing the higher confort level was that I had eaten some dodgy Peruvian street food the previous day - the first time i had given it a shot - and i´d developed a mild case of the squirts...the on-board el-bano (toilet) proved to be a god-send!!
Right now, I´m in Arequipa, Peru´s 2nd largest city (approx 1 million population), upon a recommendation from several other backpackers i´d met so far. An unscheduled stop for me, I´ll now no doubt need to drop something later on in the journey.
It is dubbed the White City, having been built from a light coloured volcanic rock called "sillar" that dazzles in the sun. The city is surrounded by 3 active volcanoes, El Misti (5822m), Chachani (6075m), and Pichu Pichu (5571m), as well as high altitude deserts and thermal hot springs.
The big attraction here is the Colca Canyon, dubbed here "The Worlds Deepest Canyon", rivaling the Grand Canyon in Arizona for the title. I´ve booked on a 3 day 2 night trekking tour of the canyon starting tomorrow morning....as if I haven´t had enough already!!!....well I suppose I am a glutton for punishment.
I´ll check in again in 3 days when i return from this latest trekking adventure!
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