The R&R Big Adventure

Machu Pichu Prep

Our second day in Lima was spent very pleasantly exploring Miraflores, an upmarket neighbourhood by the sea – with perfectly manicured green spaces, jogging and cycling tracks atop the impressive cliffs that tower above the sea, and even a shopping centre that clings onto one of the cliff faces, with probably the best views (directly overlooking the Pacific) of any shopping centre in the world. A statue of Paddington was sited between this and the British Embassy in Lima, just over the road. We came back here for a Sunday morning stroll and coffee before our flight to Cusco. There was a gathering for dog enthusiasts on one of the greens – or rather dog lovers who loved to dress up their dogs – with stalls selling everything from mini Starbucks (or rather Starbarks) aprons for the pets, to bow-tied mini suits, and even dog halloween outfits. Their owners looked really pleased with themselves.

Our flight to Cusco was yet another on time, efficient LATAM flight: our bags again coming off less than ten minutes after we landed. If only a well established British airline could learn lessons from a South American carrier. The landing was interesting though: arriving at Cusco (which is nestled between mountains), we took a sharp left over a very large hill, before descending rapidly onto the runway; the pilot then had to break quickly (throwing everyone forward in their seatbelts) to avoid running out of tarmac. Clearly it takes some skill from the pilot – whilst we were enjoying the scenery from a high vantage point in Cusco today, we noticed a plane having to abort landing three times before eventually succeeding.

We definitely noticed the altitude difference last night – at 3,400m above sea level, even walking up a few steps put us out of breath. Fortunately we have acclimatised today, taking it easy around town, and seeing some of the impressive landmarks in Cusco. We had our Inca Trail briefing at 4pm – meeting the six other people we will be hiking with (all British, seem normal, but then let’s review that after fours days up and down mountains with them) and what is involved over the next few days. We can only pack 3kg (excluding sleeping bag and mat) for our porters to carry, and have to pack for temperatures ranging from 3 to 23 deg, and for both hot sun and rain, so some tough decisions had to be made. I did say to Robert whether Eeyore’s 350g could be better allocated for other essentials, but unsurprisingly, I was ignored. Last minute purchases for the trip were made tonight. We realised we could do with elasticated bandanas to use as sweatbands, or as face masks to deal with the mosquitos – unfortunately the only ones left in the shop had designs suitable for teenage skateboarders, so please bear that in mind if you see us wearing them in any photos.

So – the four day hike to Machu Pichu starts at 5am tomorrow, we will have no reception I assume by lunchtime, and therefore no further updates probably until we fly to La Paz on Saturday. If anything happens to us, I would like to think we make it to the News at Ten, and not just be a byline before the local weather.