So our bus to Paraguay did in fact take us 24 hours and thankfully was far less eventful. At the border however is where all the fun and games began!! Aparently the border we were using has a big drug trafficking problem so we were to expect dogs and a few peoples bags to be searched. We all pilled out of the bus into the intorable heat and lined our bags up and our selves. The drug dog and his handler were great fun. The handler ran up and down the bags getting the dog all worked up with his toy, that looked like a face cloth and then let him out. The dog ran around sniffing, but didnt find anything :( Well untill the police men planted the drugs in amongst our bags as a kind of test I guess. While this was all going on the police men then started one by one going through everyones bags. Fully emptying them too. Steph and I were not looking forward to this. Thankfully! We got a man with a cold and he couldn't be bothered to go through all our stuff and we got off with him just giving our bags a good grope and a wee peer in the top.
While the drug stuff had been going on this wild boar looking pig kept appearing and one of the police men would try and chase it away. It would try and sniff the bags and us. While Steph was getting her bag checked I was sat beside the bus and had a very close encounter with the pig. She wanted the bread rolls in my bags and kept putting her oversized snout in it and biting things!! Had I known at the time how horrible the bread was she would have been welcome to it! Not many people would let her near them, but the pig only spoke spanish so that was proving a problem for me! Not that it mattered too much, she enjoyed bitting the awful book I was reading. After some time, this got a little dull and she went and lay in the mud. Know I told her as soon as she did that that she was not allowed to come near me again... she didn't listen and did a great job at getting pig mud all over my rucksack and also the crap book (I didn't mind that bit too much). The police man told us that she had been there since she was a baby and didn't realise that she was a pig. She thought she was a dog and didn't understand why she couldnt do all the things other dogs did!!
She was a clever pig too and sniffed out food in someones bin liner of luggage. When she got into trouble the first time she hid and then went back and stole the whole bag of crisps!! It was funny, when she got into trouble she used to lie down like a dog would too. If she had rolled onto her back I would have thought she was Nuala in disguise!!
We arrived at Asuncion a bit later than the man had predicted, which sadly meant we didn`t get to see much of the city. But I will say that they do some very nice veggie pies in the downtown area. Especially if it´s around 10pm and you´re starving!
We say some very nice buildings along with 2 different hen doo´s. They also definitely have more money in Paraguay than in Peru, Ecuador and Bolivia. We were there just long enough to realize that things cost a little bit more (no more 3 course meals for under 2 pounds!)
We´re off early tomorrow to head to the Falls!!! And yes, we are excited!! Of course Anna keeps pointing out that it´s just water in then end ... what´s the big deal?!
Steph and Anna
Wednesday, 30 March 2011
At Least It Wasn`t 5am!
Steph and I should have knowen from the begining that travelling was never going to be easy if our travelling to South America is anything to go by... Our trip from La Paz to Santa Cruz has definatly been one of the more dramatic. When you buy a bus ticket from one place to the other, I guess you assume that the bus will get you there. Not in this case!! We started our trip to Santa Cruz at about 5pm, we were to arrive at our destination at 9am the following morning. After snuggling down for a nights kip on the bus (which Steph and I have gotten quite good at) I felt the bus come to a halt. Some hours later I woke again and found the bus was still stationary... neither of us really thought much of it. At about 6 we were woken and told it was a toilet break. In a state of sleepy confusion we both got off the bus and found ourselves surrounded by lorries and buses... There was a road block.
At some point in the morning about 4 men on the bus decided to walk up the hill to the nearest town and see what they could do. Unfortunatly, this was the only way to Santa Cruz. One of the men was flying!! For twice the price of our bus ticket!! Why not just fly in the first place!! At about 10am the bus drivers came on and told us all to go if we could. They really didnt think they were going anywhere today. Anna and I loaded up and started down the hill, we were told it would be a 2 to 3 hour walk. The only person left on the bus was a women with her 4 children who were all under 6. She had no choice but to wait it out.
About half an hour down the hill we came across the road block. They certantly know how to do things in Bolivia. The road was covered in bolders so nothing could drive over and the amount of people walking up and down the hill was amazing. It was like something out of a dooms-day movie. We made it across the road block and past all the protesters, who were angry about the government about pay and met out Boliviano family of ladies. They were lovely and were made up of and Auntie and Niece, and 3 other ladies, who all lived in Santa Cruz. With them we walked to the next town and then all squished into a taxi. Steph was in the boot.
We walked a little more, picking up some food along the way. We had made it to where the bus drivers had told us to go. However, the road block was still effecting the roads this far away. It probly didnt help that Bolivianos seem to have no common sense and blocked both lains, so even if the road block had ended no one could go anywhere anyway. Obviously people like to sit around clogging up the road for no reason in Bolivia!!
We ended up highering a man and his van for 7 hours to take us to Santa Cruz. He had no seats in the back, but at least there were windows!! We made it at 9pm, exactly 12 hours late.
Anna and I are not quite sure what all the fuss is about when it comes to Santa Cruz. It seems just like another big city and a not very pretty one. We didnt do much apart from city in the only pretty part of the city, the main square. We think all the nice stuff must be around it. Tonight we get on a bus to Asuncion. It takes 24 hours. Fun Fun Fun!!
Anna and Steph
At some point in the morning about 4 men on the bus decided to walk up the hill to the nearest town and see what they could do. Unfortunatly, this was the only way to Santa Cruz. One of the men was flying!! For twice the price of our bus ticket!! Why not just fly in the first place!! At about 10am the bus drivers came on and told us all to go if we could. They really didnt think they were going anywhere today. Anna and I loaded up and started down the hill, we were told it would be a 2 to 3 hour walk. The only person left on the bus was a women with her 4 children who were all under 6. She had no choice but to wait it out.
About half an hour down the hill we came across the road block. They certantly know how to do things in Bolivia. The road was covered in bolders so nothing could drive over and the amount of people walking up and down the hill was amazing. It was like something out of a dooms-day movie. We made it across the road block and past all the protesters, who were angry about the government about pay and met out Boliviano family of ladies. They were lovely and were made up of and Auntie and Niece, and 3 other ladies, who all lived in Santa Cruz. With them we walked to the next town and then all squished into a taxi. Steph was in the boot.
We walked a little more, picking up some food along the way. We had made it to where the bus drivers had told us to go. However, the road block was still effecting the roads this far away. It probly didnt help that Bolivianos seem to have no common sense and blocked both lains, so even if the road block had ended no one could go anywhere anyway. Obviously people like to sit around clogging up the road for no reason in Bolivia!!
We ended up highering a man and his van for 7 hours to take us to Santa Cruz. He had no seats in the back, but at least there were windows!! We made it at 9pm, exactly 12 hours late.
Anna and I are not quite sure what all the fuss is about when it comes to Santa Cruz. It seems just like another big city and a not very pretty one. We didnt do much apart from city in the only pretty part of the city, the main square. We think all the nice stuff must be around it. Tonight we get on a bus to Asuncion. It takes 24 hours. Fun Fun Fun!!
Anna and Steph
Another Fun Filled Border Crossing
Well, you`ll be glad to hear that we did make it to Lake Titicaca, but as with most of our bus travels, there was a hic up or two...
We got to the bus station in plenty of time for our 10.30pm bus to Copacabana, Bolivia. Now, the bus claimed that it was a DIRECT bus to Copacabana, and then it would carry to to La Paz. Hmmm, I think that their definitition of a DIRECT bus and ours differ a bit.
In my little happy world, a direct bus takes you from point A to point B without you having to change buses ... at 6.30am we were kicked off our bus with 7 other people and told that we had to get on another bus (again, we definitely differ on the definition of BUS). What can be almost classed as a mini van showed up, our bags were hefted on to the roof and we were told to get in. Then the lady told us that we would have to pay again for the transfer. Wait a minute!! Why are we paying a second time to get to Copacabana??? Well, the Argentinian girls sat behind us and were having none of that either. One of them very eliquently told the lady to piss off, as we were not paying twice for our DIRECT bus to Copacabana.
The lady finally came round and said that another mini van/bus would pick us up on the other side ... then she left. Right ... anybody feel like we`ve been done again??? Well, we had little hope of not having to pay twice, but as there were 9 of us, we went along for the ride (besides, the other bus had already left). The little man driving to `van` dropped us at the border on the Peruvian side and said that we had to go to immigration and then walk across to the other side, where a van would be waiting. So, what does the van look like? He didn`t know. What`s the driver`s name? He didn`t know. Will there actually be a van? He claimed there would be. Yarg!
We walked over the border as a group and it was completely safe. Immigrations were a breeze and so then what. Well, the Spanish lady and Brasilian dude went to ask about how much a taxi would be. The tall dude packed up and decided to walk the 8km (he claimed it would only take him 30 minutes ... in what world I don`t know). The rest of us sat with the bags and then magically the lady appeared again! She took us to the van that was there loaded us on and then wanted a tip. So she wanted a tip for leaving us, abandoning us in a van?? Hmmm I don`t think so! No tip!
Rolling into Copacabana just after 10am, we were hungry and so was the rest of our group, so we went out for breakfast 10 BS (that´s the sign for Bolivian money) and then had to find an ATM ... well ATM`s don`t exist in Copacabana, so we had to do a direct debty thing from a bank like place. It was all very confusing. We did try to exchange what was left of my US dollars, but they man said that the dollar bills were too small of an amount, and the tiniest corner of the $10 bill was gone, so they wouldn`t accept it! (we later found out that the bank won`t accept anything but pristeen bills, too bad the guy didn`t tell us that!)
We did manage to arrange our bus to La Paz for the next day, and our ferry to Isla del Sol (the island of the sun). Ahh! The island really was beautiful (sorry Miranda). And very relaxing! There wasn`t much to do, as there are less that 100 inhabitants on the whole island (well, that would be my guess anyways!).
Plus we stayed in one of the best hostels yet! A double room with nice warm blankets for maybe 2 pounds! They even let us dry out our clothes!!! So nice!
Off to our next big city, the high altitude capital of Bolivia, La Paz! We`re just hoping the bus ride isn`t too eventful!
Anna and Steph
We got to the bus station in plenty of time for our 10.30pm bus to Copacabana, Bolivia. Now, the bus claimed that it was a DIRECT bus to Copacabana, and then it would carry to to La Paz. Hmmm, I think that their definitition of a DIRECT bus and ours differ a bit.
In my little happy world, a direct bus takes you from point A to point B without you having to change buses ... at 6.30am we were kicked off our bus with 7 other people and told that we had to get on another bus (again, we definitely differ on the definition of BUS). What can be almost classed as a mini van showed up, our bags were hefted on to the roof and we were told to get in. Then the lady told us that we would have to pay again for the transfer. Wait a minute!! Why are we paying a second time to get to Copacabana??? Well, the Argentinian girls sat behind us and were having none of that either. One of them very eliquently told the lady to piss off, as we were not paying twice for our DIRECT bus to Copacabana.
The lady finally came round and said that another mini van/bus would pick us up on the other side ... then she left. Right ... anybody feel like we`ve been done again??? Well, we had little hope of not having to pay twice, but as there were 9 of us, we went along for the ride (besides, the other bus had already left). The little man driving to `van` dropped us at the border on the Peruvian side and said that we had to go to immigration and then walk across to the other side, where a van would be waiting. So, what does the van look like? He didn`t know. What`s the driver`s name? He didn`t know. Will there actually be a van? He claimed there would be. Yarg!
We walked over the border as a group and it was completely safe. Immigrations were a breeze and so then what. Well, the Spanish lady and Brasilian dude went to ask about how much a taxi would be. The tall dude packed up and decided to walk the 8km (he claimed it would only take him 30 minutes ... in what world I don`t know). The rest of us sat with the bags and then magically the lady appeared again! She took us to the van that was there loaded us on and then wanted a tip. So she wanted a tip for leaving us, abandoning us in a van?? Hmmm I don`t think so! No tip!
Rolling into Copacabana just after 10am, we were hungry and so was the rest of our group, so we went out for breakfast 10 BS (that´s the sign for Bolivian money) and then had to find an ATM ... well ATM`s don`t exist in Copacabana, so we had to do a direct debty thing from a bank like place. It was all very confusing. We did try to exchange what was left of my US dollars, but they man said that the dollar bills were too small of an amount, and the tiniest corner of the $10 bill was gone, so they wouldn`t accept it! (we later found out that the bank won`t accept anything but pristeen bills, too bad the guy didn`t tell us that!)
We did manage to arrange our bus to La Paz for the next day, and our ferry to Isla del Sol (the island of the sun). Ahh! The island really was beautiful (sorry Miranda). And very relaxing! There wasn`t much to do, as there are less that 100 inhabitants on the whole island (well, that would be my guess anyways!).
Plus we stayed in one of the best hostels yet! A double room with nice warm blankets for maybe 2 pounds! They even let us dry out our clothes!!! So nice!
Off to our next big city, the high altitude capital of Bolivia, La Paz! We`re just hoping the bus ride isn`t too eventful!
Anna and Steph
Saturday, 19 March 2011
Cous Cous to Machu Picchu and Back
Hello again everyone!
So we can now proudly say that we´ve seen Machu Picchu!
We arrived into Cuzco last Saturday (12th March) and managed to find our hostel easily enough (it was up the hill). From there we quickly booked our trek to Machu Picchu. We would be leaving between 4.30am and 5am on Monday to go on the Salkantay Trail 5day/4night trek. Yay! And it didn´t break our bank accounts, though there isn´t much money left in either of ours right about now.
Now, if you ever find your self with some time in Cuzco on a Saturday, we would suggest going to the free Chocolate Musuem (between Plaza de Armas and Plaza San Fransisco). It was amazing! We even had hot chocolate instead of ice cream!
We had all of Sunday morning before my dad was due to arrive and decided that we should be cultural and go to see a small convent with art musuem. We didn´t make it farther than Plaza de Armas, as Carnival was on and there was a massive parade with dancing, traditional dress and floats. Peru treats Carnival like Ecuador does, only for one day instead of the whole month. This just means that it was a war zone of water balloons, squirt guns and foam as we tried to take cover at every opportunity! Sadly, we didn´t always succeed and were attacked at least 4 times - one of whom was a man, dressed as a women, in the parade! It was pretty hilarious and he sprayed us with foam and then said, "only in Peru!" as he handed us each a condom with a sweetie on it! All we could do was laugh!
Dad arrived and we had an action plan of things to do before leaving the next day. This included buying snacks, water, a hat for Dad and Anna and buying a towel. Tasks done and we were ready for the morning! (For all those Brits out there, we did eat lunch in a pub which served Greene King IPA.)
So, our adventure began with a 2 1/2 hour bus ride up a twisty road to the village of Mollepata (2900m). Our group "The English Speakers" consisted of 2 Germans, 2 Danes, 2 LondAners, a South Korean girl, us and Walter (our guide). A nice morning walk to our lunch spot and Dad was feeling a bit more out of breath than usual. This could have been the altitude or maybe it was just Walter´s "short-cuts" that were getting to him. These "short-cuts" consisted of going up as steep of an incline as possble for a minimum of 5 to 10 minutes.
After a nice lunch of soup followed by rice and meat, we set off again. Dad really wasn´t feeling well now and was showing the signs of Altitude Sickness, Anna and I both were fine. Our "camping" was in tents, but under a tarped house. It was nice to get some hot tea and popcorn before dinner! We would like to note that this was our first night apart in 67 days and even though our tents were next to each other it was very distressing! (What´s it going to be like when we go back to Rutland and Scotland!!)
Day 2 consisted of going from our campsite at Soraypampa (3900m) to our highest point (4650m) and then down about 2 hours for lunch. I would love to say that the view was amazing, but as it was snowing, there wasn´t much of a view. We´re thinking of stealing Ben´s photos and claiming them as ours! While Anna and I were happy hiking up, Dad went with the wise decision of taking a horse up to the top, along with about 10 other people.
Another filling lunch, well, except if you were Anna, who pilfered leftovers from other plates (she was convinced she wasn´t given lunch in the first place and that her plate just randomly became empty). Dad again took the opportunity to go by horseback as we were still quite high and dizziness is not a good thing when walking downhill! Our campsite was at Chaullay (2900m) and we were greeted by some mud and funny looking chickens!
Day 3 everyone was feeling A LOT better (the altitude had taken it´s toll on 5 of our group of 10, one member of which had been suffering from hallucinations of dead cats and dogs - not dad!). We walked through the jungle to lunch, passing many avocado (palta) and passionfruit trees. From here we were taken by "bus" (van with broken seats) to our campsite in Santa Teresa (1900m if you´re interested). There were "hot" showers for all of 5 soles (just over 1 pound) and Anna was definitely in need of one ... you try sharing a tent with her!
Day 4 we walked to Aguas Calientes, this is the town nearest to Machu Picchu. There is an option of taking a bus in the morning and whilst we were walking along the trail 2 very full mini buses loaded with the "Spanish Speaking Group" flew by ... WHIMPS!! :) After Anna had eaten her ice cream, the afternoon was spent walking with our BIG rucksacks along the railway line ... this is where we saw our first glimpse of Machu Picchu! In the four days we walked a total of 83km (52 miles) from Mollepata to Aguas Calientes. Now it was just the 400m vertical ascent in the morning!
At 4am is was pissing it down with rain, which didn´t let up until 6am, just as the gates opened at the top! It was really more like walking up a river than stairs, but hey, at least this was the first time our boots had really gotten wet! (the mud had made them waterproof) Let´s just say it´s a good thing we´d both brought extra layers with us! Walter took us on an hour an a half tour, in which time the sun began to rise and the clouds began to lift, revealing the city. It was a spectacular view! Everyone thought it was definitely worth it, even if the Londoners claimed they hadn´t walked this far in the past 3 years (and won´t again in the next 4!)
Dad and I walked to the Sun Gate as Anna explored the central area. Now the Sun Gate was nice, but for some reason I was more impressed with the view and forgot to take a picture of the gate itself. We left around 2pm and were sitting happily in a restuarant eating lunch around 3.30, just as the rain started again. We spotted 2 very wet Londoners through the window - respect must be given to Av, as she walked for about 4 days in broken healed shoes!
Now, we all know that Anna and Steph´s journeys are never uneventful, and unfortunatly this one lived up to that expectation. Our train was supposed to leave at 7.30pm (arriving back to Cous Cous at 11pm), however "The Company" booked us on the 10 o´clock train, which turned out to be leaving at 10.30pm. This was okay and the train did leave relatively on time. About an hour into our trip, the train screeched to a halt, and stayed that way for a good 2 hours. They eventually got around to telling us that a tree had fallen onto the tracks and there were people trying to remove it. This did finally happen. It took another 45 minutes to get to the train station where we were taken by bus to Cous Cous, arriving at a pleasant 4.50am (hey, seems like we were up for 24 hours!) You know our luck with 5am and buses!! Anna was in bed by 5am and I was about 2 minutes after her. We have no idea what Frank was up to, but he didn´t make it into bed for at least another 15 minutes! It was the most expensive 3 hour kip we´ve ever had! (Check out was at 10.30am and we still had to re-pack).
We said goodbye to Dad this morning, after which we went for 2nd breakfast (the first one did not fill the hole). Other than that we´ve done bugger all today, other than revisiting the chocolate musuem, what can we say, it was good!
We´re now waiting for our 10.30pm overnight bus to Bolivia, let´s just hope it doesn´t get in at 5am!
¡Bueños Noches!
Anna and Steph
So we can now proudly say that we´ve seen Machu Picchu!
We arrived into Cuzco last Saturday (12th March) and managed to find our hostel easily enough (it was up the hill). From there we quickly booked our trek to Machu Picchu. We would be leaving between 4.30am and 5am on Monday to go on the Salkantay Trail 5day/4night trek. Yay! And it didn´t break our bank accounts, though there isn´t much money left in either of ours right about now.
Now, if you ever find your self with some time in Cuzco on a Saturday, we would suggest going to the free Chocolate Musuem (between Plaza de Armas and Plaza San Fransisco). It was amazing! We even had hot chocolate instead of ice cream!
We had all of Sunday morning before my dad was due to arrive and decided that we should be cultural and go to see a small convent with art musuem. We didn´t make it farther than Plaza de Armas, as Carnival was on and there was a massive parade with dancing, traditional dress and floats. Peru treats Carnival like Ecuador does, only for one day instead of the whole month. This just means that it was a war zone of water balloons, squirt guns and foam as we tried to take cover at every opportunity! Sadly, we didn´t always succeed and were attacked at least 4 times - one of whom was a man, dressed as a women, in the parade! It was pretty hilarious and he sprayed us with foam and then said, "only in Peru!" as he handed us each a condom with a sweetie on it! All we could do was laugh!
Dad arrived and we had an action plan of things to do before leaving the next day. This included buying snacks, water, a hat for Dad and Anna and buying a towel. Tasks done and we were ready for the morning! (For all those Brits out there, we did eat lunch in a pub which served Greene King IPA.)
So, our adventure began with a 2 1/2 hour bus ride up a twisty road to the village of Mollepata (2900m). Our group "The English Speakers" consisted of 2 Germans, 2 Danes, 2 LondAners, a South Korean girl, us and Walter (our guide). A nice morning walk to our lunch spot and Dad was feeling a bit more out of breath than usual. This could have been the altitude or maybe it was just Walter´s "short-cuts" that were getting to him. These "short-cuts" consisted of going up as steep of an incline as possble for a minimum of 5 to 10 minutes.
After a nice lunch of soup followed by rice and meat, we set off again. Dad really wasn´t feeling well now and was showing the signs of Altitude Sickness, Anna and I both were fine. Our "camping" was in tents, but under a tarped house. It was nice to get some hot tea and popcorn before dinner! We would like to note that this was our first night apart in 67 days and even though our tents were next to each other it was very distressing! (What´s it going to be like when we go back to Rutland and Scotland!!)
Day 2 consisted of going from our campsite at Soraypampa (3900m) to our highest point (4650m) and then down about 2 hours for lunch. I would love to say that the view was amazing, but as it was snowing, there wasn´t much of a view. We´re thinking of stealing Ben´s photos and claiming them as ours! While Anna and I were happy hiking up, Dad went with the wise decision of taking a horse up to the top, along with about 10 other people.
Another filling lunch, well, except if you were Anna, who pilfered leftovers from other plates (she was convinced she wasn´t given lunch in the first place and that her plate just randomly became empty). Dad again took the opportunity to go by horseback as we were still quite high and dizziness is not a good thing when walking downhill! Our campsite was at Chaullay (2900m) and we were greeted by some mud and funny looking chickens!
Day 3 everyone was feeling A LOT better (the altitude had taken it´s toll on 5 of our group of 10, one member of which had been suffering from hallucinations of dead cats and dogs - not dad!). We walked through the jungle to lunch, passing many avocado (palta) and passionfruit trees. From here we were taken by "bus" (van with broken seats) to our campsite in Santa Teresa (1900m if you´re interested). There were "hot" showers for all of 5 soles (just over 1 pound) and Anna was definitely in need of one ... you try sharing a tent with her!
Day 4 we walked to Aguas Calientes, this is the town nearest to Machu Picchu. There is an option of taking a bus in the morning and whilst we were walking along the trail 2 very full mini buses loaded with the "Spanish Speaking Group" flew by ... WHIMPS!! :) After Anna had eaten her ice cream, the afternoon was spent walking with our BIG rucksacks along the railway line ... this is where we saw our first glimpse of Machu Picchu! In the four days we walked a total of 83km (52 miles) from Mollepata to Aguas Calientes. Now it was just the 400m vertical ascent in the morning!
At 4am is was pissing it down with rain, which didn´t let up until 6am, just as the gates opened at the top! It was really more like walking up a river than stairs, but hey, at least this was the first time our boots had really gotten wet! (the mud had made them waterproof) Let´s just say it´s a good thing we´d both brought extra layers with us! Walter took us on an hour an a half tour, in which time the sun began to rise and the clouds began to lift, revealing the city. It was a spectacular view! Everyone thought it was definitely worth it, even if the Londoners claimed they hadn´t walked this far in the past 3 years (and won´t again in the next 4!)
Dad and I walked to the Sun Gate as Anna explored the central area. Now the Sun Gate was nice, but for some reason I was more impressed with the view and forgot to take a picture of the gate itself. We left around 2pm and were sitting happily in a restuarant eating lunch around 3.30, just as the rain started again. We spotted 2 very wet Londoners through the window - respect must be given to Av, as she walked for about 4 days in broken healed shoes!
Now, we all know that Anna and Steph´s journeys are never uneventful, and unfortunatly this one lived up to that expectation. Our train was supposed to leave at 7.30pm (arriving back to Cous Cous at 11pm), however "The Company" booked us on the 10 o´clock train, which turned out to be leaving at 10.30pm. This was okay and the train did leave relatively on time. About an hour into our trip, the train screeched to a halt, and stayed that way for a good 2 hours. They eventually got around to telling us that a tree had fallen onto the tracks and there were people trying to remove it. This did finally happen. It took another 45 minutes to get to the train station where we were taken by bus to Cous Cous, arriving at a pleasant 4.50am (hey, seems like we were up for 24 hours!) You know our luck with 5am and buses!! Anna was in bed by 5am and I was about 2 minutes after her. We have no idea what Frank was up to, but he didn´t make it into bed for at least another 15 minutes! It was the most expensive 3 hour kip we´ve ever had! (Check out was at 10.30am and we still had to re-pack).
We said goodbye to Dad this morning, after which we went for 2nd breakfast (the first one did not fill the hole). Other than that we´ve done bugger all today, other than revisiting the chocolate musuem, what can we say, it was good!
We´re now waiting for our 10.30pm overnight bus to Bolivia, let´s just hope it doesn´t get in at 5am!
¡Bueños Noches!
Anna and Steph
Friday, 11 March 2011
The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull
Well Steph did make it everyone! The hostel owner gave us a lift to the bus terminal, so there was no chance of her being abducted. All that excitment for nothing!!
The 30 hour bus ride went very smoothly, but lets just say, neither of us are in a hurry to do that one again!! Steph also got very annoyed that once you are on the bus you cannot get off again until you reach your destination! All she wanted was a bottle of coke! They really are like airplanes. They even check your hand luggage and WAND you!
Our two days in Lima were nice. We spent one day in the centre where we saw the changing of the guards at the palace, stumbled across chinatown (its all of a block) and visited some Catacumbas, many many bones. The next day we dipped our feet in the Pacific and went to the Parque De Aguas. It was so cool!! A must see in Lima in our opinion! It was full of fountains that were lit up in the dark with different colours. Some were tunnels you could walk through, others danced to music and one you could play in. When the fountain was off people tried to run in, before they started again. One man was caught out big time in a rather unfortunate place, or maybe he wasn´t caught out and he had actaully wet himself.... Neither of us got caught!!
We arrived in Nasca yesturday and decided to follow in the footsteps of Indiana Jones and hunt for the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull by following the lines! Unfortunatly your not allowed to stand on the lines and we couldn´t afford a flight so we didn´t get very far in our quest... although I´m not sure it matters too much as Indiana Jones did flood the joint before he left! The lines were still pretty cool though. We saw The Hands (Frog), The Tree (Seaweed) and The Lizard, which was cut in half when the main road was built. We also saw tones of lines and geometric shapes on the ground from our viewing tower, all going in different directions.
Last night we went to the Planetarium, which was all about the lines. It explained how some of the lines appear to point to important stars and the summer and winter solstice. We think it was the aliens. We were also able to look at the moon through a pretty powerful telescope and see the craters incredibly clearly.
Our short time in Nasca has been good, although some may say its been too long... all they have are the lines. We get the bus out in a few hours to head to Cusco and Machu Picchu.
Oh and just for the record, Nasca is 70km away from the sea, so the Tsunami warning does NOT apply. Machu Piccu is even further away, so think we´re safe.
We´ll keep you posted on the search for the Crystal Skull Kingdom!
Anna and Steph
The 30 hour bus ride went very smoothly, but lets just say, neither of us are in a hurry to do that one again!! Steph also got very annoyed that once you are on the bus you cannot get off again until you reach your destination! All she wanted was a bottle of coke! They really are like airplanes. They even check your hand luggage and WAND you!
Our two days in Lima were nice. We spent one day in the centre where we saw the changing of the guards at the palace, stumbled across chinatown (its all of a block) and visited some Catacumbas, many many bones. The next day we dipped our feet in the Pacific and went to the Parque De Aguas. It was so cool!! A must see in Lima in our opinion! It was full of fountains that were lit up in the dark with different colours. Some were tunnels you could walk through, others danced to music and one you could play in. When the fountain was off people tried to run in, before they started again. One man was caught out big time in a rather unfortunate place, or maybe he wasn´t caught out and he had actaully wet himself.... Neither of us got caught!!
We arrived in Nasca yesturday and decided to follow in the footsteps of Indiana Jones and hunt for the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull by following the lines! Unfortunatly your not allowed to stand on the lines and we couldn´t afford a flight so we didn´t get very far in our quest... although I´m not sure it matters too much as Indiana Jones did flood the joint before he left! The lines were still pretty cool though. We saw The Hands (Frog), The Tree (Seaweed) and The Lizard, which was cut in half when the main road was built. We also saw tones of lines and geometric shapes on the ground from our viewing tower, all going in different directions.
Last night we went to the Planetarium, which was all about the lines. It explained how some of the lines appear to point to important stars and the summer and winter solstice. We think it was the aliens. We were also able to look at the moon through a pretty powerful telescope and see the craters incredibly clearly.
Our short time in Nasca has been good, although some may say its been too long... all they have are the lines. We get the bus out in a few hours to head to Cusco and Machu Picchu.
Oh and just for the record, Nasca is 70km away from the sea, so the Tsunami warning does NOT apply. Machu Piccu is even further away, so think we´re safe.
We´ll keep you posted on the search for the Crystal Skull Kingdom!
Anna and Steph
Saturday, 5 March 2011
You Only Live Twice
The day started with a very rude ticket lady. Anna has decided that Steph needs to learn Spanish insults to throw back in the rude people's faces. Take That! We found ourselves in Latacunga where many many bus drivers felt the need to shout their destinations in our faces. Before we knew it we were being herded onto a direct bus to Quilotoa, where two LIVE hens fell out of the luggage compartment!
The bus was packed when we got on and gradually as the bus went along the long, dusty, twisty road the people got off, leaving Steph and I. Fortunatly the hostel directions were correct, 'If you get to town, you will see the hostel'. Once in town we headed to the crater, which was MASSIVE. Thank you Ben for telling us in your blog how shit your day to Cotopaxi was and how much better this place is. Our trip wasn't wasted! We walked down the crater and were a little scared about the return journey, we met a lot of half dead people on the way down. Fortunatly we were absolutely fine! You can't swim in the water due to the sulphuric acid, but we did sit and look at it from a safe distance for a while. It was very James Bond-esq.
Our night in Quilotoa was quiet. I think we met all the villagers in the space of 5 minutes (the time it took to walk through the town). Dinner was included in the price and we ate with the two other people who were staying in our dorm. Anna did not have much conversation as the couple were Argentinian and didn't speak English. We also met our bus driver who kindly told us we would be leaving at 5am! They gave us a grilled banana!!
At 5am we stood freezing our asses off waiting for the bus driver to appear. The bus drive was freezing and when Anna woke up in Latacunga the bus was heaving. Where did all the people come from!! There is nothing but hills up there!
We managed to get a direct bus to Baños, where we spent a night. It is a very popular tourist destination. They sell a lot of sugar cane and chewy taffy, which if you eat more than one piece of makes you feel sick. It was even too much for Steph to handle!! Baños was another small town and we spent the day exploring all the eateries ... even managed to get lost ... for all of 5 minutes!
We have spent the day traveliing to Guayaquil and don't intend to do very much as everyone who we have spoken to has told us to take care and be safe. Hmmm, me thinks we are not in a very nice city. There is even a leflet about US taxi abductions. I think Steph and I will be getting seperate taxis to the bus station, I dont want to get abducted with her! But don't worry I will report her if she goes missing before I hop on our bus to Lima!
We'll let you know if Steph makes it!!
Steph and Anna
The bus was packed when we got on and gradually as the bus went along the long, dusty, twisty road the people got off, leaving Steph and I. Fortunatly the hostel directions were correct, 'If you get to town, you will see the hostel'. Once in town we headed to the crater, which was MASSIVE. Thank you Ben for telling us in your blog how shit your day to Cotopaxi was and how much better this place is. Our trip wasn't wasted! We walked down the crater and were a little scared about the return journey, we met a lot of half dead people on the way down. Fortunatly we were absolutely fine! You can't swim in the water due to the sulphuric acid, but we did sit and look at it from a safe distance for a while. It was very James Bond-esq.
Our night in Quilotoa was quiet. I think we met all the villagers in the space of 5 minutes (the time it took to walk through the town). Dinner was included in the price and we ate with the two other people who were staying in our dorm. Anna did not have much conversation as the couple were Argentinian and didn't speak English. We also met our bus driver who kindly told us we would be leaving at 5am! They gave us a grilled banana!!
At 5am we stood freezing our asses off waiting for the bus driver to appear. The bus drive was freezing and when Anna woke up in Latacunga the bus was heaving. Where did all the people come from!! There is nothing but hills up there!
We managed to get a direct bus to Baños, where we spent a night. It is a very popular tourist destination. They sell a lot of sugar cane and chewy taffy, which if you eat more than one piece of makes you feel sick. It was even too much for Steph to handle!! Baños was another small town and we spent the day exploring all the eateries ... even managed to get lost ... for all of 5 minutes!
We have spent the day traveliing to Guayaquil and don't intend to do very much as everyone who we have spoken to has told us to take care and be safe. Hmmm, me thinks we are not in a very nice city. There is even a leflet about US taxi abductions. I think Steph and I will be getting seperate taxis to the bus station, I dont want to get abducted with her! But don't worry I will report her if she goes missing before I hop on our bus to Lima!
We'll let you know if Steph makes it!!
Steph and Anna
To The Middle Of The World!
Well hello again!
Since we last spoke, we´ve been to the middle of the world, but more about that later.
Our bus to Otavalo was supposed to take 2 to 2 1/2 hours. In reality, it took 1 1/2. We only discovered this when the ticket man started shouting at us to GET OFF as we´d already passed through Otavalo. Dumped at the side of the road with our rucksacks, we starred down the hill at the town we were supposed to be dropped off in. Take a bus or walk? We walked.
After an hour, and Anna exclaiming, ¨we´re not even close yet!¨ We found our hostel. The best kitchen yet! The hostel lady graciously gave us tea as she made up the room for us and then we took showers! If these overnight bus rides are good for anything, they sure do save us money on accomadation and shampoo!
Unfortunately we made it to Otavalo on Sunday, missing the ¨most massive, amazing¨ market in Ecuador by 1 day. However there were still a couple of little markets on, just not to the same scale. We bought charms (that must be a record for Anna) along with some gifts for people, you´ll just have to believe that they are good. As it was a Sunday in South America, we did the only thing you can do, we wandered around and ate ice cream. So far Ecuador is NOT doing well in the ice cream competition. So badly in fact, that we´ve now stopped eating Ecuadorian ice cream!
That evening we were faced with a very drunk hostel lady and an equally drunk irate man who claimed he was from Montreal. Funnily enough, I´m not convinced that many Canadians have Eastern European accents. He also had the decency to tell Anna that they don´t use the Euro in Great Britain. That was a shock to both of us! And yes, he did know where we were from.
After our first good sleep in a while, we woke up and had a lunch of ceviche (the to-go verson) from a street vender. It was AMAZING!! Very different from the Peruvian version.
We finally met the owner of the hostel when he drove us to the train station and put us on the bus to Quito, (hmm, that´s impressive isn´t it) perhaps he drove us to the bus station. No 1 hour walks this time. What a lovely man!
We spent 2 days in Quito, which included a free tour of the Presidential Palace and a visit to the Bank Museum (for those of you that don´t know, Ecuador has changed it´s currency to the US dollar). We´ve decided that Quito is just a great city to walk around in, as the bits you want to see are very compact and the old down town is lovely. They also make these FANTASTIC grilled bananas - the lady selling them only thought it was a little strange when we took pictures of them.
We also visited the Basillica,which gave a great view of the city, once you made it up the dodgy ladders (neither one of our mother´s would have gone anywhere near those!) The coolest thing about this Basillica was that instead of there being gargoles, there were different galapagos animals! This included turtles, lizards and lots of different birds!
Then we caught the bus to the middle of the world!!! So there are actually 2 equator lines, the first is the one the French dude found in the 1700´s (it´s actually off by 250 meters, but not bad for a Frenchy from the 1700´s!). The real line, was found about 10 years ago using GPS and there is this amazing museum marking the spot. We had our passports stamped at BOTH spots.
At the museum we did a couple different experiments to determine that they weren´t lying ... these included standing an egg on a nail (sadly neither one of us passed this test), seeing which way water went down a drain in the north, the south and on the equator, two different strength tests (when you´re on the equator you don´t have any - we would have both been stronger than my brother) and we attempted to walk in a straight line with our eyes shut (Anna says this was like being drunk ... )
We also learned about the creepy fish that swim up your pee if you dare to pee in the Amazon River and how the indigenous people strunk heads.
We´re off to Latacunga next in hope of seeing a crater lake. I hope we find it.
Anna and Steph
Since we last spoke, we´ve been to the middle of the world, but more about that later.
Our bus to Otavalo was supposed to take 2 to 2 1/2 hours. In reality, it took 1 1/2. We only discovered this when the ticket man started shouting at us to GET OFF as we´d already passed through Otavalo. Dumped at the side of the road with our rucksacks, we starred down the hill at the town we were supposed to be dropped off in. Take a bus or walk? We walked.
After an hour, and Anna exclaiming, ¨we´re not even close yet!¨ We found our hostel. The best kitchen yet! The hostel lady graciously gave us tea as she made up the room for us and then we took showers! If these overnight bus rides are good for anything, they sure do save us money on accomadation and shampoo!
Unfortunately we made it to Otavalo on Sunday, missing the ¨most massive, amazing¨ market in Ecuador by 1 day. However there were still a couple of little markets on, just not to the same scale. We bought charms (that must be a record for Anna) along with some gifts for people, you´ll just have to believe that they are good. As it was a Sunday in South America, we did the only thing you can do, we wandered around and ate ice cream. So far Ecuador is NOT doing well in the ice cream competition. So badly in fact, that we´ve now stopped eating Ecuadorian ice cream!
That evening we were faced with a very drunk hostel lady and an equally drunk irate man who claimed he was from Montreal. Funnily enough, I´m not convinced that many Canadians have Eastern European accents. He also had the decency to tell Anna that they don´t use the Euro in Great Britain. That was a shock to both of us! And yes, he did know where we were from.
After our first good sleep in a while, we woke up and had a lunch of ceviche (the to-go verson) from a street vender. It was AMAZING!! Very different from the Peruvian version.
We finally met the owner of the hostel when he drove us to the train station and put us on the bus to Quito, (hmm, that´s impressive isn´t it) perhaps he drove us to the bus station. No 1 hour walks this time. What a lovely man!
We spent 2 days in Quito, which included a free tour of the Presidential Palace and a visit to the Bank Museum (for those of you that don´t know, Ecuador has changed it´s currency to the US dollar). We´ve decided that Quito is just a great city to walk around in, as the bits you want to see are very compact and the old down town is lovely. They also make these FANTASTIC grilled bananas - the lady selling them only thought it was a little strange when we took pictures of them.
We also visited the Basillica,which gave a great view of the city, once you made it up the dodgy ladders (neither one of our mother´s would have gone anywhere near those!) The coolest thing about this Basillica was that instead of there being gargoles, there were different galapagos animals! This included turtles, lizards and lots of different birds!
Then we caught the bus to the middle of the world!!! So there are actually 2 equator lines, the first is the one the French dude found in the 1700´s (it´s actually off by 250 meters, but not bad for a Frenchy from the 1700´s!). The real line, was found about 10 years ago using GPS and there is this amazing museum marking the spot. We had our passports stamped at BOTH spots.
At the museum we did a couple different experiments to determine that they weren´t lying ... these included standing an egg on a nail (sadly neither one of us passed this test), seeing which way water went down a drain in the north, the south and on the equator, two different strength tests (when you´re on the equator you don´t have any - we would have both been stronger than my brother) and we attempted to walk in a straight line with our eyes shut (Anna says this was like being drunk ... )
We also learned about the creepy fish that swim up your pee if you dare to pee in the Amazon River and how the indigenous people strunk heads.
We´re off to Latacunga next in hope of seeing a crater lake. I hope we find it.
Anna and Steph
Friday, 4 March 2011
Crossing Borders
Hi again!
So we last left you getting onto an overnight bus from San Pedro to Arica, Chile. As you may have guessed, the bus was early. So instead of arriving at a cheerful 6.30am, we arrived at a cruel 5am without breakfast!! What is the South American obsession with 5am?!
We made our way across the border dispite rumors of a protest that had closed it, with 4 brits and a dutch dude (it was one of these brits that accused Steph of being British ... honestly!)
So, the border wasn´t really closed, we just had to switch buses after the Chilean border and catch another to Tacna, Peru. From there we somehow managed to stay awake until our bus at 1.30pm (this was mainly due to Anna refusing to sit down). We also had a nice chat and many random questions to our travel agency dude (I´m sure he was glad when Steph left and the questions ended!)
18 hours later, we arrived in Lima! A taxi to the hostel (as it is not recommended to travel by any other means of transport from the bus stations) and we finally took showers after 4 days and a run (by Steph, not Anna).
In Lima we finally had our chance to eat the pizza that we´d be craving since Pisco Elqui and discovered a nice part of the city while hunting it down! Our days in Lima amounted to 2, as this was just a quick stopover before heading onto Quito in Ecuador. We did manage to find gifts for people, some of which were then shipped to Scotland.
I know some of you have shipped post internationally before, but we have NEVER encountered a process like this. After filling out 2 forms, re-packing the box (colorful duct tape is frowned upon in Peru), handing over a copy of Anna´s passport and then finally getting her to fingerprint 6 copies of a form, the package was allowed to be sent! Hey, atleast they said it would get there (by the 31st of March that is). Hmm ... anyone taking bets on who makes it home first ... Anna or the package?!
Our bus to Tumbes (the border town with Ecuador) was another funfilled 20 hours! It´s just a good thing the seats recline better than in airplanes! Reaching Tumbes, this is where things got a bit interesting ...
We had intended to take another 3 hour bus to a town a couple hours into Ecuador, but then the ´friendly´ bag unloader said that he could take it across for roughly the same price. Sounded like a good deal ... well, until he changed his price by a substancial amount of money. Anna would have none of that and Steph kindly acted as translator in the back of a taxi between Anna and the drivers. Once Anna threatened to get out of the taxi there and then, they seemed to get the point and dropped their price by more than half. Not good enough, but still better than what it was. If you would like more details please e-mail either one of us, but unfortunately if I write anymore on the subject swear words would be involved and we want to keep this blog grandparent friendly.
It was another overnight bus that got us in at 5AM (that time again!) Early, again. This time we sat in the bus station with the locals waiting for the sun to come up. Randomly a Peruvian couple were trying to help us and got into an arguement with the bus driver about where we should get off the bus. We decided to go with the bus driver´s opinion after Steph nearly barked at a taxi driver for hounding us constantly. At least there were free toilets.
As the sunrose, we got a taxi to the bus that would take us to Otavalo.
Buenos Noches!
Anna and Steph
So we last left you getting onto an overnight bus from San Pedro to Arica, Chile. As you may have guessed, the bus was early. So instead of arriving at a cheerful 6.30am, we arrived at a cruel 5am without breakfast!! What is the South American obsession with 5am?!
We made our way across the border dispite rumors of a protest that had closed it, with 4 brits and a dutch dude (it was one of these brits that accused Steph of being British ... honestly!)
So, the border wasn´t really closed, we just had to switch buses after the Chilean border and catch another to Tacna, Peru. From there we somehow managed to stay awake until our bus at 1.30pm (this was mainly due to Anna refusing to sit down). We also had a nice chat and many random questions to our travel agency dude (I´m sure he was glad when Steph left and the questions ended!)
18 hours later, we arrived in Lima! A taxi to the hostel (as it is not recommended to travel by any other means of transport from the bus stations) and we finally took showers after 4 days and a run (by Steph, not Anna).
In Lima we finally had our chance to eat the pizza that we´d be craving since Pisco Elqui and discovered a nice part of the city while hunting it down! Our days in Lima amounted to 2, as this was just a quick stopover before heading onto Quito in Ecuador. We did manage to find gifts for people, some of which were then shipped to Scotland.
I know some of you have shipped post internationally before, but we have NEVER encountered a process like this. After filling out 2 forms, re-packing the box (colorful duct tape is frowned upon in Peru), handing over a copy of Anna´s passport and then finally getting her to fingerprint 6 copies of a form, the package was allowed to be sent! Hey, atleast they said it would get there (by the 31st of March that is). Hmm ... anyone taking bets on who makes it home first ... Anna or the package?!
Our bus to Tumbes (the border town with Ecuador) was another funfilled 20 hours! It´s just a good thing the seats recline better than in airplanes! Reaching Tumbes, this is where things got a bit interesting ...
We had intended to take another 3 hour bus to a town a couple hours into Ecuador, but then the ´friendly´ bag unloader said that he could take it across for roughly the same price. Sounded like a good deal ... well, until he changed his price by a substancial amount of money. Anna would have none of that and Steph kindly acted as translator in the back of a taxi between Anna and the drivers. Once Anna threatened to get out of the taxi there and then, they seemed to get the point and dropped their price by more than half. Not good enough, but still better than what it was. If you would like more details please e-mail either one of us, but unfortunately if I write anymore on the subject swear words would be involved and we want to keep this blog grandparent friendly.
It was another overnight bus that got us in at 5AM (that time again!) Early, again. This time we sat in the bus station with the locals waiting for the sun to come up. Randomly a Peruvian couple were trying to help us and got into an arguement with the bus driver about where we should get off the bus. We decided to go with the bus driver´s opinion after Steph nearly barked at a taxi driver for hounding us constantly. At least there were free toilets.
As the sunrose, we got a taxi to the bus that would take us to Otavalo.
Buenos Noches!
Anna and Steph
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