| DIARY 4 |
| 28th July 2005 Feeling better today and desperate to get into the mountains (what we came here for) so started a shorter, less taxing trek from Pitec to some lakes that we can't remember the name of at the mo!!!! As we left Huaraz we went past the main street which was blocked off again - this time for Independence Day - there was a fire engine spraying orange water everywhere into the crowd - could have been fun to watch!! Taxi driver must have been mad to take us to Pitec - the 'road' was just riddled with pot holes, stones, rocks etc... and so steep in places - his car must have been damaged you could hear it scraping over the rocks!!!! When we got dropped off we were mis-directed by a young boy and so started to climb up to Churup lakes - very steep - so had to come back down to the correct path....... went cross-country instead of down the same path though - interesting!!! When we got on the correct path we had a pleasant stroll up the valley with mountains either side and the snow-capped ones where the lakes are at the end in the distance. Can't describe how amazing the scenery is here!! After a few hours (we didn't start till 2.30pm) we found somewhere to camp. Time to test the tent!! 29th July 2005 It was freezing last night!!!!!! Terry caught my cold (oops). Packed up gear and headed up to the lakes above the valley - hard work at that altitude (4500-4700m) and with blocked noses, but the view at the end was spectacular! We were well above one of the lakes and the mountains opposite were covered in snow down to the lake's edge - wow!!! Headed back along the valley and camped for another night - somewhere less windy but still cold!!! 30th July 2005 Frost on the ground this morning - bbbrrrrrr!!!! Twas a cold and sleepless night!!! Packed up and headed back to Pitec where we found another taxi driver stupid enough to take us back down along with a family five and two ill sheep - needless to say Terry ended up in the boot with sheep - he just has a knack of getting the worst seats on all the transport we take!!!!!! Back to the hostel for some rest and a well needed shower before the next adventure tomorrow!!! 31st July 2005 Got up at 5.30am to go ice climbing!! The guide was in the boot of the taxi on the way and had to hid under a cover when we past the police control points otherwise the driver would be fined - how come the other taxis we�Lve taken where Terry has been in the back haven�Lt been so worried??? Had a short but hard walk up to the Pastoruri Glacier (5240m) at the bottom of which was an ice cave - pretty cool - inside the ice was dry!! The glacier was excellent and climbing was brilliant. We had 3 climbs each and Terry managed to get to the top every time. I didn�Lt get to the top, but did a lot better than we thought I would. We were climbing with two lads from Newcastle and Sunderland - I never want to hear the saying �LSouthern Wusses�Lagain..... they were useless!!! I did better than them at the climbing and they struggled loads with the walk up and even the walk back down again!!! Another bus tonight - great!!! 1st Aug 2005 Arrived in Lima at 5.30am and got a bus straight out to Ica arriving at 11am. Got a taxi to Huachicha (as per Amy Laing�Ls instructions) and booked into a hostal. It�Ls like a holiday resort - a tiny �Lvillage�Lbuilt around an oasis, and surrounded by massive sand dunes. Our hostal has a pool with sun loungers and a dance bar!! Tried to find Amy, but were told she�Ld left - strange!!! Had a few beers and had an early night!! 2nd Aug 2005 We found Amy!!!!!!!!! Just walking up the road to our hostal! Good to see a familiar face. Hired sand boards (decided not to have the lessons and just go for it!!) and went up the dunes - tough to get up to the top - one step up slide back two!! Boarding was cool but they didn�Lt really go that fast, gave up after a couple of hours as had no more breath to go back up again, so sat round the pool with Amy and Caz, and then went back up the dunes at 5pm to see the sunset and board back down a steeper bit - Amy took some great photos for us!!! 3rd Aug 2005 Another early morning to make our way to Nazca with Amy and Caz. Went up in a tiny 4 seater plane (us, Amy and pilot) to fly other the �Llines�L- not as impressive as we thought they would be, couldn�Lt see very well and some looked really fake, but the flight was fun. Half way through the pilot and Terry swapped seats in mid air and Terry flew!!! He even dipped the plane as the pilot had been doing . Amy and I in the back were a tad nervous!!! Quite a bumpy ride in such a small plane - felt a bit sick!!! Said our goodbyes after dinner and made our way to Cuzco on another overnight bus - God help us!!! 4th Aug 2005 Last night�Ls bus journey was the worst yet. As we pulled away from Nazca we were all given sick bags - not a good sign! We basically drove through the Andes the whole way and so were swaying left and right round the sharp corners round the mountains, with a nutty driver! We didn�Lt feel sick but the Peruvians were and not just the once - the whole journey - all 14 hours - discarding their sick bags on the floor!! And we were stuck by the toilet again - more pleasant smells, but even worse I actually had to use it - possibly one of the worst experiences of my life!!! Cuzco is huge, but the main part and especially where we�Lre staying has tiny, narrow cobbled streets. The architecture is great too. Checked out a few tour agencies for availability for Machu Pichu etc... 5th Aug 2005 Another lazy day to try to get rid of the colds for good before doing anything else. Spent most of the afternoon in an Irish bar watching the second test match (British Lions - rugby) and had some �LEnglish�Lfood - shepherds pie and a steak baguette!!! They serve Guinness too but not up to that yet - might go back later for that and the third test, oh and bread and butter pudding with home-made custard!!! Mmmmmm!!!! |