San Pedro

Nice-but-expensive-after-Bolivia place in the high Atacama desert in Chile. Apparently the driest place on earth. We're taking it easy after the rigours of Salar de Uyuni. Found a nice bar / restaurant - dim and a bit seedy - reminds us slightly of the riser - nice buzz - but feels like the real action probably starts later - after we're in bed! New favourite drink - red wine and tinned strawberries (better than it sounds - honest).

Go for a tour of Moon Valley. Some pretty good scenery (including dunes - one of my favourites) and an enjoyable hike. Altitude training pays off - going uphill, I overtake the guide who's breathing heavily.

Later on Monic chickens out of second cliff edge shot...

San Pedro photos here. And even more here.

Salar de Uyuni

It wasn't the most promising of starts...

We had a bus ride from hell (well, from La Paz to Uyuni) - 13 hours overnight, only semi-cama, constantly stopping, unmetalled roads. Arrived in Uyuni at 7am. Our tour started at 10.30 - 3 days in the middle of nowhere (which is pretty big in Bolivia)  in a jeep with 4 strangers.

It got better. Four strangers turned into friends and we had the best 3 days so far. Luxury it was not. The second night all six of us slept in the same room (no showers, power went off at 9pm).

The photos do a better job than me of describing the places we saw - and I couldn't stop taking photos - there's a load here and, because I couldn't bring myself to delete the ones I'd thrown out of the first album, even more here. Here's a few for starters...

Blog of the Gaps 2

Now, where were we...

29/10 Arrived in Arequipa surprisingly refreshed considering I'd slept the last two nights on buses. I'd just had a good 7 hours kip - unfortunately not so Monic - her reclining seat had been fighting back and gradually returning to an upright position whilst she slept.

Got to the Flying Dog hostel about 9am - they let us have the room straightaway and gave us free breakfast - nice one.

Spent a lazy couple of days exploring Arequipa.

More Arequipa and Colca Canyon photos here.

30/10 Distressingly early start for Colca Canyon trip (4.45 alarm - yuck) but some nice scenery...

31/10 Now find that the luxury tourist bus to Puno that I'd paid over the odds for in Arequipa was in fact a minibus (Monic points out that it turned out quite well - the minibus dropped us at our hostel in Puno (rather than the bus station) - getting a taxi on Halloween might have been difficult).

I thought I'd booked this...

...but I got this

The drive to Puno was pretty in parts - including a lake with flamingos.

there's flamingos there - honest

More Puno photos (including a dreadlocked dog - Monic insisted) here.

Our room in Puno is on fourth floor - carrying the bag up nearly does me in - just walking up is exhausting.

02/11 Another day, another country. Get a bus to Copacabana with amusing border crossing - multiple queues for multiple stamps in multiple offices on both sides.

view from room

03/11 Trip to Isla del Sol...

More Copacabana photos here.

04/11 Bus to La Paz with a Heath Robinson ferry crossing - everybody gets off the bus and queues for tickets on a pedestrian ferry while bus goes across on a rickety raft with an outboard motor.

Some stunning scenery on the way - La Paz looks amazing as you drive in from above - not so good from the inside.

More La Paz photos here.

High as a Condor

We got to 4910 metres on the way to Colca Canyon - a personal record I think...

Arequipa and Colca Canyon photos here.

It's Sunday - it must be La Paz

I don't seem very good at regular posting - quelle surprise. My excuses... we seem to have been on a bus permanently for the last week (we've done about 1500 miles since you ask), wifi has ranged from slow to unusable and I'm feeling rough!

I've got a cold and the Inca equivalent of Montezuma has taken his revenge - I haven't been able to fart with confidence for days. Poor me. Ahhh.

Apart from that, things are going well - more tomorrow...

Blog of the Gaps

Following on from Legless in Lima...

17/10 Second day in Lima. Explored the old city centre - best part of Lima. I'm developing a worrying fetish for Peruvian traffic police (all female in tight trousers or slit skirts). Evening - more clericot.

18/10 Visited a pre-Inca archaeological site - a massive temple complex built entirely of mud bricks - apparently functional because it never rains in Lima...

mud city

One of the less sucessfull features of the site was their attempt to model the original inhabitants...

dummies in nappies

Went to a potato restaurant for lunch and achieved instant fame. A Chinese TV crew were filming for a food series and asked me for an interview! So I now have star status in China (and - who knows - maybe worldwide). Evening...

more clericot

Over the years I've had some stick from Monic and other fashionistas about wearing sandals with socks. In retaliation I'd like to publish the following evidence...

Monic in socks and sandals

19/10 Leaving Lima (no regrets - it's not our favorite city) - Cusco here we come. There's some photos taken from the flight here. LAN's idea of a tasty airplane snack...

When we see our room we are nostalgic for our Lima dungeon - appalling - ended up eating in a place with wifi (sod the food) as we needed to plan Machu Picchu trip and find a new room.

21/10 Walked up to Sacsayhuaman (Inca ruins) before moving to human habitation. The drugs appear to be working - at least we don't keel over from AMS during the (rather steep) climb. Although Machu Picchu is far more spectacular as an overall package, I'd rate Sacsayhuaman as the best bit of stonework that I've seen. All Cusco photos (including Sacsayhuaman) are here

22/10 Sacred Valley tour (photos here) plus train to Aguas Caliente (nearest town to Machu Picchu) - annoyingly tour guide tells we have to miss best part of best ruin to get train.

23/10 Machu Picchu

25/10 My favourite exhibit in a Cusco archeological museum ... in a list of ethnic groups conquered by the Incas, the Wankas came first.

26/10 Last look around Cusco - catch night bus to Nazca at 18.00.

Knackered in Nazca

Took the night bus from Cusco to Nazca. Arrived knackered at 7.30 and set out for our flight over the Nazca lines. It all went well - only two others tourists on board, window seats all round, good weather and, most importantly, excellent views of the lines.

Unfortunately most of the photos were rubbish - I've tried to crop out some of the pointless acres of desert. Now sitting in a restaurant rehydrating and waiting for our 22.00 bus to Arequipa.

The rest of the photos are here.