tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-348694992024-03-21T08:57:29.374-07:00As dat Crow fliesSea Cycle is currently in Panama on the CaribbeanMark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.comBlogger99125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-59710306937942344812024-02-29T15:43:00.001-08:002024-02-29T15:43:33.867-08:00<div dir="ltr"><a href="https://n4tef1p8.page.link/Rdse">https://n4tef1p8.page.link/Rdse</a><br></div> Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-79336513617144347902024-02-04T08:48:00.000-08:002024-02-04T10:18:15.194-08:00<div dir="ltr"><a href="https://bit.ly/4bkTUmF">https://bit.ly/4bkTUmF</a><br></div> Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-64826292664947157052023-12-30T09:32:00.001-08:002023-12-30T09:32:48.529-08:00Greetings<div dir="ltr">Advised to you by Mark Crowe- <a href="https://5zsvsjgd.page.link/y1E4">https://5zsvsjgd.page.link/y1E4</a><br>Take a look now, say thanks to us afterward<br></div> Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-49134966675503198682023-10-04T03:47:00.001-07:002023-10-04T03:47:26.570-07:00HiMark Crowe highly recommended the following to you personally - <a href="https://w7ax3oa1.page.link/H3Ed">https://w7ax3oa1.page.link/H3Ed</a><br>This really is your last chance! Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-84193864363816307582023-10-02T01:54:00.001-07:002023-10-02T01:54:45.245-07:00Hi thereHighly recommended to you personally by Mark Crowe- <a href="https://gbm01.app.link/v5oRQxaTvDb">https://gbm01.app.link/v5oRQxaTvDb</a><br>I did not realize it's that evident Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-2443820500529891392023-09-27T06:41:00.001-07:002023-09-27T06:41:47.392-07:00HelloYour own close friend Mark Crowe shared the link with you - <a href="https://gritstone.llc/infantry">https://gritstone.llc/infantry</a><br>Tailor made solution for you Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-67074541937949431962023-09-18T02:52:00.001-07:002023-09-18T02:52:58.357-07:00Hey thereMark Crowe absolutely adored this & made a decision to show it to you - <a href="https://ngd5z.app.link/bg3Zs94maDb">https://ngd5z.app.link/bg3Zs94maDb</a><br>Your customizable solution Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-66826863280241227322023-09-04T02:49:00.000-07:002023-09-04T02:50:01.506-07:00<a href="https://qlxrf.app.link/daFDOTU7MCb">https://qlxrf.app.link/daFDOTU7MCb</a> Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-65289854231344546082023-08-29T09:56:00.001-07:002023-08-29T09:56:24.734-07:00<a href="http://zxdltgipm.sunnysee.cc/34546de4235m342356?affsub2=wuhvhvmhw&st=sjqnwiqijj">http://zxdltgipm.sunnysee.cc/34546de4235m342356?affsub2=wuhvhvmhw&st=sjqnwiqijj</a> Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-38223749093321907422014-07-23T08:41:00.000-07:002014-07-23T08:41:59.959-07:00February and March/ 2012
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU_chZCLBi7bjyYo9J66rHpWqJbLDUHHyS5Fvj4J1U7Uz5L2QEWy02LPw7bvMPo2_qiGDrwbQ8VvVyfO1Q79-YxcahZODGFOd-1hH2fBARWD1KOgqheWUJ_zcs5YLv48uFNwhvwg/s1600/DSCF3584.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU_chZCLBi7bjyYo9J66rHpWqJbLDUHHyS5Fvj4J1U7Uz5L2QEWy02LPw7bvMPo2_qiGDrwbQ8VvVyfO1Q79-YxcahZODGFOd-1hH2fBARWD1KOgqheWUJ_zcs5YLv48uFNwhvwg/s320/DSCF3584.JPG" /></a></div>Got a rare treat in February with a visit from old friend Gary Brodie minus his other half (Nellie) but bringing our youngest nephew Adam along for the ride. The two were met by Allayne and Deb who were combining provisioning with a girls freedom weekend in Panama City and also picking up Gail, Allayne's sister. The boys took the jeep trip over the mountains to Kuna Yala to Rio Carti where I picked them up. Early on the Monday they were followed by the girls and with a full load of groceries and passengers we headed out across the channel to the East Lemons where Audrey Paige was anchored. It was a rough, rolly downwind ride for Gail and Adam neither of whom were sailors but we pulled in by one pm and everybody hit the water for some r&r.
The next ten days were spent doing a circular trip around the San Blas taking in the Lemons, Esnedup, the Hollandaise and Saladup. Most of the time snorkelling, fishing and just laying back. Finally with the visit over the two climbed into a little six seat plane at Nargana for an exciting exit flying over the reefs and back to Panama city where they got a quick tour of the canal zone before heading back to Canada.
During the visit we had received the first rumblings of trouble back home with my ailing father.We had promised to help Audrey Paige sail back to the states in early April but with Dads condition up in the air things were in a state of flux.
We got to work readying the boat for haul out to and started packing non essentials away while waiting for the weather to settle enough to slip the hook. The winds lulled for a bit so we headed up through the channels running in the lee of the outer islands to get to Porvenir where we would wait for the winds to die enough to run for Linton furtherer to the north and a day sail from Colon. From Porvenir you check out getting the necessary internal zarpe which allows you to move around the country. There are very few countries now where as a foreign vessel you are allowed to move around freely. It was a full two week wait for the weather and even then we had to pick a day we normally wouldn’t have ventured out. The first two hours were very bumpy as we clawed our way out in twenty plus knots and ten foot rollers and past the reefs heading further off shore than the other six boats that also left. We finally managed to get the boat sails balanced and left the rest up to the wind vane combined with tiller auto pilot set up and ended up a very fast run arriving off of Linton mid afternoon. With daylight to spare we decided to push on and pulled into Portobello around five o’clock dropping the hook. We spent the next couple of days tidying up the boat and then headed into Shelter Bay Marina to prepare the boat for haul out and storage. Two days after she was hauled we moved our travel kits onto Audrey page and headed out the canal zone breakwater north on the 1500 mile sail to Key West.
To be cont.
Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-57672515339600247362014-07-22T10:27:00.001-07:002014-07-23T08:50:17.735-07:00January 2012January/2012
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPkEfBy3VMz0U69GstTdzWTSihoXSq4b5sJXkGfemDNt3_04xYtBt2BG8kBhYdlDnYF0ki6LdTvjYehfqWFvNskcmiiBxuwjenNuQJzm96PzkWs15iMIsLTiGsz_oRE2V93KAcvg/s1600/DSCF3583.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPkEfBy3VMz0U69GstTdzWTSihoXSq4b5sJXkGfemDNt3_04xYtBt2BG8kBhYdlDnYF0ki6LdTvjYehfqWFvNskcmiiBxuwjenNuQJzm96PzkWs15iMIsLTiGsz_oRE2V93KAcvg/s320/DSCF3583.JPG" /></a></div> Somewhere along the banks of the Chagres below the dam that adjusts the level of Lake Gatun they beat Billy up. Laying at anchor for two months trying to escape the day to day routine of Portobello and find a respite from the same bars, same faces and same unchanging tide of cruisers passing through. Two men in a motorless dinghy were the perpetrators. We got the news from the crew of Malarkey as they passed through Shelter Bay on their transit to the Pacific.
It was the latest in a series of crime the cruisers community had witnessed over the last couple of years including two unrelated murder sprees. The first was a twisted Appalachian recidivist known as Wild Bill who allegedly along with his wife went on a murdering spree killing an entire family along with several individuals for their money and identities. The second was a Spanish national who had integrated himself into the small fleet of boats engaged in the business of carrying backpackers from Panama to Colombia via the San Blas. Javier Martin first ran his boat up on the reefs at Chichime and then befriended a solo cruiser Don North before allegedly murdering him for his boat and identity, then allegedly a French catamaran skipper in Portobello wrapping his body in anchor chain and dumping it in the bay and after emptying their bank accounts ran off when people started to ask questions. He was finally caught down in a village in the Darien Gap. The hillbilly reprobate Wild Bill was picked up in Nicaragua after a massive manhunt.
In Billy’s case no such luck. Even when requesting help from his own government he ran into road blocks because the Panamanian officials would not issue a crime report because of a lack of translators. In any case by the time we met up with him again he was shaken but not stirred and was adamant that he left himself open to it by staying in one isolated spot too long. Our observation is that with the proper precautions you can remain as safe as in any large urban centre. Panama still feels much safer than parts of the Eastern Caribbean and a virtual paradise compared to Venezuela. Seven years off and on into our odyssey you develop your own responses and guards against real and perceived threats. Two decades of inner city living, primarily on the front lines of retail storefronts prepare you to be able to improvise. But then again you can never prepare for all contingencies and count on a certain amount of dumb luck. Billy was boarded while he slept, jumped from a sound sleep, tied up and robbed. The take included of all of his navigation electronics, computer, money and outboard. Of course a beating was inflicted as well. After a time he managed to untie himself and row to the dam where the coastal highway runs. The local police didn't even bother to feign interest. Thanks to his sense of humour he was over it and moving on. Don North’s killer is still awaiting trial along with Wild Bill who according to news reports was trying his same manipulations of the justice system from his cell. Two links of interest for the crimes are
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7397570n&tag=contentMain;contentBody
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7417860n&tag=segementExtraScroller;housing http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/panama-property-killings/story?id=11374933#.UFhufLKPU-c http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBnGiUDKRqo Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-42552239639438975592011-11-27T09:54:00.000-08:002011-11-28T05:14:48.110-08:00Panama Canal<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSSi-yzrgjtPRcEZAqRjmatBKbT32Jl6m8Vz-dJEsUCsPOjFuJLX0JltASRb410W6jM7guZr_VCmfk_YdMslCC8UbXJNGwBB-jxyMXYU2rb_nNfxnh4Ss03MGkn2kDzLDHLcQ95g/s1600/DSCF0437.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSSi-yzrgjtPRcEZAqRjmatBKbT32Jl6m8Vz-dJEsUCsPOjFuJLX0JltASRb410W6jM7guZr_VCmfk_YdMslCC8UbXJNGwBB-jxyMXYU2rb_nNfxnh4Ss03MGkn2kDzLDHLcQ95g/s400/DSCF0437.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679740307061303378" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBCev-3y9QYrBvqQ2C54iOZ_2haFhr7cEaPPda8uRVCco4DeU-TYnufodSTzwugI90ByJhufhq0G9jgO9cb03MGSKU18N8492OjP6XErS9mXTqjsuQPTtnKVuv2SqRYqJiyG0loQ/s1600/DSCF0438.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBCev-3y9QYrBvqQ2C54iOZ_2haFhr7cEaPPda8uRVCco4DeU-TYnufodSTzwugI90ByJhufhq0G9jgO9cb03MGSKU18N8492OjP6XErS9mXTqjsuQPTtnKVuv2SqRYqJiyG0loQ/s400/DSCF0438.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679738939416712930" /></a><br />After three months on the road we left Peru and arrived back at the boatyard. From the simplicity of living out of a backpack with no real worries the reality of the boat set in along with all the chores required to head back out. But our luck held and the boat was in good shape thanks to Moise and the other staff at Shelter Bay. I had some problems with bronze thru hulls or rather lack of them after snapping a piece moving the galley sink while Deb made a new bimini to match the last years dodger project. A new main and mizzen sail from Doyles loft in Barbados complete with matching toast sunbrella sail cradles were added to complement Deb's stuff and will make the old girl preen for her birthday.In 2012 SeaCycle turns 40. <br />In the midst of all the work we took a break to help our friends on Darramy through the Panama Canal and into the Pacific. Also along were Peter and Sue sailng buddies of Darramys from over home. Deb and I worked the bow lines as we first passed through the three Gatun locks behind a freighter and then out into Lake Gatun for the night tying up to a shipping buoy. After some rum fueled story telling (Shackleton freezing) Peter pulled out his concertina and gave us a brillant little concert. Still it was a sleepless night for me out in the cockpit as the buoy was right next to the new canal construction due to be finished on the hundred year anniversary in 2014. There was a steady stream of truck activity all night and all reports point to them being ready on time. The new locks will be deeper and wider to handle the larger cargo carriers coming on line. Our advisor( all small boats have an advisor rather than a pilot on board during the transit) showed up at six and we were on our way across the lake first to the Pedro Miguel and finally the Miaflores locks and out into the Pacific anchoring off Flamingo point. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYN_44MnywzFRxAQOSJ1e_T_WeQFOInITsOMtNi9IRj10k-2fgH9YZpwkfSrHZbdQt2-O-eAO1RXrUB4Gg6hvZaROfbLzvPAfat3iRECo0YJigBLK_MoV4Omt3Ls6xejuQnP3oFA/s1600/DSCF0442.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYN_44MnywzFRxAQOSJ1e_T_WeQFOInITsOMtNi9IRj10k-2fgH9YZpwkfSrHZbdQt2-O-eAO1RXrUB4Gg6hvZaROfbLzvPAfat3iRECo0YJigBLK_MoV4Omt3Ls6xejuQnP3oFA/s400/DSCF0442.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679704652772904754" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLNfhU22ZpsNN7ccrgCisADRJOdtqES0VAjxqdOvEGK28HiY9k1b_8330enWxGXLetJ2R3H0BULfxdcvkD2wP2gSf1b_sWN2VkSBc3SZJBfDURgnjCAVJvkt4G3KxjLhAmxWHQuA/s1600/DSCF0441.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLNfhU22ZpsNN7ccrgCisADRJOdtqES0VAjxqdOvEGK28HiY9k1b_8330enWxGXLetJ2R3H0BULfxdcvkD2wP2gSf1b_sWN2VkSBc3SZJBfDURgnjCAVJvkt4G3KxjLhAmxWHQuA/s400/DSCF0441.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679704651670765874" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCHPx2XyJUnbH2ADIZdtiuTdYqz5XQWOFyh6VomqZ6YNZ2gDfKM4JqDp5AZD1GB9BPRtX2bzgJoh485ShyeY8FWJ0x5YDVZgdmIEYPKoeeWKcc_xjnQLa6b_KkawaDgESOVMxFGg/s1600/DSCF0468.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCHPx2XyJUnbH2ADIZdtiuTdYqz5XQWOFyh6VomqZ6YNZ2gDfKM4JqDp5AZD1GB9BPRtX2bzgJoh485ShyeY8FWJ0x5YDVZgdmIEYPKoeeWKcc_xjnQLa6b_KkawaDgESOVMxFGg/s400/DSCF0468.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679709556337340786" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqi0QPcjp5cJO-KBZW8jtwme7lOQgEdh_dmgPxR73OGDxl_L3-bl9B8WYue_kLT_RLfR6Gx6-TTwW6lv7-WhUUHcnpEwkPH4oTCKFZPrP3zyIuk0RB6r2QJTwjh64tDFvzeJSZdg/s1600/DSCF0463.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqi0QPcjp5cJO-KBZW8jtwme7lOQgEdh_dmgPxR73OGDxl_L3-bl9B8WYue_kLT_RLfR6Gx6-TTwW6lv7-WhUUHcnpEwkPH4oTCKFZPrP3zyIuk0RB6r2QJTwjh64tDFvzeJSZdg/s400/DSCF0463.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679709550983989250" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIcPZBL-Zh42poHTQOoTiZIbojgzPNNR9INEtRIqUmiEt1TGTRNQueYHASwc6oEOafr-m2YKV8_8ZE55s8o8qpaAS80PFUhzNdSlXp774ALMUxxqNijR2XhGpAbRsCYSDk7zfSCQ/s1600/DSCF0462.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIcPZBL-Zh42poHTQOoTiZIbojgzPNNR9INEtRIqUmiEt1TGTRNQueYHASwc6oEOafr-m2YKV8_8ZE55s8o8qpaAS80PFUhzNdSlXp774ALMUxxqNijR2XhGpAbRsCYSDk7zfSCQ/s400/DSCF0462.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679709534681557330" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieyBfrsQLgU4IPbgDFHX6Ar5JWhc7PSR40QzRqKT14MV0yKGulemSWfEgn-4b7EElbSpyClHCu7ovh8Cbw29CH2uE5Co45LTyhKudDP5xxjyvWmrBUUmtQUGkI-sjkpwqghNH0yw/s1600/DSCF0461.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieyBfrsQLgU4IPbgDFHX6Ar5JWhc7PSR40QzRqKT14MV0yKGulemSWfEgn-4b7EElbSpyClHCu7ovh8Cbw29CH2uE5Co45LTyhKudDP5xxjyvWmrBUUmtQUGkI-sjkpwqghNH0yw/s400/DSCF0461.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679709531049150994" /></a> The locks going up were a little bit more difficult than the locks on the way down because of the turblence in filling their chambers. At each lock two line handlers on each side throw messenger lines with monkeys paws(heavier knots or rings) at the boat handlers. This proved to be the only real challenge but ours went quite smoothly. The down locks were a breeeze plus the fact we only had a tourist boat for company. As soon as the hook was down Brian and I untied the tire fenders and extra lines and delivered to Eric the canal agent who had provided them as part of his service. After that it was a sad parting. We first met the Darramys three years ago fifty miles up the Orinoco Delta exploring along with Audrey Page when thinking we were alone we came around a bend and saw two British flagged boats Malarkey and Darramy already at anchor off a wilderness lodge. We have run across them every year since somewhere but now they are entering the big pond so only the gods know when we will cross wakes again. Roger gave us a lift back to the Caribbean side and we were back to the marina just in time for the rain to really kick in for a few days. This held up our insurance survey, but in the end fours weeks after arriving, SeaCycle assumed her natural position splashing back into the water. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZSXvNzCpfF6pgNrM7p-D_Tu2el3VR5lFLYlA6gJYGdlRRv2P4P04tAfR_kK0KKwgL2TJ-m7wnJiNcD5wGm7cFkkoVxMYZuZPFgBjt3pMMoS2MWsB_jjidz2-Vbfja775q6sFWdA/s1600/DSCF0482.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZSXvNzCpfF6pgNrM7p-D_Tu2el3VR5lFLYlA6gJYGdlRRv2P4P04tAfR_kK0KKwgL2TJ-m7wnJiNcD5wGm7cFkkoVxMYZuZPFgBjt3pMMoS2MWsB_jjidz2-Vbfja775q6sFWdA/s400/DSCF0482.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679723156135266434" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHu5dsUQug6QjkcT4wiQnRnKBSzTsrqdaxvT8IlypY9OImAzdN9NuMVxUV8FCb_h0yJsszmES8HK37ZoaIrCu1127Dzrj7Jwhkgj_6QxWlRSNXNS8rQ-U-oUuvOOXOb_U1asGKdQ/s1600/DSCF0487.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHu5dsUQug6QjkcT4wiQnRnKBSzTsrqdaxvT8IlypY9OImAzdN9NuMVxUV8FCb_h0yJsszmES8HK37ZoaIrCu1127Dzrj7Jwhkgj_6QxWlRSNXNS8rQ-U-oUuvOOXOb_U1asGKdQ/s400/DSCF0487.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679724328595054450" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi59BdRmfdctDDUCgUMFas0y9N8tVtSKFaviMUSp_olPSURY3OyCfT3ko1ycwmiCPCZFmp-J_kZRnawHD1KIn4oaGSo7kKh37ZpaatLruywmZoddeH13aijhkCzHog76p8JfPqkng/s1600/DSCF0493.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi59BdRmfdctDDUCgUMFas0y9N8tVtSKFaviMUSp_olPSURY3OyCfT3ko1ycwmiCPCZFmp-J_kZRnawHD1KIn4oaGSo7kKh37ZpaatLruywmZoddeH13aijhkCzHog76p8JfPqkng/s400/DSCF0493.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679725245956283442" /></a><br />to be continuedMark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-89735618742646077592011-10-14T12:58:00.001-07:002011-11-28T05:27:28.835-08:00August 29/2011 to October 16th/2011<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuSc8lcxDHCRnI-6xrv24fAHyMUytTr5cEPJlPwWKd65m7N_F66M4yAawDzw9PT4U7o5mq0Ow15E-9IXwYSCimTCuoEeDHbSZTO7KrFygqaTFVdfdlSz10R2gW0m8W64eNS4de1g/s1600/DSCF0297.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuSc8lcxDHCRnI-6xrv24fAHyMUytTr5cEPJlPwWKd65m7N_F66M4yAawDzw9PT4U7o5mq0Ow15E-9IXwYSCimTCuoEeDHbSZTO7KrFygqaTFVdfdlSz10R2gW0m8W64eNS4de1g/s400/DSCF0297.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679765072571006338" /></a><br /><br />BOLIVIA<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii7ua_-KxclnxdVx8ofM_iRs-dB09HiwkDw7_yB7kKkSkR3AhfRi-TljbBCB4AQzI-f5Ay9OaHKGLv-CPtvjkO5N1D9BthCkO3SFy4RZNkHpG-kaWChjhDOhywoinML0fQYXiqxQ/s1600/DSCF9569.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii7ua_-KxclnxdVx8ofM_iRs-dB09HiwkDw7_yB7kKkSkR3AhfRi-TljbBCB4AQzI-f5Ay9OaHKGLv-CPtvjkO5N1D9BthCkO3SFy4RZNkHpG-kaWChjhDOhywoinML0fQYXiqxQ/s400/DSCF9569.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679768235205321618" /></a><br /> Bolivia, a country of extreme heights, temperatures and political passions. With possibly the worst roads and buses in the western hemisphere the land locked terrain offers something unique for intrepid wanderers. Intending to stay for two weeks we stayed six. The first few days were spent in La Paz and then we headed out to the south west entering the stunning 12000 square mile Salar Salt Desert through the backdoor of the Quebrada gorge country around Tupiza (where Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid took their last payroll). <br /> La Paz was interesting spilling down a hill at one end of a valley with the houses clinging to the montainsides and stretching down the valley where the snow capped Mount Illiami backdropped the scene. A very busy city with market stalls everywhere making things loud and thanks to the total lack of emission controls, smoggy. Walking is a cautious performance of dash and dodge at every street crossing due to the absence of traffic lights. Every motors rev seems to spew out a bilious black exhaust and by late afternoon between the smoke and altitude it can be dangerous if you are in bad health. There seems to be a constant cacophony of people hacking and coughing.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4hKc7FEJ8Gde1MSiZN_ch-FZZQNTgwGZqOEgI4gKieKg2mH4w_SS49XxQn7tfhRFHA8k1BsXpxVvccdyiMRRJkdIZUBgKgAQ97waxFq5AZjW4vl0M8BGYpUhKkxTrZ-F1EeGQyg/s1600/DSCF0141.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4hKc7FEJ8Gde1MSiZN_ch-FZZQNTgwGZqOEgI4gKieKg2mH4w_SS49XxQn7tfhRFHA8k1BsXpxVvccdyiMRRJkdIZUBgKgAQ97waxFq5AZjW4vl0M8BGYpUhKkxTrZ-F1EeGQyg/s400/DSCF0141.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679746198837500018" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg54uVwz_Fqnoj2wGm17tbxYshxFEWP1iurstJ2aE5VmphLkP1gTtdbyT9UNb7zKG3jjo2kcYg5x-0xAGoByl1h4vEmtVDOYMuTX4auee7fftI2rPXAZ2zZUF6-HHDIfnEnmJsBCw/s1600/DSCF0230.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg54uVwz_Fqnoj2wGm17tbxYshxFEWP1iurstJ2aE5VmphLkP1gTtdbyT9UNb7zKG3jjo2kcYg5x-0xAGoByl1h4vEmtVDOYMuTX4auee7fftI2rPXAZ2zZUF6-HHDIfnEnmJsBCw/s400/DSCF0230.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679746193950388194" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNc__SzNB-v0bGo5-n3lLf34Z6zphI5P6hx_cpkyW0Nnd4HUOSZZjUxxjFkopajN0t25_TX14Y4aB5RuAmv5KFNHvmiugxTv3raKFl81-FbrAxent8r1GZxn3YV3kDM8gO3feuUQ/s1600/DSCF0392.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNc__SzNB-v0bGo5-n3lLf34Z6zphI5P6hx_cpkyW0Nnd4HUOSZZjUxxjFkopajN0t25_TX14Y4aB5RuAmv5KFNHvmiugxTv3raKFl81-FbrAxent8r1GZxn3YV3kDM8gO3feuUQ/s400/DSCF0392.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679748205307537570" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcQtsU_EKBcfByhF8TNPY78TaLFCKlRFeKTXof1sBGaz9-dnill_k1QFVl3x8uLPSe22ZJppxmnd6WtMI8A6zFVCK25B1ApcNd2LTW7PCKPf8hPwAfPcr404vM7o9vJJEw2p8aeg/s1600/DSCF0241.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcQtsU_EKBcfByhF8TNPY78TaLFCKlRFeKTXof1sBGaz9-dnill_k1QFVl3x8uLPSe22ZJppxmnd6WtMI8A6zFVCK25B1ApcNd2LTW7PCKPf8hPwAfPcr404vM7o9vJJEw2p8aeg/s400/DSCF0241.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679748201352371042" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKl_nGfzGSERd_zaJ6_vo8FklrvNeGd-KbfE-dvG08bcjoQa8hiygIwoQ5gnUzt08I1G_VchR1dbcigkD2t3I47Cd5q_ALFbTB2mxmSf2ZaInK4oH2ZlhkGfY0qPrOs54JxmmQ7Q/s1600/DSCF9623.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKl_nGfzGSERd_zaJ6_vo8FklrvNeGd-KbfE-dvG08bcjoQa8hiygIwoQ5gnUzt08I1G_VchR1dbcigkD2t3I47Cd5q_ALFbTB2mxmSf2ZaInK4oH2ZlhkGfY0qPrOs54JxmmQ7Q/s400/DSCF9623.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679756114195962962" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRsyJRLjBrhtis9AYa-N6_iwuPwoc_ybC8A5Xq41cs4eTih6DozX5eEeCDLIHCRHK4f0ZdvlJpeXtBsrRpkvisTAd-TwARF2nMYir2sytNpOJKheTyLvstYEQAUKRqBjIuqHsdzw/s1600/DSCF9607.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRsyJRLjBrhtis9AYa-N6_iwuPwoc_ybC8A5Xq41cs4eTih6DozX5eEeCDLIHCRHK4f0ZdvlJpeXtBsrRpkvisTAd-TwARF2nMYir2sytNpOJKheTyLvstYEQAUKRqBjIuqHsdzw/s400/DSCF9607.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679756106450413954" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5ZaJ5FmsJO9z4K7fz4R7Ew3qMnGKieLcVCZZxA6mXYH_0HU_2eo1y1i_C5fY-AuOEIjNZh2N8LxjUKNNDwrqAkZtG68ajNbDsJhmweWdwO_hPhPsD0MEllkdvj2CFkUf5eBTcCA/s1600/DSCF9677.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5ZaJ5FmsJO9z4K7fz4R7Ew3qMnGKieLcVCZZxA6mXYH_0HU_2eo1y1i_C5fY-AuOEIjNZh2N8LxjUKNNDwrqAkZtG68ajNbDsJhmweWdwO_hPhPsD0MEllkdvj2CFkUf5eBTcCA/s400/DSCF9677.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679756082976180914" /></a><br /><br /><br /> We spent several days here exploring that included watching three or four protests close down the roads. It seems to be the national sport. One night a traditional street fiesta burst out of nowhere below our hotel window at 1 am. With fireworks exploding so close to the hotel we thought it prudent to shut the windows. I thought we were under attack by the Shining Path until I saw the Chola women (yes, that is what you call the ladies wearing those bowler derby hats) in their wide multi layed skirts dancing to a brass band that was joyously out of tempo and tune. It went on for an hour and then disappeared just as suddenly. Leaving for the south early the next morning we never found out what that was all about. We caught the bus to Oruro and from there the overnight train to Tupiza arriving at 4am wandering the much warmer streets till we found our hotel. After a couple of days we joined up with a young Dutch couple Wouter and Michelle heading out for a four day high altitude jeep trip through partially roadless country. It was cold and barely breathable at times with thin, hard air but the view made it worth every bump in the road. We saw dry season gorge country, multicoloured by mineral content and sculpted by the torrential water from rainy season. At 5400 meters geysers in the frigid cold coexisted with flamingos that somehow in evolution had missed a turn from the Caribbean and live well feeding on the frigid climate of the high alto salt lagoons. Finishing up at wind swept Uyuni we took an overnight bus ride up through Potosi pass Montana Cerro Rico. For two hundred years Spain's economy depended on the silver dug from the mountain at a cost of eight million lives. Then we descended into Sucre the White City and home to the South American Independence movement, a tranquil university town. Meaning to stay only two days we made the mistake of checking out the Spanish school Fenix and immediately got hooked by the great atmosphere. In fact if we hadn´t had tickets back to Sea Cycle from Lima I swear we would still be there staying at La Dolce Vita our favourite Hostal yacking it up around the communal kitchen with all the younger backpackers. In the end time ran out and we headed back to La Paz spending a few days before crossing the border again and running down to Arequipa where we once again tagged up with Edison who had helped us with rooms the first visit three months earlier and then having had enough of bus rides we let the moths out of our wallets and flew back to Lima for a couple of days R & R before heading home to SeaCycle in Panama.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZeAtqFQEL_k5_LfqkpV7tKvnppBLeV_tTfM7-tpVFoBKesuafFSYbl9J3WbhrFhSiFZhdcF6tVcuX7_HHZxp8Z6ORYrGEL2xt8H-uHbulHy6U5ZOz3PPyk_ZEImuBpJ_32OxzrA/s1600/DSCF9958.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZeAtqFQEL_k5_LfqkpV7tKvnppBLeV_tTfM7-tpVFoBKesuafFSYbl9J3WbhrFhSiFZhdcF6tVcuX7_HHZxp8Z6ORYrGEL2xt8H-uHbulHy6U5ZOz3PPyk_ZEImuBpJ_32OxzrA/s400/DSCF9958.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679763281764029074" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyPd16y27KMOYbKkf8QH_u71mP0UuIqBBoO9_R2oLktHROKyQ7Ww8kDF_1raQ2kOI_ec03_sX6N7qzsK8AHtKTsssu1S8gnFPLfDunvuqHkCzv5Bq9GmtLlfpCBWtAZ-nEdKwoBQ/s1600/DSCF9953.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyPd16y27KMOYbKkf8QH_u71mP0UuIqBBoO9_R2oLktHROKyQ7Ww8kDF_1raQ2kOI_ec03_sX6N7qzsK8AHtKTsssu1S8gnFPLfDunvuqHkCzv5Bq9GmtLlfpCBWtAZ-nEdKwoBQ/s400/DSCF9953.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679763277123338834" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDXUT7bsL0ABVt65xS10A2NmvyG-XceMZtoInL5S2GtrBGnLQlpIieEP5Nj9oVlCFkgQBr7dc8Uh5yubwh06on6AlhrGIEU0W9xA8kes8EZhUepBQPoJRkMBk-aGY4gK16dORbSg/s1600/DSCF9894.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDXUT7bsL0ABVt65xS10A2NmvyG-XceMZtoInL5S2GtrBGnLQlpIieEP5Nj9oVlCFkgQBr7dc8Uh5yubwh06on6AlhrGIEU0W9xA8kes8EZhUepBQPoJRkMBk-aGY4gK16dORbSg/s400/DSCF9894.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679763269354441842" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ9Z77u2GfeBNBv0oK1_IqZk65Ou5m47NKatSp_4CzHCisZL0puBYmU4DhWmXrYAhBCUSk-0WxhPHOG2yZSshWks8WgN2sRFAzAa2hU_bZ82GuAidax5rNcMbR6LzmqUm8NTnd5g/s1600/DSCF9890.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ9Z77u2GfeBNBv0oK1_IqZk65Ou5m47NKatSp_4CzHCisZL0puBYmU4DhWmXrYAhBCUSk-0WxhPHOG2yZSshWks8WgN2sRFAzAa2hU_bZ82GuAidax5rNcMbR6LzmqUm8NTnd5g/s400/DSCF9890.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679763262129719682" /></a><br /><br />to be continueMark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-36246062197048493492011-10-14T12:06:00.000-07:002011-11-27T12:28:23.614-08:00<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdFzvplSEDG3DU0IcazNqG7e8OBO21Uz_v_sdEGT4uZv1zhQaQab0liX0jkV9KhYneOTBhK6u1qktmIB5Pq-EEXCz7gMbrlqvowJ5u2p_J-qBbTr96A-tE6EdcbdxO-0yNdZ3Ktg/s1600/DSCF9567.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdFzvplSEDG3DU0IcazNqG7e8OBO21Uz_v_sdEGT4uZv1zhQaQab0liX0jkV9KhYneOTBhK6u1qktmIB5Pq-EEXCz7gMbrlqvowJ5u2p_J-qBbTr96A-tE6EdcbdxO-0yNdZ3Ktg/s400/DSCF9567.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679773573799286818" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy0nF2l6JGAEwhjTEo5x-0EvnnAgl-F3EKlmovPqDxnwMaTLF5WyJwMRUGoUd4zbhJb1_Ud62_t5O-HyoFpt_aF6J_bskYCozoDuXiOoeTiqEqBhkm45HyHjY0Vz8fzRgW41ShIQ/s1600/DSCF9557.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy0nF2l6JGAEwhjTEo5x-0EvnnAgl-F3EKlmovPqDxnwMaTLF5WyJwMRUGoUd4zbhJb1_Ud62_t5O-HyoFpt_aF6J_bskYCozoDuXiOoeTiqEqBhkm45HyHjY0Vz8fzRgW41ShIQ/s400/DSCF9557.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679773558222274194" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD6qG7WNIy7zV2sUxxFD_oNk6rbkNyYWupsQZBMC3pYWb1pAm9G4-n3IAgmJi8hREBnDlnCQkvfvmZo-NXmmTUA11E-BiMyVbOl1MlYe_hlrwHwerTuBevOyaOCNjwslPrmIQ57A/s1600/DSCF9546.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD6qG7WNIy7zV2sUxxFD_oNk6rbkNyYWupsQZBMC3pYWb1pAm9G4-n3IAgmJi8hREBnDlnCQkvfvmZo-NXmmTUA11E-BiMyVbOl1MlYe_hlrwHwerTuBevOyaOCNjwslPrmIQ57A/s400/DSCF9546.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679773554847536770" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC9EJtF5m1r7m7dHEFQZkO5ymY2yABQY56LdCT9ZKSDo7nOPKH1jss8CD-zZQTP1S2gOUA_1ljlRIObVKUTOuTcQGMFKj9IoRLko47e7nqys5pqZk5-4UtND1A5NPAQbVwVviegg/s1600/DSCF9529.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC9EJtF5m1r7m7dHEFQZkO5ymY2yABQY56LdCT9ZKSDo7nOPKH1jss8CD-zZQTP1S2gOUA_1ljlRIObVKUTOuTcQGMFKj9IoRLko47e7nqys5pqZk5-4UtND1A5NPAQbVwVviegg/s400/DSCF9529.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679770560790532194" /></a><br />August 28/2011<br /><br /> To La Paz <br /><br />We hung around Cusco for a week after the girls left. Deb had slipped the second day on the trek pulling something and after a week of hyper activity the break was needed. We had to wait a few days because of protests blocking the road into La Paz by Ayrama Indians at Alto. Evo Morales might be the first indigenous leader elected president in the Americas but he is certainly feeling the heat from the kitchen with street protesting a way of life in Bolivia. We finally shipped out on the recommended bus to La Paz which turned out to be an old wreck. Rubbing insult into injury was a competing Nuev Contintenal, a brand new Marco Polo cama bus which ran with us all the way. Oh well luck of the draw. The window bled cold along with an incessive rattle which I finally jammed into silence. A heavy blanket was issued to each passenger and we huddled up looking for some nocturnal bliss. For me an Ipod with the Thievery Corp catalog finally did the trick. Arriving at 7 am the next morning we pulled into Desaguadero, where the bus pulled into a riot of a traffic jam and just parked. <br />We noticed everybody getting off and headed into a mob. Trying to straighten out my knees which had twisted into prize looking bonsai we headed a quarter mile through a bustling scene of border vendor market chaos finally finding a line of a couple hundred strong and all stamping their feet to keep warm. The line moved quickly and we checked out of Peru, Deb hit one of the dozens of money changers to pick up some bolivanios and then we casually strolled over a bridge and walked into Bolivia. No one challenged us and in fact I had to ask where we should go to stamp in. Deb got 90 days and I got 30. Guess I didn´t wink fast enough. When we left the office the bus was miraculously waiting, so all aboard, then moved two whole blocks and then a thirty minute wait while the road was graded (all dirt) and then a few blocks later on to a paved road. Now this one of several things that didn´t add up. You would have thought the paved road would lead to the border. No the border was like a small town that had been bypassed by the highway. But this was only the beginning because walking across the border I could have smuggled any type of contraband we wanted on to the bus. Then between the border and La Paz maybe a three hour drive we were boarded three times by armed soldiers on the make. First a papers please check, then the second time just an eyeballing perusal of everybody but the third time was in Alto that unplanned sprawl of a city that crowds the rim overlooking La Paz and considered the Ayrama Indian capital. Here two policemen got on and started hasselling two Indians over something at the back of the bus. Then a young what I took to be a student had words with them. Next thing I know he is pulling out a Cannon Rebel camera and starts shooting pictures of them. He basically chased them off the bus with the camera. I have to say I was impressed with his command of the situation but we were about to learn Bolivans have had enough abuse and are not afraid to stand up for themselves and have a habit of taking to the streets. Fittingly I couldn´t help but notice a big statue of CHE made of wire as the bus left the Alto and started down the Toll road into La Paz. <br /><br />To be continued....Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-55634273661638979552011-10-14T09:21:00.000-07:002011-11-27T14:12:20.032-08:00August 18th /2011<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdAsWTrvu911rA4NpgRhyphenhyphenMO6rUaGs6T0b1-7NN9OLuY0DmQLvacDWhpqEE4yTh1d6wmCIonvtA3rnPJSK_OMDjQHqm_reV8e3YmE0vjVUranPL9e3AUB9PPuj3gfWdkRk0_l1zCA/s1600/DSCF9234.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdAsWTrvu911rA4NpgRhyphenhyphenMO6rUaGs6T0b1-7NN9OLuY0DmQLvacDWhpqEE4yTh1d6wmCIonvtA3rnPJSK_OMDjQHqm_reV8e3YmE0vjVUranPL9e3AUB9PPuj3gfWdkRk0_l1zCA/s400/DSCF9234.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679786636936204162" /></a><br />I ended up at Machu Picchu fully expecting to be disappointed. Didn´t happen! Even with the crowds it would be hard to remain cynical and you can only wonder at the skill and tenacity of those involved in building this site. Easy to see why the Spanish never found it tucked as it is so high and off the beaten track. American Hiram Bingham stumbled across it in 1911 while seeking the lost city of the Incas. A campesino family using the site for farming led him up the summit. It was only after an exhaustive search for the last Inca hideout (which he found but didn`t realize at Vicabamba) that he returned here and let the world know of his rediscovery of the site through a National Geographic article. His later book published after WW11 made him famous and he is considered the template for the Indiana Jones character. We lucked out with clear weather and a brillant morning to look around the site . Miguel our guide spent three hours with us and gave us all the prevailing theories. I found that about four hours was enough and the girls concurred so we headed down and caught our train riding through the stunning Urabamba canyon that hides the site on a train back to Cusco arriving late in the evening. The next day was hectic and sad as the girls head back down to the coast via Nazca and then on home to Toronto for a visit before returning to their home on Interlude in Guatemala.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk_VG8sZEcJ1VewdlMnsJV58QiJjuGx5oJGdRb3hyfyaTGBs7Vz-0p8PVfBF-rIvtoQOdV19YGglUROORPWJodBlxQ5C_1L9C9APNnRZkc-IuadvilYDU-fVwMSLxUscPXmGqEXQ/s1600/DSCF9306.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk_VG8sZEcJ1VewdlMnsJV58QiJjuGx5oJGdRb3hyfyaTGBs7Vz-0p8PVfBF-rIvtoQOdV19YGglUROORPWJodBlxQ5C_1L9C9APNnRZkc-IuadvilYDU-fVwMSLxUscPXmGqEXQ/s400/DSCF9306.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679791152632038290" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrEZr9pnHGRhgiiFl_m7qQ17NPgxybMTf-r361rdzsvMtV8xdtm8QQmzDfsEhFhHYNtwEGZRQ7JWhOUnpgy2f1dLZpeGOCfkcPgp6CR5GsRD1kh8P6c6T5mXVduSlAQB81qv8QnA/s1600/DSCF9305.JPG"><img style="display:block; 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margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhumpV5X40boyDXTSTcY1eIr84wuPIOSJ6SqwUuxd0u9rxAmVCH6zDwlESPhmJ8SBabzJg8hVY2MC5dKaSPmfB5hmI1yzUs3GTa2p3xPX_kYGvnl9yfDMvyt6ZPPLG0tr9o7tunBw/s400/DSCF9458.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679801369671532466" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR4jBY_y17OLuI8wgxKsUY9I5uHjb0h6tCPaaE_GE6ZKigiUMZBT-dpA0xsOjFyDbRPZGdKc2W-bfSGF8oUvS7Yk_ml5QB3QRp70P7SBrs0ZsvRU-IINyNkHMsoWpWf2kd9BV9Bw/s1600/DSCF9440.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR4jBY_y17OLuI8wgxKsUY9I5uHjb0h6tCPaaE_GE6ZKigiUMZBT-dpA0xsOjFyDbRPZGdKc2W-bfSGF8oUvS7Yk_ml5QB3QRp70P7SBrs0ZsvRU-IINyNkHMsoWpWf2kd9BV9Bw/s400/DSCF9440.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679801361481734626" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOjiBLdEhKjD-mt8AIYxD4cHu0LXCfKy63etbQTb6WvBfF5LR0UGU5vp81MRicHMI4lO1lhwyRz1XA31XAZAwxPuasgZFhHkR_FQRHHOBfrhm7s4fffSyfCvU1X21pPDPsJ_COFA/s1600/DSCF9432.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOjiBLdEhKjD-mt8AIYxD4cHu0LXCfKy63etbQTb6WvBfF5LR0UGU5vp81MRicHMI4lO1lhwyRz1XA31XAZAwxPuasgZFhHkR_FQRHHOBfrhm7s4fffSyfCvU1X21pPDPsJ_COFA/s400/DSCF9432.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679801354865613106" /></a>Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-30613781416473435312011-10-11T14:04:00.000-07:002011-10-12T09:02:06.044-07:00Lares Valley Quishuarani to Cuncani and over Huacahuasikas<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlNg97HDEpLFhzpoFF9ozz6nAxc6ebBRXPHX51v3U0PZtdUMblakKN9yzLWthPOh3JfAVs1AOTLcgfCKscYMeL-4Exi8VNMOA2yVj6xzFB6upnZUlQxHs_wiJnDz-eIeEsKYOTrg/s1600/DSCF9035.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlNg97HDEpLFhzpoFF9ozz6nAxc6ebBRXPHX51v3U0PZtdUMblakKN9yzLWthPOh3JfAVs1AOTLcgfCKscYMeL-4Exi8VNMOA2yVj6xzFB6upnZUlQxHs_wiJnDz-eIeEsKYOTrg/s400/DSCF9035.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662630311900065218" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja9KVkWhaEgkYzFTPUTOwVuXEDBhSpzy2auuH9b8FLQRYLaKzQL8mmhB31jKkRD1_iI4Bj1ImY1mhPf9MVnebOAx8RSuLKWjCEFf-UtDAPNlFoc8BSzA3hlbzqrUt3td1TvmtUjA/s1600/DSCF9100.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja9KVkWhaEgkYzFTPUTOwVuXEDBhSpzy2auuH9b8FLQRYLaKzQL8mmhB31jKkRD1_iI4Bj1ImY1mhPf9MVnebOAx8RSuLKWjCEFf-UtDAPNlFoc8BSzA3hlbzqrUt3td1TvmtUjA/s400/DSCF9100.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662353328217440066" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbNSOalTBCzK6AtKyLx33PFtBnskJaSNU4Nku6eQ8-SFPH7Oug4uqUPWL9KgFgib9N1EhIx19goL_nQ7aRUC_243bMpXofXOaO_Eb91hFHvtenrW2jofoq2wP9EqHbkZWQXrJhzQ/s1600/DSCF9046.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbNSOalTBCzK6AtKyLx33PFtBnskJaSNU4Nku6eQ8-SFPH7Oug4uqUPWL9KgFgib9N1EhIx19goL_nQ7aRUC_243bMpXofXOaO_Eb91hFHvtenrW2jofoq2wP9EqHbkZWQXrJhzQ/s400/DSCF9046.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662353350097673714" /></a> August 15th to 18th There is not much I can say about the trek that the pictures can´t do better.The climbing was hard on the lungs, the nights were frigid. At the highest peak on the second day we topped out at 5100 meters or around 16500 feet. At the last peak we were walking a hundred feet or less , stopping and just drinking in the air. The porters had prepared a horse and saddle for anyone who wouldn´t or couldn´t finish the last summit. I was proud of Deb as she graciously turned down the offer several times. Finally at the top we got clouded over and of course it started to snow. Nobody was too interested in pictures as everyones thoughts were on heading down so we could get warm and breath. We only saw other trekkers once at a common campground on the first night. As you can see the landscape was beautiful. On the third afternoon after decending at Urubamba the bus picked us up driving us to Ollantaytambo with its magnifacent terraces where we picked up the train to Machu Picchu and warm hot showers.<br />to be continued <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1BauUPkyJVnTEP_ZhOg3TP17v4SCf4A98zJTEb3h3Rrd3yG3dynyqh8x-fIitwzLoxYrnylHvXY4sJvFFV_Vy7XNPG5qulbgokffV_3eA_WmXzjJpztbMo_ltEWPesNSWT42LBA/s1600/DSCF9060.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1BauUPkyJVnTEP_ZhOg3TP17v4SCf4A98zJTEb3h3Rrd3yG3dynyqh8x-fIitwzLoxYrnylHvXY4sJvFFV_Vy7XNPG5qulbgokffV_3eA_WmXzjJpztbMo_ltEWPesNSWT42LBA/s400/DSCF9060.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662354925217672914" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTdzw4ToYZNauq29olZ6jTVsmgD4c5hp7MxK6mN53inFo-d0L0cbz6dAwX1eIfEZNm6BAPIHufUFWJCVGC9lJYtKCdCUMMjMU1i9fUCwJU6ur_RdAX9jILtqybv0J-sYs-32M5lw/s1600/DSCF9161.JPG"><img style="float:right; 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margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifIXYylsud5yw-0EV9XSyUWv4t_wfI8hXoYtZYsWSXGGI44RGGde_OyW7pODpRj-TS3Nt4C7UscPMMcjnJu4in30k-g29MPKv2fQY9C8fSpM2e9oLroSipCmdQdr_BuQoqL2Zbvg/s400/DSCF9174.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662357849404448242" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivksSss3kReE2XFpoHLYjIS2god-fN28rwSZFQNgiOKEl5CyYeCawhGRhFwXfxRzkzpVEkcye7ccN3U4_O-Mog90lVxHXNKKMJUnazbm9zDmhtyhcoF03JzNPoExS88M8Bk-5rNg/s1600/DSCF9171.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivksSss3kReE2XFpoHLYjIS2god-fN28rwSZFQNgiOKEl5CyYeCawhGRhFwXfxRzkzpVEkcye7ccN3U4_O-Mog90lVxHXNKKMJUnazbm9zDmhtyhcoF03JzNPoExS88M8Bk-5rNg/s400/DSCF9171.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662357837660012930" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlnL77ZEO28AGnH98Sy87rBEueiAyosmvM4v09Zgy0D-KJuuE8K9ShU_6on9HkR0cuWJFh9rQudtTix0y6wWZ35Fc3HGS6b9fLOR9xI9tLl0ZjmUL8vG9tXbpSdg54o5AODD0xYA/s1600/DSCF9153.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlnL77ZEO28AGnH98Sy87rBEueiAyosmvM4v09Zgy0D-KJuuE8K9ShU_6on9HkR0cuWJFh9rQudtTix0y6wWZ35Fc3HGS6b9fLOR9xI9tLl0ZjmUL8vG9tXbpSdg54o5AODD0xYA/s400/DSCF9153.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662354921303674274" /></a> At the TOP!!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYq9Euy68PgTtfy0noWnBmK7vvjJ-CeAbaXWl5XQLKVjV0qP2vZbxqNV6XtWydC3mUuyLlxixXbqwTzjEeN8KVVWRFZtPlL82VswkfWkX2-KDEkfR2f9HNmftTZocZ4SjxMXpTYw/s1600/DSCF9167.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYq9Euy68PgTtfy0noWnBmK7vvjJ-CeAbaXWl5XQLKVjV0qP2vZbxqNV6XtWydC3mUuyLlxixXbqwTzjEeN8KVVWRFZtPlL82VswkfWkX2-KDEkfR2f9HNmftTZocZ4SjxMXpTYw/s400/DSCF9167.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662357831110566818" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje3GiSrJAoaBYdfC-rf4HSb0n9M2VsYGgvww0-RHA4mSUto6ydtUCAluctmzvkHvpJqlNmccGVZtGQ1SOPOX3RrWDKzvE1lTkhqV1SbY1gLKGBcEmuSqiKxEYI8IV70JR_E6PAZQ/s1600/DSCF9193.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje3GiSrJAoaBYdfC-rf4HSb0n9M2VsYGgvww0-RHA4mSUto6ydtUCAluctmzvkHvpJqlNmccGVZtGQ1SOPOX3RrWDKzvE1lTkhqV1SbY1gLKGBcEmuSqiKxEYI8IV70JR_E6PAZQ/s400/DSCF9193.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662357856607318306" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0qP27hi7F0fwZErND9dlhoznGUiBRXKz-hZj28HaiewSoVof6jL-hJ7Y_4-nZ6KBAlczadHjeTzvYpFFg7TUAFRZh5BE8Pn0xaK93D8ChFDcyI31O6EE_t-3vCGAS6cI_OhYwuQ/s1600/DSCF9206.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0qP27hi7F0fwZErND9dlhoznGUiBRXKz-hZj28HaiewSoVof6jL-hJ7Y_4-nZ6KBAlczadHjeTzvYpFFg7TUAFRZh5BE8Pn0xaK93D8ChFDcyI31O6EE_t-3vCGAS6cI_OhYwuQ/s400/DSCF9206.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662626910203599410" /></a>Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-28204484631985392982011-10-02T11:54:00.000-07:002011-10-14T13:02:20.511-07:00Lares Valley Trek August 19/2011The Trek<br />I had booked this trek back in late May on the advice of Brian from s/v Darramy. We had decided against doing the Inca Trail after hearing the number of daily walkers was(500)and figuring there would be no peace. Other issues for us included no road hiking and quality porters. Brian assured us this was the case with the Qente agency and also provided his actual guides name whom I requested on booking.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDkZFImh5-TyINCAYZczIOfGMM97xchFReZI93Ey3oU4GBNB1Unuw4M2wHJpEVesh-cfMoWhmUd0fDgOdv1K6CJo9Mdq1nhMGon0g8T2zmFtr6AZAdlkA-vFFVek6vCPoqMk9epg/s1600/DSCF9028.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDkZFImh5-TyINCAYZczIOfGMM97xchFReZI93Ey3oU4GBNB1Unuw4M2wHJpEVesh-cfMoWhmUd0fDgOdv1K6CJo9Mdq1nhMGon0g8T2zmFtr6AZAdlkA-vFFVek6vCPoqMk9epg/s400/DSCF9028.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662338021767597682" /></a><br />When we finally arrived in Cuzco we went and met my booking agent Wilbert and a few days later had our briefing from a guide named Ferdinand. By this time we were getting some feedback from other travellers who had already finished other Lares treks and there were a couple of negative reports. None of these concerned our agency but some of the others complained of un-hygienic cooking practises, camping compounds littered with garbage and long stretches of road as well as poor transfers back to Cuzco.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI4HzVIBDi7OnhXjz7Hl47zwKzi3Xqp8l_dQNPplaAe_JDu9efMfdED6aUfTOpNO-qYj98gjlgJdl0H_uIzXhkDXL50fziw437V1tzSbxLBUvmGg0adRiL_xVoj79kzeTOeleopQ/s1600/DSCF9023.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI4HzVIBDi7OnhXjz7Hl47zwKzi3Xqp8l_dQNPplaAe_JDu9efMfdED6aUfTOpNO-qYj98gjlgJdl0H_uIzXhkDXL50fziw437V1tzSbxLBUvmGg0adRiL_xVoj79kzeTOeleopQ/s400/DSCF9023.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662336619895517010" /></a><br />Our attention also went up when Wilbert told us that the back end of our route was now closed to foreigners because of concerns over littering and noise. This didn't really surprise us after what we have seen the last few years regarding young backpackers behaviour. This was something I have always rightfully or wrongly cut some slack on, because of my own behaviour in a some what misspent youth. On the other hand the amount of garbage I have seen strewn and carelessly discarded by locals in almost all third world countries leaves most first world backpackers looking like saints.<br />We had our final briefing and then finished renting our sleeping bags, walking sticks and a last minute flurry of shopping for thermal linings and socks. Early to bed on Sunday night after packing our allowance of eight kilograms which was all we were allowed on the mules and had to include our potable water for drinking. Everything and anything else had to be carried on our day packs. We got up at three forty five and were surprised when our guide showed up early and with two of the porters to help carry stuff. We were already leaving early because of a road closure around Calca and so were feeling a bit rushed. Our hostel was just off the Plaza de Armas so we walked the bags down to the square and were rewarded with the first of many pleasant surprises. Instead of a little white car van we found a luxuriously appointed tourist van.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3f8uS2nUxAvD3QtFo1iiDyaGXTeB1cWTV3r2RRZRCqhQovkDsuv_Ft_F5N8rwDgvS6JV0FZEBJxSZ715ZXce05CpNZdQZ58LmkEeuMiZbEF-AeTxMHO8uCb7hDoG9U4z_2aA71w/s1600/DSCF9021.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3f8uS2nUxAvD3QtFo1iiDyaGXTeB1cWTV3r2RRZRCqhQovkDsuv_Ft_F5N8rwDgvS6JV0FZEBJxSZ715ZXce05CpNZdQZ58LmkEeuMiZbEF-AeTxMHO8uCb7hDoG9U4z_2aA71w/s400/DSCF9021.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662335332311021970" /></a> We made a quick exit from the quiet city streets climbing the hills to Sacsayhuam and heading off to Calca via the Sacred Valley. After the lackadaisical attitude of most of the other bus drivers we had experienced it was refreshing to have a driver who actually slowed down and took care on the corners and with approaching vehicles in single lane situations. After a quick pit stop at Calca for some supplies we left the main road and headed up what can only be described as a goat trail or at best a rough construction road. I don’t think that any North American or European would even consider taking a vehicle like this into these conditions. Again at times I swear only parts of the tires on the outside were touching the road on the canyon rim. Sometimes the abyss was easily in the thousands of feet with the added bonus of a raging boulder strewn river coursing below. Most of the time I would just look away or worse close my eyes but that only brought visions of the Toronto news dailies announcing the demise of four of its citizens in a tragic South American bus tragedy. Finally arund nine am we arrived at the starting point where a breakfast tent was set up and while we had tea the horses were loaded.<br /> to be continue <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijO4jmEbY823FBRlSCy4_WvDqQerCaeHtsZ2Kd521VzOvumFkXa4UPG8P-K7Y7g7VnYj2kxioyzQk5yf8JsthjKabgJXoYvO7XVKfgkKyArW-ZESnQ9TKiuSe58NVIhSG660AJVw/s1600/DSCF9032.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijO4jmEbY823FBRlSCy4_WvDqQerCaeHtsZ2Kd521VzOvumFkXa4UPG8P-K7Y7g7VnYj2kxioyzQk5yf8JsthjKabgJXoYvO7XVKfgkKyArW-ZESnQ9TKiuSe58NVIhSG660AJVw/s400/DSCF9032.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662339242871658466" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRUHsdwOHBRnKm-8dOiP5zq3G00Qt7af2BI65J5Tv7BHDDPaZW6H4xc4Kejr4E_XXngH8IzyfUm3JCHyOQ9UH4HaVDHcU2wiRtRAQ6ySC4w5q_Mezx9xr58TtNtvbtSYrLryAx5g/s1600/DSCF9033.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRUHsdwOHBRnKm-8dOiP5zq3G00Qt7af2BI65J5Tv7BHDDPaZW6H4xc4Kejr4E_XXngH8IzyfUm3JCHyOQ9UH4HaVDHcU2wiRtRAQ6ySC4w5q_Mezx9xr58TtNtvbtSYrLryAx5g/s400/DSCF9033.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662340202119380674" /></a>Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-7677022530786970792011-10-01T07:50:00.000-07:002011-10-11T13:30:18.270-07:00Cusco August 10/2010Welcome to Cusco the Niagara Falls of South America as far as tourist attractions go. Everything here is geared to the glories of the Inca culture starting with Machu Picchu and the surrounding Sacred Valley. Its impossible to go more than a few feet without being hit on by touts shilling everything from tours to massages. Prices are up sharply from the rest of the country and tourista bling bling is for sale every few feet. Despite all of this it is most definetly worth the visit.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinNWW2KliwU7AGcSkCmfuxTPiIasbsE8OEM4wVpTz62MnDnj981OSOV-7zDVsZPgvrz0-L8cykePMAv_MUEpM-r9dN-nhqgHDKTllFySIkvEiUgJOi41HqEj7mq1b-nbaZuNdg7g/s1600/DSCF9526.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinNWW2KliwU7AGcSkCmfuxTPiIasbsE8OEM4wVpTz62MnDnj981OSOV-7zDVsZPgvrz0-L8cykePMAv_MUEpM-r9dN-nhqgHDKTllFySIkvEiUgJOi41HqEj7mq1b-nbaZuNdg7g/s400/DSCF9526.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662330285788202962" /></a><br />The city is a mason´s dream with a smorgasbord of all types of stonework on show. Road, sidewalk, walls and up to the tiled roofs it is all some sort of stone. It can be pebbled, cobbled, blocked, granite slabbed to just plain found stone with plenty of the wonder of warm adobe. The great Inca stones are keyed into each other mortarless with a precision that is probably unmatched anywhere on the planet,any millennia.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilOv-pODoo3FreCaL-r7jzskjrPjWvHMAxuRM9l41Kgo6mlDa8cRDdVSOzSx6Zlh8C1ndNEmHR8oyrvnKj73ObDjAFcE-p19X3dUuqe1HbbpjSRwam9DM1AchI7OOt1eLEqKiWCw/s1600/DSCF9531.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilOv-pODoo3FreCaL-r7jzskjrPjWvHMAxuRM9l41Kgo6mlDa8cRDdVSOzSx6Zlh8C1ndNEmHR8oyrvnKj73ObDjAFcE-p19X3dUuqe1HbbpjSRwam9DM1AchI7OOt1eLEqKiWCw/s400/DSCF9531.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662331226826291810" /></a> Even today´s construction techniques would be hard pressed to match the quality.It is also unknown precisely how they did it creating a lot of the mysterious air that attracts a lot of new agers and other true believers. After the conquest the Spanish used some Inca sites as quarries for the construction of their colonial buildings. Qoricancha the sun temple is located in downtown Cuzco and is believed to have been the heart of Inca religion and astronomy. The Spanish destroyed it as pagan and surprise, surprise they built a Catholic cathedral on top of it using the Inca stone as foundation. In the 1950s an eathquake destroyed the colonial church structure exposing the orginal foundations. Amazingly the Inca work stood.The Inca empire consisted of four states with all roads leading here to city square. After a briefing at our trek company (QENTE) we then spent the rest of the week wandering the streets and sites of Cuzco including an off the wall tour with a young guide Jonathan who gave us the bohemian tour including a stop at a house that had some fresh fermented corn Chica marked by a bag hanging above the top of the door. Chica is the locals favourite party drink. He also took us to the large San Pedro Market where we had a look at an herbalists who offered a cactus extract that gives off hallucinogenic vibes something like mescaline and totally legal here. I made a few smart comments about having already done the Carlos Castaneda thing thankful I am a little too old and wiser for all that argy bargy. We also took a trip out to the Sacred valley just north of the city visiting the Salinas salt pans, a series of drying ponds fed by an underground stream leaching from the surrounding hills. Looking out over the ponds was a view of the mountains and a valley running down to the town of Urabamba.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRrzMIYoVDYgn5ftByuGZVP291IXsxME-gcbDr0njrWrEY2_bu-SsMsR-7tM322PPRTqGz38o7uvtijrMoFDE_Z-yuhG-_K6_Cd9OTKpiHnCOd3NVavO0wGhAhNjOUP7Lv3Uh5eg/s1600/DSCF8980.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRrzMIYoVDYgn5ftByuGZVP291IXsxME-gcbDr0njrWrEY2_bu-SsMsR-7tM322PPRTqGz38o7uvtijrMoFDE_Z-yuhG-_K6_Cd9OTKpiHnCOd3NVavO0wGhAhNjOUP7Lv3Uh5eg/s400/DSCF8980.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662334054958602258" /></a><br /><br /> We admired the view, little knowing that we were looking at where our hike would end. Not far from the ponds we visited the site of Moray an Inca built amphitheatre where Dylan would have been happy performing. Turned out to be an agricultural centre or laboratory where the Inca experimented with crops at different altitude levels.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_82owAkXhW_fHdoD61It1HZbVTXkMFB6Vpc0gmX_wckbO-W_JeYQhe3YrhVNofEqXd2Lbr3eXfquo3Wtzhag7oeD9GbKDIC_qdOgw-zr03AwPGQfAxpfBw-_qdKjyAUg1rGTGXA/s1600/DSCF8982.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_82owAkXhW_fHdoD61It1HZbVTXkMFB6Vpc0gmX_wckbO-W_JeYQhe3YrhVNofEqXd2Lbr3eXfquo3Wtzhag7oeD9GbKDIC_qdOgw-zr03AwPGQfAxpfBw-_qdKjyAUg1rGTGXA/s400/DSCF8982.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662333327475378530" /></a> Temperature range from top to bottom was 27 degrees Fahrenheit mirroring the climate range of the empire. Archaeologists have found different soil types from all over the empire here and of course many people wanted to get down to the center, leave an offering and feel the vibe. Finally it was time to organise and get ready for our hike and then Machu Picchu.<br />to be continued<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT5ieBcQ0DgKpp46iyS6gyFn1ybiIJ1iyUMHmyIKXih1yqk6ufrBlFoGpzv9B7BOmH-9DrE-NyJUZqcdCwwPuG-19d8627DkEIlGrPIAtnqgvxVU2mOaSU_Zljkay5vZHt3wWLvQ/s1600/DSCF9529.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT5ieBcQ0DgKpp46iyS6gyFn1ybiIJ1iyUMHmyIKXih1yqk6ufrBlFoGpzv9B7BOmH-9DrE-NyJUZqcdCwwPuG-19d8627DkEIlGrPIAtnqgvxVU2mOaSU_Zljkay5vZHt3wWLvQ/s400/DSCF9529.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662329462879751506" /></a>note the pumas head in the picture aboveMark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-11720732197181438972011-09-03T07:49:00.000-07:002011-09-05T13:05:05.614-07:00Lake Titicaca August 5/2011<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtpDdQK-mErE9AC-hpHJr-NQfKSX13v_ZoZ4_19Jhe2p5mxBUu8ug9qeHXYEYG2wnAqB5j5WsG7ueY7LMXuJQqNAtx-y1ZJux0lQy1f2AIDgEoy2xFZNGLGe8TciDjbPnaLDdCiA/s1600/DSCF8573.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtpDdQK-mErE9AC-hpHJr-NQfKSX13v_ZoZ4_19Jhe2p5mxBUu8ug9qeHXYEYG2wnAqB5j5WsG7ueY7LMXuJQqNAtx-y1ZJux0lQy1f2AIDgEoy2xFZNGLGe8TciDjbPnaLDdCiA/s320/DSCF8573.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5648540916487604082" /></a>
<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGz6omT4_cHlt-_UzAbxwX_xaKnMMpRZDw8tWxhTU7wej2JpOgnFX62fjn-XeSwpodZYSLu8-Mo0DMNwW0Gm29c0Adt4lmifHcY9R6iXzQneasEsbEVvyNMCRdfwM5_8dYGDc7hQ/s1600/DSCF8586.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGz6omT4_cHlt-_UzAbxwX_xaKnMMpRZDw8tWxhTU7wej2JpOgnFX62fjn-XeSwpodZYSLu8-Mo0DMNwW0Gm29c0Adt4lmifHcY9R6iXzQneasEsbEVvyNMCRdfwM5_8dYGDc7hQ/s320/DSCF8586.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5648540913898192738" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwJOCAW2rbNB44fVyDt2GmxhW5EYKpCYqh6LR3gEeAJaSticBqPj30S01pxKKBXba_WuhM8wpHDX-ZpxbnXznl-jGTLvwInw2npWDMl1MKQxOCyHZ8RTf1bIzb49hZhzy7UyLcyg/s1600/DSCF8562.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwJOCAW2rbNB44fVyDt2GmxhW5EYKpCYqh6LR3gEeAJaSticBqPj30S01pxKKBXba_WuhM8wpHDX-ZpxbnXznl-jGTLvwInw2npWDMl1MKQxOCyHZ8RTf1bIzb49hZhzy7UyLcyg/s400/DSCF8562.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5648538475886168162" /></a>
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<br />Puno is a city that has grown from its location as Peru´s city at the one end of Lake Titicaca. Traditionally a centre for agriculture, along with some mining activity, it is a main tourist attraction on the gringo trail which is mostly young backpackers along with the occasional should know better elder like myself. Still it is on the list and demands to be crossed off. The downtown mainfare is Lima Calle a lively pedestrian walkway of restaurants, souvenir and assorted nefarious clip joints. Street touts are everywhere. The restaurants are great to superb which is the main cause of our budget dysfunction. Its also rare to sit down here to eat without being entertain by buskers and I have to say the level of muscianship is a joy to listen to. Many youger troubadours are just playing guitar with a pan flute hooked up like a Dylan harmonica and playing with skill and passion. The larger bands have drums, guitars and a variety of flutes and a small stringed instruments that produce a full rich sound. Like the great cooks and fashion designs here the music stands on its own. We managed a couple of side trips here taking the boat ride out to the reed islands which was very disappointing because of the atmosphere in which they were being presented and then on out to the island of Taquile. Regardless you have to do the islands even if it is totally Disney. They will tell you they are living there but there was not a chance. The cooking areas were definitly not being used and I had a hard time keeping a straight face as an indian named Hector wearing a fedora and flashing a couple of gold teeth delivered his hard sell trying to guilt us into buying his wife´s tourist bling bling. The visit to Taquile made the whole trip worthwhile as we landed there for the end of St.James feast enjoying our own lunch after the somewhat strenous uphill climb followed by a then knee crunching down hill hike back to the boats. The boats I might add carrying 24 passengers each were comfortable but as watercraft totally sucked. The rudders are so short that control is a battle and our helmsman (cell phone glued to ear) kept over steering just avoiding two close collisions one of which was only avoided by the girls and I all yelling at him. One other interesting trip was an afternoon run out to Sillustani a pre-Inca ruin of burial Chullpas located on Lake Umayo. We had a great guide on this trip and also visited a local family who showed us their home in a walled compound of stone with adobe structures inside. We got to see the cooking methods and all the ingredients as well. One big highlight of the trip was a visit to the Yavari one of the worlds oldest iron ships and definitely the one on the highest lake in the world. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiekFl-3PPLhokXmEcF0wUZQQWQYvrgmeVtlp21IFRyG2GT1JNETfY-DsCczlJOuwoT29iVe-1BG4w67bdP0OswOEkDkwkN0LMi_l-YElqznsKC9su57tfSEdrdsFxMBOEQfuJSaQ/s1600/DSCF8668.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiekFl-3PPLhokXmEcF0wUZQQWQYvrgmeVtlp21IFRyG2GT1JNETfY-DsCczlJOuwoT29iVe-1BG4w67bdP0OswOEkDkwkN0LMi_l-YElqznsKC9su57tfSEdrdsFxMBOEQfuJSaQ/s400/DSCF8668.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5648537578671999970" /></a>It has been lovingly restored by some brits and is fully functional.Finally after a week in Puno we elected to head for Cusco. We took the Inka Express bus because it offered 4 stops at archelogical sites. Unfortunately this turned out to be a cattle run with not only minimal time at each site but also where you jostled with the crowds from other buses. We arrived in Cusco as the evening dusk set in. Each bus station has its own stop and we were picked up and transfered by the Hostal that the girls had arranged.We had a full week to relax and explore before our Lares Valley trek.
<br />to be continued<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl2ISSNugx3zdH9CxP0PnRDOxKlxRhdzmSkcJimnYjdVWoFP5u3RSe3efboQioxfoROvtlz5JST85UkjRHV21QIj7e1rcy9IpjjdFxNC-noXziYMVkVdH65Ew4Y7DGgSohyphenhyphenzPLdQ/s1600/DSCF8804.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl2ISSNugx3zdH9CxP0PnRDOxKlxRhdzmSkcJimnYjdVWoFP5u3RSe3efboQioxfoROvtlz5JST85UkjRHV21QIj7e1rcy9IpjjdFxNC-noXziYMVkVdH65Ew4Y7DGgSohyphenhyphenzPLdQ/s400/DSCF8804.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5648546256716666754" /></a>
<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFKgIfAVmZSlTHnnoUk0h_vxd4ZGRByVmVfrg_F6clq9VZlsWcolgdu4u7-rwCTFEMqCdoksnKB_Z2BXUkbUc2Cpw1H0Ldf1BDi9UJZsubvRT1Xp4A6a_t2RQkCbuXkg8onRbk0w/s1600/DSCF8773.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFKgIfAVmZSlTHnnoUk0h_vxd4ZGRByVmVfrg_F6clq9VZlsWcolgdu4u7-rwCTFEMqCdoksnKB_Z2BXUkbUc2Cpw1H0Ldf1BDi9UJZsubvRT1Xp4A6a_t2RQkCbuXkg8onRbk0w/s400/DSCF8773.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5648546251164488050" /></a>
<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCpHG0j5rym9EIF03VAO4rEDK0R10ruD4jpO0GwxTDVgAsgclfRELio_Z5ZrIBkQ0CKmwj8b0WyFBBc25BTBylrQNHn9SVaRiOE9WmHf1cD2gSe2Ter5aEXRKXSNpiuZD-N3s1FQ/s1600/DSCF8616.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCpHG0j5rym9EIF03VAO4rEDK0R10ruD4jpO0GwxTDVgAsgclfRELio_Z5ZrIBkQ0CKmwj8b0WyFBBc25BTBylrQNHn9SVaRiOE9WmHf1cD2gSe2Ter5aEXRKXSNpiuZD-N3s1FQ/s400/DSCF8616.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5648544775010766914" /></a>Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-9857036733456132162011-08-29T09:13:00.000-07:002011-08-29T13:46:37.240-07:00Puno August 1/2011<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmJFwq7XrZg7T6vdsQtaT01RxtkA_JWEHkQvWoY6DiWs-uwVCW6W-x4nGzI_NTIM0-bSponsS0s_yWZGjraG-_iapRNi-FRbDJJjbRfwxqxAXVNat63sFNdazJEWdNu5xekSzLaQ/s1600/DSCF8529.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmJFwq7XrZg7T6vdsQtaT01RxtkA_JWEHkQvWoY6DiWs-uwVCW6W-x4nGzI_NTIM0-bSponsS0s_yWZGjraG-_iapRNi-FRbDJJjbRfwxqxAXVNat63sFNdazJEWdNu5xekSzLaQ/s400/DSCF8529.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646294575302261682" /></a>
<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1NNO5vWIOF_nTCouWhBJAwnKzLYPhyphenhyphenZ4shSA7hF3f57FunLyigOBZ9CpSrWBMtKjr_OlEWOrjXwxAH34vx9-QIeqG0WeWkXPy62hTCKV8HFjIc2knnmUIh4VNB3n0DCEqjlLaqw/s1600/DSCF8526.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1NNO5vWIOF_nTCouWhBJAwnKzLYPhyphenhyphenZ4shSA7hF3f57FunLyigOBZ9CpSrWBMtKjr_OlEWOrjXwxAH34vx9-QIeqG0WeWkXPy62hTCKV8HFjIc2knnmUIh4VNB3n0DCEqjlLaqw/s400/DSCF8526.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646294573978279042" /></a>
<br />Friday morning I was feeling much better but still short of breath as we started the six hour ride to Puno, another 1200 meters up. We took the bus back up around El Misti again and at the Park sanctuary turned off to Puno climbing high through a range of dry wash river beds and alpaca herds. The scenery matched anything out of a western including the stone and adobe houses. We passed a lake and hundreds of flamingos feeding in the salt flats. This time we were seated on the upper section where there were four seats instead of three but still very luxurious and comfortable. I carefully monitored my health and was studious in drinking water since dehydration was a big issue. By one pm we hit Juliaca (pictures below) which I can only describe as the armpit of Peru, a town of red stone brick with every avenue appearing to be a variation of the previous with unfinished structure after another. All of them offering rebar from their top floor usually decorated with laundry. Garbage mostly plastic was strewn everywhere, in fact at one point I swear the bus had to slow down to cross a speed bump of it. It wasn’t far from out of town that we were once again in a wilderness ,till finally we came over a hill and saw Puno laid into hills steep on the incline, uniformly brownish red in color but still a spectacular site as it ran down to the shore of Lake Titicaca, highest lake on the planet. There streets were crowded with vendors, fruit piled and splashed out on blankets as Indian women all wearing their typical bowler hats sat on their Lama mats, coca bulge in their cheeks. We were picked up at the bus terminal as arranged, by the driver to what turned out to be the hotel from hell. Unfortunately we were booked in for three nights all pre paid. We beat it by avoiding it from 8 to 4 sight seeing and then again from 6 to 9 by eating out. One the third day we found a great room at the Luna Azul a block from the town square and began to feel normal again.
<br />to be continued
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<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzrueiyd5J9a3y9tTpKVL9aqEDANJ-R2TC4Tmvj0W6jYveK44JcjU4Cr7Zzhp5zFwMSHxK_ewAN-Z67MAX7UsGpP5JNG506-WYW1mVChA9FWDzjN0BiAlIP8x63yJDGOG41kCn2A/s1600/DSCF8531.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzrueiyd5J9a3y9tTpKVL9aqEDANJ-R2TC4Tmvj0W6jYveK44JcjU4Cr7Zzhp5zFwMSHxK_ewAN-Z67MAX7UsGpP5JNG506-WYW1mVChA9FWDzjN0BiAlIP8x63yJDGOG41kCn2A/s400/DSCF8531.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646296129937954162" /></a>
<br />Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-88865927043474259202011-08-28T12:32:00.000-07:002011-08-29T08:29:38.244-07:00Colca Valley, Home of the Condors , July 30th/2011<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFaBkyUQgxekWLB3Yp6P8CqGmE2l3kN6eSwXMkK8diaqWsDkA78-fGgi4vpxjvCz23pMIPuo-GFze_faym_fdMSdGt-1NxHtQULDXQO-tExVLla2M2LdDI27ltiElzxyiahNC12w/s1600/DSCF8381.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFaBkyUQgxekWLB3Yp6P8CqGmE2l3kN6eSwXMkK8diaqWsDkA78-fGgi4vpxjvCz23pMIPuo-GFze_faym_fdMSdGt-1NxHtQULDXQO-tExVLla2M2LdDI27ltiElzxyiahNC12w/s400/DSCF8381.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5645999765225142738" /></a>
<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilJ7ITJxjH0vPgvO35Y_CLIPEH5RX0e7JPyRs9PFiYPAEYXnZCG8-PKx6Tihd4nBUsuEqQpeNI1GRQ2RZQ1QbWtRj8FPdyRbHHidK9WMMHW4a_Jj2R3sQRJB2yrcUqLeWrDZRMeA/s1600/DSCF8365.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilJ7ITJxjH0vPgvO35Y_CLIPEH5RX0e7JPyRs9PFiYPAEYXnZCG8-PKx6Tihd4nBUsuEqQpeNI1GRQ2RZQ1QbWtRj8FPdyRbHHidK9WMMHW4a_Jj2R3sQRJB2yrcUqLeWrDZRMeA/s400/DSCF8365.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5645999759530139074" /></a>
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<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBlOdK1aIot9vpD17CIsjqGMLfOIaPniq0Jb8ba5nVvbocH4_O5de9YmwRv78FjTDFeguATgCz6gSF9aJRqgzHIey-got3asjM1wpjx7x1L-miAy9cBBkVR5TMLdIMwjpOz0eWtA/s1600/DSCF8250.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBlOdK1aIot9vpD17CIsjqGMLfOIaPniq0Jb8ba5nVvbocH4_O5de9YmwRv78FjTDFeguATgCz6gSF9aJRqgzHIey-got3asjM1wpjx7x1L-miAy9cBBkVR5TMLdIMwjpOz0eWtA/s400/DSCF8250.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5645996123253010514" /></a>
<br />Monday morning we were picked up by a bus and started the five hour trip up to the alto Plano and the Colca Valley. Arequipia lays at 2650 meters and we had planned to spend at least a week here acclimatizing. It did not seem to matter. We climbed to an altitude of 5,000 meters before heading down to 3600 meters at Chivay. Well three out of four of us ended up with bad headaches. This was always compounded by sinus problems with a cold. It’s winter here and Peruvians have no heat, what so ever. We visited the hot springs in Chivay first where the cool air made us reluctant to go in, but we succumbed and were glad we did. The temperature in was 36 but the air was 10 Celsius. That evening we had a quick walk around the square settling on a nice modern fusion style restaurant where we had Alpaca and fresh water trout. Back at the rooms it was a quick strip down and under the sheets in an ever increasing chill. We woke the next morning, had a quick breakfast of coca tea and pan along with jam and juice and hit the road. The road was what one should call real estate challenged. Bare inches separate you from the hereafter. One feature we have noticed are a lot of roadside memorials lining the shoulders on all the roads in Peru. I mean a lot, like every kilometer instead of curbstones. At times I swore the wheels were hanging over the edge. Deb gladly relinquished the window seat and I spent a lot of time tuned out visually eyes straight ahead and mentally tuned in to my IPod. The road along the southern edge of the Colca valley takes you to see the Condors at a lookout the locals have created. Evidently they nest at the steepest part of the valley for security and spend the early morning hours circling as a group, waiting for the days thermals to heat up before moving on to search for food. They are not predators but scavengers although we heard tales of them doing flybys on unsuspecting cattle hoping they would fall to their deaths.
<br /> The majority of the valley is terraced on both sides wherever there is enough earth to till and it must have taken more than a millennia to do all the construction involved. Frankly its a bit mind boggling. We were also shown some pre-Inka burial crypts of stones set high on the clift walls seemingly to get the intended closer to the heavens.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGvErD4gWs-y1zBb8nQnB-MBPPFsYHnMzcWaWOF-s3IIpj05u2JWvRCve2ygZSAdTocRH5OdYVUiZcLMCzH6JcFKBeDb_LYHDp8DykLbPUzpv2zzNvLS7XQS3sMVlzymoupiCRFQ/s1600/DSCF8345.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGvErD4gWs-y1zBb8nQnB-MBPPFsYHnMzcWaWOF-s3IIpj05u2JWvRCve2ygZSAdTocRH5OdYVUiZcLMCzH6JcFKBeDb_LYHDp8DykLbPUzpv2zzNvLS7XQS3sMVlzymoupiCRFQ/s400/DSCF8345.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5645998226729408850" /></a>
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<br />We had a nice hour long hike along the rim looking down into the gorge when we spotted the first of the condors. They were very active and certainly seemed to play to the crowd. After the trip back was a two hours with a stop at the village of Maca and then lunch at Chivay before the climb back up the Alto Plano to 5000 meters and down again to Arequipa. On the way we witnessed a series of small dust twisters, very cool. By this time I was having a hard time breathing and wasn’t feeling all that good by the time we arrived back at the hotel. After dinner the real agony started and I spent the night offering goods to the porcelain god and then spent the entire next day sleeping off the ritual. By Thursday I was well enough to venture out again but everything was small steps and slow. Meanwhile the girls in my absence had made an executive decision and had bought tickets and hotel reservations for Puno on Lake Titicaca.
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<br />to be continued <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8xZWLr55BDXtRh_pAGXXhv_AT8puzD3SeGean9DxdbnYcX7-Unm00sMZAH81lKs4u1ZUN4v39NHK8A_CcNw3ANvbLtfretISG_oO2eZPGOqYploE3635bAh5J3SK1d-WkdP0iuA/s1600/DSCF8411.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8xZWLr55BDXtRh_pAGXXhv_AT8puzD3SeGean9DxdbnYcX7-Unm00sMZAH81lKs4u1ZUN4v39NHK8A_CcNw3ANvbLtfretISG_oO2eZPGOqYploE3635bAh5J3SK1d-WkdP0iuA/s400/DSCF8411.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646001029100433154" /></a>
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<br />Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-87159820603267314522011-08-27T12:58:00.000-07:002011-08-28T11:51:09.927-07:00Arequipa July 25th<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhHaIla0x6bBWQujFXdQ7qEpC3NAxkDti8ttCmab-xmNiOFUduC0uxQ0AAtpyA5KYeh7-HrrfJ8hExhID3UeYjj_xhT1uhGGJ6fuCFQPSXMGhTThtTcnuBqLNwNIpusTS_webKpQ/s1600/DSCF8040.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhHaIla0x6bBWQujFXdQ7qEpC3NAxkDti8ttCmab-xmNiOFUduC0uxQ0AAtpyA5KYeh7-HrrfJ8hExhID3UeYjj_xhT1uhGGJ6fuCFQPSXMGhTThtTcnuBqLNwNIpusTS_webKpQ/s320/DSCF8040.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5645978578564823202" /></a>.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_TekT3ayqcTQsvLHNsAMvwvjXyWqCKpWeRucQCaWpnyVQ7AIIgt2juefSOu1jZQk6VFPHjyZmvTP5NUPLfM2cW7QJuXJ526JWzLKUH47vak4WMhOgbc3NslaJFpqmEmYhpo_Ylw/s1600/DSCF8052.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_TekT3ayqcTQsvLHNsAMvwvjXyWqCKpWeRucQCaWpnyVQ7AIIgt2juefSOu1jZQk6VFPHjyZmvTP5NUPLfM2cW7QJuXJ526JWzLKUH47vak4WMhOgbc3NslaJFpqmEmYhpo_Ylw/s320/DSCF8052.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5645954595697395778" /></a>
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<br />We spent the next few days exploring the streets of Arequipa as well as seriously shopping for warmer clothes. Karen and Cheryl caught up with us late one evening after riding the buses all the way up from Santiago in Chile. They are keeping their boat Interlude IX in Guatemala up the Rio Dulce and were hooking up with us for a month starting here. We planned to do the big trek to Machu Picchu together. Our hotel turned out to be rundown and after two days we moved to much nicer digs at the Terra Mistaca built around a colonial courtyard three blocks from the Plaza de Armas. The move was arranged for us by Edision who I had met at the bus station and he proved his worth a couple of times with guides and accommodation. We spent all of Saturday and Sunday just wandering the streets of the old city sucking up the ambience of the old town, first settled in the 1540s. The cities colonial masonry construction is built from silar, a white stone that literally gleams in the light giving Arequipa its moniker of the White City. Its impressive main square the Plaza De Armas is centered by the Cathedral on one side facing three sides of an arched colonnade back dropped by a snow capped Mt. Misti. The city has a number of historical sites to see including the Convent de Santa Catalina a small city in itself which had a controversial role in the Catholic Church for its acceptance the nobilities daughters and their rich dowries, a practice outlawed during one of the churches many self serving reformations, really just a kind of a pay as you go plan for the rich. There is also an archeological Museum displaying mummies including Juanita a sacrificial virgin recently discovered buried in the ice up on the Alto Plano. For us we were using the city first to acclimatize to the altitude at 2650 meters and secondly as a base for a trip up to Chivay to see the Colca Canyon, second deepest canyon on the planet and also the best place to see the Andean Condors. After that we planned a short return to Arequipa before heading on to Puno on Lake Titicaca and then on to Cusco and the trek.
<br />To be continued<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKPAkKPRgCjq3xcEINPKyBV7EVvPqdzOS8tJ9LEE3f7O2SWXL-h-ziAawAxddhjWyFPBFb_TIC43y0Lxun9PcyuAlyjLm4nNvZJxSzwdJG1Aiwo6VBgo1CrS68tI-IiZPjf8NQcg/s1600/DSCF8102.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKPAkKPRgCjq3xcEINPKyBV7EVvPqdzOS8tJ9LEE3f7O2SWXL-h-ziAawAxddhjWyFPBFb_TIC43y0Lxun9PcyuAlyjLm4nNvZJxSzwdJG1Aiwo6VBgo1CrS68tI-IiZPjf8NQcg/s320/DSCF8102.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5645978583607408178" /></a>
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<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9WpmsanRzE_Fi526k1ZNfS7cipvgI7bi5oyEbMVXtEsrfl4RLeU19Nb6pJqoYTBdPKGj9eP-Meo3F437fFyoSEZ3uwSIZaxykmk8By93s4fnKpCYo1U9knyfWzPeuEVlkxB3t6g/s1600/DSCF8062.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9WpmsanRzE_Fi526k1ZNfS7cipvgI7bi5oyEbMVXtEsrfl4RLeU19Nb6pJqoYTBdPKGj9eP-Meo3F437fFyoSEZ3uwSIZaxykmk8By93s4fnKpCYo1U9knyfWzPeuEVlkxB3t6g/s320/DSCF8062.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5645954598170691954" /></a>
<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3PvXhKy5AwAlsOmLZzUl3B3esD82mP_RdAQIdlz6KpD4cj3izsY7ym_Pawu0SLCqAHHszRH5osytxQe7CRmy1cnusJK-dPs9U0iCvxYT9UlNU7yP_NJGsMt1XbOuKsi4DdapJOQ/s1600/DSCF8432.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3PvXhKy5AwAlsOmLZzUl3B3esD82mP_RdAQIdlz6KpD4cj3izsY7ym_Pawu0SLCqAHHszRH5osytxQe7CRmy1cnusJK-dPs9U0iCvxYT9UlNU7yP_NJGsMt1XbOuKsi4DdapJOQ/s320/DSCF8432.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5645978586458592882" /></a>
<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiutSFwnJz0_aA2rSULDJ7tS2DCUYD_imyMdrUJEYjpuVTRbaUn6g1uNL9dRWn3YOi2RLnjKwFIevcrjdrPC59AvhqDtX6pfdQwIhB_Drko_jm3IgzMGkJCKA28PJmWf9xMngkKwg/s1600/DSCF8422.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiutSFwnJz0_aA2rSULDJ7tS2DCUYD_imyMdrUJEYjpuVTRbaUn6g1uNL9dRWn3YOi2RLnjKwFIevcrjdrPC59AvhqDtX6pfdQwIhB_Drko_jm3IgzMGkJCKA28PJmWf9xMngkKwg/s320/DSCF8422.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5645978588449109554" /></a>Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-84941690516732811872011-08-26T09:45:00.000-07:002011-08-28T11:55:10.790-07:00Up Into the Mountains July 22/2011A couple of days in Lima and we were set to head off. We had spent one evening wandering around the streets settling on a sidewalk cafe as the locals went looney over the tournament football game which they ended losing to Uragauy. We had also spent the afternoon at a trendy mall shopping for warm clothes. The mall was precariuosly perched on the cliffs that form the coastline here.One good quake and you would bet it would be gone. We had booked a ticket on Cruz de Sur bus line for the 16 hour trip up to Arequipa where we were hoping to rendevous with Cheryl and Karen from Interlude IX who were heading up from two weeks in Chile. We were all booked into the same hotel the Viza located near the town centre. After checking out, the hostal stored our bags and we had a last go at the town also looking for some snacks for the bus ride. At the mercado I had an incident at the checkout, where in the ten item or less line the woman in front of me first held up the line while her husband went to add to the already overextended item list. Its a funny set up with two cashiers sharing single line in tadem. I asked in spanish, permisso, to sneak by with no response so turning away from her I made my move and pushed by with my daypack nudging her. Well the world came to an end and all I got was a Senor followed by some verbolose so being on good behaviour I said Los Seinto, plus disculpe, but that wasn´t good enough so at the point my bitchometer tripped in and I just ignored her as she chattered her self away. Still it didn´t exactly set the mood for the bus trip. But the trip was a surprise starting at the station where the security was almost airport like. They wanted passports searched carry ons and videoed all the passengers for security. I joked to Deb that the filmimg was just to identify the remains as the South American roads are notorious for losing their travellers especially in the mountains. The bus chairs are called camas and are basically full recling lazyboys which were extremely comfortably along with stewardesses, blankets and movies but I put the IPOD on shuffle and immeadidiately dropped off. Hours later I noticed the light peeking in from behind the curtains and taking a deep breath realized I had no headache which meant hopefully no altidude sickness. Great I thought as I opened the curtains only to see the ocean and its long waves breaking on miles of sandy beach. Certainly had misjudged the timing on that one. Even worse the road was a series of switchbacks which while very dramatic suffered from a serious lack of real estate in fact such a shortage seemingly under the wheels that I immeadtialy dialed up my innner coward who drew the curtains back across. Looking out the other side only brought miles and miles of sanddunes, no lets call them wind straked hills the like of which I have never encountered.A short time later we seemed to head inland into a scene out of a spaghetti western, adobe huts and tumble garbage mostly bluebags and plastic waterbottles punctuated by the beginnings of snowcapped mountains in the distance. All very exciting but a bit desolate. Around one pm we enterd the outskirts of Arequipa and pulled into the bus terminal. A short taxi ride brought us to our hotel where we checked in and hit the sack for a couple of hours shuteye.
<br />to be continuedMark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-90222703106376272132011-08-26T09:19:00.000-07:002011-08-26T12:45:29.958-07:00Canadian Eh!!!! July 20th/2011True story I swear. The first morning in Lima we found a bank machine and in I went inserting my card only to have a screen full of binary talk flash at me followed by a Microsoft annoncement that the window was shutting down.Now one thing to strike fear into a traveller is a disconnect from the life line of funds or even worse the suspsion that you have just been had. In any case not pleasant. As I came out of the booth I told the next lady in line that something was wrong and it turned out she spoke english as she pointed me down the block and across the street to a branch of the same bank which happens to be my prefered one because of no service charges. Then I watched her go off just as the traffic light in front of me changed so I crossed the road and hoofed it along to the chosen spot. Then I went in and tried the card again along with the sinking feeling you can get when uncertinity rules. Well all was well with the machine kicking out my daily limit at a not quite three to one rate which always makes you stand up a little straighter and left the booth. Again the same lady was there and expressed disbeleive we had beat here to the machine. Smiling I wandered off . A few blocks of window gazing later I went to cross the street and sure enough there she was again. Before I could open my mouth she smiled and assured us she wasn´t stalking me. She then went on to say she lived in the neighbourhood.Then out of nowhere she said to us you are Canadian aren´t you. Well I was a bit taken back as I said yes how did you know. She told us she had lived in New Jersey for years and couldn´t help but notice us as we stopped and wait for the traffic lights when everybody else had moved on when the traffic cleared but we had waited till the light changed. I thought that was hilarious. So I told the joke How do you get 200 Canadians out of a swimming pool.Punch line==== Just ask them to get out. That got a laugh and we went out seperate ways. It may be a national pastime discussing what it means to be a Canadian but it seems the rest of the planet has us figured out!Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34869499.post-18946674591798470382011-08-26T08:55:00.000-07:002011-08-26T12:43:57.578-07:00Into Peru July 19th/2011Waking up in Lima was a shock. On the plane my nostrils cleared up right away after the humid Panamian heat of the previous six months, which was very refreshing. Even at the Lima airport the weather was a novelty. Damp, misty and cool was different and different was ok. Waking up though was a different thing as we both relucantly cocked one eye open each challenging each other to be first to get out from the covers. This was the chilliest since last November in Toronto the previous year. And guess what? No central heating! It seems this is the way things are done here just throw another blanket on, dress warmly, wear a scarf,and suck it up. And if it gets really cold well you might get one of those toy radiant electric heaters that may or may not take the chill off the air but certainly isn´t going to heat the room. After a ooh,ooh aw,aw shower and speedy towel down it was into clothes and off for breakfast.I did notice the coco leaves by the tea pot with some interest(reputedly the cure for altitude) sickness but caffine won out over curiosty. We spent the next few hours finding a bank machine and poking around getting the lay of the land in Miaflores the which is one of the suburbs of Lima sittting on the ocean. We also found the South American Explorers club paid for a membership and began to realize that our clothes just were not going to cut it in the cool and damp weather which was only going to get colder as we headed up into the mountains. So the search was on for outdoor stores and thinsulate type clothing.Mark and Debbiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10024238655816297342noreply@blogger.com0