29th – 30th December

Arrived safely in Cusco with clear skies as we flew in to see the city nestled in the mountains at 11,000 ft above sea level. However, we soon got our first taste of the rainy season thanks to a massive downpour as we were driven into the city courtesy of a very dodgy taxi driver. After settling into our hotel on the Plaza de Armas, we found a little cafe and had our first taste of Peruvian food, Saltada (we weren’t quite ready for the guinea pig just yet). The rest of the day was mainly spent walking round the square and near streets, resting and acclimatising to the thin air. We had an early night as tomorrow we had our first tour courtesy of a friendly local…

Blue skies started our second day in Cusco with breakfast overlooking the busy main square as we waited to meet Bobbie (a friend of Ali and Charlie’s from Capel who has been living in the nearby Sacred Valley for the last 2 years). The day started by a visit to the local San Pedro market which sells everything and anything you need to live in Cusco plus a nice trade in yellow items of clothing in readiness for the new year celebrations – including hats, t-shirts, yellow thongs and g-strings!

Having sampled a fresh fruit juice from the market we then went to lunch at a nice restaurant called Cicciolina where we both had our first taste of delicious alpaca steaks. We also had our first proper drink of red wine since our arrival – though not sure this helped our altitude sickness as we were left feeling dizzier than usual – very odd.

From here Bobbie thought it would be a good idea to do some altitude training and took us up higher into the city via several fights of stairs – bumping into several of her friends along the way – to a bohemian area called San Blas which had great views of the city. Then it was back to our hotel for herbal teas before saying goodbye to our excellent host for the day.