Smoking volcanoes. White sand beaches. Untouched beauty. Exceptionally friendly people. Welcome to Nicaragua my friend, enjoy your stay. This is a beautiful country, with few tourists and heaps of culture. Oh and don’t forget the beer and rum, they definitely aren’t bad either.

One would be forgiven for having second thoughts at the Peñas Blancas border crossing from Costa Rica into Nicaragua. Hot, crowded and filled with all manner of people hassling you to buy immigration forms and exchange your leftover Costa Rican Colones, it is a harrowing experience. But a cool head and patience usually wins through in these situations.

But I am getting ahead myself. Our visit to Central America started in Costa Rica. An eye-wateringly beautiful country that both frustrated and surprised us. Expensive and lacking the heaps of culture we had become accustomed to in Peru, it was definitely something we struggled to come to terms with. The beautiful beaches, wildlife and amazing scenery did however redeem it to some extent. We just struggled to stomach the high prices of food and accommodation in return for the value we received. That being said, Costa Rica is considered the rich American’s playground and has definitely benefited from tourism in a big way. So after spending 10 days with Margarét’s family in thermal baths, on the beach, in cloudforest and in the mountains we hightailed it out of there and headed north to Costa Rica’s poorest neighbour and second poorest country in the western hemisphere after Haiti – Nicaragua.

Time for a quick history lesson. Nicaragua was inhabited by the Nahuatl peoples up until 1522 when the Spanish Conquistadors arrived. The Spanish, as was their custom of the time, destroyed as much culture as possible and in return brought Christianity, smallpox and European influences to this part of the world. The country only won independence back from Spain 300 hundred years later and it’s politics since then was dominated by the Liberals in the north and the Conservatives in the south. Nicaragua’s most valuable asset was its location. Up until the completion of the Panama canal, it was the quickest route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. This meant that control over the region was very important to both the US and the British. The 20th century was probably it’s most tumultuous time. The country was ruled by the dictatorial Samoza family for 50 years and went from the wealthiest country in Central America during the 1960s to the poorest. When regime change finally came around in 1979, Nicaragua began to receive aid from China and the USSR which led to the US suspending its own aid to the country. A US-backed guerrilla war waged through the country for 9 years before a treaty was signed to end it. Today, Nicaragua is considered the second poorest country in the Americas after Haiti. It is also under the control of what is turning out to be another despot. Estimated to be worth roughly $400 million, President Daniel Ortega is busy filling his pockets while the gap between the rich and the poor increases.

Enough with the bad stuff though. As poor as Nicaragua is, it does have a lot to offer the traveller. Surprisingly, it is one of the safest countries in Central America. We hopped on a chicken bus after the border jump, to Rivas. A chicken bus is the cornerstone of Central American public transport and Nicaragua is no exception. Painted in wild and sometimes amazing colours, these American school busses are so named for their cargos on the roof. Chickens, fruit, vegetables. You name it, the bus will transport it. Need to move house? Just load your bed, wardrobe and dining room table on the roof and you’re off to your next villa on the beach. Passengers with large luggage get stuffed into the back of the bus through the door at the back. Our first bus was packed to the rafters. Margarét had to sit on an ice-cream seller’s stand and I think I accidentally squashed somebody’s sack of gigantic papayas.

We hopped off the bus halfway to Rivas as we wanted to catch a connecting bus to the beach village of San Juan del Sur. After waiting for 2 hours on the side of the road in the blazing heat and having broken Spanish conversations with a granny, who was waiting with us, we were on our second bus – flying through the green countryside toward the sea.

San Juan del Sur is a tiny fishing village with the most stunning beaches. Famous as a two-time location for the TV show Survivor, it is arguably Nicaragua’s most popular tourist destination. For me, it was a great way to cool off the wallet after Costa Rica and sit on the beach with a glass of Nicaragua’s finest rum (our favourite being Flor de Caña) or a Piña Colada – made with fresh coconut and pineapple – while admiring spectacular sunsets. The town itself has an “okay” beach but the best beaches only require a short and rather bumpy trip both up and down the coast. We took a short drive in a local taxi up to Playa Maderas, which is a famous surf spot for beginner surfers. A short walk away from the main beach there are tiny inlets with smaller beaches which are perfect places to escape other people and just relax under a tree. We weren’t here to surf, just to relax, swim and photograph the sunset. If I ever return to this part of Nicaragua I would rather stay near Playa Maderas than in San Juan del Sur, it is smaller and the beaches are better. There are however, less restaurants and shops which may not suit every traveller’s taste.

We could have stayed at the beach for the rest of our time in Nicaragua if we weren’t so itchy to see more of the country, so we caught a chicken bus out of San Juan del Sur to Rivas and on to Lake Nicaragua. Formed from two stratovolcanoes, the lake island Ometepe has been one of the highlights of our trip. Nicaragua is not very developed – Ometepe Island in particular. It boasts one very sleepy and a second rather active volcano. It is for all intents and purposes, a tropical island, just not in the sea. This is a fantastic place to do more of the Nicaraguan thing: sit back, relax and watch the sunset with howler monkeys setting off their throaty roars in the background and the odd flock of madly squawking parrots passing by. The island is untouched, unspoilt, and filled with nooks and crannies that could swallow weeks let alone days of your travel time. We stayed at the fantastic Finca Mystica, a guesthouse run by an American couple situated on the southern side of the island under the smaller of the two volcanoes, Volcan Maderas. Across the isthmus of the island runs an invisible line that divides the flora. Volcan Concepción and the north is drier and the slopes of the volcano are covered in dry forest. Volcan Maderas and the south are wetter and the volcano boasts some primary cloudforest. The fact that it is visually different from north to south makes the island great for trekking and exploring. The lake is also famous for its sharks, once thought to have been a unique freshwater species. Further research found out they were actually Bull Sharks which had navigated the San Juan Rio from the Caribbean into the lake. Sadly, the sharks are all but extinct having been fished out under the Samoza regime and their fins sold to the Chinese.

The biggest drawcard to the southern part of the island is it’s sheer peace and quiet. This is helped by some diabolical roads which force car and bus drivers to drive very slowly. Literally every few kilometers is a tyre repair shop and it took us nearly an hour and a half to drive in our 4×4 taxi the 20 kilometers from Moyogalpa to our guesthouse – of which half of the way is paved!

Sadly, we had to eventually leave Finca Mystica, their fantastic food, and Ometepe Island, as our time was running out in Nicaragua and we still wanted to see the two colonial cities of Granada and Léon. There are two ways you both “get-to” and leave the island: the big ferry and the little ferry. We were lucky enough to get the big ferry to the island but not so lucky to find a small ferry at the dock on the day we left. The vessel looked like it had been built – how should I put this – a long time ago and somewhat resembled an ancient wooden tugboat. It was about 50 feet long and had a passenger deck at the bottom and a bridge and lookout deck above. It was also packed full of people, including baskets of live chickens and a motorbike on the top deck. Safety features, such as life jackets, were not in abundance. Fortunately, it is made of wood so should something catastrophic happen, all you need to do is pick your plank and hang on until the cavalry arrives. The ferry pulled out of the dock in a puff of a black smoke. It also had a rather bad port side list. The water was flat and calm and the cloud-covered Volcan Concepción shrank into the distance. Once out of the wind shadow of the island, the water started to become more choppy and eventually we were rolling about in rather rough swells. There were a couple of panicky moments where we had to hang on quite tightly, but after an hour and a half we pulled into port safe and sound.

We shared a taxi with some Spanish tourists to get to Granada. Nicaragua is a tiny country and getting around is fairly quick and easy. Taxis will take you just about anywhere and within an hour of leaving the ferry in San Jorge, we were in the old colonial town. The first thing that strikes you about this place is how brightly coloured the buildings are. Sitting on the banks of Lake Nicaragua, Granada was an important port during Spain’s colonisation. For this very reason it was attacked numerous times by French, Dutch and English pirates trying to take control of the port city and ultimately Nicaragua.

Today, Granada is the home of the conservatives – one of the leading political parties in Nicaragua. It is also considered the main tourist hub and the city is undergoing somewhat of an upgrade. Freshly painted, colonial buildings line the streets and the stunning cathedral on the main square looks as though it was built yesterday. For us, we enjoyed walking around the city while taking photos. The people here are very friendly and quite often eager to have their photo taken. A visit to the market early in the morning copped quite a few stares but they quickly turned into smiles. If you have never been to a Central American market, then Granada’s is a great introduction. It is a hive of activity from sunrise to sunset and you can pretty much buy anything. It is also great to take advantage of the fantastic and cheap fresh fruit if you have a kitchen in your guesthouse.

Overall, I loved the laid back feeling of Granada. You aren’t pestered by beggars nor accosted by tour operators and just about everybody is friendly. That being said, you still know you are in a third world city due to the amount of litter lying in the street and the dirty water trickling down the gutters toward the lake. This didn’t detract from the place in any way, in fact it is a small, yet important reminder of the bigger problems this country faces.

After extending our stay in Granada for one more night – so that we could do a chocolate making course (more on this in another post) – we hopped on a bus to Léon, the intellectual capital of Nicaragua. There aren’t any direct busses from Granada to Léon so we had to go through the big, bad capital Managua. We were only in Managua for ten minutes while we switched busses but it wasn’t nearly as scary as all the internet forums and rumours make it out to be. The only bad thing I could say about those few minutes there, was that there were piles of rubbish lying on the side of the road and the traffic is a nightmare.

The shuttle bus to Léon takes roughly an hour and a half and passes giant, smoking volcanoes and the grey Lake Managua. Léon is situated within close proximity of a number of active volcanoes. Some of which are huge. Our first impression of Léon was that it was a bigger, hotter, more unkempt version of exquisite Granada. There are also fewer and lower quality accommodation options. Léon does however, have much more impressive activities and attractions in the surrounding countryside. The most popular of them is volcano boarding down the Cerro Negro. Cerro Negro means Black Hill in Spanish and it is a very young volcano. The black cinder cone sprouted out of farmer’s fields in 1850 and has been erupting regularly ever since. As active and dangerous as it is, groups of tourists are regularly taken to slopes of this volcano to slide at high speed down the sides – the most recent speed record being 85 km/h!

We opted to take the safe route and rather headed to Léon’s nearby Las Peñitas beach. Our hotel was situated in a sleepy village on the banks of an estuary and we spent our last few days in Nicaragua there, doing what we had been doing best: lying in hammocks and drinking Nica Libres. I think our batteries had been completely spent and we just wanted to do nothing.

Our last 2 days in Nicaragua revolved around preparing a plan to get to the airport in Managua. All those rumours and stories on the internet about not travelling through the capital at night didn’t help. Suffice it to say, we reached the airport just after dark, safe and sound, with very little complications or threat of danger along the way – except for some suspect overtaking maneuvers of our shuttle driver.

So how can I sum up Nicaragua and Costa Rica. Costa Rica is a really beautiful, well organised country. Our visit however, was marred by the high prices and really bad value we received in return. What makes Costa Rica even more frustrating for a budget traveller is that their neighbour, Nicaragua, to the north is much cheaper, less touristy and just as beautiful albeit at the expense of more convenient tourist amenities. We really enjoyed Nicaragua. It has beautiful beaches. Relatively easy, always interesting transportation options. Tons of culture and some spectacular natural surroundings. But the one thing that makes Nicaragua special for me, is the people. The people have gone through such hell and are still looking for their identity, still trying to claw themselves from the depths of poverty despite their president’s best efforts to make himself as rich as possible at their expense. It’s a poignant reminder that whatever reality we live in, be it peaceful, free, safe or easy, it can be taken away from you at any second. This is the reality Nicaraguans and many other people in the world live with today.

(We will be posting more photos of colourful Nicaragua soon, in another post…)

Lima was our last stop in Peru. The capital is a short flight away from the mystical city of Cusco, but worlds removed from the high mountain cultures. Wealthy and modern, Lima unfortunately has a reputation for bad weather and incredible poverty. Depressing grey clouds hang overhead most of the year and as the largest city for thousands of kilometers, masses of people move here in search of a better life. But mist and poverty aside, we loved Lima. It’s got the sea, which we had both missed dearly, and there is a charm in the street culture, beautifully manicured city gardens and laid-back atmosphere.

We stayed a few days in the arty neighbourhood of Barranco, spending our days walking around and eating. That’s about it. We walked from one famous seafood restaurant to the next. Lima is probably the most renowned food destinations in South/Central America and we were in seventh heaven.

Having already written about the food of Peru, and having experienced little else in Lima, we don’t have many stories left to tell. We were sad to leave South America after two and a half months on a continent of breathtaking natural beauty, vast open spaces and incredibly interesting culture but it was time to fly onwards to meet my family in Central America.

We had forgotten to bring water with us. The bright midday sun was beating down and dehydration was a real concern, especially at 3200m above sea level. To make matters worse there were no taxis back down from the ruins to the main road which was a 6 kilometer walk according to the taxi driver that took us up. There was no other alternative but to suck it up and start hiking down the tiny, steep path back to the main road. We were visiting the ruins of Tipon outside of Cusco in Peru. Sharing the taxi with us were friends we had made at our hostel – Gary and Renée from Canada. Aside from visiting these fantastic ruins, the area is famous for a small, cute and tasty rodent – the guinea pig or cuy (pronounced koo-ee) as it is called in Peru. Now I know what you might be thinking and yes, a lot of us had them as pets and yes, it is basically a rat without a tail. But if you don’t try it, how will you ever know if you are missing out on a tasty bite-size pet?

So on our march down the hill from Tipon to the main road we remained on the lookout for the telltale broomstick and plastic bag denoting an enterprising housewife’s cuyeria. Suffice it to say and much to my disappointment we had missed the cut off time for lunch and had to march parched and sunburnt almost all the way to the road. The walk was not in vain however, as we struck gold just a short way before the bus stop. Part cuyeria, part baptist church we wondered into the restaurant and enquired about the status of their freshly roasted furry little friends. We were in luck, the woman had both grande and piqueña (big and small) cuys – oven roasted in their wood fired oven. We ordered two grandes and two large cusqueña beers for the four of us. After all, we didn’t know if we would like them and be forced out of courtesy to finish our meal.

It looked like this restaurant was a popular tourist spot as just before the cuys were ready, the chef came out and asked us if we wanted them whole or chopped into pieces. I like to not be able to recognise the animal my food comes from once it’s on my plate, so chopped up was the order for the day.

The cuy came to the table on a platter and was accompanied by rocoto rellena (stuffed peppers), some sort of pasta bake and roast potatoes. The head and feet had been discarded and we were left with the rest. Most people are probably wondering how it tasted. The short answer: like oily, herby roast chicken with a crunchy skin. I can’t say it was the most delicious thing I’ve eaten but it was tasty. The meat was a little too overspiced with the herb – Munya – the closest flavour would be a mix between origanum and mint – which was a little overpowering.

If you ever think of throwing a cuy barbecue, be warned, you are going to need a lot of critters. I would say the “grande” cuy that we received was just enough to feed one person. I am glad we tried it but the way it was prepared and the fact that it costs more than double any other kind of protein in Peru makes it a delicacy which I would not rush back for. Give me the ceviche any day and rather keep the cuys as pets.

Peruvian food is experiencing a renaissance. With such a diverse landscape, Peruvians are spoilt for choice for variety and ubiquity of ingredients. Ancient cooking practices handed down by the Incas combined with influences from Spain make it something different and yet not all too unfamiliar for the traveler. Here is a list of some of our favourites:

Soups

If you ever visit Peru, the first thing you will notice when you peek into a traditional Peruvian restaurant are the diners slurping away at a gigantic bowl of soup. Peruvian soups are varied and delicious. Most are a combination of flavours that can include mint, whole peppercorns, potatoes, yuca, sweet potatoes, rice, maize, fresh coriander and beans served in a rich stock. My favourites are Chupe de Camarones (freshwater shrimp soup), Sopa de Mariscos (seafood soup) and Caldo Blanco – chicken soup a Jewish mama would be proud of. Most Peruvian soups are broths and are generally very light but packed full of flavour. A local restaurant typically serves a two course meal consisting of a soup and a main dish. We loved these meals as they were cheap, tasty and filling.

Ceviche & Tiradito

Although it isn’t unique to Peru and is found widely along the coast of the Americas, ceviche most likely originated here. Made from raw, cubed white fish fillets, fresh coriander leaves, lime juice and sliced onions, you’d be forgiven for thinking it was a dish that originated in Japan. Tiradito differs from ceviche in that there are no onions and the fish is cut differently and reflects the influence Japanese immigrants have had on Peru.

The raw fish is cooked by the acids in the lime juice and the best ceviche melts in your mouth. This was a dish I really wanted to try and I was not disappointed. The best ceviche we ate was at Sonia in Lima – a restaurant famous for it’s fresh fish. It was made from a fish called Lenguado which is a type of Sole. Boasting really fresh fish caught in the morning by the owner – who might I add, sits at the entrance to the restaurant mending his nets.

Common ceviche side dishes are sweet potatoes, toasted corn kernels, boiled corn on the cob and our favourite drink Chicha Morada.

A favourite by-product of ceviche is a drink called Leche de Tigre (Milk of the Tiger), made from leftover lime juice, herbs, chillis and onions of the ceviche. It is considered a potent hangover cure and is delicious.

Lomo Saltado & Chifa Food

Peru is crazy about Chinese food or colloquially known as Chifa. Walk the streets of any Peruvian city and you are bound to stumble upon a local restaurant serving up heaps of wok-fried noodles mixed with vegetables, salted beef, shrimps and soy sauce. The best Chifa meal we had was in Lima and consisted of a mountain of noodles, shrimp, salted pork, vegetables and thick soft noodles. Much like everything else in Peru, the portions are often so huge two people can share one.

Lomo Saltado is a Peruvian staple. Strips of meat marinated in soy sauce and vinegar, fresh tomatoes, onions and potato wedges are wok fried and served with fluffy white rice.

Chicharron

Chicharron or deep fried pork is a delicacy enjoyed by all Peruvians. Good chicharron is fatty and soft, bad chicharron is dry and chewy. The best places for chicharron are usually restaurants so full of people that the chef has to stand outside on the street with her boiling cauldrons of oil and mountain of fried pork alongside her. Chicharron is usually served with a red onion and lime salad which cuts through the flavour of the fat. It’s delicious but this kind of food on a daily basis will kill you.

While chicharron usually refers to fried pork, the Peruvians fry just about anything and and seafood is no exception. One of our most memorable meals was in Lima at an outdoor restaurant down an alley. We discovered the restaurant when we got lost on the way to the main city square. It was absolutely packed and in the middle of just about every table was a mountain of deep fried fish, squid, yuca chips and lemon wedges. “We want that”, I motioned to the waitress the moment we sat down. 30 minutes later and we had our own little mountain of fried fish and squid. It was so good I am contemplating my next visit to Lima just to eat it again!

Pollo Asado or Pollo a la Brasa

Although not typically Peruvian, pollo asado or spit roasted chicken is cheap, juicy and probably the most ubiquitous restaurant in any town or city. Our first run in with pollo asado was not in Peru but in San Pedro de Atacama in Chile, and every town and city after had at least one “chicken joint”. The servings of chicken range from generous to simply huge, the largest of which was at a restaurant in Urubamba in the Sacred Valley. We ordered a quarter chicken each and were given a plateful of french fries, a glass each of Leche de Tigre and then a gigantic piece of chicken and more fries. Suffice it to say we took half of the meal home as leftovers and it only cost us US$4 each.

Rocoto Rellena

Another Peruvian speciality, Rocoto Rellena are rocoto peppers (super spicy, large chillis) stuffed with meat, rice and covered in cheese. They are normally served as a side dish.

Secco de Cordero & other stews

Our first Peruvian meal we had was not in Peru, but on our first night in Buenos Aires. We ordered a plate of ceviche and a plate of Secco de Cordero – lamb slow cooked in a fresh coriander and lemon sauce. The ceviche was okay, but the Secco de Cordero was tender and delicious. The flavours reminded me a lot of Lebanese food – the lamb, the coriander and the lemon juice are all used abundantly in Levantine cooking.

Roast Meats

Roasted Guinea Pig and roast chicken are but a few of the many types of meat roasted by Peruvians. At a quinta in Cusco, we received huge hunks of roast suckling pig and roast spare ribs. This was a meal that left me full for nearly two days! Food is roasted in an oven resembling a clay pizza oven and they are definitely not shy with their portions.

Peru is definitely one of the most pleasantly surprising food destinations I have visited. It doesn’t stack up to South East Asia (Malaysia & Thailand are very hard to beat), but the variety and flavour of the food is very good. Compared to the parts of South America we visited, it is definitely a fantastic place to experience new things and stands out as a highlight food-wise. From the very first moment we set foot in the country we had realised this. Visiting the markets makes it even more clear. If you go to Peru and you don’t experience a Peruvian market first hand, then you have definitely missed out. We tried to visit a market in just about every city we visited and the most impressive of the lot was the central market in Arequipa. It was clean and had a huge variety of food available that you could sit and eat at the counter. Cusco’s San Pedro Mercado wasn’t too far behind, with Lima’s being the least impressive of the lot.

Most people would shy away from the local restaurants and eat in tourist places but we found the only times we got sick from the food were when we ate in tourist restaurants. Peru has a bad reputation when it comes to health standards and I would say from what we saw, it probably fits somewhere between India and South East Asia. We ate breakfast and lunch in the markets on a regular basis, as well as locals-only restaurants and street food stalls. Something which we were told was asking for a tummy bug, but we were fine. Some food for thought indeed.

Apart from the spectacular cathedrals, churches and palaces in Cusco there are some very interesting and beautiful Inca and pre-hispanic ruins in the areas surrounding the city and in the neighboring Sacred Valley. Here are a few of the ruins we visited while in the area.

Tipon

About a 45 minute drive out of Cusco and perched on a hill, are the well manicured ruins of Tipon. Tipon was a place for Incan royalty to kick back and relax. The ruins are characterised by a set of beautifully manicured terraces fed by an intricate system of water canals – some of the most impressive yet discovered – which are still in perfect functioning order. The ruins are situated about 30 minutes from Cusco and were a huge walled settlement for Inca nobility. Tipon is an example of how the Incas married water, soil, agriculture and topography to create functional yet beautiful settlements.

Tambomachay

Popularly known as El Baño del Inca or the Bath of the Inca, Archaeologists are undecided on what Tambomachay’s purpose was. It may have been used as a ceremonial cleansing site for Inca royalty and water still flows through the site today.

Ritual bathing was used as a way to cleanse sins by the Incas. Examples of sins were lawbreaking, failure of religious observances and disobeying the chief. If a man had many sins he would be risking all sorts bad things happening to him. If an Inca ruler had any sins hard times would fall on his subjects hence the importance of this site.

The most impressive part of Tambomachay is that each end of the water fountain has an identical flow rate. In other words, if you put a bucket under each of the two main fountains simultaneously you would fill them up at exactly the same rate.

Puka Pukara

Puka Pukara or “Red Fort” in the Quechua language was possibly used as a checkpoint for travelers and traders on their way to Cusco during the times of the Inca. There are some magnificent views from the top of the site of the surrounding hills and valleys. The name “Red Fort” comes from the red hue the walls give off in the evenings. Puka Pukara is situated a short distance from Tambomachay and the Inca ruler probably housed his vast staff at the fort while bathing at the royal baths.

The site consists of a set of large, roughly built stone buildings, high walls and the remains of what seemed to have been watchtowers. This is probably why archeologists think it was primarily used for military purposes. Other reasons for their thinking are its proximity to Cusco and location on the main road from the Sacred Valley.

Qenko

Qenko is thought to have been place of worship for the Inca. Weird shapes have been carved out of the rock and there is a ceremonial chamber carved out of the rock underground. The Inca were known to worship rocks and this may have been the sites primary purpose.

Sacsayhuaman

Sacsayhuaman is Inca architecture on the grandest of scales. Often incorrectly referred to as solely a fortress, it had a dual purpose for the Incas. First and foremost it was a place of worship and a site for festivals honouring the sun god – Inti. It also served as a fortress and a vast storage complex. It is undeniably spectacular. After the Spanish conquered Cusco they tore what they could of the complex down and used the stones to build their own buildings in the city below. There are very few colonial buildings in Cusco that haven’t been built out of stone from Sacsayhuaman. What was left are the parts the Spanish were simply unable to destroy nor use. 4-metre high stones make up parts of the construction, some so expertly and closely slotted between their neighbours that you can’t help wondering how it was done. Sadly, a lot has been left up to the imagination as most of the fortress was destroyed. Today the ruins are the site of the Inti-Raimi festival marking the Winter Solstice which was started in the 1940s in an attempt to resurrect a part of the Inca culture.

Pumamarca

If you get to spend some time in Ollantaytambo in the Sacred Valley, then I would highly recommend the hike up to the ruins of Pumamarca. Largely untouched and hardly visited by tourists the trail offers some spectacular scenery of the surrounding Andes. Along the route you pass through ancient farmlands where the the farming methods haven’t changed since the Incas. Little is known of what the ruins were used for – some speculate it was a checkpoint for traffic into Ollantaytambo. Nonetheless, it is a beautiful place to visit, especially on foot. Along the way you pass through tiny villages that are only reachable on foot as well as some beautiful Inca terraces and ruins.

Ollantaytambo

Perched on the side of a mountain with a beautiful, living Inca-village of the same name below, Ollantaytambo is probably the most impressive Inca ruin we visited, save for Machu Picchu. The ruin was the royal palace for Emperor Pachacuti. During the Spanish conquest, the palace served as a stronghold where Manco Inca successfully drove off a raiding Spanish party in a bloody battle. Due to its location they were able to flood the planes below the fortress and drive the Spanish out of the valley. After the battle Manco Inca fled deeper into the mountains where he was pursued by the Spanish. An unsuccessful attempt to capture him at Uiticos led him to escape to Vilcabamba – the lost city Hiram Bingham was searching for when he discovered Machu Picchu.

The ruins consist of a rather large temple housing some impressive cut stones, extensive terraces, granaries, quarries and a ritual cleansing area. We stayed the night in Ollantaytambo and were lucky enough to be the first visitors to the site the next morning which meant we could enjoy the ruins with very few other visitors. The view from the top of the ruins across the valley is spectacular. On one side you have a bird’s eye view of the town and farmlands and on the other side of the ruins you can see the tail of the snowy peaks Veronica and Salkantay with the Urubamba river snaking its way toward them.

Walking among the ruins and imagining what it looked like during the height of the Inca Empire is a fantastic experience but after one-too-many we started to suffer from the dreaded ruin-fatigue. So after visiting Ollantaytambo we decided to call it a day and not visit Pisaq, Moray and Chinchero. I think we will leave these for our next visit to Peru which is definitely going to be in the near future.

Standing on the top of Wayna Picchu all we could see were clouds. We had raced to the top to get a good lookout spot of the scenery below. It was a lung busting climb up the narrow, slippery and steep, rock-cut pathway. Slowly out of the gloom, shadows of Inca-built buildings loomed above us. Everything was either green foliage or black rock and covered in a layer of moisture. The path abruptly ended at a rock ladder sticking out of the cliff face at the top of which was a dark, wet cave. Over the steps we squeezed through the cave and onto the other side of the peak. The very top was covered in a collection of very large boulders. We staked out our spot and waited for more people to arrive and the clouds to clear. One by one more tourists came up, preceded by their heavy breathing and curses at the tiny cave they had just had to squeeze through. Still no view. A woman called up to a few people sitting on the rock and asked which way she had to go to get to the top. She had obviously not thought of going through the cave. One of the guys on top yelled something back which obviously annoyed her as she started flipping the bird at us. The group on top laughed.

Slowly but surely the sun began to thin the thick cloud and we started to see momentary glimpses of the ruins below. The rocks on top were now covered in people. The scene resembled a troupe of baboons sitting around looking for fleas in each other’s coats. For a moment Machu Picchu came into the clear only to disappear in a white haze and a flutter of camera shutter releases from the crowd behind me.

Welcome to Machu Picchu. Few words come to mind when I think about this very special place. Mystical and inspirational it is hard not to be spellbound by the sheer beauty of it’s location. Not to mention its size and ingenuity. There are a number of theories as to what it was used for by the Incas but the most widely accepted one is that it was a grand estate built by the Emperor Pachacuti in 1450 and a place of significant religious importance to the Incas. It was abandoned 100 years later as a result of the Spanish conquest but it was never plundered or destroyed by the Spanish and is one of the most intact Inca ruins ever discovered.

Talk about Machu Picchu and the name Hiram Bingham is usually mentioned somewhere in the same discussion. Famous for being the “re-discoverer” of the site in 1911, the archeologist and explorer happened upon the ruins while searching for the lost city of Vilcabamba – the last stronghold of the Inca. The story goes that his support group set up camp on a farm along the Urubamba river. Too tired to immediately start exploring the surrounding area, Bingham’s party stayed behind in their tents while he was led up a mountain by the farmer’s young son. Little did he know what was awaiting him. Up to his dying day, Bingham believed that he had discovered the lost city of Vilcabamba. It was later discovered that the real Vilcabamba was in an entirely different location. This year, Peru celebrates the centenary of Hiram Bingham’s discovery.

Getting to Machu Picchu is more a journey of patience than anything else. Our trip started in Ollantaytambo. A living Inca-village roughly 75 kilometers away from Machu Picchu Pueblo. There are only two realistic ways of reaching Machu Picchu. You can hike the Inca Trail or take the train. Both are very expensive. The Inca Trail can be done for roughly $600 per person, the 2 hour train journey can be done for US$70 roundtrip. We opted for the lazier and cheaper option and took the train. The train journey is no short of spectacular scenery though. Machu Picchu is situated above thick cloud forest and as the train winds its way along the Urubamba river, the landscape changes from high altitude grasses to thick jungle. Dramatic snow-capped peaks can be seen from either side of the steep valley along the way.

If Machu Picchu can be described as heaven, then Machu Picchu Pueblo can be described as hell. Immediately after disembarking the train you are plunged into a world of tourist shops, restaurants and hotels. The entire existence of this little town depends on the thousands of tourists that visit the site every day. At one stage Machu Picchu was enjoying 8000 visitors per day. Pressure from UNESCO to control the numbers and ensure Machu Picchu’s World Heritage status has forced authorities to limit it to 2500. This consequently, has had a negative effect on the businesses below resulting in more desperate tactics to get you to eat in their restaurant or stay in their hotel. Our hostel for instance, was rated as the best hostel in the area on Trip Advisor. It turned out to be a tiny room, with paper-thin walls. Suffice it to say, the hostel staff kept us up all night chatting in the foyer.

We sprung out of bed bleary-eyed and disorientated at 4:45am and headed for the bus stop. The bus system that takes people up to the ruins is very well organised. Busses run continuously along the 6 km route that switchbacks up the side of the mountain. Even at 5am there is a rather long line of people waiting for a bus. The ticket costs a hefty US$8 one-way. The busses however, are new and air-conditioned.

Our entrance ticket to the ruins included the optional hike to Wayna Picchu – the mountain in the background of all the classic photos of Machu Picchu. Only 200 people a day are allowed to climb to the peak. As if building Machu Picchu wasn’t enough, the Incas even built structures at the top of the mountain in fantastically perilous positions overlooking the valley below. Once the clouds at the top had cleared entirely we could see the miniature Urubamba river below. Particularly tricky sections on the way up to the summit are made easier by stairs cut out of the solid rock – courtesy of the Incas – and chains and railings courtesy of the Peruvians.

After climbing the peak we decided to do the hike down through the cloud forest to the Temple of the Moon and the Great Cavern. This is a great spot to get away from the crowds on the rest of the site and the forest is very beautiful and unspoiled. Along the way, you get to experience some pristine cloud forest. The path is hot and sweaty work and takes roughly 40 minutes before you emerge from the forest into a clearing with a few terraces and a set of caves. This is the Caverna Grande, or Grand Cavern. When we arrived here there were a few people looking around and taking pics but after a while they went back up the path. We were then able to view the Temple of the Moon, down a pathway to the side, completely on our own. For anyone who has been to Machu Picchu, you will understand the significance of this, as the main site is packed with people in every direction.

On our way back to the main site, the rain clouds started to close in and we made it to the entrance of the Wayna Picchu trek just in time to find shelter in one of the restored buildings alongside the famous sacred rock before it started to come down. It was roughly midday by this time and the site was jam packed with tourists, so before long our shelter was crammed full of people. It rained for about an hour and a half. The rain was a blessing in disguise as once it had cleared, most of the tourists had decided to leave. This meant that we were able to walk through the ruins at our leisure and get plenty of photos without people in them.

The Temple of the Sun

This temple was used to honour and celebrate the sun god – Inti. We weren’t allowed inside the temple to take a look at the giant stone set in the middle but on a specific day, the sun shines through the central window onto the stone. This was probably used to mark the day of a ceremony.

Underneath the temple is the Royal tomb where hundreds of skeletons were discovered, most of which were women. It is thought that a royal mummy could have been kept here.

The Intihuatana – The Sun Stone

The Incas used the Intihuatana as a sun dial to measure time for various reasons including agriculture. The Spanish on the other hand thought the Incas worshipped the stone and therefore destroyed every single one they could find. At other sites, in place of where the Intihuatana may have stood is a pile of rocks or a just an empty space. The Sun Stone at Machu Picchu is the only intact stone ever discovered. The name Intihuatana means “Hitching Post of the Sun” and was believed by the Incas to be the point where the sun was tethered to the earth to keep the sun god connected to the people.

The Intihuatana is situated in the centre of the main temple complex indicating its importance in the Inca religion. Unfortunately, it was damaged a few years ago when a film company smuggled equipment into the site to shoot a beer commercial and a 900kg crane chipped a piece off the corner. Had they been around today, I wonder what the Incas would have done to the crane operators.

The Funerary Rock

The Incas believed in sacrificing animals and people to appease the gods and this strangely shaped stone is believed to have been used for that exact purpose. Hiram Bingham thought the stone could also have been used as a slab for preparing mummies. Behind the stone he discovered a number of skeletons in what is believed to have been the cemetery of Machu Picchu. The Incas believed that the dead and living existed together. They were known to keep mummies of royalty in temples where they were brought out for public display during ceremonies and festivals. Sacrificial mummies were normally buried on the top of mountains and in holy places to appease the gods that lived there. Sadly, the Spanish were greatly disturbed by the way the Incas worshipped these mummies and ended up destroying all of them.

The funerary rock is also the point from which all the famous photos of the view of Machu Picchu with Wayna Picchu in the background are taken as it overlooks the entire complex.

The Temple of the Condor

The Incas were incredible craftsmen and the Temple of the Condor is a spectacular example of this. The structure has been fashioned to resemble a Condor in flight. On the floor of the temple is a rock fashioned after the head of the Condor where it is believed to have been used as a sacrificial altar. Above the temple are three stone niches where royal mummies may have been placed for worship.

The Prison

Behind the Temple of the Condor is a structure thought to have been used as a prison. Holes have been carved into stones where chains could be passed through and then shackled onto prisoners. The Incas punished people for such sins as laziness, lust or theft and depending on the degree could have been put to death.

The Quarry

The white granite used to build many of the buildings in Machu Picchu was quarried and cut on site and a section of the complex was devoted to stone masonry. Walking around the quarry you can see exactly how the Incas worked with the rock. Using primitive techniques they were able to cut, carve and polish the stone with such accuracy that they needed very little mortar to build their buildings. One of the rocks looks as though it was in the process of being cut when the site was abandoned. Here you can see how the stone masons chiseled holes into the rock, then placed wooden stakes in and poured water on the stakes to make them expand thereby forcing the rock to crack along the line of holes. This was a very effective means of separating the stones before they were carved and polished.

The Main Gate

Machu Picchu is not only spectacular in the place it was built, it also boggles the mind when you realise that each doorway and each temple is positioned to either align with a celestial body such as the sun or moon, or a significant mountain. The main gate is a fantastic example of this. It frames Wayna Picchu in the background and as you walk from this gate through the ruins you find that the positioning of each gate had some sort of significance in the way it was aligned. This may have marked a ceremonial route the Incas would have walked through the buildings. Another example is how the Intihuatana mimics a peak behind it. Not only were the Incas precision builders, they planned each building meticulously in accordance with their belief system.

The main gate is an impressive example of Inca ingenuity. A system of slots and holes carved into the rock was used to affix a giant door. To put things into perspective the lintel above the main gate weighs approximately 3-4 tons – or 2-3 family-sized cars!

Agricultural Zone & Terraces

Machu Picchu was not only used as a residence it was also a living and working town and may have been completely self sufficient. At the entrance to the ruins, on the sides and halfway down the mountain are magnificent, precision-built terraces. The terraces served two purposes. The first was to increase the surface area for planting crops such as, potatoes, coca and maize. The second reason was to control water flow and reduce soil erosion. We saw terraces all over the Sacred Valley and ruins around Cusco but the terraces at Machu Picchu seemed to be on a grander scale.

After spending a full day at the ruins we eventually had to make our way back down to Machu Picchu Pueblo to catch our train out. As if we hadn’t done enough walking already, we decided to walk back to the town rather than catch the bus. Surprisingly, the walk isn’t as tough as everybody makes it out to be. Neither is it made unpleasant by the busses that zigzag their way down, as the well kept path heads straight down and only crosses the road every now and again. It is also a lot easier to go down than up.

Machu Picchu is a spectacular place. I have really struggled to write this post about it because there are few words that can really bring the place to life on a computer screen. Even the photos we took do little justice to it. I can whole-heartedly understand why so many people year after year visit it. It is so much more than just a set of ruins on top of a mountain, it is a place that vividly tells the story of a long lost people, their culture, their religion, their achievements and their downfall. We visited many ruins while in Peru and I have to admit I did get tired after seeing so many but my energy and zeal was enlivened the moment I walked through the gates into the site. Even if you try to avoid tourist attractions to get away from it all, I still can’t recommend visiting this mystical place enough to everyone I meet.

From the very first moment you arrive in this city you feel a sense of adventure. It is different – very different from anywhere else, yet somewhat familiar. The street food vendors hawk bits of meat on a stick, others sell slices of juicy giant pineapple. One has a bag full of freshly roasted cuy’s (guinea pigs), their smiling faces mirroring the smiling face of the traditionally dressed woman negotiating a price with a customer. The smell of the offal section in the market hits you like a wall. Cow’s heads, pigs testicles – it’s all here. Waitresses yell the day’s specialty to passers-by as hungry patrons slurp their sheep’s head soup. In the centre of the market is a religious shrine surrounded by flowers and candles. Switch the statue of St. Mary with a Buddha and you could be in Bangkok. Switch the statue of the Buddha with one of Ganesha and you could be in Delhi (minus the meat of course).

The streets outside the Mercado San Pedro hum and buzz with activity. The constant stream of beat-up, old taxis fly by, rattling over the cobblestone streets. In the corner, stands a baroque-style, Spanish church. Built from Incan-cut stone. It’s red colour helps it blend in with the other buildings. It’s like walking through a 16th century European city. Beautifully preserved and wearing the scars of its history on the outside with pride for all to see.

We came here to see this. To learn about the last throes of the Incas and to see their legacy which is going through somewhat of a reawakening among Peruvians.

Cusco was once the seat of their empire – the navel of the world. At its height, the Inca ruled the largest empire on the South American continent and one of the largest on earth. And yet, our knowledge of them is very limited. Much of their history was destroyed by the Spanish conquistadors and the little that we do know is sparsely recorded in Spanish chronicles. The Incas started out as a small tribe in the city-kingdom of Cusco. In 1438, they began a rapid expansion into surrounding clans conquering and assimilating them until most of the Andes in Peru and Ecuador were under their control. After further expansions, the Inca empire covered all of Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia, a large portion of Chile and small parts of Colombia and Argentina. This is an area roughly the size of Western Europe, brought under their control in less than 100 years.

The Incas were more assimilators than conquerors. Many of their skills and knowledge was adapted from the cultures that they incorporated. And yet, they had no formal scheme of writing nor did they use the wheel. Their language, Quechua is still spoken today and in some parts of Peru is the only language.

So why are the Incas so fascinating? So alluring? I think it’s more to do with their downfall than anything else. In 1526, a man by the name of Francisco Pizarro, sailed his way down from Panama to Peru. Seeing such a prosperous kingdom and hearing stories and legends of the treasures the Inca emperor possessed, Pizarro sought royal approval from the Spanish king to conquer the region. Upon his return, the empire was in civil war and severely weakened by smallpox brought over by the Spanish in the first place. And so with just 168 men, 1 canon and 27 horses, Pizarro systematically brought the empire under Spanish control. Before long, they had almost wiped the Inca culture out entirely. Tearing down their buildings, only to build their own on top of the foundations. Today, all that is left of this once mighty civilization is the Quechua language, some traditions, the ruins of their buildings outside of Cusco and their foundations within the city.

Our nine-hour, overnight bus trip from Arequipa arrived at 6:30 in the morning. Cusco is very different from Arequipa. The most immediate difference was the state of the roads. Arequipa felt like a well looked-after, mid-90s apartment. Cusco on the other hand felt more like a rustic old farmhouse in the country. The air is thin here, 3400m above sea level. The first thing you notice is that walking around is an effort, climbing the steps to San Blas and up to some of the ruins above the city is quite the workout. Something I wouldn’t suggest doing unless you have acclimatised properly.

The streets of central Cusco are fascinating. I would rate it as my number one city for people watching and taking photographs. You do however, need to be mindful that the people aren’t your private models, and some may get annoyed if you stick a camera in their faces. On the other hand, they are quick to smile, warm and friendly. Many are descendants of the Incas or a mix thereof and are very proud of their country.

Getting lost in the central part of Cusco is a real adventure. The tiny alleyways are lined with the foundations of once mighty Inca buildings. The precision with which they built their solid stone buildings is astounding. Each stone was cut using bronze-age techniques. A hole was bored into the rock, a wooden wedge was driven into the hole and then water was poured onto the wood allowing it to expand and crack the stone free. Each stone is unique and slots in with its siblings perfectly. In some cases, it is impossible to even wedge a piece of paper between them. To increase the strength of some buildings, the stones were interlocking using a system of male and female stones. Instead of using mortar, stones were glued in place using bitumen. Walls tapered outwards as they approached the ground to increase rigidity further. This masterful style of engineering meant Inca structures could withstand the most powerful of earthquakes. And all of this was done without iron tools, nor the use of the wheel. It is with little surprise that people from all over the world come to Peru to see the Inca architecture.

One of the best sites to visit is the temple of Qorikancha. This structure was considered the very centre of the Incan empire and the name translated means Sun Temple or Temple of the Sun. The building is thought to have been a place of worship for the Incas. Judging by the precision with which it was built, it most certainly was a very important structure. The stone-masonry is incredible and there are many examples of how each stone was slotted into place to fit precisely with its siblings. Before the Spanish destroyed the building and built a church and monastery on top of the foundations, the inside walls of the temple were covered in huge plates of gold which channeled the light of the sun through the building. You can still see the points upon which the gold plates were attached. In fact, a lot of the gold used in the many cathedrals in Cusco came from Inca temples and palaces. Today, Qorikancha is a weird hybrid of Spanish and Inca architecture. The church of Santo Domingo and the Santo Domingo Convent sits on top of part of the foundations of the Inca temple. Around the sides of the old monastery courtyard, some of the Inca structure has been restored and is on display to visitors. There is also a great collection of 16th-century artwork from the Cusco school of art. To me, I find some of the artwork a bit grotesque and macabre but it does have an important place in Peruvian culture as it was used by the first converted Incas to tell stories of the saints in the Catholic church as well as the battles the Spanish had with the Incas.

Apart from visiting Cusco for its magnificent buildings, the food is also a big draw-card. The areas around the city are some of Peru’s most fertile. This is probably one of the reasons why the Incas settled and flourished here. Like the Colca Valley near Arequipa, the staple crops are maize, potatoes, onions, wheat and barley. It is also situated roughly 100km from the jungle which gives the market an incredible variety of different vegetables and fruits. The most famous delicacy of the area is what many people would regard a pet – the Cuy or Guinea Pig. If you ever visit Cusco, you need to at least try Cuy. It tastes a lot like the brown meat on a chicken, flavoured with Munya (a type of aromatic herb, not too dissimilar from oregano) and roasted in a clay oven. Another fantastic experience we had was eating in a traditional Peruvian Quinta for Sunday lunch. Quintas are large family run restaurants which are usually situated outdoors in a courtyard. The food is basic, tasty and comes heaped upon your plate. They are very popular with middle-class Peruvian families, who visit them in their Sunday best after the mid-morning church service. The menu in a quinta has about 5-6 dishes on it. It is also reasonably priced and good value – just make sure to skip breakfast if you decide to eat in one.

Cusco’s main square, the Plaza de Armas, is an electrifying sight. Due to strict building regulations and as a testament to the pride the people have in their city, it is perfectly preserved. On two sides of the square sits the imposing Church La Compaña de Jesus and Cusco Cathedral. The other two sides of the square are lined with curio shops, travel agencies and restaurants – albeit disguised to fit in with the rest of the architecture in the square. In the centre of the square is a dramatic water fountain with a statue of Tupac Amaru – the last of the Inca emperors. The centre of the square is also lined with magnificent gardens of flowers. The Plaza de Armas is not the only square in Cusco, there are several in the centre as well as a number of churches and cathedrals (we counted 10 from the San Blas hill).

The San Pedro market is one of the great experiences of Cusco. It is an assault on all the senses and we were drawn to it like a magnet. If not for glimpses of the “just plain weird” then for the fresh fruit juice and strong café pasado. Some of the aisles are dedicated solely to potatoes or avocados. There is even a rather smelly section for offal with oddities such as beef snout or sheep’s brains on display. The most popular section is the Caldo de Gallina or chicken soup section where 3 or 4 rows of people sit and gulp down huge bowls of soup throughout the day. Many just stop off for a quick snack on their way to work or on their lunch break. The Peruvians, like their Inca forebears, don’t do things in half measures. As you walk the aisles, the ladies with their tall, white top-hats yell out their wears. Some leaning over the counter in front of them handing out samples of cheese and olives.

We stayed in Cusco for quite some time at El Tuco guesthouse run by Coco and his family. A comfortable good value spot with generous and friendly hosts. Cusco is a bustling, vibrant city, full of culture, history and colour. The diesel fumes, aggressive taxi drivers and uneven sidewalks do wear the nerves thin, but the sights, sounds and smells definitely make it worth it. To recuperate from the chaos we headed out of the city into the Sacred Valley.

A mule is a wondrous creature. Tough, stubborn, unruffled. Half-horse, half-donkey. The toughness and the stubbornness comes from its donkey genes. The size and strength comes from the horse. Mules all over the world still do the heavy lifting in the most inhospitable places. In Peru, they like their mules fat. It’s the perfect creature for these parts. The arreiros – mule drivers – are held in high esteem. The animals are used to carry just about any known product to the remote mountain communities, including building materials and beer. The paths along their routes are narrow and precarious, not to mention steep. Their trails can be seen zigzagging their way up the sides of the second deepest canyon on earth to tiny villages, perched precariously above the Colca River below. When walking in the mountains and approached by a train of mules, there is one unwritten rule – leap into the bushes on the mountain-side of the path. To stand on the edge, is both foolish and just asking for a mule to ungraciously bump you into the chasm below.

Mules are generally used as pack animals, but they are also used occasionally to carry people. Unlike their cousin, the donkey, they have very strong backs. In these parts of Peru, the people ride them using only a rope and a blanket. Sometimes, they do use a saddle but only the wealthy arreiros can afford saddles. Mules also prefer to walk on the softer grassy patches on the cliff side of a track. I guess this is more comfortable on their hooves than the harder rocky part on the mountain side. For the rider, this is the much more terrifying option, but I am getting ahead of myself here. Hiram Bingham, the famous explorer and archeologist that rediscovered Machu Picchu, used mules exclusively on his expeditions into the most awkward of places. The price of the mules and their driver was one of his biggest expenses.

The Colca Canyon is a mystical place. Hemmed in by the steep sides of the Andes it has been continuously inhabited for more than 1000 years. As I mentioned previously, it is the second deepest canyon in the world. Second only to the Cotohuasi Canyon about 100 km to the north. The area is Peru’s third most popular tourist attraction, not due to its mules but due to a rather spectacular scavenger – the Andean Condor. Famous for being the land bird with the largest wingspan in the world (over 3 metres), as well as one of the longest living (up to 100 years), Condors climb the thermals of the canyon up to the high plains of the Altiplano in search of the unfortunate creatures that have died and return back to the steep sides of the canyon to their nests in the evening.

Upon arriving at the Condor Cross – known as the Cruz del Condor – we were greeted by a football-match sized crowd cheering the black and white birds on as they swooped over their heads. We were only give thirty minutes to see the animals as the guides and driver were in a rush to drop their cargo load of people off at the start of the Colca trek.

We were in the area to do the four day trek from the village of Cabanaconde into the canyon. We had already spent a few days above the canyon, in the Colca valley, before our trek started and were met at our hotel by our guide, Nestor. Most visitors to the area do the 2 and 3 day treks but since we had the time, we decided to do a different variation. This meant that we were the only people on the route. Our walk through the canyon led us along a path that zigzagged its way down the sheer sides of the cliff. The region only gets its rainfall during January and February and it is quite arid the rest of the year. Surprisingly, there is a lot of agriculture and the Colca valley and Colca canyon have been very fertile farming lands for centuries. This is all due in part to the ingenious system of canals that have been built to channel water to verdant green terraces. Ruins in the area, particularly the Uyo Uyo ruins near Yanque, show how the Incas incorporated their ideas of architecture and farming with pre-Incan local tribes. Each building in the ruins has a definite difference between the bottom half – small, unevenly shaped stones – and the top half which are more evenly shaped stones attributable to the Incas. The Incas also designed the canal systems which are still in use today.

Not since India, had I seen people working the land in such a manual fashion. In the mornings, men and women would herd their bulls and oxen off to their terrace of potatoes or maize. Many of the people were carrying a small plow on their shoulders. The work is tough. Farmers coerce their cattle into pulling the plow through the rough earth. Planting is then done by hand. Only then are the requisite gates opened and closed along the canal system and the water is channeled into the field to feed their seeds. According to our guide, the terraces around Cabanaconde yield some of the finest types of maize in Peru and fetch very high prices.

Maize is used in a lot of products in Peru. First and foremost it is used to make Chicha – a pale yellow beer that is drunk by the locals. A chicheria is quite often in somebody’s backyard, the only sign that the owner has a fresh brew: a broom with a blue plastic bag on the end. This is not to be confused with a broom with a yellow bag on the end: an impromptu tavern with freshly roasted guinea pig or locally known as a Cuyeria. Chicha comes in both alcoholic and non-alcoholic forms. Although we haven’t sampled the alcoholic version we like the sweet, non-alcoholic one (Chichi Morada, made from black maize). As a snack, a freshly steamed cob can be bought on the side of the road with a slice of cheese, or as popcorn which comes in all shapes and sizes – not just the variety you get at the cinemas back home. You can also buy tamales on the side of the road, which are pockets of ground corn, flavoured and stuffed into a corn husk and steamed.

Our descent into the canyon was hot work and a cold glass of Chicha would have been a welcome one. We’d started earlier than expected and arrived at the river and base of the canyon around midday, where Nestor prepared us a light lunch before continuing on to the small oasis of Llahuar. Since there was nothing else to do at the oasis, apart from a swim, we decided to push on to the village of Furé which was up a side valley. The trail led steeply up the other side of the canyon along a canal and passed two tiny villages. We stopped in the village of Llatica for a bottle of Inca Kola before our climb to Furé.

Having grown up in Cabanaconde and as a local trekking guide, Nestor is well known in these parts. He has a particular affinity for the miniscule Furé. Perched on the side of a cliff face overlooking the Huararo river it is hard not to see why. Furé has a population of roughly 200 people. We were hard pressed to count fifty. Behind the village, a giant cliff face rises up with spectacular waterfalls gushing off of it. The rivers are fed by high-altitude glaciers. Furé is the fourth last village along the trail, but it is the last easily-accessible village. Impossible paths lead staight up the sides of gorges to other more remote villages.

In Furé the main form of agriculture is the cochineal insect. Prized as a natural dye in cosmetics and a food colourant, and feeding on prickly pear cacti, a kilogram of processed cochineal can fetch up to US$80. Every three months the local people harvest their section of the mountain. Very little work is needed to farm these little creatures, so it would seem, since the cacti are incredibly abundant in this area and all they would need to do is walk up to a dense cluster of cacti before scraping the creatures off with a spoon into a container. But you would be foolish to think it was so easy. Firstly, the cacti grow on the side of virtually vertical mountain slopes. It is unimaginable how these people are able to get to some spots. There aren’t any paths and the landscape is densely covered in cacti and highly toxic plants. Secondly, due to high demand, cochineal thieves are plentiful and the majority of the time is spent by villagers guarding the local crop.

Our accommodation in Furé was very basic. Upon arrival we were shown to our room, a windowless hut made of rough adobe bricks, a zinc-aluminium roof and a dirt floor. However, it had the most spectacular view through the door and the sounds of water and children playing outside gave us a real sense of living within the community. That being said, there was no bathroom. A communal, open-air toilet could be found a short walk from our room. Water and other supplies cost more than triple due to the difficulty in transporting them to this place. Since we had chosen to skip spending the night at Llahuar, we were to spend 2 nights in Furé. As rough and uncomfortable as it sounds, we loved it. The food was basic but tasty and the people were very friendly. There was also the singular absence of the dreaded beige tourist.

A short walk from Furé is the spectacular Huararo waterfall. Plunging nearly 160 metres out of a rock face the mist of the waterfall can be felt quite a distance away along the trail. During the rainy season it is difficult to even get close to the waterfall due to the surrounding slopes becoming very slippery and precarious but we were able to climb down to the base of the waterfall to stick our big toes into the icy water. The only other company we had here was a small herd of sheep and a scarecrow used to frighten foxes away.

On our return from the waterfall, Nestor pointed out an Incan mass grave, set under a rock behind a nondescript wall. From the tiny door, we could literally see thousands of human bones. The bones were not from local people but from Incas as the femurs were much longer and some of the skulls were elongated – a practice common to the Incas. I haven’t been able to confirm it, but one theory is that these were victims of punishments meted down for crimes such as laziness. We have our own little theory that they all died from diseases brought into Peru by the Spanish conquistadors (one of the top three reasons for the decline of the Incas). All I can say for certain, is that it is a little disturbing peaking into a tomb full of what once was a group of people.

On our second and last night in Furé we attended a village meeting to greet a visiting architect. The man was responsible for designing and helping to build the new village school. Furé had only 4 months prior received electricity and street lamps. I can’t imagine how difficult it must have been walking along a cliff face in the middle of the night to go to the loo in complete darkness. Now the process is a lot less hazardous. The existing village school, from what I could tell, was either too small or too ill equipped. Too small because we got to meet some of the kids and pretty much all of them had a at least 5 siblings, some up to 8. One poor, young boy had 6 brothers! And no, most of their siblings weren’t in the group we spoke to.

The route out of Furé was rather flat and led us along the other side of the Huararo river and then eventually the Colca river. We were walking now to the Sangalle Oasis, for our last night’s stay, at the bottom of the canyon which is fed by a gigantic underground spring that literally comes out of the mountain in the form of a broad waterfall. The water is a constant 22 degrees and is fed to a number of lodges who fill beautiful blue swimming pools. The walk to the oasis is hot work but not too demanding as most of it is downhill. It is important to note here that the oasis sits at roughly 2200 metres above sea level and our trek back to Cabanaconde ends at 3200 metres. So relaxing at the pool was the order for the rest of the day as we would need to leave at 5am the next morning to avoid the heat of the day and make it up out of the canyon in time.

As many of you know, Margarét and I pride ourselves on the fact that we like to avoid the tourist-safe restaurants and eat in the local places. In fact, in India we ran into trouble very quickly – on the third day – because we insisted on eating local. In Peru, we’ve had some fantastic meals in places I wouldn’t dare frequent back home. In some cases, we’ve been pleasantly surprised by the food and others frightened as our Spanish is so bad we don’t quite know what the waiter has offered us. In one restaurant, Margarét ended up with a plate of fried liver and I had a giant deep fried piece of pork with the fur still attached to one end. Now before you think we are crazy, we do have a method to our madness. Eating in empty tourist restaurants that serve things such as baked salmon with hollandaise sauce is asking for trouble, since the local people wouldn’t touch the stuff – they would much prefer their sheep head soup. This means that the produce for the restaurant is invariably not fresh and likely to have all sorts of interesting bacteria swimming in it.

So with this in mind and to spare you the details, Margarét got food poisoning from the food at the touristy oasis lodge (I ended up suffering the same fate the following evening, we also know of 2 other people that had the same problem). The next morning, weak and exhausted, Nestor organised for her to ride a trusty mule out of the canyon – a rather frightening prospect considering the route she would be taking. Nestor and I set off at 5am sharp. To put it simply, the path heads straight up. Over the next hour and a half, we would climb 1100m in three and a half kilometres – an average gradient of 30%. The path switchbacks roughly every twenty metres and is partly sand and rocks, partly huge, rocky steps. It is also, as you can imagine, alongside a sheer drop where with every step up the bright blue pools of the oasis get smaller and smaller until they are just tiny specs below us. For me the climb out was a lot of fun. As we weren’t walking in a large group of people, Nestor and I were able to do it very quickly. Margarét on the other hand, had a teeth and butt clenching ride out on a mule that had no reigns, was continually pelted with stones by the arreiro and preferred walking on the absolute edge of the path. When she arrived at the top, in her weakened and frightened state, she leapt off of her mule and insisted on walking the rest of the way back to the village.

The rest of our day was spent in a hellish tour bus, being taken at high speed to some rather mediocre tourist sights but at least we were able to snooze at some of the stops. On the road back to Arequipa we crossed a spectacular pass at 4900m to take in the view of the volcanoes Ampato, Sabancaya and Hualca Hualca.

I can highly recommend visiting the Colca Canyon, even if you don’t do any of the treks. The villages are really picturesque and the views into the canyon are spectacular. Once the tourist buses have left, the towns are very quiet and local culture can be experienced everywhere. If you are a trekker, you will be in heaven. You don’t necessarily need a guide, but it was really great having Nestor take us around as he had access to the local people and was able to explain certain customs, point out interesting sights and translate conversations with local people. As for visiting the Oasis at Sangalle, it is a really bizarre place to be sitting at the pool in beautiful green surroundings with hot, dry, arid mountains all around. Just beware of the food.

If you ever need a guide in Peru, we can highly recommend Nestor (startravel_colca@hotmail.com).

Right from the very first moment we stepped off the bus in Arequipa, Peru felt like home. The bus terminal was jam packed. Colours and smells assaulted the senses. Chaos in every direction as people hustled through the door past hawkers and taxi touts. Disoriented we headed for the exit and took a taxi straight to our guesthouse. Peru is a much poorer country in comparison with Chile or Argentina and this was most evident when we hit the urban sprawl of Peru’s second largest city – Arequipa, which is famous for it’s white volcanic stone buildings and monolithic volcanoes – which can be seen from just about any angle in the city. The most notable difference between Peru and Argentina and Chile is that Peru has a much richer, more visible culture. It’s food is superb and the people are more open and friendly to tourists. Arequipa was also a great place to kick off our visit to the country. As large as it is, the main attractions are situated within a 10 block radius from the central square – the Plaza de Armas. Founded in 1540 on a pre-Incan settlement, the city has some fantastic examples of Spanish-colonial architecture, beautiful churches and a generally laid back atmosphere.

The country is made up of three distinct regions. The dry, desert-like coastal region in the west. The high Andean plains running up the centre that eventually give way to the Amazon jungle in the east. Arequipa is situated in the dry zone halfway between the sea and the Altiplano. On one side of the city is the desert and on the other, is the dramatic backdrop of volcanoes, El Misti, Chachani and Picchu Picchu. The location of Arequipa lends itself to some devastating natural disasters – some of which have virtually leveled the entire city. In fact, an earthquake as recent as 2001 caused great damage, leaving many of the beautiful churches in a state of disrepair. Thankfully, Arequipeñans take a lot of pride in their city and you would be hard-pressed to find any evidence of the catastrophic event in the buildings today.

When we arrived in Arequipa, we immediately noticed the amount of food being sold on the streets. This was a good sign and reminded me a lot of South East Asia. This is in stark contrast with Chile and Argentina. Where Chile has very plain, bland food and Argentina has little variation, Peru has just about anything one can imagine. A visit to the central market in Arequipa was a revelation. Fruit and vegetables are stacked to the ceiling. There is a section solely for potatoes – of which Peru has some 4000 varieties. A section for meat, chicken and fish. Even a section for offal. One side of the market is dedicated to lunch and breakfast. On our forays into the market we ate some of Peru’s most famous foods. Ceviche: raw fish cooked in lime juice, served with copious amounts of coriander, roasted corn kernels and red onions. Rocoto Relleno: chilli peppers stuffed with a meat and cheese filling. Chicharron: crispy deep fried pork served with a salad of red onions and peppers and a spicy chilli sauce. Even the ubiquitous roast chicken was succulent and delicious. A favourite, and a meal we went back for over and over, was the Ceviche Combinado at Cevicheria El Oriental. It was a mixed ceviche containing tiny fish fillets, squid and mussels accompanied by a thick potato and bean gravy, fried rice and a sweet potato on the side. The meal also included a free cup of Chicha Morada, a drink made from purple maize which is boiled in pineapple rind, cinnamon and cloves. Lime juice and sugar is then added to finish it off. The whole meal cost us S7 each or around $2 and the ladies behind the counter refilled our plates a few times too, without our even asking, mid-spoonful!

Arequipa is known to Peruvians as the Ciudad del Blanco – the White City. The buildings are built from a particularly porous, white volcanic stone mined nearby. The dramatic cathedral on the Plaza de Armas being the most spectacular of these buildings. With two huge towers, stretching nearly 40m into the air the cathedral is probably the most photographed building in the city. Inside, the cathedral is no less beautiful with colonial era paintings and marble statues of the 12 apostles. It is one of the few cathedrals in the world that is allowed to fly the Vatican flag.

The streets around the central plaza are lined with beautiful, old stone buildings. Built from the same volcanic rock as the cathedral, today they house banks, museums, hotels and restaurants. During the Spanish colonial rule they were ornately decorated, stately homes for rich Spanish businessmen. One of the most famous of Arequipa’s sights is the Santa Catalina Convent. Taking up a whole city block, it was once the home to 120 Dominican nuns and is a city within a city. The nunnery was built in 1580 by a rich widow, Maria de Guzman, and was for nuns who came from very wealthy homes. In the myriad of rooms and chambers, this is evidenced by the rather large living quarters for each nun which included a bedroom, kitchen, bathroom, sitting room, servants quarters and separate entrances for servants and nuns. The nuns lived in absolute solitude and were not allowed to even speak to visitors face-to-face. Their lives however, were rather lavish and to become a nun in the monastery families would need to pay a dowry of approximately 2400 silver coins or in today’s terms US$150 000. Everything they needed was to be found within the walls of the nunnery, including a vegetable garden and guinea pig farm.

In 1871, the pope sent Sister Josefa Cadena to reform the monastery. She sent all the riches of the monastery back to Europe and freed all the slaves and servants. The nuns were then forced to become more humble and give up their riches.

Today a small portion of the convent is still used by a group of 40 nuns. They are under a less strict set of rules and are allowed to even leave the convent into the city outside. The rest of the building is now a very well looked after museum and one of Arequipa’s main tourist attractions.

Another attraction Arequipa is famous for is the Ice Princess – an Incan mummy affectionately known as Juanita. In 1995 an American archeologist called Johan Reinhard was studying Incan ruins at the top of Peru’s many gigantic volcanoes. At the time, a volcano near Arequipa, Sabancaya, was erupting and this gave him the opportunity to study the top of neighboring Ampato volcano as the settling ash had melted it’s snow cap. When Reinhard arrived in Arequipa, he was told by a local guide that he had spotted something that looked like a mummy lying on the side of the volcano’s crater on his last expedition to the summit. Reinhard jumped at the news and put together a team to scale the 6300m mountain. When he reached the summit he was astonished at what he found. A bundle of cloth, no bigger than a large dog had rolled 60m down the side of the crater after it had been dislodged by earth tremors in the eruption. It was the frozen remains of a 12-year old girl. The only part of her not in pristine condition was her face, which had been desiccated by the sun after her shroud had been damaged from her plunge into the crater. She had been frozen in her tomb for nearly 600 years, ironically the last time Sabancaya had erupted, so she is in fact not a mummy as she was not strictly mummified. As a human sacrifice it is incredible that she was taken to the peak of a six thousand metre volcano, where the temperature is between -20 and -30 degrees celcius.

Juanita wasn’t the only sacrifice found on Ampato. Lower down the slopes the archeological team discovered 3 more mummies over the next 2 years. Due to how well the mummies are preserved, we are able to get a glimpse into the lives of the Incas, especially the sacrificial ceremonies that were held at the top of these volcanoes. The children that were sacrificed were chosen by the Incan priests for their purity. They were also fed a high protein diet, in some cases for up to a year before their deaths. In the case of Juanita, she was virtually perfect. Her teeth, bones and skin showed no signs of disease, lending more weight to the fact that these children were considered worthy of the gods. The families of the children were given high esteem and rewards and in the case of Juanita, may even have been royal themselves. The sacrificial party would start their journey from Cusco – the Incan capital and trek vast distances to get to the base of the volcanoes. Ampato is roughly 240km from Cusco and the route possibly crossed the 2 deepest canyons in the world, running along the Andes. Once at the base of Ampato they would have had to climb from an altitude of 3500m to 6300m. Depending on the time of year, the last 1500m would have been covered in thick ice and snow, where the temperature would have been around -25 degrees celcius.

At the top of the volcano the Incan priests prepared the area for sacrifice. The child would have had great difficulty staying awake due to the high altitude and freezing conditions. Bags of coca leaves were found on her body as well as in the vicinity. Analysis of her stomach contents shows that she ate a meal of vegetables 6-8 hours before her death. She was also partially drugged with coca and other herbs. CT scans of her skull show that she died from a heavy blow to the head caused by a blunt object. This was generally the method used to kill the other sacrificial mummies too.

Juanita is important to archaeology because the Incas had no form of writing, which leaves most of what we know about them to Spanish chronicles and interpretations of their ruins and artifacts. As she was frozen and not freeze dried like many other mummies on these volcanos, her body is virtually perfectly preserved. DNA studies have shown that she can be associated with a tribe that lived in present-day Panama.

The visit to the Catholic University’s Museum in Arequipa to see the ice maiden in her frozen glass case was both fascinating and bone chilling. It was also a pertinent reminder of how advanced the Incas had been as they were able to travel to and survive at such high altitudes. Every time I looked up at the volcanoes surrounding the city I was reminded of how important these landmarks were to the people that lived near to them and still are today. The rivers are fed by their glaciers. The rock is used to build cities. The soil is incredibly fertile due to their eruptions and their anger is personified in earthquakes and gigantic ash clouds. The Incas were willing to do anything to appease the gods that lived there.

Arequipa is a great place to visit. The food is good. The museums and churches are very beautiful. There are fantastic activities in the area, such as volcano trekking, mountain biking or river rafting. Most people come to Arequipa as part of the route from Cusco through to Lake Titicaca and onto Bolivia, but I could see many wanting to spend extra days just enjoying the sunshine and soaking up the atmosphere of an ancient Peruvian city.

Each breath becomes more and more difficult. Each footstep becomes more and more deliberate. The sky deepens in colour with every meter gained. The world around you shrinks. Spikey, unfriendly grasses turn into luminous-green mosses. The colours of the mountain around me light up. Blue sky, red, yellow and orange striped mountains and the spongey green mosses. It’s like walking onto the set of a sci-fi movie. At 4800m above sea level.

It’s hard to describe this landscape and do it justice. It’s essentially a desert but there is life all around. The terrain is foreboding. Gigantic, smoking volcanoes, deep canyons and plains as flat as a pancake. Life revolves around the volcanoes and mountains. Melting snow and underground springs feed rivers and streams that pool in grassy swamps, called Bofedales. Vicuñas, Andean geese, Giant Coots, Alpacas & Llamas among many other creatures all gather in the pools to eat the nutrient rich grass and drink the fresh, cold water. The silence is pierced by sudden gusts of icy wind. You certainly feel like an alien visitor to this landscape. There is nobody for miles in any direction and you can feel effects of high altitude if you move around too quickly.

This is the South America I had come to see and photograph. It took a bit of effort to get here but it was worth it.

The Atacama desert is the driest desert on earth. In some parts the average rainfall is 1mm per year. To put that into perspective it would take 200 years to fill a tea cup. Most of the Atacama is found in Northern Chile. It is an unforgiving piece of land wedged between the cold Pacific ocean and the high mountains of the Andes. So why in the world would we choose to visit such a place? I was asking myself that same question when we left tourist-packed San Pedro de Atacama. It seemed we weren’t the only people that found the desert alluring. Our search for peace and untouched nature led us northwards to the northernmost city in Chile – Arica. Arica is a dirty, laid back, seaside city. Dirty because it almost certainly never rains here. It is however, one of South America’s most famous surf spots and many travelers make their way to this brown, drab town to surf some really good breaks. Arica is a stepping stone to one of the most magical places I have ever been: Parque Nacional Lauca and Parque Nacional Las Vicuñas. Two of Chile’s lesser known parks and probably more famous for the highway that runs between them creating Bolivia’s main trade route with the sea.

We hired a pickup in Arica from Hertz – pronounced ‘ertz’ by Spanish speakers if you are ever looking for it in a Latin America city – and headed northwest along the Chile 11 highway to the tiny village of Putre. It was Sunday so we were lucky enough to travel on a relatively quiet day. The Chile 11 highway links Bolivia with the Pacific Ocean and is the main artery through which Bolivia receives its imports and sends out its exports. Locals told us that the average truck count per day is around 800. Suffice it to say, this road gets really, really busy. Heading inland from Arica, we turned off at a town called San Miguel de Azapa to see a fantastic little museum; famous for housing the Chinchorro Mummies – the oldest mummies yet discovered. The Atacama desert provides perfect conditions for preserving human remains and these mummies have been dated to over 7000 years old, making them roughly 2000 years older than the first Egyptian mummies. The most fascinating characteristic of some of these mummies was how they were embalmed. The skin was carefully removed from the body. The internal organs and flesh was replaced with clay, vegetable fibres and animal fur. The body was then recovered with the skin and a clay mask was put over the face. Mummification was also not reserved for the elite. Everybody was mummified including newborn babies and fetuses. The museum is really well curated and I found it incredibly fascinating being able to stare 7000 years into the past at the wrinkled hands and feet of the mummies.

We continued our drive into the mountains through the Azapa Valley and Lluta Valley before meeting up again with the Chile 11 highway. The landscape in this area is quite disconcerting. The green valleys are flanked by gigantic, bone-dry, white, sand dunes – over 500m high. Nothing grows on the sides of the valleys. Not even a single dead plant can be spotted. It is really that dry. This is where the twisty climb up to the Altiplano begins. Altiplano means “High Plains” in Spanish and has an average altitude of around 3500 metres above sea level. The only plains in the world higher are those of the Tibetan Plateau. Our destination, the village of Putre sits at 3500m – the starting point of the Altiplano under the spectacular Taapaca Volcano. With a population of roughly 2000 people, it is the largest village in the region.

We based ourselves in Putre for the following week at a cozy little guesthouse on the outskirts of the village, called La Chakana. This proved to be the exact remedy to our mediocre experience of Chile thus far. Over the course of the week we drove up to the national parks and experienced some of the most pristine wilderness ever. Best of all, there was not a person in sight, let alone beige tourists donning wide-brimmed hats and silly sunburns. Parque Nacional Lauca is famous for the Payachata twins. Two gigantic stratovolcanoes. The larger of the two, Parinacota is 6348m high and is flanked by Pomerape at 6282m high. The two volcanoes are situated on the border with Bolivia and are fronted by a beautiful, deep blue lake – Lago Chungara. Hollywood wouldn’t be able to come up with a dreamier landscape.

To the south of Lauca National Park is Parque Nacional Las Vicuñas. Vicuñas are the smallest of the camel family and related to Guanacos, Llamas and Alpacas. In fact, Llamas and Alpacas were selectively bred from Vicuñas and Guanacos. The main differences between Guanacos and Vicuñas, apart from size, are that Guanacos have a black face and Vicuñas occur at altitudes above 4000m. The park is filled with them. We saw literally hundreds along the road to the salt lake of Surire – the park’s most famous attraction. Along the way we stopped off to marvel at smoking Volcan Guallatiri – featured in an episode in the Top Gear Bolivia episode. Apart where the volcanos break the earth’s surface the landscape is flat and dry and the roads are well maintained gravel roads. The Salar de Surire is a great place to spot flamingos as they are drawn to the algae-rich, super-saline water to feed.

Each day as we headed out to the national parks and the Altiplano we became more and more acclimatized to the altitude. So we decided to climb a fairly easy mountain near Putre. I had seen photos of this place before and the mountain we wanted to climb overlooked the painted mountains. Armed with a GPS, a rough description of the trail, lots of water and suncream, we set out from the Termas de Jurasi – a complex of thermal springs just outside of Putre. The trek started at an elevation of 4000m through sharp, spikey grasses along an ice-covered river. The colours of the river bed changed from bright yellows, to dark purples to deep reds. Even though we were carrying a GPS with waypoints marking the trail we got lost a couple of times and had to double back. All the time the trail took us upwards. Soon we were at 4400m and the peak of the mountain loomed up in front of us. The only direction now was straight up the sandy slope.

It was like climbing a giant sand dune in very thin air. So thin it’s a struggle to even walk. We zigg-zagged slowly back and forth. Ever closer to the summit. At this altitude there are no plants, only Llareta moss. This is one of the oldest living organisms on earth. It takes roughly a year to grow a millimeter and some of the mosses are over 3 metres long. Their abundance on north facing slopes and their bright green colour gives the illusion of luscious valleys turned upside down. At 4600m, even the mosses stop growing. There is nothing here but sand and rocks. With each step we got closer to the summit and eventually at 4860m we reached the top.

I don’t know what the mountain was called but the view was spectacular. Way below and to the north was Putre overshadowed by the snow and ice covered peaks of Taapaca. In front of us was the Cerro de Milagro; the ‘painted mountain’ as George our guesthouse host aptly described it. Behind the painted mountain were the distinctive cones of the Payachata twins. The bands of red, yellow, orange and black of the mountains in front of us made for an unreal view. It wasn’t a particularly difficult mountain to climb – we did it on our own without a guide or any climbing gear but it certainly was a unique sight.

All my mixed feelings about Chile thus far were wiped away by visiting Putre and the surrounding national parks. We often found ourselves alone in the most spectacular places we have ever been and yet it was so easy to get there. So if you ever visit Chile, don’t bother with anywhere else in the Atacama. Hire a car, drive straight to Putre but don’t mention it to any tourists along the way. Keep it a secrect it is that amazing.

I’ve been to many tourist traps in my life. In Paharganj in India, Kuta in Bali, Ao Nang in Thailand. Few measure up to San Pedro de Atacama in Chile though. A dusty little oasis in the middle of the Atacama desert, you would be forgiven for thinking you were getting away from tourists, tour groups and fancy restaurants. After a long but fantastic bus journey over the Alitplano from Salta we descended into one of the driest places on earth. The bus tipped us out and we had to go through Chilean border control and customs. Chileans are petrified – so it would seem – that you bring any fruit or vegetables into their country and so our bags had to be inspected by stoic-faced customs officials wearing latex gloves and lacking any sense of humour. I suppose digging in tourists’ dirty undies all day is not a job perk, hence the grumpy attitude.

After repacking our bags we set off down the dusty unpaved road into town. At first the little town was a little disorienting. It was late evening and every street looked the same. White washed buildings, red sandy roads and dim street lamps. The first guesthouse we stopped at wanted US$70 a night for a tiny room with ensuite bathroom. Yikes! Next guesthouse on from there was full. We were exhausted, bewildered and my pack was starting to cut into my shoulders. Eventually we were led to a hostel down the road by an overly friendly man on the street. We should have known better. Before we knew it, we had handed out $40 for a private room with shared bathroom without even having looked at the room first. Suffice it to say, it was the size of a largish coffin. It had no towels, no toilet paper, no waste basket, no plug sockets and the window didn’t close properly – something that is rather important in the desert since it get’s really cold at night. There was nowhere to put our stuff save for two wire hangers hanging on the curtain rail. We had just picked the worst value hotel in the world – according to Trip Advisor it is ranked as the worst place to stay in San Pedro.

So started out our visit to Chile. Margarét has been to Chile before. One of her favourite places was San Pedro, but a lot has changed in this sleepy village since 2005. The streets are lined with travel agents, restaurants and hostels. Everything is so overpriced it would make Bill Gates feel a little ill. A beer costs around US$5 (the bottle stores sell them for around $1), lip balm cost us $4 and restaurants are mediocre at best where a set menu was around $40 for 2 people. Everything is covered in a layer of dust even smelly hippies sitting in the square notwithstanding.

It’s not all bad though. There is a reason so many tourists come to this place in the middle of absolutely nowhere. We moved out of the worst place in San Pedro the next morning and found a much quieter and better place down the road. They even gave us a family room for the price of a double because all their double rooms were full. This place came with 4 beds, towels, a walk in closet and two rolls of double ply toilet paper every day! It turned out this was the highest rated place to stay in San Pedro, according to Trip Advisor. It was also only $20 a night more than the worst place in town.

The reason so many people come to the desert is for its sights. San Pedro sits at the northernmost point of the second largest salt flat in the world, the Salar de Atacama. It is also situated under the most spectacular vista of some of Chile’s biggest volcanoes. Every day hundreds of tourists head out on bus trips to the surrounding attractions. Some tours climb up onto the Altiplano to visit salt flats, geysers, smoking volcanoes, colourful lakes, towering columns of stone, valleys that look like Mars and the Moon. While others take people off sandboarding, mountain biking and trekking. You can even climb a 6000m volcano with very little organisation or equipment needed. Of course, these tours come at a price. How much you ask? Our half-day trip to El Tatio geysers – the second highest geyser field on earth as well as the third largest costs a cool $40 each excluding the entrance fee. That’s lot of money for anyone to pay even if it comes with a free headache due to the altitude.

There is something to be said for the natural beauty here, as well as how easy it is to see it. We took a short walk out of the town to the pre-colombian fortress of Quitor, which turned out to have a fantastic view of the Valley of Death – so called because the first Englishman to see it called it the valley of Mars which sound like the word meurte in Spanish, hence the name.

Another trip we did was for sundowners overlooking a salt lake in the Salar de Atacama. Sipping pisco sours, while the sun paints the surrounding volcanos blood red is quite an experience. Granted there were about 200 people with the same view too. We also took a trip to a dizzying 4300m at 4am to see the El Tatio geyser field. The reason for the early drive was due to the geysers being most active at sunrise. Margarét and I were wearing just about all the clothes we brought with us to brave the subzero temperatures. The field was filled with fumeroles and vents that spouted superheated steam into the air. It was quite a sight. One of the geysers is even nicknamed “The Killer” due to having killed a few tourists who got too close and fell in. Our guide told us it isn’t so much the temperature that kills you, it’s the mixture of arsenic, cadmium and sulphur that does the trick. In about 20 minutes. Not a pleasant end indeed. The drive back to San Pedro was no less spectacular alongside smoking volcanos and beautiful wetlands filled with birds. We even got see the very odd looking viscacha (kind of like a rabbit with a long tale) and vicuñas (the smallest of the camel family and only occur at altitudes above 4000m).

So San Pedro is a bit of an enigma, ask any traveller that has been there whether they liked it or not and they will usually say they loved the sights but hated the multitude of tourists. I guess you could call it Chile’s version of Disneyland – Adobeland. There is very little atacameña culture to be seen in the main part of the village and yet there is heaps of it just a short walk out of town. For us, we both came away with colds caused by the dusty and dry air. As for the Atacama desert, there are few places I have been that have such mystical appeal. Scorchingly hot during the day and positively chilly at night it is definitely a part of the world I will never forget. Just remember to bring muchos dineros (lots of cash) with you and try to keep a straight face when you get told the price of a bottle of water.