We left Cusco 2 days ago. goodbye to cold showers, virtually non-existant plumbing and freezing cold weather, constant sickness (probably due to the not-the best living conditions) But also goodbye to some wonderful new friends (foreign and Peruvian) and the wonderful household where we have spent most of the year... along with 17 children! Arrived in La Paz, Bolivia to find the country shut down for a very important referendum about the future of the country's gas resources. this question was the cause of all the civil disturbance a month or so ago. We tend to think if the result of the referendum is not good, we had better get out quick!!!!

Well what does the future hold? Good question! About a month ago we applied for a 6 month Tourist visa for Felix to visit Australia - only to discover that he, being 30, Peruvian, male and a student falls into the HIGH RISK category - a category that results in outright refusal of the visa. Or, as Felix's brother put it. "your country doesn't want people from third world countries!"

However, as our friends in Cusco know, we had put in huge efforts to the FIFTY page application and so with all sorts of wrangling and based on our "good character" they granted Felix 3 months!!!! It's a huge relief because for quite some time it looked like I would be coming straight back to Peru without coming home. So here it is.. We will be home in West Australia at the beginning of December!!!!! Yay yay yay!

We finished up teaching at the end of May - and then spent June, the month of festivals in Cusco, as tourists. It also helped that Bo visited twice during June with tour groups, so all up we got to spend about 8 days with him, we visited a few tourist spots and lots of restaurants. Mum even made a flying visit to the jungle with Bo and some Irish friends.

At the beginning of June we set off and hiked around the massive
mountain of Ausangate about 5 hours south of Cusco - with the hike all over 4000 metres we thought it would have been tough but instead it was just simply spectacular - snow, snow and more snow, glaciers, the whole lot mirrored in high alpine lakes. We then headed with thousands of other pilgrims (well, lets get this straight, we we were tourists. not pilgrims!) to the shrine of Señor de Colloritty, one
of more popular pilgrimages in the Cusco region. The colour, the
ethnic costumes, was all quite overwhelming, as was hiking with
thousands of others up to a rock where a miracle occurred.

I could, but won't, write a book about the intricacies of the
religion here and how much energy is spent in devotion, or the search for miracles. Its almost like they believe if they pray hard enough they will get a miracle and that absolves them from having to actually TRY or WORK!!!!

I am just overhearing a Pommy girl tell her friend here in the
internet "I am lying a bit about our trip to make it sound really
cool". well know that the following story is all true!!!

As our final farewell to Cusco and Peru, we decided to visit the
famous Machu Picchu. but not along the touristed and well trodden Inca Trail but by a "back door" so to speak. We went down to the Vilcabamba region in the jungle and then started hiking along the Qhapaq Ñan - that is the old Inca highways.

On our second day our muleteer had told us that there would be some snow on the pass - "cool" we thought! After one hour it WAS really cool, beautiful and impressive, and after 2 hours we couldn't believe that we were actually forging a path through knee deep snow. After 3 hours it was hard work and after four and half we just wanted to get out of the bloody snow, especially as we kept falling through the snow into icy streams!!!! We crossed three passes and after five hours finally got out of the snow! It was such an awesome experience. but horribly cold.

That night about midnight Felix started moaning and saying he was blind and he couldn't open his eyes. so the next morning we all stumbled down the hill and though we had planned to keep hiking another day or so, decided that we really had no idea what was wrong with Felix's eyes and it would be much better to get him to the doctor. We had descended by this time from 5000m at the snowline, to the jungle. Our muleteer, in the way that Peruvians do, assured us that we could get an expreso car (read: crappy ute) to where we could get a truck, to the train to Machu Picchu. Sounds simple.

Our "expreso car" dropped us at a bridge from where we were told we would just have to walk!!!! "only" half an hour they said! So. mum took about 3 day packs, I shouldered one 20kg sack and Felix the other 20kg sack that the mule had been carrying and we set off in 30 degree heat across a dry riverbed....... 20kg in a backpack is heavy. but in a sack over your shoulders - the veins were popping out of my beetroot coloured head!!!!

Several kilometers later - we emerged at LA OROYA!!!! AH YES, this translates as Flying Fox over wide canyon with rushing waters below. No one had mentioned this, had they? Mum and Felix went first, then Arie with her 20kg sack.. We paid money to go on one of these things in Ecuador, but this one was a little smaller, and a little more flimsy and the villagers just pulled you across a 50 metre stretch with the water about 30 metres below. Arie arrived about 10 metres short of the other side when there was lots of yelling. and then she got pulled back ACROSS the raging canyon. and then pulled backacross. Lets say she was petrified the first time. and the discovery that the rope had broken on the first trip over........

After being told there were no more trucks that day, a truck did emerge, and we arrived at the hydroelectric project where a train
goes to Aguas Calientes, the town of Machu Picchu. With the trials and tribulations of the past few days we were surprised to find a big group of other foreigners there - conversation revealed they were an American Aid project working specially on eye care in the jungle!!!!! The head opthomologist was really keen to see Felix's eyes so he had a consulation in a dirt floor restaurant....... It was so amazing, she treated him fully and gave him sunglasses to boot!!!! It turns out he had sunburnt eyes from the sun on the snow.

The next day we visited Machu Picchu which is an extremely amazing site, beautifully preserved and in an awesome location. And yet for us, there are other places and Inca ruins far more special than thisplace which gets so much worldwide hype.

Copyright Ariana Svenson, 2005 - Comments and enquiries, please email us.