Peru Bolivia 2007: an on-the-road honeymoon

The options for our honeymoon were initially two: undertaking the classic "all-inclusive" honeymoon in some dream destination such as Polynesia or the Maldives, or continuing to travel independently, roughing it as on all our previous trips. Obviously the doubt lasted very little and, following our nature, we chose the second option. We knew before leaving that Peru and Bolivia, like all of South America, would not have been the calmest of places to visit, but we would never have thought of such a troubled journey... But let us proceed in order:

MON 2 JULY

We leave on Monday 2 July at 7.20 from Milan Linate airport and after a full 18 hours and 40 minutes of flight with 2 stopovers in Frankfurt and Caracas we finally arrive at 20.00 local time (for us it is 3 in the morning) in Lima. We stay at the Hotel Espana at calle Azanguero 105, 50 metres from the Plaza des Armas (€11 per night for a double with en-suite bathroom), a slightly retro hotel but with its own particular charm, in an excellent position for getting around the city centre and with an unbeatable quality/price ratio.

TUE 3 JULY

Wake-up at 04.00 and departure at 06.00 from Lima airport with a Taca Peru flight to Cuzco. We arrive in the ancient Inca capital at 7.15 and immediately enjoy the Andean climate (biting cold, very blue sky and very green mountains). We reach the beautiful San Blas district, where we stay at the Hostal Packa Real in calle Tandapata. This little-known hostal is set in a very lovely area (San Blas), is very well looked after inside and above all offers an excellent quality/price ratio (€14 for a double with hot-water bathroom in the room and breakfast included in the price).

The owner welcomes us with the classic "mate de coca", an infusion based on coca leaves given to alleviate the effects of "soroche" (altitude sickness, we are at 3400 m...), we accept it gladly, but throughout the holiday, from the 3400 m of Cuzco to the 4000 of Titicaca up to the 5000 m of the Colca Canyon, neither I nor Cristina ever suffered any discomfort, so it is all very subjective, cross your fingers and hope.. Having drunk the mate we rest for two hours in the room, exhausted by the previous day's journey and with the time difference not yet fully absorbed (7 hours difference). At 10 we leave the hotel and through the little alleys of San Blas we reach, after 5 minutes, the hub of the city: the wonderful Plaza des Armas. Cuzco in terms of atmosphere has something truly special...

maybe it's that the surrounding mountains are as green as Heidi's (though instead of little goats waving there are llamas that spit), maybe it's that around there are lots of Indians dressed as Indians, maybe it's the colour of the light or the walls built by the Incas mixed with colonial architecture... whatever it is, but the place is, as young Peruvians say, "chevere"... cool!!!! Leaving the square we head to the railway station to book tickets for the next day to Aguas Calientes. A big expense!!! we choose the Ollantaytambo-Aguas Calientes round trip with the Vistadome train and pay €57 each... unfortunately there is no alternative, since Aguas Calientes (and therefore Machu Picchu) can be reached only by train or with the Inca Trail, and having ruled out the latter we were left with this option.

We leave the station and plunge into the typical fruit and vegetable market, not very touristy, opposite to buy the famous coca leaves. For a bag of coca and the salted ash stone needed to activate the effect of the leaves we spend 3 soles (0.75 cents of €). I immediately try my new purchase and put the leaves into my mouth one by one, rub the stone on the leaves and suck... after 5 minutes my mouth is completely anaesthetised, the sensation is strange but all in all pleasant, unfortunately though I cannot tell you whether the leaves have a positive effect against soroche, since I never suffered from it, but surely if for more than 1000 years the locals have used it for this purpose too there must be a reason, no? Closing the coca parenthesis, by taxi we reach the colectivos station for Pisac in Calle Tulumayu.

With 2 soles each (taxis ask 50, agencies just as much but in dollars...), we get on a ramshackle minibus in the company of only Peruvians and after 45 minutes of bends and stunning landscapes we arrive in Pisac. We immediately take a tour of the characteristic market, then after a quick and reinvigorating lunch at Dona Carmen in Pl. des Armas (45 sol for 2) we take a taxi and reach the ancient Inca ruins. The price of the taxi to reach the ruins is practically fixed (40 sol), but we still manage to get a good discount (25 sol round trip with a 2-hour wait) since, given the late hour, we had no other competitors. We reach the ruins after about 20 minutes, with a stop at the ticket office where we buy the Boleto Turistico for 70 sol each (about €17) which gives the right of entry to the main attractions of the Cuzco area (Machu Picchu excluded...).

The taxi drops us at the upper part of the ruins to wait for us 2 hours later at the lower part. The first thing that strikes you is the breathtaking panorama of the valley, with the beautiful Inca terracing; the visit continues with the Hanan Pisac district surrounded by walls, then after a steep staircase and passing through the "Puma Tunnel" (mind your head!!) we reach a beautiful viewpoint from which you can admire the Temple of the Sun in all its beauty. Going down we reach the Intihuatana, the hub of the whole site. These ruins are stunning and worth the ticket price on their own. After this exciting sight we head for the car park, where the taxi waits to take us back to Pisac in about 15 minutes. We take another tour of the little market with some purchases, then after a good mate de coca sipped from the terrace of a bar in Pl.

des Armas while admiring the comings and goings of people, we set off again by colectivos for Cuzco. Along the way we also blare out at full volume the radio commentary of the Peru-Bolivia Copa America football match, complete with scenes of cheering or despair at the goal of one or other team. We arrive in Cuzco around 19, reach San Blas and, without having dinner, go back to the room to rest.

WED 4 JULY

We wake early, thanks also to the time difference not yet completely assimilated, and head straight to the colectivos station for Urubamba. This time we opt for the shared car, pay 6 sol each and in an hour we are in Urubamba, change of car and after another 20 minutes and 2 sol we arrive at Ollantaytambo, our destination for the day. Before visiting the ruins we have an excellent second breakfast (the first we had had at the hotel in Cuzco) in the central square of the village in complete solitude, without other tourists. Around 9.30 we therefore begin the visit of the ancient Inca fortress (entry with the Boleto). We are among the first to enter and fully enjoy the site (the all-inclusive tourists arrive only around 10.30/11.00). The impression is enormous as you climb the very steep staircase leading to the fortress through splendid Inca terracing.

The fortress dominates the Urubamba river valley and is very striking; it undoubtedly deserves a thorough, not superficial, visit. Around 11.30, when the site is now invaded by groups, we leave and reach the village for lunch. We eat at Inka Llacta in Pl. des Armas spending the right amount (40 sol for 2, about €10) with good satisfaction for the food, then we reach the station on foot (about 1 km) where at 14.45 we take the little train for Aguas Calientes. The journey is comfortable (they also serve...