Arriving in Peru after a straightforward border crossing we immediately noticed two things: firstly that the land on this side of Lake Titicaca was being more intensively worked, and secondly, the quality of the road had improved.  Smooth sailing all the way! After our run-ins with the police and the navy in Bolivia, we were prepared for the worst in Peru.  We’d heard and read horror stories of police hassling overlanders and we thought we were bound to be hassled a bit.  But in the end we had no hassles with them whatsoever. We think this is partly due to the fact that our Chilean number plate looks similar to the Peruvian number plate.

On our way to Cuzco we visited the funerary towers of Sillulstani.  The towers originate from an Aymara-speaking tribe who were later assimilated by the Incans. The tribe buried their nobility in funerary towers 12m tall.  Set on a hill overlooking the bleak barren altiplano the site has a mystical quality.

Our first night in Peru was spent in a nondescript town.  Small, no other foreigners in sight, probably quite ‘real’.  Dinner options included lots of chicken and chips and not much else.  The staff working at the hostel were friendly and there was secure parking for the car which is good enough for us.  Between people arriving and leaving the hostel at all hours, the TV going all night very loudly, and then the staff cleaning the hostel from 5am in the morning we didn’t sleep much.  So, we hit the road again at 6.30am.  When we drive from one tourist hot spot to another we often find there isn’t much in between, so we enjoy both bad food and bad accommodation for a few days until we get to the next hot spot.

Once again, driving on the road was smooth sailing.  It was quiet with not a car in sight, and sooner or later we came through a small town which had a market on the side of the road.  Some bread and interesting new fruit was bought and a breakfast in a paddock was made.  Looking out at what could have been old Incan terraces we felt quite relaxed and happy, this was just like the old days when we were in Chile and Argentina, when we camped a lot, and made lunches and cups of tea and coffee on the side of the road in scenic spots with pretty views.  This was fun!  The air was crisp and clean, the sun shining and the countryside humming with activity.  A traditionally dressed woman tending some calves walked by, while men and women in the field over harvested grain.

While boiling water for a second cup of tea a vet drove up on his motorcycle.  He stopped, and came over to us to say hello.  Spotting our gas cooker he was astonished, what an amazing thing.  He was looking for a farmer and a cow which he was meant to vaccinate but couldn’t find him.  After he made a phone call, we offered him a cup of tea and some crackers and talked a bit.  Very nice man, and friendly too.   He kept on coming back to our gas cooker and how amazing and useful it was.  This was the first of further instances in Peru where locals were awed by the power of the gas cooker.  It was a good morning for us, and by the time we’d drunk our teas, chatted in not so fluent Spanish (although highly improved after five weeks of study in Sucre) we were on our way again.

 

 

Arriving in Cuzco, we were instantly shocked by how bad the driving was.  This is not a city you want to drive in if you can avoid it.  The city has narrow streets and two-way streets that suddenly become one-way streets.  A procession was also happening while we tried to find one of the hostels with parking that we’d written down.  After an hour and a half of searching we gave up, parked the car in a wide street and found a hotel that was expensive but had parking.  It turned out to be a great find, as the room had the most massive king size bed we’ve ever seen, a shower with continuous hot water, and fast internet.  Ahhh…Creature comforts.  By then we were ready for a hot shower and dinner (as between getting into town and getting stuck in traffic we’d missed the perfect hour when you can have lunch).

In Cuzco we had a great time.  I think it has to be one of our favourite city stops while in South America.  The whole city just oozes history and has a fun and friendly vibe to it.  It is surrounded by beautiful colonial buildings and Incan ruins, while also having a modern feel to it.  There is international cuisine (Indian, Japanese, Thai and European) and a great nightlife.  What a perfect combination!

During the day we walked around the city visiting various sites like a church that was built on the foundations of an old Incan temple called Qoricancha, museums about Incan culture and history and the Sacsaywaman (Sexy Woman!) Incan ruins on the hill just above town.  In the evening we enjoyed great meals in good quality restaurants, sipped 2 for 1 mojitos because it’s always happy hour in Cuzco, watched great live music, went out for drinks and a really fun night of clubbing with people from Couchsurfing.

 

A procession for Corpus Christi was on while we were there, and Cuzco was insanely busy because of this.  Lots of people visiting especially for this celebration. In the morning the plaza teemed with people, and in the afternoon the people made their way to the side streets off of the plaza to eat and drink. Peruvians have a special knack of being one of the most prevalent street-side pissers and by midnight that night everywhere we walked smelt like pee.  The ironic thing is that we saw plenty of public bathrooms in Cuzco, a rarity in South America.

 

Two planned nights in Cuzco became four nights, as we realised there were many nice things to see and do in the city.  But after four nights we were ready to leave.  Aside from being a great city to visit, we were rapidly going through money every day. Peru was turning out to be just as if not more expensive than Chile.  So, it was time to hit the road again, this time for the Sacred Valley!