Buses and Planes!

After a short blogging hiatus, I'm back online. We seem to have spent alot of time travelling and in transit over recent days and it's nice to have finally arrived in Cusco where we will be based for the next few days while we acclimatise for the Inca Trail trek. After an uneventful stay in the commerical city of Guayaquil we left via an Ormeno 'Royal Class' bus bound for Lima, Peru...a mere 24 hour ride away. The bus as it turned out was not too bad, if not fit for royalty, and the passengers a mix of Ecaudorians, Peruvians and a few of backpackers, although we happened to be seated next to two young Jesuit nuns (not big on conversation and both Simon and I were a little hesitant to initiate it for fear of breaking some unknown protocol!).

The double decker bus, although old, was fairly comfortable and the seats did recline a fair way so I even managed a few hours of sleep. The driver seemed relatively restrained in his driving for the most part and we made it through immigration both out of Ecuador and into Peru without a hitch. Due to some considerable roadworks on the Pan-American Highway fairly soon into our journey we managed to lose alot of time (which the driver decided to try to make up on the cliff top road into Lima...a little hair-raising to say the least - again I thought of you Dad!). Our stops were very seldom and I must admit the last few agonising hours were not easy as we lurched through heavy traffic on the outskirts of Lima. My relief at arriving was tinged by the exhaustion of the journey (who would know that sitting still for so long can be so tiring!). Thankfully we had chosen a really lovely hostel for our stay in the capital of Peru. Hostal El Patio is on a quiet street in the heart of Miraflores (the waterfront district of the city) and really was a sanctuary of calm and quiet. Based around a central courtyard full of flowers and birds we were on the first floor looking down over the sun terrace below and felt far removed from the busy city outside of the gates. We'd been told by many people that Miraflores feels European and they weren't wrong. It's a very developed district of Lima and is home to a waterfront shopping mall filled with high end shops, bars and restaurants all looking down over the beach and surfers below. I must admit to a little retail therapy and an indulgent frappacino in Starbucks. I know it's not really in keeping with our trip but we couldn't resist!

After a couple of days in Lima sightseeing and relaxing we headed to the airport this morning at the ungodly hour of 3.30am to catch our 5.30am flight to Cusco. Everything was going swimmingly (despite the turbulent flight) until we began our descent into Cusco at which point the pilot informed us that the weather conditions were too poor to land and that we would need to be diverted to Lima...diverted - we'd just come from Lima! After some considerable passenger groaning and an hour's return flight we landed at Lima airport where we were told that we had to stay on the plane as we would be taking off again in an hour...bound for Cusco. We did take off (not within the hour) and after another turbulent flight and the sportiest (as Simon choses to refer to it...terrifying I say) landing I've ever had the pleasure of experiencing we did get to Cusco (only just skimming the mountain tops on the way down). We are now safely ensconced in our hostel which again is just lovely. Another courtyard theme but this time hidden behind an original Incan doorway which in a bygone year lead to a sacred place. Here we rest and acclimatise for our Inca Trail trek which begins on Friday and from what I've seen so far, I can't think of a better place to hang out.