Tuesday 22 May, 2018, Cusco, Peru.

I'm going to Macchupicchu. Mistakenly, I assumed that it was even higher than Cuzco and as I'm struggling for breath here I had serious reservations about going - but it's actually lower than here. A lot lower at only around 2,000 metres altitude, so in fact I'll be quite comfortable after having spent the last week at around 4,000 metres. I bought a half day city tour of Cusco this morning for c.$13.00nzd - excellent value! around 3 hours mostly in an open topped double decker bus and the very front seat up top. Great viewing. The commentary might well have not existed as I couldn't hear it but it didn't matter, I enjoyed the ride and most of it was probably just history of the churches and statues we passed anyway. After half an hour around the city we headed out to the country and climbed out of this valley at 3250 metres and eventually up to 3700 metres into clean, cool air which made a pleasant change from the pollution of the city (no law against smoking exhausts here and there are hundreds of worn out vehicles pouring out clouds of blue smoke). Half way up the long climb to the top we encountered two kids sitting on a skateboard who are riding it down to the bottom, several kilometres away. They have smiles on their faces from ear to ear and are going at quite a pace. I hope they make it in one piece. We pass lots of little plots of land wherever it's flat enough to cultivate that have crops such as broad beans and corn growing and people toiling in the hot sun with crude tools weeding between the rows. I presume these are the same people who on market day cart their loads of produce into the city in the hope of selling it. From time to time we pass the ruins of past civilisations which preceded the Incas. Everyone else on the bus takes photos except me because, like temples in Thailand, there are too many to mean anything in photos - they interest me, but that's all. As we drive along I see two men about to slaughter a sheep on the side of the road - thankfully we miss the gory event by seconds as they have the animal on its back and the knife poised at its throat as we pass. That might have been too much for some of the tourists on the bus! At the summit of the mountain we stop and group around a man dressed in traditional and very colourful clothing. On the blanket spread before him there are numerous religious artifacts and our guide explains that we are about to participate in a traditional religious ceremony of the tribe the man belongs to. He only speaks in his native Indian tongue. It's a communion service where he hands out three Coca leaves to each of the tour group and the guide explains the significance of the trilogy - we have to hold the leaves in a fan. He then moves around the group with a rattle in one hand and a large (Condor?) feather in the other shaking them over each one of us and chanting a prayer. The guide explains that the prayer is a petition to the Gods for blessings of abundance on the tribe. Pretty much the same as a Christian church, really. Next he comes around and collects all the Coca leaves (I thought we might get to chew them) and the guide explains that the man will now burn them in a little urn and we have to inhale the smoke as he brings the urn to each of us. The significance is related to getting rid of our sins in order to be blessed by God. Next he comes around with scented oil and anoints the palm of one hand and we have to inhale the scent to cleanse our bodies. After another blessing from him the complex ceremony is over and he blows a monotonous "tune" on a huge Conch shell to mark the end. The "plate" (which is actually a brightly coloured woven bag) is then passed around the group for their offerings. It's interesting and of course I took video of some of the ceremony which I'll post on Facebook. We have time to grab a bite to eat here and I grab a cheese Empanada at the highly inflated price of 4 soles (only 1 or 2 soles in the city). The next stop is at an artisan market where the dyeing process is explained and a bowl of cochineal powder from the bugs of the same name is used to demonstrate how the dark red powder can be changed into totally different colours simply by the addition of minerals such as salt or sulphur. I'm fascinated because the colour changes are so significant. The brightly coloured rugs and clothing on offer for sale are quite stunning and if I had room in my backpack I'd have bought something. I settle for photos of the brilliant work and think to myself how much my sister, Margaret, would love to see to see the handiwork, being as creative as she is. There's the usual collection of garish art and religious artifacts influenced by the "Catholicisation" of the ancient cultures but I can't imagine who'd want to hang or display that kind of thing in their homes. Our last stop is at the site of a huge statue of Jesus with arms outstretched looking across the city which was donated to the city by Palestinians who settled here a hundred years or so ago. Again, there are lots of sellers with their brightly coloured clothes and rugs spread out on the ground for sale - wherever a tour coach is likely to stop they are there. Back in the city I get dropped of at the Plaza de Armas (every town has one) and as I stroll back to my hostel I pass a travel agency with a sign outside "Macchupicchu 2 days one night tour USD$107". I'm interested since I've decided to go there and when I bought my city tour ticket the travel agent offered me a tour there by rail for USD260.00. I pop in to enquire and find that it's by car with an English speaking guide and includes the accommodation overnight in Aguas Calientes (which translates to "Hot Water"), return bus transfers from "hot water" to MP, entrance fees at MP and lunch, dinner and breakfast. It looks good and with a reputable operator so I buy - pickup is from my hostel at 7:30am Wednesday and return Thursday night. It converts to 350 soles (about NZD160.00) so it's great value. At my morning travel agent (Elizabeth) she had her 8 month old (?) baby in a pram behind the desk which is in a tiny, dark booth and it spends all day there with her as she has to work to live. The baby played with a brightly coloured piece of paper the whole time I was there - not much mental stimulation but this is very common in Peru. She's well off on a salary of 900 soles per month (about NZD100 per week). Many other mothers I see have their babies with them on the street selling bling or food or whatever. I suspect the most well off unskilled workers are the ones in the massage parlours - they charge 30 soles for a one hour therapeutic back massage which includes hot stones on your back, 100 soles for a full body massage of the same time and no doubt more for "extras"! The touts are everywhere imploring you to use their services. Well, again enough information for one day - I expect my lodgings tomorrow night will have WiFi and I'll be able to post another report on my day in MP. Ciao.

Colourful graphics of MP on our open top tour bus today.

A motorbike tour group prepare to depart - best place in the world for that - never rains.