Buenos tardes folks! We are now in Bolivia, Sucre to be precise. Alot has happened since our last entry so before we tell you tales of beautiful Bolivia, we must go back to a small ruin in the mountains of Peru, Machu Picchu... also don´t forget to check the random picture mix!!! You were too quick Ben with your comment, we were still writing. Sorry cant make your wedding, we will be in Brasil but will definately drink a caprinha to your health and good fortune!

Machu Picchu on the cheap
So off we headed to Machu Picchu. All along in Cusco we were trying to obtain information on how we could get there without using the expensive train or treking the expensive trail. information was scarce even with the help of google and it appeared the only way was by train so we headed to a town, Ollaytan Tambor half way along the tracks where we hoped to buy discount tickets. alas all the cheap tickets were gone so it was looking like we were going to blow the budget sky high when we decided to walk along the tracks. we set out the next morning with a packed lunch and got a lift as far as we could with the porters to where the inka trail started. to our dissapointment we were turned back by security who stated the tracks were private and we couldnt pass. we tried to go round but we were in a ravine with no way through but the tracks. the night before we had heard that in fact it was possible to get by bus to Aguas Calientes (the town below Machu Picchu) so thats what we did. The drive was amazing going up through the snow capped Andes and even though we had to stand for 6 hours without seats it was well worth it. The road dropped off to steep ravines which was slightly hairy at times. We stayed in a little town after another bus and walked the following morning to Aguas Calientes through steep rocky ravines and along train tracks. 5hrs later we arrived in the horrible little tourist town A.C probably our least favourite place yet. Everyone is out to rip you off, to be expected i suppose. We searched hard to find a cheapy hostel and found one in the shanty part of town. Next morning we woke early and took the earliest bus up to Machu Picchu.
For a brief,magical moment we had the place to just ourselves and the llamas. Mike was first up the tall mountain, Wayna Pichhu and Louise shortly followed with a literally, breathe taking view. Here´s some more picts;
louise enjoying a meditative moment
Llama life
what a view
Spent around 9hrs on the site! Taking in the beautiful views from each place and also finding nice spots to laze around and soak up the sun! We walked back to Ollaytan tambo along the tracks, which took 7 hrs in total! This involved running through the tunnels, which were impassable over mountain and although were short we didnt know the train timetable! Sore feet but worth it and nice n cheap too!

Our last stop in Peru was Puno, a town on the beautiful lake Titicaca. It was here we bumped into Jono and Siobhan, friends from London in a vegie restauraunt which was very cool! We visited a floating reed island then spent a night on the isla Taquila. The Islands on Titicaca are stunning and really seem like Greece or Italy! We stayed with a local family and another gringo couple. Two brothers took care of us very well and were very enthusiastic, seemed like they chewed too many coca leaves as they didn´t stop buzzing about. They took us out fishing in their boat and they even had a ceremony for us in the evening. Here we dressed up and danced around the fire while the brothers played two small guitars. As well as being extra nice and helpful they always brought us out crafts and things to sell at any opportunity, we started to become a little suspicious when they asked us to each cut the childrens hair then said we could keep it for luck as well as paying the child. Seemed a bit of a tourist scam, then as we were leaving they tried to charge us all alot more than what was agreed! Oh well that is Peru for you! The sunsets were amazing. This is us leaving.

Next we arrived in our second to last country, Bolivia! We have been excited for a while about Bolivia and only heard good things about it! Well now we know why it is called the Tibet of the Americas! First stop was La Paz, the capital. We found it a very easy place to be and plus we found a place that did sunday roast, so we stayed a week. Bolivia is the poorest country in South America and therefore the cheapest! We fell in love with the colourful markets and decided to do all our xmas shopping here and send it home. Louise also bought a big, reed massage mat to send back. Took three days of shopping and we needed to kit ourselves with warm clothes, it gets bloody cold in the night or as soon as you step into shade! It is here that is the camino peligroso del mundo! (The most dangerous road in the world) so what do the Bolivians do? They offer bike trips down it! Its known as the most dangerous road as it has the worst stats. Every once in a while truck, bus drivers who are sleep deprived or drinking go over the edge to their doom sometimes with a full load of passengers. We met up with Jono who is doing a gus impersonation here, to share the ride. The reason the road is so dangerous is not the actual ride but the fact that big lorries and trucks are coming up and down it all the time and it is pretty narrow with 1000m drops! Unfortunately we got a foggy day but usually you can see all the accidents and trucks down the side that have fallen off! The ride was alot of fun first starting up in the snow on bitumen then ending on rocky gravel. Louise was the fastest! Jono was angry!On the way back up there was a truck broken down which caused mayhem. There was backed up traffic on either side as people tried to organise everyone to clear a route. It was raining and easy to imagine the road suddenly giving way to the weight. It took an hour and a half to clear and we completed the journey in thick fog. We were always warned the road is fine as long as you dont drive at night so we gripped our seats as the driver who couldnt see a thing in the fog with death drops to our immediate right looming slowly got us to the top.

Next we took a chilly night bus to Uyuni, to take a tour across the salt lakes! We arrived at 6am and it was -5. Painfully cold! Organised a 3day jeep trip the next day! This part of Bolivia is like a world of its own and we were blown away with the everchanging landscapes. It has to be the most beautiful place we have both seen! It started with a quick stop at a train cemetary. The salt lakes go on and on as far as the eyes can see and really seem like snow (in fact you have to wear sunglasses because of the brightness), they even had the same effect on us, wanting to play and run with bright blue skies over head! We visited Fish island, which is a fish shaped island full of cactus. The landscape is Very surreal here as you look out from the island, surrounded by cactus to see a bright, white horizon with mountains in the distance. There is an area named after old Salvador Dali, which comes as no surprise. The jeep kept braking down but all was well once mike was put at the wheel. Apparently someone complained that they thought they were going to die but this hasn´t been proven! We visited numerous lakes, red, green, blue and pink. Some of these lakes were inhabited by flocks of flamingoes. The landscape was forever changing from red deserts to scattered rocks and strange volcanic formations. Here is the famous tree rock. We must say we had a really good group and reccomend this trip to anyone reading as it really is a magical, enchanting place.

We took a long bumpy bus down to Tupiza, where the infamous Butch cassidy and the sundance kid were captured and shot (check the film out). its the wild west down there with red rocks and dust. Went horse riding and spent a day exploring a canyon then caught the night bus for Potosi.

We went on a tour into the famous Bolivian mine, Cerro Rico. This mine has been operational for over 400 years, it was once responsable for over half the worlds silver and made many european countries rich, yet sadly not Bolivia. The way they actually mine the silver, tin and zinc hasn´t changed in 400 years and was a real eye opener. These guys work gruelling 8 hour shifts, 6 days a week in hot, dark dusty and dangerous conditions. Some start as early as 13 years old and most die of lung diseases. We entered the mine through a dark stone lined tunnel and had to run at times to get out of the way of the 1500kg trolleys which were full of rocks/minerals. They would be covered in sweat as 2 guys pushed and 1 guy pulled these carts along sometimes up hill. We had to buy presents to give to them such as dynamite, coca leaves and drinks. They all chew on coca leaves to give them energy and stop them from being hungry. After an hour and a half we couldnt wait to get out and felt quite fortunate with the lives we lead. Here is the devil they worship and leave presents such as cigarettes and alcohol. Does anyone remember the dozers from fraggle rock?

Now we are in Sucre, a white colonial city with a warmer climate, that is, its not fricken freezin! Soon our travels will find us Brasil in the north, Bahia somewhere lying on a beach, until then, love and lightxxxxxxxx