Hiraeth!
Friday, September 26, 2003
Greetings Fron Deepest Darkest Peru
You will be glad to learn that I am still alive and kicking, and having a ball, though this time I am in the City of Cusco in Peru at the foot of the Inca Trail to the lost city of Macchu Picchu.
Since my last mail I have had many adventures, including geting caught up in Bolivian Riots, Driving through Road Blockades set in place by protestors, Mountain biking down the worlds most dangerous road, staying with a Cechwan Family on the islands of Lake Titticaka and getting caught up in one of the worst Hail Storms I have ever witnessed.......Life is good!
Cusco is party central, and there are hundreds of gringos here both pre and post inca trail who are just kicking back and enjoying one of the coolest cities I have seen so far. Bar´s, shop´s, restaurants, clubs a plenty - beer costs about 70pence, a good meal may cost as little at 3pounds! - the sun is shining, and i have just brought a waterproof poncho, ever the cynic!! - apparently the weather changes quickly on the trail.
I have elected to carry my own stuff on the trail, even though most of the group have taken the advice of others who have done the trail to pay porters to carry their packs. I am told the porters can do in about 8 hours, what it will take us 3 days to achieve....I am pretty confident that I am now fit enough to do this, because of the amount of trecking, and walking I have done at these altitudes allready, has knocked me in to better shape than I ever was in London!
For those interested....The people of Bolivia are up in arms about the governments plans to export gas to the coast using pipelines through Chile, Understandably the people of Bolivia resent the Chilean government charging for this service, because chilie stole Bolivias Coastline from them, during the war of the Pacific in the 1850´s. By way of registering their general unhappiness, they have taken to blocading roads with rocks, taking hostages, stoning buses of people and generally shouting a lot.
Luckily we managed to make it across to Peru on the Sunday when most of the protesters were in church so we had nothing more than the blocades themselves to negociate, and this is where being in an ex millitary transporter comes in handy. One of our party was teargassed, and is still bragging - we are designing a tour t Shirt and my suggestion for the slogan is now.. ´It will all end in Tear gas´
See the BBC´s pathetic attempt to explain what happened the day before....
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/3127750.stm
For those interested ...The worlds Most Dangerous Road...... I quote from our guides....
http://www.gravitybolivia.com/
We begin the ride at wind-swept La Cumbre (4,700m/15,400 ft) where you'll see fantastic views of a number of snow-covered peaks, including Huayna Potosí (6,088m/19,973 ft). From there we descend rapidly down a twisting road amongst mountain peaks, grazing llamas and alpacas, tiny villages and a drug check-post (?!). We stop for refreshments and a rest along the way, all the better to give us time to take in the scenery: towering cliff faces, dramatic drops and ever greener vegetation.
This infamous narrow dirt road is cut precariously into the side of the mountain and descends 2,000m (6,500ft). With 1,000m+ (3,300 ft) sheer drops off to our left and hulking rock overhangs and cascading waterfalls to our right, we ride through mist, low cloud and dust. With your positive attitude and our expert supervision you can safely enjoy some of South America's most dramatic and beautiful scenery as you hurtle down the road. (Besides, in our opinion, it's safer on this road riding a narrow bicycle that you are driving rather than being trapped inside a big bus.) - (Guess how we got back up)
I Shit you not!
As we near the end of the ride it gets progressively hotter and dustier. By the time you arrive at the bottom in Yolosa (1,100m/3,600 ft) you will be tired, hot, dirty and exhilarated. From Yolosa we catch a ride 7km (4 miles) up to Coroico (1,600m/5,250ft) ... although masochists may choose to cycle up ... where we can enjoy a late lunch, take in the magnificent scenery, spend time relaxing by the pool, and enjoy a cold drink.
See what happend 3 weeks earlier here! ...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/2233635.stm
Ok so I´m off for a siesta, love to everyone....
Eric
¶ 1:46 pm
Since my last mail I have had many adventures, including geting caught up in Bolivian Riots, Driving through Road Blockades set in place by protestors, Mountain biking down the worlds most dangerous road, staying with a Cechwan Family on the islands of Lake Titticaka and getting caught up in one of the worst Hail Storms I have ever witnessed.......Life is good!
Cusco is party central, and there are hundreds of gringos here both pre and post inca trail who are just kicking back and enjoying one of the coolest cities I have seen so far. Bar´s, shop´s, restaurants, clubs a plenty - beer costs about 70pence, a good meal may cost as little at 3pounds! - the sun is shining, and i have just brought a waterproof poncho, ever the cynic!! - apparently the weather changes quickly on the trail.
I have elected to carry my own stuff on the trail, even though most of the group have taken the advice of others who have done the trail to pay porters to carry their packs. I am told the porters can do in about 8 hours, what it will take us 3 days to achieve....I am pretty confident that I am now fit enough to do this, because of the amount of trecking, and walking I have done at these altitudes allready, has knocked me in to better shape than I ever was in London!
For those interested....The people of Bolivia are up in arms about the governments plans to export gas to the coast using pipelines through Chile, Understandably the people of Bolivia resent the Chilean government charging for this service, because chilie stole Bolivias Coastline from them, during the war of the Pacific in the 1850´s. By way of registering their general unhappiness, they have taken to blocading roads with rocks, taking hostages, stoning buses of people and generally shouting a lot.
Luckily we managed to make it across to Peru on the Sunday when most of the protesters were in church so we had nothing more than the blocades themselves to negociate, and this is where being in an ex millitary transporter comes in handy. One of our party was teargassed, and is still bragging - we are designing a tour t Shirt and my suggestion for the slogan is now.. ´It will all end in Tear gas´
See the BBC´s pathetic attempt to explain what happened the day before....
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/3127750.stm
For those interested ...The worlds Most Dangerous Road...... I quote from our guides....
http://www.gravitybolivia.com/
We begin the ride at wind-swept La Cumbre (4,700m/15,400 ft) where you'll see fantastic views of a number of snow-covered peaks, including Huayna Potosí (6,088m/19,973 ft). From there we descend rapidly down a twisting road amongst mountain peaks, grazing llamas and alpacas, tiny villages and a drug check-post (?!). We stop for refreshments and a rest along the way, all the better to give us time to take in the scenery: towering cliff faces, dramatic drops and ever greener vegetation.
This infamous narrow dirt road is cut precariously into the side of the mountain and descends 2,000m (6,500ft). With 1,000m+ (3,300 ft) sheer drops off to our left and hulking rock overhangs and cascading waterfalls to our right, we ride through mist, low cloud and dust. With your positive attitude and our expert supervision you can safely enjoy some of South America's most dramatic and beautiful scenery as you hurtle down the road. (Besides, in our opinion, it's safer on this road riding a narrow bicycle that you are driving rather than being trapped inside a big bus.) - (Guess how we got back up)
I Shit you not!
As we near the end of the ride it gets progressively hotter and dustier. By the time you arrive at the bottom in Yolosa (1,100m/3,600 ft) you will be tired, hot, dirty and exhilarated. From Yolosa we catch a ride 7km (4 miles) up to Coroico (1,600m/5,250ft) ... although masochists may choose to cycle up ... where we can enjoy a late lunch, take in the magnificent scenery, spend time relaxing by the pool, and enjoy a cold drink.
See what happend 3 weeks earlier here! ...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/2233635.stm
Ok so I´m off for a siesta, love to everyone....
Eric
¶ 1:46 pm
Saturday, September 20, 2003
Cheekey Chipmonk Cheeks
The day before Yesterday I walked in to a Bolivian shop and I purchased :-
1 bottle of fizzy pop
2 sticks of Dynamite
2 bags of amonium nitrate
and 2 X 3 minute detonators
life is good.
The Happy Shopper
Of course it was not for me I had booked a trip down the famous mines of Potosi, and is is customary to bring gifts to the miners who work down there. Of course a packet of fags would have sufficed, but I have always prided myself of my skill for choosing good gifts.
You should have seen the look on their little faces as a terrified gringo handed them enough explosives to move about 3 tons of the rock they were busy chipping away at with toffee hammers! - they were so chuffed, that contrary to my insistance, they went right ahead and used it there and then,
Oh the fun of crouching in a 3 foot high tunnel, with 16 century stone supports while the Chechwan indian miners show thier appreciation, in the only way they knew how.
Of course the cocoa leaves we had stuffed in our cheeks at the insistence of our guide was supposed to dull any pangs of fear we had, along with fatigue, thirst and hunger. All it succeeded achieving for me was the look of a chipmonk, the numb mouth normaly associated with a trip to the dentist and a taste in my mouth that reminded me of the time i drove my bycicle in to a hedge as a child.
After the longest two hours of my life, We emerged from our trip to hell, ears still ringing, all swearing that we would never hate our jobs again. It took a trip down the mine to make me understand how the Catholic Church sits comfortably with the fact that the miners here offer up sacrifices to the Devil! Of course they have a different name for him, and he is a legacy of the Inca miners, not El Diablo, but El Tio, meaning uncle, The working miners here aging from 12 to 35 (mostly live until they are 40ish) understandibly belive that God has no juristiction in their place of work.
El Tio (right) with offerings of coca leaves, alcohol and cigarettes
Yesterday we drove for 14 Hours, stopping only for lunch and to change a wheel on the truck, in as little as 13 minutes, we arrived in La Paz at around 10pm to witness the highest capital city in the world at it’s busiest, today it seems it plays host to one of the largest demonstrations it has seen in recent years, and I am writing from an internet cafe with armed guards and metal shutters to deter the inevitable riot that will ensue, my ears are full of the sound of firecrackers –not dissimular to the sound of my new friends in Potosi at work and the sound of distant mobs coming closer. The length of this email reflects my lack of desire to head back to the hotle, whitch has fewer armed guards and metal shutters!
Tommorow, if God or Tio wishes, I am to take a Mountain Bike Ride – which I will tell you about another time.
Via con Deus
Eric
¶ 1:45 pm
1 bottle of fizzy pop
2 sticks of Dynamite
2 bags of amonium nitrate
and 2 X 3 minute detonators
life is good.
The Happy Shopper
Of course it was not for me I had booked a trip down the famous mines of Potosi, and is is customary to bring gifts to the miners who work down there. Of course a packet of fags would have sufficed, but I have always prided myself of my skill for choosing good gifts.
You should have seen the look on their little faces as a terrified gringo handed them enough explosives to move about 3 tons of the rock they were busy chipping away at with toffee hammers! - they were so chuffed, that contrary to my insistance, they went right ahead and used it there and then,
Oh the fun of crouching in a 3 foot high tunnel, with 16 century stone supports while the Chechwan indian miners show thier appreciation, in the only way they knew how.
Of course the cocoa leaves we had stuffed in our cheeks at the insistence of our guide was supposed to dull any pangs of fear we had, along with fatigue, thirst and hunger. All it succeeded achieving for me was the look of a chipmonk, the numb mouth normaly associated with a trip to the dentist and a taste in my mouth that reminded me of the time i drove my bycicle in to a hedge as a child.
After the longest two hours of my life, We emerged from our trip to hell, ears still ringing, all swearing that we would never hate our jobs again. It took a trip down the mine to make me understand how the Catholic Church sits comfortably with the fact that the miners here offer up sacrifices to the Devil! Of course they have a different name for him, and he is a legacy of the Inca miners, not El Diablo, but El Tio, meaning uncle, The working miners here aging from 12 to 35 (mostly live until they are 40ish) understandibly belive that God has no juristiction in their place of work.
El Tio (right) with offerings of coca leaves, alcohol and cigarettes
Yesterday we drove for 14 Hours, stopping only for lunch and to change a wheel on the truck, in as little as 13 minutes, we arrived in La Paz at around 10pm to witness the highest capital city in the world at it’s busiest, today it seems it plays host to one of the largest demonstrations it has seen in recent years, and I am writing from an internet cafe with armed guards and metal shutters to deter the inevitable riot that will ensue, my ears are full of the sound of firecrackers –not dissimular to the sound of my new friends in Potosi at work and the sound of distant mobs coming closer. The length of this email reflects my lack of desire to head back to the hotle, whitch has fewer armed guards and metal shutters!
Tommorow, if God or Tio wishes, I am to take a Mountain Bike Ride – which I will tell you about another time.
Via con Deus
Eric
¶ 1:45 pm
Wednesday, September 17, 2003
Altitude Thickness
So here I am in Potosi, the highest city in the world! I have coined the phrase Altitude thickness to denote behaviour likely to cause mirth amongst ones peers whilst at altitude - so far i am a big sufferer.
First i need you to get a piece of A4 white paper, stick a colon in the middle, the punctuation kind! - you now have a good map of where I was yesterday. The Bolivia’n salt flats is a spectacle that can only really be appreciated by those present, but I will do my best.
The sothern most dot on your map is our vehicle, a converted German Military transporter, the other dot is our support vehicle should we run in to any trouble (mum, for trouble read flat tyres or engine failure, not Columbian guerilla fighters). As far as we can see around our vehicle is white salt, bar the volcanoes in the distance, we are driving across a sheet of paper.
It the middle we found a hotel made completely of, you guessed it, salt! beds, furniture, chairs, everything except the roof (not made of pepper unfortunately but cactus wood). I was hoping for a model of Abrahams wife in the reception, but no such luck.
We travelled on to the town of Uyuni, the middle of nowhere but I got to take some snaps of the sun setting over a train graveyard - think 30 or 40 rusting steam engines in the middle of the dessert, one of which was reputedly robbed by none other than Butch Cassidy and Sundance, but in true Bolivian style, no one recalls exactly which one.
I need to go now, because at this altitude, hitting these keys and lifting this ice cold Bolivian beer to my lips is leaving me out of breath...
Hasta Luego Chico's
Eric
¶ 1:45 pm
First i need you to get a piece of A4 white paper, stick a colon in the middle, the punctuation kind! - you now have a good map of where I was yesterday. The Bolivia’n salt flats is a spectacle that can only really be appreciated by those present, but I will do my best.
The sothern most dot on your map is our vehicle, a converted German Military transporter, the other dot is our support vehicle should we run in to any trouble (mum, for trouble read flat tyres or engine failure, not Columbian guerilla fighters). As far as we can see around our vehicle is white salt, bar the volcanoes in the distance, we are driving across a sheet of paper.
It the middle we found a hotel made completely of, you guessed it, salt! beds, furniture, chairs, everything except the roof (not made of pepper unfortunately but cactus wood). I was hoping for a model of Abrahams wife in the reception, but no such luck.
We travelled on to the town of Uyuni, the middle of nowhere but I got to take some snaps of the sun setting over a train graveyard - think 30 or 40 rusting steam engines in the middle of the dessert, one of which was reputedly robbed by none other than Butch Cassidy and Sundance, but in true Bolivian style, no one recalls exactly which one.
I need to go now, because at this altitude, hitting these keys and lifting this ice cold Bolivian beer to my lips is leaving me out of breath...
Hasta Luego Chico's
Eric
¶ 1:45 pm
Saturday, September 13, 2003
The Driest Place on Earth
I'm writing from a small colonial town on the Chilean/Bolivian border called San Pedro De Amatacama, having spent the past two days crossing the Amatacama dessert, which has a claim to being the driest place on earth!
I haven’t found it as dry as most, because I managed to flood my tent with a 2ltr hydration pack, by rolling on to it in my sleep. I subsequently woke up at 4 in the morning, when the water around me was beginning to freeze, temperatures in the dessert at night were around -5. So i ran around the driest place on earth, wringing out my clothes, and trying to dry my sleeping bag in 40 mph winds, before it froze in to a solid block.
The scenery here is breathtaking, with a multitude of different skylines, rock formations, roads leading off in to the horizon, last night we climbed a 400ft sand dune, to take pictures of the sun setting over the valley of the moon - it was a pretty difficult climb because the sand was so deep, and the gradient was so steep, and because we are about 2000 meters above sea level, but I guess it was good training for the dreaded hike to Machu Pichu.
Spent the evening drinking in some of the many bars in San Pedro (September the 11th is a fiesta here) with an open fire in the middle, and a hole in the thatched roof, looking out to a full moon, and a full compliment of stars.
Life is good......
Eric
¶ 1:40 pm
I haven’t found it as dry as most, because I managed to flood my tent with a 2ltr hydration pack, by rolling on to it in my sleep. I subsequently woke up at 4 in the morning, when the water around me was beginning to freeze, temperatures in the dessert at night were around -5. So i ran around the driest place on earth, wringing out my clothes, and trying to dry my sleeping bag in 40 mph winds, before it froze in to a solid block.
The scenery here is breathtaking, with a multitude of different skylines, rock formations, roads leading off in to the horizon, last night we climbed a 400ft sand dune, to take pictures of the sun setting over the valley of the moon - it was a pretty difficult climb because the sand was so deep, and the gradient was so steep, and because we are about 2000 meters above sea level, but I guess it was good training for the dreaded hike to Machu Pichu.
Spent the evening drinking in some of the many bars in San Pedro (September the 11th is a fiesta here) with an open fire in the middle, and a hole in the thatched roof, looking out to a full moon, and a full compliment of stars.
Life is good......
Eric
¶ 1:40 pm
