Carolyn and Steven go to Peru.

There was a thunderstorm overnight, and while I stayed in bed (unwell), Wendy, Sharada and Steven headed off with Louis ( the father of the household) to hoe potatoes for lunch. After lunch we headed back down to the boat to say goodbye to the wonderful community. Turns out that I was not the only one not feeling too good. I put it down to the altitude as the night we stayed in Puno I kept waking up gasping for air, a horrible feeling. We sailed back to Puno and then spent the afternoon looking around the town. Unfortunately one of our group lost ( or had stolen) her phone which also had her credit card and all of her photos of the trip with it. A final dinner with the whole group as 5 were heading back to Lima tomorrow while the other 8 (including us) were heading back to Cusco.

Today started with trepidation as no one really knew what to expect from our traditional homestay. A quick visit to the shops at the wharf had us purchasing gifts for the children and food for the adults that were going to be hosting us. After boarding our motor boat, after stepping over 7 other boats to get to it, we headed out through the reeds onto Lake Titicaca. First stop was the floating Uros Islands. Watching how they make the island and looking inside their huts to see how they live ( along with their satellite dishes, TV's, mobile phones and solar panels) Steven and I dressed up in the local gear for photos and once again we shopped their homemade gear. From here we headed tp Taquile Island, a traditional Quechua speaking community, the island was all uphill of course, and full of ancient agricultural terraces, sheep who were hobbled and a couple of houses, It is hard to remember that you are in the middle of a lake when you look around you as it is big enough to be an ocean. A lunch of either an omelette or trout was served. Snow capped mountains in the distance were actually in Bolivia, the border between the two countries is in the lake,
After lunch, and a long downhill climb, we met the boat and headed to the peninsula Chucuito, where the Luquina Karna community is located. We met the families that we were going to be staying with for the night and then headed to our accommodation. Steven and I stayed with two other people from our group and we had a little cabin each, with an ensuite ( including an electric shower that our guide suggested may not be particularly safe to use)
We met in the kitchen with our family where we helped to cut up the vegetables for our dinner. An interesting evening was had trying to communicate with a family that has very limited English and Spanish. In bed by 8pm, there was some electricity. I was ill overnight and this stopped me from doing too much the next morning which was disappointing.

Picked up at 6.20 and then dropped off at the bus station where we boarded a tourist coach, with a local guide, for the ten hour trip to Puno. Five stops along the way. Raqchi (Wiracocha God Temple) is an Incan church that is 100m long, 26m wide and 14m high ( UNfortunately no photos allowed). Many little museums were at the church showing mummified remains of Incans. La Raya is the halfway point and also the highest point between Cusco and Puno ( 4335m above sea level) Markets were set up here ( as they are everywhere) and the alpacas were gone and llamas were more prevalent. A beautiful buffet lunch was held in Sicuani and Pukara was visited to see the bulls on top of all of the roofs. The bull is a symbol of Health, Wealth and Fertility for the family that receives it as a gift. A quick glimpse of flamingoes around a small lake and flocks of alpaca and sheep were seen as we came into Puno. A drive through the town on Juliaca was an eye opener, certainly wouldn't want to be outside of the vehicle. A blackmarket town apparently that imports items from Bolivia. On arrival in Puno we were met by a new tour guide, Henry, and taken to the hotel.
As we came into town Lake Titicaca was on view.

Back in Cusco and another early start to catch a bus to the South Valley. With several stops along the way to check out some more Incan and preincan archaeological sites: Tipon, Pikillaqta and Andahuayllas. Stopped in the guinea pig town to check out the roasting methods.

A free afternoon in Cusco to catch up on the mundane jobs like washing. Kay and and Marian did their own thing today, Marian headed to Rainbow Mountain and Kay to an Incan Bridge.
We all had dinner and watched a show together ( and danced if you were lucky enough to be selected!)

We decided not to get up at 4am to see the sunrise at Machu Picchu as you only get to see it 10 percent of the time. Instead we left the hotel at 6am and headed to the long line of tourists who were waiting to catch buses up the mountain to the Grand citadel of the Incans known as Machu Picchu. When we got up in the morning the town was shrouded in fog and a misty rain which didn't look that promising for our long awaited visit. it didn't take long to catch a bus as they were going up and down the mountain continuously. I am not a very brave traveller when it comes to mountains and it was probably a good thing that I couldn't see too much due to the fog. the drivers here are crazy. We arrived at the top of the mountain in fog and climbed the first section of the steps to the top of the Citadel. You can only go one way around Machu Picchu so our guide suggested we waited in a spot which would give the best photos as we couldn't come back later if the fog lifted. After waiting for about an hour it started to lift and we were rewarded with a magnificent view. For the next two hours we walked among the building hearing the story surrounding it all. the Incans and their predecessors were amazing engineers and builders. My history knowledge of this part of the world has certainly improved over the past week. I tried to get a selfie with an alpaca just like everyone else on instagram but the alpaca wasn't interested in playing his part. Back to Aguas Calientes and lunch around the town square before we boarded the train and headed back to Cusco, A fantastic day.