Rambling again – despatch from Peru

If this makes no sense, I am balming the altitude.  And also typing from a long distance away, but herabouts the altitude is the default scapegoat.

We have arrived here in Puno on the shores ofLake Titicaca straight from an overnight pause in Lima (more on that later) and so the heady heights has taken its toll on the first few days.  Nothing dramatic but a lot of yawning and deep breathing.   Initially it was pretty tiring to walk very far, or go up a flight of stairs.  

It all started in an altogether more fervid fashion a sour crack of dawn flight to Amsterdam was delayed by an hour due to fog – precisely the same amount of time we thought we had to get our connecting flight.  A cross terminal run with undone sholeaces brought us to a backlog queue and our moods were furthere hoisted by an unexpected upgrade to business class. Tom Kirby (for it is he) qas quickly into his stride, grinning like a loon, pressing all the buttons and grabbing champagne with his free hand.

Our arrival in Lima continued on the upward spiral, with the hotel´s annual cocktail party in fujll swing.  Our first experience of Peru was thus bizarre dancing routines attempting to convey international çtravel ‘ a man with a gold bow tie, crisp suit and aflat cap did a dance with a suticase.  Couples shimmied up and down to a fake bedroom and men in waistocoats dangled curious little fusion food bites and enought pisco to fell a horse.  We didn´t even get to use the free drink vouchers we were given on arrival.

Edit – this blog was put on hold after the arrivalof la familia Dawson, in high spirits after their months zigzagginmg across teh Andes and Amazon.

To return ot our first few days, now writing from the Southern town of Arequipa, our stay in Puno continued the one off theme with th eannual parade featuring dancers in elaborate cosutmes swinging through the streets accompanied by drummers and related clamour.  The front dancers would sway one way an dthen the other, yet manage to stay in a straight line.  The one off nature was somewhat disrupted by subsequent parading past the restaurant we were eating in with Charles and the whanau a few days later.

Our princiapal expedition in Puno has been to the floating Uros islands ‘ made of reeds, they were a good fifty metres square, and about 2 metres thick.  Originally conceived to remove their creators from the reaches fo rht ewarmongering Huari and Inca, they now host a number of traditional families, tourism magnets and eco bases.  The island we visited even had a solar panel. 

We also tookoff to see a fertility temple  ‘ related pictures will be obvious – and a ruined temple nearby.  Despite Some urging and a map drawn by the innovative Tom  the taxi driver couldn{t find it, and so we took a diversion up a random hill instead.

The trip has got off to a great start, with the grim forecasts being thoroughly vaporised by a sun of daunting ferocity ‘ as some slight scorch marks testify.  Temperatures in Puno were supposed to be between 13 and 2 degrees but it doesn{t feel as if it{s got below 18.

 

 

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