Goodbye Cusco :(

SO before and after the Inca Jungle Trek we spent a fair amount of time in Cusco. I think it's safe to say that Cusco has been my favourite place we've visited in South America :)

On the 31st it was EVIE'S 19TH BIRTHDAY so of course we went out to celebrate. I got her a little prezzie and a card signed by lots of different people that we've met throughout the duration of our travels. She was SO surprised so of course I was well happy that all my sneakiness had paid off. Also Matt got her some mustard...



In the evening we went out with the gang to Norton's, Indigo and the Wild Rover which was lots of fun, even if we did get kicked out at like 2.30am. I thought the Wild Rover was supposed to be like party central?? Honestly.







Another aspect of Cusco that cannot go without a mention is Jack's Cafe which is without a doubt the best place for food in South America (well, that I've been to so far!) A little pricey for Peru it has to be said but 100% worth every penny. I don't really think the pics do it justice but I'm going to share them anyways...





We also caught Corpus Christi by accident which was quite nice. Peruvians really do know how to do a religious festival! It was almost impossible to move around Plaza de Amas and they had all these massive elaborately decorated statue things that they were carrying through the streets. Plus music and dancing and food EVERYWHERE. It was great!!



I was rather sad to say goodbye to Cusco, but I reckon it wont be my last visit. I would definitely recommend a visit to anyone :)

Lake Titicaca and the Isla del Sol

After La Paz we headed to Copacabana on Lake Titicaca, joined by Charles and Lucy who we met at the Wild Rover. En route we had the nice surprise of having to get off the bus and take a boat across part of the lake whilst our bus did the same, on a rather rickety looking barge. We came to the conclusion that we had to get off the bus as the barge it came across on looked so unstable, there must have been instances in the past where the whole thing has capsized... Luckily the boat, bus and all our luggage made it across safe and sound.

Our bus... on a barge.

Once in Copacabana we spent a couple of days enjoying the sunshine and hiking up a nearby hill which was quite the challenge at this altitude (we're over 4000m up!!) but the view of the lake was beautiful. I can't believe how HUGE it is, seriously puts 'the lake' at the bottom of Newman College to shame :p

Outside the Cathedral!

It took real skill to get the self timer on this right.


We're now back in Copacabana after spending the past few days on the Isla del Sol, which was ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE. We spent a day hiking from the north to the south side of the island and checking out the ruins at the Inca creation sight. The views were stunning, take a gander:

Steve, Georgia, Lucy and Charles have all head of to Arequipa for a few days before coming to meet us in Cusco for EVIE'S BIIIIIIIIRTHDAY on the 31st. I can't wait! We're still debating whether our next move will be staight back to Cusco or to the Uros Islands on the peruvian side of Lake Titicaca. All depends on pennies really, but fingers crossed we'll be able to get everything in :)

One month on the road!

I was supposed to post this yesterday but I forgot... This weekend has been pretty crazy, I've done very little but go out and sleep. The hostel which we're staying at is called 'The Point' and is one of those hostels where people come to party and many don't sober up for the entire weekend. I can't say I'm one to go to those extents, but it has been really fun staying here! I'll let the photos do the explaining...

The majority of today was spent in the tattoo and piercing studio, where I got to witness nose piercings and tattoo drawing for the first time. Sam decided to get a cholo (peruvian hat) on his bicep. After a group input of choosing and designing it for about 30 minutes before. Again I'll let pictures do the talking...

This has been our last day in Cusco before heading to Arequipa. I'm rather excited but unfortunately this meant that we had to say goodbye to all the volunteers :( however we're going to head back here in around a month and do a little more travelling with them when they finish they're placements. So it's not all bad :)

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Updated post! We decided to spend an extra day in Cusco to get a few more things sorted and explore a little more. I've had a pretty small appetite after the weekends antics so I decided to finally treat myself to a MASSIVE cooked breakfast at a place called Jacks. It was SO good.

After breakfast Evie, Nell and I headed to the textile market for a browse and hair braids, which are really cool! I'm starting to feel like a proper tourist now :p I also managed to book a jungle tour so I can join Matt and Dan when we head back up. Which means I'll be doing Machu Picchu for the second time. SO excited, it's the most beautiful place I've ever been, no contest.

For some reason we finally plucked up the courage to head back to the piercing studio (probably a really bad idea, I know) and Evie got her nose re-pierced for the FOURTH time whilst I got my anti tragus. I'm actually really happy with it, I just really don't want it to get infected! Fingers crossed eh?

This evening has been pretty chilled, just hanging out at the hostel and trying some new drink a guy from the bar invented called 'The Panty Dropper' which is Jaeger, vanilla ice-cream and milk. REALLY tasty! Not exactly the craziest way to spend our last night in Cusco but it's been a pretty fun day :)