Barker B- Peru

An Update from Cuzco.

Day 3

This morning we rose to our first full day in Peru. We had brekky before going about some important chores such as organinsing finances and booking accomodation for Arequipa. We then ventured out into the streets of Cuzco to explore the foreign city. Our first stop was Qorikancha, a Spanish church built over Incan ruins. Next we made our way to Chez Maggy, a pizza restaurant. We then visited La Catedral, a Spanish cathedral overlooking Plaza de Armas, built in 1559, taking more than 100 years to build. We then had chance to look around and browse the city markets. We then had an afternoon rest in our hotel before making our way to Jack´s Cafe. We managed to take the long way even though the cafe was right around the corner from our hostel. We then had a final opportunity to visit the markets where we practised our barganing skills. After a big day out in Cuzco we went back to our hostel for a good night's sleep.

Josh Briggs

Day 4

We woke up to a chilly overcast day but pumped for what was to come. The group hit the breakfast table at 8am sharp and devoured a fruit salad, scrambled eggs and bread with jam. We then had a group meeting and decided who was going to book what. Split into two groups, one went to book the restaurant for the two teams on christmas eve and the other to buy the train ticket for the trip to Machu Pichu. We then met for a Peruvian lunch in a local restaurant which constituted of a 3 course menu. For starters we had a potato salad filled tomato. Unfortunately we couldn't eat the tomato because it had been washed in the local water. Then we waited a solid hour for some authentic salted cornchip soup. Another hour passed and the Alpaca arrived which was suprisingly tasty. Towards the end of the meal we learnt some Spanish compliments for the chef. In the afternoon we split up into smaller groups to explore the Cuzco shops. For dinner we went to a fabulous restaurant down an alley which Dougy and Ailsa had found for us. We dined on guinea pig which was "interesting" and balled our eyes out on chillies. We also listened to a fantastic local band that played throughout the evening. To top it off we bought ice-cream and cake to celebrate Will's 16th birthday.

Angus Murray