Category: Peru

Witnessing one of the original religious festivals is gripping – just so different to anything we have seen before.

Um bei einer solchen Fahrt am richtigen Tag im richtigen Dorf zu sein ist auch Glücksache. In letzter Minute erfuhren wir vom Virgen del Carmen Fest in Paucartambo -weitgehend als eines der noch wirklich ursprünglichen religiösen Feste in Peru bekannt und noch nicht stark vom Tourismus beeinflusst. Ein tief berührendes Erlebnis mit exotischen Masken, Musik, Tanz und Feuerwerk.

This festival is one of the most authentic and not very touristic and takes place once a year in July. We were fortunate to hear about it in time to make the journey.

Arriving and looking at the statues on the plaza did not quite prepare us for what we would experience. The statues reflect the different groups participating.

The small town burst its seams and we wild camped at S13 deg 19.7857 W071deg 35.0680 along the river just outside the town. Traffic was heavy and it can took more than one hour to cross the bridge into town. The festival runs mainly Friday and Saturday with various troupes representing different professions and groupings.

Friday evening culminated in a fireworks display among the participants within the very crowded little plaza of Paucartambo.

The Saturday afternoon was the highlight with the carrying of the Virgen del Carmen through Paucartambo.

We drove on to the viewpoint Tres Cruces to witness the sunrise next morning, the mirador being at 3660m. We camped at the parking lot at S13deg073298 W071deg36.7039.

What we hoped to be a quiet night turned out to be a sleepless one as vehicles started arriving from midnight and at sunrise there were more than 200 vehicles and 500 people – all somewhat disappointed as it was cloudy. Apparently with the right conditions a sunrise with 3 reflections of the sun can be seen at times.

When the sun was up we realised how beautiful the flora in the area was.

No visit to Peru can be complete without a visit to Machu Picchu

Ein Besuch der Inka Ruinen bei Machu Picchu war uns sicher mit am wichtigsten auf unsere Südamerika Reise. Es ist wohl die bekannteste und auch die am schönsten gelegene Ruine der Inkas. Auf diese Stätte herunter zu schauen und sich in die Vergangenheit zurück zu versetzen, ist einer der Momente im Leben, die sich zutiefst einprägen.

To get to Machu Picchu takes a small journey: first we were collected at the travel agent at 10 clock in the morning for a drive by community bus to Ollantaytambo, where we boarded the train to Aguas Calientes and arrived late afternoon, checked in at Los Rojas Hotel for the night and took a bath at the termas(water could have been hotter for us).

Next morning we got up at 4am for a small breakfast and walked down to the bus station at 5am to find many people waiting for the buses to start running at 6am. Do not get a shock when seeing all the long queue -once the buses start running, many visitors get moved within a short time.

Approx 27 serpentines later we arrived at the entrance to Machu Picchu just before sunrise. If your interest lies in photography, consider splitting from the guided group as it takes a long  time to meander through the ruins. Another interesting point is to walk up to the Sungate which is also the arrival point for those hiking the Inca trail and enjoy a different view of the ruins.

At 7pm the train departed again to Ollantaytambo, where we caught a bus back to Cusco and a taxi to the Quinta Lala camping site, arriving at 11pm.

Next day we had arranged an oilchange for our Landcruiser at the camping site, it rained but Nilo, the mechanic Milli had managed to arrange for us, found the required fuel and oil filters and got the job done.

Around Cusco you find a lot to do and see the best masonary work of the Incas

Der Campingplatz in Cusco bietet die Gelegenheit, die Stadt zu besichtigen sowie die interessanten Ruinen Saqsaywaman zu besuchen -im Laufabstand. Etwa 5 Minuten zu den Ruinen, 20 Minuten in die Altstadt und zurück mit einer billigen Taxe.

We found Cusco a charming city and the Museo de Cacao provided us with the best chocolate cheesecake ever! In the same building we booked for Machu Picchu with Qori Inka Travel, after deliberating whether we should arrange it on our own or use an agent. All in all we realised that it is more convenient to book via this travel agency at around an estimated 10% premium. All tickets were ready next day for collection and service was professional. All train and bus tickets, entrance fees, a guide and one night accommodation in Hotel los Rojas in Aguas Calientes were included in the cost of USD250 per person.

Camping Quinta Lala is situated very conveniently. It is a 20 minute downhill walk into Cusco and the return fare by taxi is cheap. It is also  only about 200m away from the entrance gate to the ruins Saqsaywaman.We found the stone work in this ruins to be the most impressing of all ruins we have visited and strongly recommend a visit here. The stonework at Machu Picchu does not match the quality at these ruins.

When in Cusco spoil yourself with a visit to the fresh produce market in the Mercado San Pedro and enjoy best fruit juices freshly prepared (our favourite at no 86). Across from the market you can do grocery shopping conveniently at the well-stocked Orion mercado. The plaza de Armas in Cusco is surrounded by Cathedrals, restaurants, souvenir shops and ATMs.

For excellent groceries and other essentials we shopped at the modern, large Plaza Vea on the outskirts of the city and close to the Toyota dealer.Next to Plaza Vea you also find a large hardware store for essentials.

We passed from Bolivia into Peru and carried on along the Lago Titicaca and the city of Puno until we reached Cusco.

Wir passierten die Grenze nach Peru ohne grosse Schwierigkeiten -konnten aber bereits erahnen, dass die Behörden in Peru freundlicher und aufgeschlossener waren.Wir erkundeten die Halbinsel Socca auf dem Wege nach Puno und blieben, nach einem gemütlichen Braai mittags, gleich an selbiger Stelle und kampierten dort – ein paar interessierte Bewohner grüssten uns freundlich und hiessen uns willkommen. Tags darauf ging es nach Puno, von wo aus wir die schwimmenden Inselbewohner besuchten, bevor es dann nach Cusco weiterging.

Border Control into Peru was a lot more welcoming than leaving Bolivia. We decided to take a round trip of Peninsula Socca where we barbecued for lunch but decided to stay. Next day we arrived in Puno where we stayed with Edgar and Consuelo at Casa Panq’arani, Edgar arranged overnight parking for the trucks, round the block, 4 minutes walk. We took two Tuk-tuks to the harbour and then a boat across to the Islas de Los Uros, the inhabitated floating islands. Each island is a growing papyrus-like platform on which the dwellings are erected.

In the evening we enjoyed an outing into the city and its pedestrian zone where we found a lot of nighttime activity and dancing as well as good local food as was recommended by our hosts.

Next day we drove via Juliaca to Cusco where we found convenient camping at Quinta Lala , efficiently run by Mili and a favourite meeting place of many overlanders visiting Cusco. Ask Mili for freshly pressed fruit juice and eggs from her hens, she also will wash clothing. The single camp’s bathroom and shower is kept pretty busy by the number of campers.

Around Cusco many interesting towns can be visited with craft and fresh produce markets. We made excursions in the area,one of which was a day tour to the Sacred Valley and to Chinchero, offering plenty of opportunity to buy really good Peruvian crafts along the road and the craftmarket in Chinchero is worth seeing. We also visited the local ruins saw the elders leaving the church service all dressed traditionally. Afterwards we had lunch in the town of Urubamba (pretty busy with tourists) and ended the day in Pisac, however arriving too late to visit the extensive ruins, which warrant a few hours to be explored.