I slept so well last night, for around 10 hours. I had a lovely relaxed breakfast and then headed out into town. There was another parade going on in the main square.

After watching the parade for a bit I walked up to San Cristabol to get a view of the city. There were quite a few people there enjoying the sunshine.

I decided my legs didn’t hurt that much and I continued walking up to Cristo Blanco. Unfortunately the first path I took also led to the Inca ruins, Sacsayhuaman which meant you had to pay £20 to get through. As I’d already seen these Inca ruins 4 years ago when I was in Cusco I consulted maps.me and found a different, but longer, route to the statue. The statue is at 3,600m so 300m above the city of Cusco.

The statue itself is pretty tall, 8m high, and impressive but the main attraction are the amazing views over the city.

I stayed on top of the hill for a while and then walked back to Cusco and had some lunch in the main square.

At 4pm I met up with Katy and we took the bus to Ollantaytambo. Tonight I’ll be doing the Ayahuasca ceremony there.

I didn’t sleep very well last night, we had a huge thunderstorm around 1030pm. The thunder sounded like it was bouncing off all the mountains and the lightening looked amazing, lots of flashes. It also rained quite heavy but only for around an hour or so.

At 430am we got up, ate a banana and drank some coca tea before setting off on the final uphill hike to the top of the mountain. As we walked uphill with our headlights the sun began to rise and you could see it reflecting off the top of the snow on the Salkantay mountain range.

This is the mountain we climbed, it took us around 2 hours to get to the top.

The climb up was steep and hot but as soon as we got to the top I felt cold as it was only 7am and it was still quite cloudy. It felt really good to have made it. We climbed around 8km.

It was then just a short 20 minute flat walk to the campsite at Capuliyoc where we originally picked up the mules. I took some final photos of the mountains.

We ate our final breakfast and then it was time to say goodbye to Hugo, the horseman.

(Eder the cook, Hugo the horseman and Edwin the guide).

Edwin, Eder and I then got on the minibus with all our bits to head back to Cusco. A couple of Argentinian guys who had been trekking too joined us on the bus.

It was a five hour journey back to Cusco where I said goodbye to Eder and Edwin.

It has been an amazing trek, I think in terms of steepness and trekking conditions, it’s probably the hardest trek I have ever done. But the amazing scenery and the ancient Inca ruins make it all worth it.

When I got back to Cusco I had a shower and a little rest. I then headed out to the Centro Artesanal in Cusco. It’s a huge marketplace selling lots of handicraft and jumpers etc.

I then ate a very early dinner and was in bed by 830pm as I was so tired.

Today I got a got of a lie in as we didn’t need to start trekking until 7am. The little family of cats were awake when I went for breakfast.

And then another member of the family came and curled up with me whilst I was eating my breakfast.

I took a few photos of the campsite at Marampata, it was a cloudy morning as normal.

So today was the start of the trek back to the starting point. The first couple of hours down to the river were all downhill which felt great. These were some of the views on the way down.

As we got to the bridge I could see the path we had to take to get to the lunch campsite – you can see the zig zag path in the photo below.

We started the uphill climb at around 9am and it took us around an hour and a quarter to reach Chiquisca, a climb of around 350m. These are some views looking back at the river.

We stayed in Chiquisca until 3pm, waiting for the sun to go a bit lower as it’s not much fun hiking uphill in the full sun. We had lunch and just relaxed. I got chatting to some people from another group that were trekking the trail too- they were going to camp in Chiquisca.

At 3pm we set off again for another uphill climb to Cocomansana. Although the sun was lower it was still really hot and it was a difficult climb. But an hour later we were at the campsite – I thought it would take longer so I was pretty pleased. This is one of my favourite pictures I took on the way up.

Just by the campsite there was a small waterfall so we decided to take a lovely refreshing shower. It felt really good after all the walking in the heat.

After the shower we just chilled until dinner time and watched the sun go down. I found another cat to play with but forgot to take a photo.

Just as we sat down to eat I saw this move across the path by where we were sitting.

It certainly made me jump, it’s a tarantula of some kind. The cat decided to play with it and it ran off into the ‘kitchen’. All the rest of the night I was keeping an eye out in case it returned.

It was a beautiful night with the moon almost full. It was also my last night camping. We walked around 13km today, the majority of that was uphill.

I slept ok but woke up a few times in the night. At 4am I got up as we were going to start trekking at 5am before it gets too hot. I packed up my things, ate a banana and took a couple of photos before we left the campsite. It was still pretty dark.

We started walking with our headlamps on but after around half an hour the sun came out and we didn’t need them anymore.

It was pretty cloudy as we were quite high up but the trek was all uphill and really steep zig zags. It was tough going.

At around 730am we reached our campsite Marampata, the gatekeeper to the archaeological ruins at Choquequirao. Marampata is at 2,913m and consists of a small settlement of around 100 people.

We stopped here for breakfast and I met this little family of cats, who were still pretty much asleep.

Around 9am we set off for the last leg of the trek to the site of Choquequirao. It was still quite cloudy but very warm. Again the trek was quite hard, the first bit was downhill but the second part was uphill. These are some of the views along the way.

It took around 2 hours to reach Choquequirao, at just over 3,000m so we arrived around 11am. I had a little panic attack as I went to take the photo below but couldn’t find my phone, it wasn’t in my pocket where I always kept it. Luckily one of the guys behind us had found it on the floor where I must have dropped it after taking a previous photo – and he was only a couple of minutes behind us.

Choquequirao, meaning ‘cradle of gold’ is an amazing site to visit. There are hardly any other people around and you get loads of time to really look around and explore. These are from the main area. The large houses were most likely factories and the smaller places used for the storage of the products.

We relaxed here for a bit and then walked down to the llama wall. Llamas were sacred animals used for wool, meat, sacrifice and to transport things.

We walked across to a viewpoint and the views were pretty amazing.

Obviously if you walk down you then have to walk up – this time we took the Inca steps. It was actually quite scary walking up the steps as they were small in width and very steep. The trick was to not look down.

The steps led up to the wall of mountains, also of significant importance to the Incas.

Once back in the main area we took a short walk up the hill to the left to take some photos.

We walked back down to the main area and relaxed for a while before lunch. Eating lunch in such a historical place with the amazing views of the mountains was really special.

After lunch we walked to the Sharmen’s house. The Sharman was a very important person to the Incas and therefore he had a large and nice house with an area in the middle where rituals could be held.

We walked up another hill to get some more photos and Edwin explained the history of the site. Choquequirao is situated in the spur of the mountain range of the Salkantay mountains. It is thought that Choquequirao was founded in 1536 and it was initially discovered in 1710 and was linked to Machu Picchu by a variety of trails. The ruins of Choquequirao are a mixture of buildings and terraces either above or below the truncated hilltop. The hilltop has been levelled and ringed with stones to create a platform 30 x 50m where ceremonies and sacrifices took place.

The top part of Choquequirao is the remains of several houses where maybe around ten families used to live.

Choquequirao is around 18km squared but only 30-40% of the ruins have currently been uncovered. The first excavations of the site began in the 1970s.

Around 4pm we headed back to the campsite at Marampata which was initially down hill but then a steep uphill towards the end. It took around an hour and a half.

As we ate our tea and dinner the sun was setting over the mountains.

It was a really long day, we walked 22km over around 12 hours, but it was definitely worth it. I’m really pleased that I’ve seen this Inca site and also that I’ve seen it before it becomes crowded with tourists.

I was awake at 4am and Edwin came and picked me up from the hotel at 5am. He bought a duffle bag for all my things that don’t need to go in the day pack and some trekking poles. We walked to the main square where there was a minibus waiting for us. I was introduced to our cook, Eder, and the driver whose name I can’t remember.

We then set off on a 4-5 hour journey to the start of the trek. I kind of dozed on and off for a couple of hours in the bus.

Around 730am we stopped in a small village for breakfast – which cost about £1 and was huge and filling.

As we left the village we came across a young lady and an older guy walking along the path. We stopped to see where they were going and offered them a lift seeming as we pretty much had an empty minibus. At the town of Chacora we dropped off our passengers- it was a pretty long way from where we had picked them up, I’m not sure the oldr guy would’ve made it.

We arrived in Capuliyoc, at 3,100m, around 10am where we said goodbye to our driver and met our horseman Hugo. All the baggage, apart from our daypacks, were dropped off for the horses and mules to carry and we set off on the first day of hiking.

The first part of the hike was mainly downhill to Chiquisca and it took around two hours. The scenery was gorgeous and it was pretty hot and humid. We had some great views of the Padreyoq mountain.

At Chiquisca we stopped for our lunch. Hugo and Eder had gone ahead with the horses and prepared a delicious hot lunch for us. I also found a cat to play with, he was a gorgeous silver colour.

Around 2pm we set off again, for a shortish walk downhill to the bridge over the river Apurimac. We were now at around 1,500m so had descended around 1,600m.

After this it was all uphill! And pretty steep too. We walked uphill for around 2 hours to reach our campsite Santa Rosa Bajo. It was a difficult hike as it’s hot and humid and there are a lot of mosquitos around. Santa Rosa is at around 2,115m.

At the campsite the tents were already up and ready for us and after a quick change of clothes into something dry and warm we had some coffee and popcorn.

About an hour later we had dinner, around 630pm, and as it was already getting cold once the sun had gone in, we went to bed shortly after dinner, probably around 8pm.

My sleeping bag was lovely and warm and pretty comfortable too.

Over the whole day we walked around 13km, descended 1,500m and then ascended 600m. I found the uphill part pretty tough as it was very humid and so steep.

I slept really well last night for about 3 hours and then I kept waking up and reflecting on what had happened. I think some of the plant was still inside me as I felt so calm and relaxed the whole day, like nothing could bother me or upset me.

I got up around 7am and had a leisurely breakfast with the cat curled up on my lap. It was a bit of a cloudy view of the mountains.

I hung around the lodge for a bit playing with the dogs and laying in the hammock.

But after an hour or so I decided to make my way back to Cusco. From the lodge it was just a short walk to the main square in Ollantaytambo, which is where all the minibuses leave from.

After around 15 minutes I found a minibus to Cusco which took around an hour and a half. The minibus stopped just by the main square in Cusco so it was just a short walk to my hotel. Back in my room I just sorted out my things for the trek starting tomorrow and chilled for a bit.

I then decided to go and visit San Domingo church which has been built ontop of what was an Inca Temple. You can still see some of the remains of the Inca Temple and it is believed it was a temple to the sun.

This building combines the Inca and Spanish influences. It used to be lined with sheets of gold but was ransacked and destroyed by the Spanish before they built the church on top of the ruins. It’s really interesting to see the contrast between the church and the temple foundations. This used to be the Inca religions holiest site.

At around 4pm I met with Johan who has organised all the Cusco tours and ceremony for me and Elvin who is going to be my guide for the Choquequirao trek.

After this I met up with Katrin, who I met in Rurrenabaque in the jungle, for dinner. We went to a vegetarian restaurant and I had some delicious pasta.

And then it was back to the hotel for an early night as I’ll be getting up at 430am tomorrow.

Today I had one of the best experiences of my life. I’m not going to share all the details of what I saw as they are very personal but I will try to describe the experience.

Katy, a guide, came and picked me up from the hotel around 10am and we took a bus from Cusco to Ollantaytambo which is an old Inca site in the Sacred Valley.

Once there we relaxed in the garden of the lodge we were staying in, which is very beautiful and peaceful, and played with the dogs whilst the Elder made the preparations for the ceremony.

San Pedro Ceremony

The ceremony started with myself, Katy and the Elder sitting around a fire which had a mixture of plants, condor feathers and other things in it. We inhaled the aroma as the Elder spoke to us and used his drum. He then called to the four corners of the earth to grant permission to do the San Pedro and to centre it.

He then poured me a cup of one juice which I drank, followed by a cup of another one. They were both pretty bitter tasting. Katy just had half a cup of each and the Elder had some too. San Pedro is a plant that goes straight to the heart and bypasses the mind’s defences and ego resistance. It gives you the power to make the changes you need to make.

We then relaxed for a bit allowing the plant to come into our bodies and opening up our heart to it, letting it know our intentions. We chewed some coca leaves for a bit and stuck them in our cheeks. The Elder played some beautiful music and sung – he has a great voice.

It was then time to walk to the Inca ruins which were only around 15 minutes away. As we were walking I felt all sorts of emotions. At the Inca site we sat around and the Elder mixed up some tobacco in a pipe which we smoked. He also called on the water gods.

After this I went and found a spot to myself, laying on the wall of the ruins, looking up at the sky and all the amazing surrounding mountains. At first I felt a deep sadness and I cried, I think I was letting go of the sadness within me which I had to do before I could move on. I lay watching the sky and the clouds told my story. This bit was very personal so I’m not going to say what they said but it made me realise a few things and it let me know what I have to do to move forwards in my life.

I don’t know how long I lay there for – it seemed like a very long time. During this time the Elder continued to play music and sung- one song about his grandfather was particularly moving. With San Pedro you don’t have an out of body experience – you are still you but your senses are heightened.

At some point I moved back down to the place where we had started and Katy was lying there so we chatted for a while. The colours of the sky and the shapes of the rocks on the mountains were intensified, as were the sounds of the animals.

I found another spot near Katy to lie down and we both watched the sky. She was facing one way looking at the stormy side and I faced the other way looking at the blue sky and white clouds. I felt calm and peaceful.

After a while we got up and walked around the Inca ruins and looked at the alter noticing the duality of the big arches and the three layers – snake, puma, condor. Everything felt really good and we were both smiling and chatting to each other.

It started to get a bit colder so I put on my jacket and laid down on the stones near the ceremony spot. After a while the Elder said it was time to go and he led us back to the lodge. On the way he stopped to pick some fresh eucalyptus for the temazcal. As we were walking the colours of the plants and grass were so sharp and you could see the plants breathing.

Back at the lodge I just sat on the grass and played with one of the cute little dogs.

Temazcal

After a while I went to my room and got changed into my bikini and a pair of shorts – this took a while as my movements were quite slow. Katy then took me to the Temazcal tent where the Elder told me to go inside and to the left. The floor of the tent round the outside was covered in the Eucalyptus branches he had bought earlier and there were also some hanging from the ceiling. Hot stones that had been burning in the fire were then placed in the pit in the middle of the tent and water was thrown over them – like a sauna. Once the flap was shut the tent was pitch black. The Elder sang and added water to the stones to keep the temperature rising. At first I was a bit cold as I decided to lay down on the ground but not for long. In the Temazcal tent I had some more emotional experiences but they ended with a strong resolve of what to do next.

At some point the Elder went out and got more hot stones to add to the pit. I sweated a lot and the feelings were pretty indescribable. Being in the dark, being so hot and listening to the Elder sing just all came together into an amazing feeling.

After a long while I felt it was time I left. Leaving the tent is like a rebirth.

I got changed into some warmer clothes and Katy bought me a delicious hot soup and chamomile tea. The soup was just what I needed as I hadn’t eaten all day – the San Pedro can make you feel a bit nauseous.

After I’d eaten we went outside and I found the little cat that lives at the lodge so I cuddled it as we stood by the fire watching the stars. We sat by the fire for a bit before heading to bed.

I was really glad Katy took the San Pedro too as I had someone to share the experience with. We hugged goodnight and I went to bed. I felt tired but very relaxed and calm.

Yesterday was mainly spent on a bus journey from Arequipa to Cuzco which took around 12 hours including a viewpoint stop and a stop for lunch. This was the view from the viewpoint.

When we arrived in Cuzco the bus couldn’t go into the centre as it’s a protected area so Peruhop provided us all with taxis to our accommodation. My taxi went the wrong way and ended up having to drive backwards down a very narrow street. In the end I just got out and walked as it seemed quicker and safer.

In the evening I just had a stroll around the main square which looks really pretty at night as they light up all the buildings.

Today I got up and just wandered around the city. My hotel is right next to the main square so I went there first. There was some sort of parade and ceremony going on, including the raising of the Peruvian flag.

The rainbow coloured flag to the right of the Peruvian flag is not about gay rights. It represents the four quarters of the Inca empire.

After watching the parade for a bit I went into the Cathedral. You’re not allowed to take photos inside but almost all the wall space is covered in paintings. One of the paintings is a replica of Da Vinci’s Last supper and it has a guinea pig on one of the plates.

I then walked up to the San Blas district, this is a very arty area and also has a church.

There is also a great viewpoint here where you can get some nice views of the city.

On the way down I stopped off at Plaza de Nazarenes where they have some really nice alpaca wool shops.

I also saw the infamous 12 sided stone in the wall and managed to spot the puma and the snake as well. These stones are all part of a wall known as Hatun Rumiyoc, which makes up the outside of the current Archbishop’s Palace.

I walked up to another area and this place had some great views of the city and main square – although you had to climb up on the wall to take the photos.

Then it was time for lunch so I stopped in a little side street and had some vegetable quiona risotto.

After lunch I walked to San Francisco square where there is another church and a really old archway.

It was then back to the main square where I visited Iglesia de la Compañia de Jesus. This church has the highest alter in Peru at 21m high and 12m wide. It is made of wood and covered entirely in gold leaf. Again though, no photos allowed.

You could climb up to the top of the church, which I did, and the views across the square were really nice.

As I finished in the church and went outside it was pouring with rain so I walked around the main square and looked at the shops until the rain stopped.

In the evening I met up with Alice for some dinner – we went to a great restaurant called Rucula and the food was really fresh and delicious.

I didn’t set the alarm this morning but I still woke up fairly early. After calling Nicola to wish her a happy birthday I had a leisurely breakfast.

I then went to Mundo Alpaca where I had a private tour as there were no other visitors when I arrived. The guide explained about the alpacas and llamas and also the wild versions- the guanacos and the vicunas. I felt the different types of wool and the guide explained how often the alpacas and llamas were sheared and also how they would catch and shear the vicunas whilst still protecting the species. The baby alpaca wool was so soft.

I also got to feed the alpacas and llamas that they had at the small farm. The larger farm where they get all the wool from is in Puno.

I then bought some items in the shop, you could feel the quality if the wool and they had a sale on. I headed back to the hotel and relaxed for a bit on their sun terrace.

I then met up with Mara for a late lunch at a great restaurant called Zig Zag. The food was delicious.

After lunch we had a wander round some of tbe handicraft shops. Mara was leaving later in that afternoon to go to Cusco so we said goodbye.

I wanted to visit the cathedral but you can’t go in with shorts so I went back to the hotel to put longer trousers on.

I visited the chocolate factory on the way home and bought some of their dark chocolate- I haven’t tried it yet but it looks good.

My clean laundry arrived around 7pm so I packed my case ready to go to Cusco tomorrow.

After goung to bed early yesterday I slept really well until about 1am and then kept tossing and turning. The alarm went off at 4am, we packed our bags, ate some snacks and set off on the uphill climb around 5am. The first 30 minutes of the trek was a shortcut, basically quite a steep uphill climb. After that we joined the main trekking route which was actually still pretty steep.

We all had headtorches on and it was quite surreal walking up in the dark. Around 6am the sun rose and it began to get light and easier to see.

Here are some photos I took in the early part of the morning. Stopping to take photos was a good excuse to stop and get my breath back!

As we walked along the main path we all started to go at our own pace. At one point I was completely on my own which was a great feeling, with some of the group up ahead and some behind. It felt like I was the only person on the mountain.

Unfortunately after around 45mins of climbing Marlene felt really sick and couldn’t catch her breath. Luckily Mina was with her and helped her until they found Raquel. She then sorted out a donkey to take Marlene to the top. As we climbed up we had to stop a few times to let the donkeys past.

These are some of the views of the canyon as we climbed up. The paths were rocky, and stoney like yesterday. I preferred it when there were no steps as it was easier to climb then.

The climb is 6km straight up but as you zig zag up the path you actually walk around 8-10km. It took me around 3 hours to get to the top and I really felt it – more the lack of oxygen but my legs were also pretty tired. Probably the hardest climb I’ve done on this trip.

But I made it to the top and it was a fantastic view.

Once we were at the top we then had to walk around another 2km to the town of Cabanaconde where we had a well deserved breakfast.

At Cabanaconde we caught the bus for the drive back home but on the way we stopped at several places.

The first stop was a viewpoint so you could look out over the pre-inca terraces which are used for agricultural purposes. They look a bit like rice fields.

At this stop thete was a little house / shop and a pet llama who was very friendly and also posed for a photo.

After this we continued driving towards Chivay, stopping off at La Calera hot springs. The temperature of some of the springs was almost too hot and you couldn’t stay in some of them for too long – I think one was around 40 degrees. Apart from Marlene, who wasn’t feeling great, and Mina, who had a wound on her foot, we all got in.

It was a good way to relax after all that walking.

Then it was a short bus ride into the town of Chivay where we stopped for a lovely buffet lunch, I ate loads of vegetables and tried 3 different deserts.

The next stop was at around 4,900m to get a view of the volcanos in the area. You could definitely feel the lack of oxygen here, and it was also pretty chilly. There were a lot of offerings to Pachamama in this area as the mountains and volcanos are regarded as sacred places where the mountain gods live.

The very last stop on the way down was at the national reserve of Pampa Cañahuas where you can see vicuña (wild llama), llama and alpacas.

It was then a 2 hour journey back to Arequipa. On the way though some of the scenery was stunning – we missed it on the way up as it was too dark. This photo I took below looks like someone just painted the mountains.

After saying our goodbyes I went back to the hostel and had a lovely shower.

In the evening I met up with Mara and we went to Las Gringas for some delicious pizza!