Some observations from several days ago:
They had lots of 3 wheeled taxis in Puno, some human powered and some with engines--are actually motorcycles with 2 seats behind. They are reall cute and have different paint jobs than they had in Nepal. If they have an engine they are called tuk tuks. This picture is our bicycle taxi that we took to the ferry on Lake Titicaca.
Floating island 
Typical reed boat
our homestay village
Our "mom" and the clay stove she cooks on
On our way out of Puno, we saw what the poor locals live in. If you can imagine a steep hill with each building partially built over the one below then think of adobe boxes. It looked like a terrible place to live, especially in hot weather. If I had a choice, I would go for the hard life on the islands with their farms, animals, and cooking with wood over a little stove in a little kitchen. At least you would have the outdoors to be in.In the city I'm sure a lot of them spend their days sitting on hot street corners selling something.
The day after arriving in Cusco, we had to leave our suitcases behind and just take what we needed for 5 days. We could leave any extra stuff not needed on the hike at the hotel in Ollaytantambo. It would then be picked up on the way back from the trek. On the way we visited Sacsayhuam (called Sexy Woman by gringos). It is a huge Inca ruin that has only 20% of the stone left. It was used as quarry for colonial houses. tI took nearly 100 years to build and some of the limestone blocks weigh as much as 300 lbs. The blocks are put together without mortar. They have one concave side and one convex so that they mesh. The join between the upper and lower stones is accomplished by wiggling them back and forth on sand. They trim off the high points. Think of the dentist checking your bite then grinding down the high points.We continued on to the Sacred Valley. They have only a small area on the bottom of the valley so use the slopes for their crops. But they don't do it like in Bhutan or Nepal with their many terraces. Here the plots are on a 20 degree slope which looks very hard to work on. They rotate crops eg. potatoes or grains.
Our next stop was at an animal sanctuary. We had heard so much about their puma and it is exactly the same as our cougar. The male is being released soon but not the 2 females. They were used in some nightclub act and given lots of drugs. They are totally dependent on humans so can't be released back into the wild. Pumas are highly respected here and are only hunted by the occasional bad person. We were told that if a small child was minding the family's sheep or llamas, the puma would go for one of the animals. Also there were three condors. They released them from their cages after we were all inside the fenced and roofed compound. Rob got the best picture of them flying straight at us! I was on telephoto so missed the opportunity. Their wing span is 3.3 m and they eat 4 kg of meat each day.
Our next stop was a weaving/knitting cooperative that is supported by G adventures. We all spent some money as the quality was good and they had some interesting things that noone else makes. Some of you will have to wait until Christmas to see them! We saw the process from spinning to washing to dying the wool.The women knit so fast! And they even knit while walking around. No wasted moments for sure.
We had lunch along the way then were delivered to our hotel in Ollantaytambo -- this is the gateway to the Inca Trail. From here you catch a train to the actual start. After this we climbed another Inca site -- lots of wide stone steps separated by flat areas. As we progressed up the site, our guide stopped here and there to explain things. I was starting to feel funny so decided to go down. Good thing Samara came with me and good thing some instinct told me to back up to a wall on one of the flat spots because I fainted. Never, never have I done that before. Samara caught me and was helped by two others. It turned out I probably got food poisening at lunch, Good thing I wasn't on the steps or I could have been hurt. Sooo, that was the beginning of the worst case of diarrhea I've ever experienced. I went for almost 2 days without eating anything -- just trying to get electrolytes and water down. I saw a doctor in the morning and he said I was in 2nd degree dehydration. He offered an IV but I promised to drink 2.5 l per day. Needless to say, I couldn't do the hike which started that morning.
Rob had a problem in the night which again was probably related to lunch. He was in severe pain so our leader and Warren took him to the doctor. He was given an injection of three drugs to relax his bowel plus a pain killer so he got some sleep and felt fine in the morning. Poor Samara and Warren got little sleep with all the middle of the night action. So they went off on the hike, all three taking antibiotics. Not recommended normally but to be caught in the middle of the trail with no way out would be awful. So today they are on day 2 which is the really tough one. Hope the are doing OK!!!! I will see them again in two days at Machu Picchu.
Yesterday I dreaded the 2 hour bus ride to get back to Cusco. I took three Immodium and managed to get here without a disaster. I saw the Gadventures doctor here and he gave me a different antibiotic plus something to thicken things up plus something for parasites (because of the homestay). He was very good plus very good looking! I'm finally on the mend today and have been having something to eat. Tomorrow Gabriella and I head up to Aguas Calientes which is the town just below Machu Picchu.Then the next day we meet the others at the refuge.
I'm sorry to have missed the Inca Trail but am philosophical about it all. More news after I see the kids again.
Warren and Rob in their bike taxi.
Sunday, Sept ??? ---I've lost track of the days.
Today Gabriella and I had a two hour bus ride and then a 1 1/2 train ride. Since I was still having problems every two hours I decided to take 2 more Immodium at 4 am. The doctor doesn't like that stuff -- says the bugs need to come out. I agree, but after 3 days of diarrhea and hardly eating anything I figure it's all gone. So it worked in more ways than one. My bowels aren't distressed anymore and I felt normal for the first time.
The bus ride was just a repeat of the other day, only reverse direction. We went from Cusco to Ollantaytambo. This time I was interested in looking at the scenery! The Andes look strange with the bare hills below as we are so used to trees. Then it was a train ride. On the way Gabriella pointed out where the kids had started their hike. Aguas Calientes was our destination. It's just for tourists with many, many craft stalls and restaurants. After lunch we had a rest as the sun was too hot to hike. Big mistake! We should have gone out soon after as by leaving at 3 pm the weather had changed. We had an hour long hike along the railway then 20 minutes into a botanical garden with two waterfalls. Well worth the walk, but we got caught in a major downpour for the whole way back! So, Shannon, the jacket kept me dry from the rain and didn't get sweaty inside and we were really hoofing it to get back. And I was so pleased to have my fit body back!! We are at 6000 feet here so no problem after being at 11 and 12,000.
I should explain who Gabriella is. She is a CEO (Chief Experience Officer) with Gadventures. She's been at the job since March and is a natural for it. She's had a rich varied life, speaks 5 languages and has an awesome personality. Plus she's very attractive --- is a native born Peruvian. Her job is to make life easy for us. Everywhere we go we also have a local guide which is why she's been with me while the kids are on the trail. She was a gem while I was sick. So nice to be looked after and not have to fend for myself.
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