Road to Cusco

Saturday, October 8th we travelled from Puno to Cusco. A 7 1/2 hour bus ride with the promise of one stop at the top of the pass. We arrived at the bus terminal in Puno at 8am, where we were told to purchase a few snacks and beverages for the trip.
A bottle of water, a bag of cheese crackers and a container of Pringles chips each and we were ready to board the bus. Then we came upon the oldest looking woman I have every seen. Please let us take a picture. For a few soles she agreed.

Quickly we had to catch up to the group to board the bus. A double decker with very comfortable seats and leg rests. Perfect for the long road ahead of us.

The scenary through the countryside revealed various social classes. Very poor towns with dirt roads and very small homes made completely of adobe bricks. Animals roaming freely among the buildings. Most homes appeared to be no taller than 6 feet
if that. Children playing much to close to the side of the road as the bus past through at 55km/hr. Then there were the more affluent areas with larger homes with clay roofs. The outhouses were all made of blue medal. A few cars and bikes could be seen and the yards had green grass rather than the dirt/mud yards in the poor towns. We also past through 4 small cities.

There was always something to see. In one town the question was "could the bus really make it down the road without scratching the side of the bus?". The road looked hardly wide enough to pass through. Then there was the 1/2 ton truck with
stockracks. Two levels of sheep packed into it so tightly that the sheep could hardly move. Men hoeing their plot of land with an old fashion wooden hoe pulled by a cow. Plots of land fenced by adobe bricks. Women sitting outside of building trying to sell vegetables. Children working the fields.

We did get our one stop at the top of the pass. La Raya is 4335 meters above sea level. A five minute stop for a quick potty break and time to barter with the natives trying to sell llama knit wear, hats and wall hangings. Hardly enough time to even see everything they had to offer. Randy fixed his attention on a llama hat for me. Initially the women wrote 820 soles on her hand to which I immediately said no and started to walk away. Then it was 700. We were being called to the bus and she said 100. At 80 soles we had the hat and were jumping on the bus as it started to pull away. I am thinking that somewhere we had a communication breakdown. She couldn't have possibly meant 820 soles if she was prepared to sell it for 80 soles. FYI. 3 soles per 1 Canadian dollar. Anyways I now have a new, very warm hat.

For most of the last half of the drive it poured rain, so we both tried to get in some sleep. It does appear that we are a bit more tired than normal but all the literature indicates that in the high elevations you may find this.

We arrived in Cusco about 3:30pm and initially found the city very dirty, rough and poor looking, but after passing through the outskirts a beautiful city opened up before us. Cusco has become a popular tourist city over the last 20 years, with amazing churches, museums and culture. Lots of markets to be explored and restaurants to try.

Tonight we had are first albaca burger and fried yuccu. Fried Yuccu is a ball of mashed potatoes mixed with a variety of spices, then deep fried. The dinner was delicious.

After dinner it was back to the hotel. You wouldn't think we would be tired by 10 pm after riding on the bus all day, but we were. Tomorrow we would start exploring Cusco.