Wednesday 25 September 2013

23/09/2013Stage 31 Abancay Limotambo

2013-09-23 click on date formore photo's
23/09/2013Stage 31 Abancay Limotambo by malcandmarjetpatterson at Garmin Connect - Details by bus
23/09/2013 Abancay - Limotambo part 2 by malcandmarjetpatterson at Garmin Connect - Details  by bicycle

23/09/2013 Stage 31 Abancay – Limatambo
We had a very relaxing start to the day with a cup of coffee in the hotel and then a 37km bus ride to just shy of 4000 meters. Travelling with the bikes on the bus seems to be no problem at all. A lot easier than in the UK it would seem. We were met with a great deal of interest by the locals who tested the weight of every bag and bike and were suitably impressed. Then followed another long downhill to less than 1900 meters and it got gradually warmer and warmer until we crossed the bridge and an 800 meter ascent started. Once again the scenery was stunning and luckily the climb was partly in the shade which made it a little easier.

Tomorrow we will be heading for Cusco where we will be taking some time off from cycling. We want to go to Machu Pichu hopefully on a trek or if that is not possible by train. We'll see. In case you all think that cycling about in South America is one big paradise I'll just present you with a few less appealing facts!

Sometimes it gets unbearably hot. Malcolm especially finds the heat hard to deal with. When we descent below 3500 meters we get attacked by little black midges the minute we stop (or if I cycle too slow). They don't appear to sting but leave long trails of extremely itchy bumps that have to be scratched until you draw blood. We did bring a bottle of deet insect repellent but somehow it emptied itself inside Malc's bag. We bought another bottle locally but despite diligent applications the midges take no notice! Sometimes it is depressing to see the extremely poor living standards ( at least in the view of a European) children who often seem to be working in one way or another, older siblings in charge of younger ones. It all seems a very different world to back home. Because we mostly travel by bike it forces us to stop in very remote places. I would not miss the experience for the world but it does mean you eat what the locals eat and sleep as the locals do. At times that is not comfortable. Finding chicken feet in the bottom of your bowl of soup when you are hunting for a bit of meat is not nice! We can not quite work out why in a country that seems to have an abundance of wonderful vegetables you rarely get served one on a plate. Extremely grubby blankets in filthy rooms,no running water,toilets that make you run for a bush if only you could. It is all part of the picture! I don't mean this to sound depressing. As you know from the rest of the blogs we are having the most amazing time. I keep blabbing on about the scenery and today was another stunningly beautiful day and we are just so glad to have this opportunity to experience it all.


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