The Wheels on the Bus go Round and Round...

...Round and round, round and round...!

The past week has seen us put in a lot of miles on buses (at least 800 miles, probably more) as well as time (8 hours from the Ecuadorian rainforest to Guyaquil, then 25 hours over the border to Peruvian capital Lima, then another 20 hours to Cusco)! That has given us the chance to see very varied landscapes up close, which air travel doesn´t permit. The most noticeable difference was in travelling from central Ecuador down to Lima... the lush rainforests changed to barren desert country. Although we were following a coastal road for much of that journey, there was virtually no vegetation or habitation. Other than some messages written on the slopes in stones, there was little respite from the moon-like landscape of sand and rock. It was therefore a welcome relief to travel back to higher altitudes on the way to Cusco, seeing local inhabitants and being surrounded by red-tiled roofs, green tree-covered slopes and white snow-capped peaks.

We are now settled in the ancient capital of the Inca Empire for the next week, using the time for more spanish study, volunteering and adjustment to the altitude (3310m), before our trip to the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu!