Another update from the road...

I successfully navigated my way out of Ecuador and into Chile, which turned out to be a very friendly country. I didn't have a lot of time in Chile (hope to get back there someday to see the south, climb some mountains, maybe do some kayaking), so stuck close to Santiago, but still managed to get in a couple of hikes.

The first was in the foothills of the Andes (Cajon del Maipo area). I stayed at a charming 100-year-old inn in San Alfonso and caught what I thought was the early bus to Banos Morales to hike to a glacier, but was informed once on it that it only went partway (I'd been earlier misinformed about the bus time, it turns out!). The driver dropped me at a police checkpoint, where the guard suggested I hitchhike to Banos.

So I started walking...and was soon picked up by the oldest VW beetle I've ever seen. It had black daisy cutouts patching up the roof inside, which seemed absolutely appropriate. Very fun. Broke down twice on the hills and helped push; the second time they suggested that I catch another ride, and up pulled a shiny new 4x4 going all the way to Banos. Perfect timing. So I got there intact and had a lovely walk to the glacier. Met a couple of triathlete mountaineers from Holland on the road as I was leaving, and we all caught a cement truck back down to town.

Also went to Valparaiso, which is a tumbling, colorful cascade of a city with constant views of the ocean. Getting lost in the winding hillside streets was great fun. Caught an early bus back to Santiago and managed to just make my plane for Lima (spent the morning sorting out my Cuzco tickets -- some of you may remember the little issue with the airline going out of business?), which was a loud, dirty shock of a city after Santiago. Of course, I stayed in el Centro, which may have been a mistake!

One night in Lima and an early flight to Cuzco, where I spent the day peeking inside every museum in the vicinity (or so it seemed), then packed my things and (another early morning!) headed off for a four-day hike along the Inca Trail for Machu Picchu. I got incredibly lucky and had a great group: two funny Aussies, six friendly Norwegians, and a really well-informed and interesting guide. It being the rainy season, things got a bit damp occasionally, but the food was great, the tents were dry, and the sun shone and mist cleared at all the right moments. Day three was especially magical -- we'd climbed the two hardest peaks and felt completely justified just relaxing and enjoying the fantastic scenery.

Am now back in Cuzco relaxing and catching up (e-mail, journal)...walked about 22km yesterday to see the surrounding ruins, which made for a nice day. Hid under an overhang at one of the ruins (to the great delight of passing tourists) during the heaviest of the afternoon rain, otherwise the weather was cooperative. I've met a Scottish couple who've been on the road for 18 months, and they've been raving to me about Thailand, which is next for me, so I'm getting excited! Although I'll miss feeling semi-proficient at getting myself around in a foreign language - I can actually carry on rudimentary conversations now (although it's sometimes useful to just not understand what that man is saying to me - *grin*).

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