So after a reasonably restful sleep overnight we got into exploring Madrid early – eager to use the remainder of the time available on our 24hr Madrid Vision card (we had until about 2pm) – first on the list was a coffee at one of the many local cafe’s, then onto the Royal Palace for a tour. The Royal Palace was spectacular. We we allowed access to about 50 of the 2,800 rooms in the palace. We started in the royal armory where armor that had been worn by or gifted to the kings of Spain was housed. This was a very interesting exhibition – you could even see how some of the kings had grown around the waist over time by the re-sizing of their armor ;). ...

We have now left South America behind us, and moved onto the European leg of our trip. Our flight from Buenos Aires to Madrid was with the Spanish Iberia airline - an 11 hour flight that was probably our worst yet… lucky us to get the worst one on a long flight. Based on our experience I would try to avoid flying with them again. The entertainment system was communal, no personal entertainment system that you seem to get on most other flights these days. The hostesses were not really interested, and the air conditioning was set to about 35c… even Laura was hot! ...

We have left Peru behind after a month of travel through the country – along the way making some great friendships. So onto Argentina it is. Day 1 – Meeting the Argentinean Pruscino’s We arrived in Buenos Aires, after what was definitely the best flight we have had yet – lots of room, a nice new plane, and not many passengers – to be greeted warmly by the Argentinian Pruscino’s (Laura’s distant relatives). ...

Our time in Peru has come to an end - we are moving on and leaving behind some awesome memories and great new friends. I thought it would be good to try and review and reflect on our time here in Peru, and ponder some of the highlights, and the lowlights of what we have seen (in some cases the highlights and lowlights run together). Initially landing in Lima we were a little concerned about what we had got ourselves into - the airport, as with many big cities is surrounded by poorer districts. So our first impression of Peru was a wild taxi ride through the slum areas of Lima. We both looked at each other and said - ¨This is what we wanted!¨. ...

From the comfort of Cuzco, we headed our on an AreoCondor flight to Puerto Maldonado in the Amazon Jungle. While being back close to sea level was a relief, the temperature had also increased considerably along with the humidity, and the number of mosquitoes - although, none of these were quite as bad as we had expected. After leaving the airport at Puerto Maldonado we were picked up by our Jungle Lodge transfer service - a Mercedes Benz bus without windows, and wooden seats with Jungle themes painted down the sides. The bus took us into Puerto Maldonado - a bit of a slum really, with not much there, and very dirty. Apparently the main mode of transport is the motorbike, with hundreds of these packing the dirty streets. While helmets did appear to be quite common, this was only the case for the drivers, with the passengers (often another 2 or 3 people) never seen to be wearing them. ...

We got off to a very early start this morning - 4.30am, breakfast at 5, and on the bus up to Machu Picchu at 5.30. The bus departs from the bus station in Aquas Calientes and heads down a narrow road into the jungle before crossing the river to begin the step and windy assent up the Machu Picchu mountain. Both Laura and I are not the best with heights, and buses driving along shear cliff faces is one thing we both battle for the isle seat on. Laura scored the window seat on the way up - were not certain if the partial daylight made the trip better or worse, but we made it to the top in one piece, although a there were a few nifty manuevers on the way up as two buses passed each other on the often very narrow track. ...

So we left Cuzco yesterday afternoon headed for Ollantaytambo, a small rural town which is part of Cuzco province, and a couple of hours out of Cuzco city. On the way we passed through the sacred valley and visited the large markets in Pisac - again buying a few souvenirs. We then continued on to another small rural town where we had some local interaction. We were met at the local petrol station by a local (guide) on a push bike. We followed him through a number of back streets in our bus and eventually arrived at a local pottery factory. ...

So after another long bus ride across the Andean country side we arrived in Cuzco yesterday afternoon - and what a relief this was. The 7 hour bus ride across Peruvian highways that at times were as smooth as a bad gravel road was wearing thin - plus our butts were sore from sitting for so long ;). Cuzco really is the oasis we have been waiting for - its downtown region is really old and beautiful with a definite European feel. The icing on the cake for us is that we are sort of starting to feel better! ...

So we are back in Puno now (which is located on the shores of lake Titicaca) after leaving yesterday morning for our home-stay. We are both felling 100% on what we have been and hopefully the worst is behind us. We still need to be a little careful with our stomachs as they are still a little tender, but generally much better than they have been over the past 3-4 days. ...

From Arequipa we headed to the Colca Canyon - passing through altitudes of almost 5,000m on the way. When you get off the bus at these altitudes, you have to take it very slowly! Even very slow walking causes your head to spin and heart to thump. I thought it was convenient that they had roadside markets in places like this. Unknowing tourists such as ourselves jump off the bus in the high altitude, dizzy due to lack of oxygen, and purchase anything that is going before making it back to the bus to recover. ...