By the time the INCA Trail finished I had been in Peru for over 3 weeks and really it didn’t excite me. I just found that it was all touristy (I think you may have gathered that by now) It was time to move on but Cuzco doesn’t like people to leave. It puts a spell on you. It presents alcohol, late nights, no sleep, and altitude and if you choose the wrong restaurant, bad food. The day I was to leave I caught the whole lot and it hit hard with a vicious dose of 24 hr bug. It was one of those bugs you wished you had as a kid 10 minutes before you had to go to school and you’d say “Mum I can’t go to school today, not like this.” I tried to leave for the 10pm bus but just couldn’t lift my bags so I stayed another night and left in the morning.

I was originally going to catch a bus straight through the rest of Peru and make a b-line to Bolivia. But the previous day’s indiscretion leads me to catch a bus to Puno in the morning, Peru’s major city for Lake Titicaca. I was to catch it with Michael an American I meet during the Spanish course. He already had a ticket and his bus was full. He paid 40 soles (around $20AUD) I went around the bus station and found another company leaving the same time. I paid 20 soles, half the price. I walk up to Michael. “Yeah I found one. Half the price… This is not going to be good…”

I get on the bus and I’m greeted by some motivational speaker talking for 5 minutes than when he finished his speech he presents lollies to buy. I bought one… He was pretty convincing. The lolly didn’t live up to expectation. Throughout the next 4 hours during stops of towns in and out of the main road. More talkers came on it was like a political debate with all the candidates saying there lolly policy is the best. I didn’t get sucked in after the first promise.

Whilst the lolly sellers provided light entertainment, it was hours 4 through to 5 which provided the best entertainment. At the end of this experience I knew the adventures had truly begun for JP3. This bus experience took over from where India left off 2 years ago. An old lady comes onto the bus with this old colorful traditional bag. She stuffs the bag down the aisle and positions it next to my left shoulder. I could see the brim as it was slightly open. I saw some potatoes, which is fine she must be a farmer, than I saw some ribs. I thought this could be a good story but I need more evidence. I lean forward slightly and look intrigue from the corner of my eyes. She opens the bag a bit more. A stench comes over the bus. Similar to the smell from the Cuzco markets (look at Cuzco galleries) my body shifts slightly left and she takes out this huge stainless steel knife and WHACK! WHACK! The sound of Steel penetrating bone and flesh. That’s right this is happening. She is cutting up a carcass right next to my left shoulder whilst the bus is moving and selling it to the people on the back of the bus. Lets’ just remember that I was sick the previous day so this was making things very difficult. I was taking short breaths for the next hour until she left she made a roaring trade. I asked if I could take a photo and she said 5 soles for a meal, she didn’t understand me, gosh, my Spanish is crap.

Despite the sound of fresh carcass being cut up in my left ear still vividly in my head I thought. Yes! This is what I was looking for. In Peru just to test things out I was taking the more luxurious buses. Starting from the most expensive bus company, to eventually one of the worst and cheapest in Peru. It just seemed too easy, rather boring. Part of my traveling adventures previous years were the travel stories between destinations. They can be more entertaining than the destinations themselves. It was Peru’s way of saying give us another go. We can be so much more dirty so much more adventurous.

After 7 hours the bus reached the crest of the hill which looked down towards Puno. It looked everything that a shit hole should have. All shanty houses and not one dose of pretty anywhere. I stayed one night with Michael. Let me put this one out there. When you have two people who have been sick over the past few days don’t get a room with a private bathroom. It’s a tough night.

I made a morning trip to a group of floating islands which was ok. Interesting for about 10 minutes, truly touristy the residents live on reed islands that are positioned on the lake. They pay no taxes have been given a hospital, school all provided by the government. After that it was out of Puno and out of Peru. Caught the bus to Copacabana, Bolivia. I should go back to Peru in around August but coming from the north.

Copacabana is on the Bolivian side of Lake Titicaca the worlds highest navigable lake and is a small town yet to be bombarded by the tourist but by the hippies. It still does not have any ATM facilities for International cards. Since it is the rainy season in most of South America it rains most days and in the morning there was no point going out to the main attraction Isla Del Sol (The birthplace of the sun in INCA mythology). I could have stayed and waited for the weather to improve but La Paz and the rest of Bolivia was calling. Also I had to organize my Paraguayan Visa and LA Paz was the last place to do it. I ended up catching a bus with a bunch of students from Santa Cruz. I tried to ask “Where are you from?” but I forgot how to say it. (That is one of the easiest things to remember). On the bus we had a movie to entertain us. The movie was about a trainer for cock fighters and his romances with a younger lady. Welcome to Bolivia.

I arrived in La Paz late afternoon and after the first step I knew this was the place for me chaos and so much weird things to see and do. Bolivia is where Christmas and New Years will be had.