Hi everyone,
well I did warn you all that I'd probably be a little late with this post but finally here it is!
I arrived back in Scotland on Thursday and made it to Orkney, after a lot of faffing about, on Sunday.
However when I left you guys I was still in Cusco so I'd better start back there.
After writing my last post I pretty much returned to the hostel and stayed in for the rest of the day. The only exception was when me and the new lass in my room ventured out in the rain for Chinese food. When we got back we found someone elses stuff in the room and after a tiny bit of suspicious snooping I discovered it belonged to my friend Jimena, who reappearred an hour or so later.
We ended up talking late into the night about recent goings on at VC, what had changed what people had been up to, and then what I'd been doing since I'd left. It was really great to be able to catch up again after being away for some time.
The following morning I ventured out to do my present shopping. I'd intentionally left it until the last minute so I didn't have to carry extra stuff right round Peru, and ended up spending the entire morning bargaining down prices and making deals with the local store owners - I think I actually did quite well and was really glad I managed the whole thing without using English once!
I stopped back at the hostel after to drop everything off before Jimena and I went up to the Meeting Place - my favourite Cusco café - to meet up with our friend Mike, the frog researcher who had been at VC earlier on in my trip.
We hung out and talked for a few hours before parting ways. Jimena had a meeting to go to and Mike had to get across town too. So I walked back to the hostel but not before stopping by one of the many cobblers on the street and ordering a new pair of boots. It's actually pretty cool because you can pick the style, main colour and pattern colours to make up a new pair of shoes and they can have them ready within 24 hours!
That evening Jimena returned and we decided to head out for a proper final dinner. We invited Carlos, VC's science co-ordinator who was in town, and surprisingly he invited all the other staff who'd been at the same meeting. We all went to La Bodega's - a really nice Italian place and split I think four big pizzas between the group of eleven. It was a nice evening and another good opportunity to work on my Spanish.
Tuesday dawned and the weather was looking pretty promising - considering the lightening the night before I'd been a bit concerned about my flights that day. I stopped by the internet café to print out my boarding passes and check in but for some reason it wouldn't let me. Instead I decided I would just get to the airport early and sort everything out there.
I made lunch out of some spare food in a 'leftovers' box at the hostel and my shoes arrived round the same time - they were a little brighter than expected but they look pretty cool.
Around 4pm I said my goodbyes and left for the airport. When I arrived the woman at check-in offered to put me on an earlier flight so I actually only had about an hour to wait for my flight to Lima - perfect! From there I had a few hours to wait before my overnight flight to Miami but I spent most of it sitting writing and people watching.
I arrived in Miami around 7am after an uneventful flight but sat around the airport for a couple of hours before deciding to venture outside. I managed to get a bus down to Miami Beach then walked along the shore all the way to South Beach where I hung out for a while making the most of the sun. I ate the rest of my breakfast Subway sandwich for lunch and grabbed an ice coffee before setting off on my main mission in Miami - to find Miami Ink tattoo studio. It took me some time but I did find it and with lack of a better reason, wandered it to ask for directions back to the bus stop. The studio looked awesome inside although I didn't see any of it's well known members of staff around - maybe 1pm was a little early for them to be out and about!
Next I caught another bus to downtown Miami but I couldn't really figure out where I was going so eventually gave up on that little excursion and caught the metro back to the airport - a nice little adventure anyway, and much better than hanging around in the airport for twelve hour!
Around 8pm my flight left for Barcelona. I was a bit concerned since it left almost an hour late but luckily the pilot made up a lot of time and in the finish we were only ten minutes late. However it did mean quite a rush to get to my following flight as I had to change terminal by means of a ten minute bus ride, and I didn't have a very long layover in the first place. I arrived at the gate for my Edinburgh flight just as everyone was queuing up to board! Luckily that flight was a little late too.
Once in Edinburgh it was another made dash to try and see my friend Courtney before she had to get to uni. Fortunately I managed to convince her to have a friend record her lecture so she could hang out instead - I know, such a bad influence! We hung out at her flat for a couple of hours where she made me my first proper cup of tea in months and let me use her shower - what a lifesaver!!
It was absolutely freezing in Edinburgh and there was snow on the ground so we made sure to be doubly wrapped up warm before heading to the train station, though not before stopping by her local pub for an amazing veggie panini. The train to Aberdeen took around three hours but the other half was waiting on the platform for me which was great. After being away almost five months it was so good to see him again.
We got dinner in the food court of the main mall in Aberdeen before heading to our hotel for the night - apparently Aberdeen only has one hostel and it was almost the same price as a proper hotel room with all the trimmings!
Friday was another big day as I was getting my new tattoo. We wandered down to the studio around 9am and spent the whole morning in there. It took about three hours and I still need to go back to get the shading and colouring done but it looks awesome so far!
The afternoon was mostly spent trying not to do too much, stocking up on some things from the shops and trying out a different place within the food court - one thing's for sure they have plenty of choice in there anyway.
On Saturday morning we got all our stuff together but as we were checking out we discovered that our boat back up to Orkney wasn't going to be stopping by Orkney at all - due to the weather it was going directly from Aberdeen up to Shetland - typical.
We decided we'd have to try and get up to Thurso to catch the short crossing ferry from there but it was too late to make the midday train. Instead we were stuck hanging around the centre with our bags until 3.30pm. Finally we got the train but had to change in Inverness and the Inverness to Thurso stretch took forever. It stopped off in every tiny little village so we didn't make it to Thurso until around 10.30pm. Luckily our friends had a spare room and put us up for a night and we successfully got the boat home on Sunday morning.
So that's the trip at an end. I had the most amazing time, saw so many amazing sites, met some wonderful and inspiring people and learnt a great deal. Now though, despite the typical Scottish weather, it's just nice to be home.
Before I go here are some last minute tips if you find yourself travelling in Peru:
Do expect to wait an age for things like buses - Peruvian time is a very different concept to ours.
Don't take pictures with the 'traditional' women - unless you're happy paying for it.
Do eat the menu's in the local diners - it's good food and super cheap (not advised for veggies).
Don't pay the first price for things in the market - bartering is a way of life in Peru.
Do go to Machu Picchu - despite the hype it's still one of the most amazing sights you can see!
Don't push yourself too hard when you first get to high altitude - it does have a serious effect.
Do work on your Spanish before you go - it's both necessary and worth it to be able to talk to the locals.
Well I guess this will be my last post for a while but I already have some new travel plans in the pipeline so maybe it won't be too long until you here from me again on here. In the mean time I will be back to doing my knitting so if you want to keep hearing about what I'm up to check out my facebook page at:
https://www.facebook.com/driftinggipsyswoolcraft
In the mean time, if you're planning your own worldly adventure don't hesitate to contact me, maybe I can help out or give you some tips on how to make the most of your trip.
Until next time, Bye for now!
well I did warn you all that I'd probably be a little late with this post but finally here it is!
I arrived back in Scotland on Thursday and made it to Orkney, after a lot of faffing about, on Sunday.
However when I left you guys I was still in Cusco so I'd better start back there.
After writing my last post I pretty much returned to the hostel and stayed in for the rest of the day. The only exception was when me and the new lass in my room ventured out in the rain for Chinese food. When we got back we found someone elses stuff in the room and after a tiny bit of suspicious snooping I discovered it belonged to my friend Jimena, who reappearred an hour or so later.
We ended up talking late into the night about recent goings on at VC, what had changed what people had been up to, and then what I'd been doing since I'd left. It was really great to be able to catch up again after being away for some time.
The following morning I ventured out to do my present shopping. I'd intentionally left it until the last minute so I didn't have to carry extra stuff right round Peru, and ended up spending the entire morning bargaining down prices and making deals with the local store owners - I think I actually did quite well and was really glad I managed the whole thing without using English once!
I stopped back at the hostel after to drop everything off before Jimena and I went up to the Meeting Place - my favourite Cusco café - to meet up with our friend Mike, the frog researcher who had been at VC earlier on in my trip.
We hung out and talked for a few hours before parting ways. Jimena had a meeting to go to and Mike had to get across town too. So I walked back to the hostel but not before stopping by one of the many cobblers on the street and ordering a new pair of boots. It's actually pretty cool because you can pick the style, main colour and pattern colours to make up a new pair of shoes and they can have them ready within 24 hours!
 |
| My favourite café in Cusco |
That evening Jimena returned and we decided to head out for a proper final dinner. We invited Carlos, VC's science co-ordinator who was in town, and surprisingly he invited all the other staff who'd been at the same meeting. We all went to La Bodega's - a really nice Italian place and split I think four big pizzas between the group of eleven. It was a nice evening and another good opportunity to work on my Spanish.
Tuesday dawned and the weather was looking pretty promising - considering the lightening the night before I'd been a bit concerned about my flights that day. I stopped by the internet café to print out my boarding passes and check in but for some reason it wouldn't let me. Instead I decided I would just get to the airport early and sort everything out there.
I made lunch out of some spare food in a 'leftovers' box at the hostel and my shoes arrived round the same time - they were a little brighter than expected but they look pretty cool.
 |
| New shoes - something a little different |
Around 4pm I said my goodbyes and left for the airport. When I arrived the woman at check-in offered to put me on an earlier flight so I actually only had about an hour to wait for my flight to Lima - perfect! From there I had a few hours to wait before my overnight flight to Miami but I spent most of it sitting writing and people watching.
I arrived in Miami around 7am after an uneventful flight but sat around the airport for a couple of hours before deciding to venture outside. I managed to get a bus down to Miami Beach then walked along the shore all the way to South Beach where I hung out for a while making the most of the sun. I ate the rest of my breakfast Subway sandwich for lunch and grabbed an ice coffee before setting off on my main mission in Miami - to find Miami Ink tattoo studio. It took me some time but I did find it and with lack of a better reason, wandered it to ask for directions back to the bus stop. The studio looked awesome inside although I didn't see any of it's well known members of staff around - maybe 1pm was a little early for them to be out and about!
Next I caught another bus to downtown Miami but I couldn't really figure out where I was going so eventually gave up on that little excursion and caught the metro back to the airport - a nice little adventure anyway, and much better than hanging around in the airport for twelve hour!
 |
| sneaky pic of Miami Ink tattoo studio! |
Around 8pm my flight left for Barcelona. I was a bit concerned since it left almost an hour late but luckily the pilot made up a lot of time and in the finish we were only ten minutes late. However it did mean quite a rush to get to my following flight as I had to change terminal by means of a ten minute bus ride, and I didn't have a very long layover in the first place. I arrived at the gate for my Edinburgh flight just as everyone was queuing up to board! Luckily that flight was a little late too.
Once in Edinburgh it was another made dash to try and see my friend Courtney before she had to get to uni. Fortunately I managed to convince her to have a friend record her lecture so she could hang out instead - I know, such a bad influence! We hung out at her flat for a couple of hours where she made me my first proper cup of tea in months and let me use her shower - what a lifesaver!!
It was absolutely freezing in Edinburgh and there was snow on the ground so we made sure to be doubly wrapped up warm before heading to the train station, though not before stopping by her local pub for an amazing veggie panini. The train to Aberdeen took around three hours but the other half was waiting on the platform for me which was great. After being away almost five months it was so good to see him again.
We got dinner in the food court of the main mall in Aberdeen before heading to our hotel for the night - apparently Aberdeen only has one hostel and it was almost the same price as a proper hotel room with all the trimmings!
 |
| food stop in Edinburgh - nom! |
Friday was another big day as I was getting my new tattoo. We wandered down to the studio around 9am and spent the whole morning in there. It took about three hours and I still need to go back to get the shading and colouring done but it looks awesome so far!
The afternoon was mostly spent trying not to do too much, stocking up on some things from the shops and trying out a different place within the food court - one thing's for sure they have plenty of choice in there anyway.
 |
| New tattoo - in progress |
We decided we'd have to try and get up to Thurso to catch the short crossing ferry from there but it was too late to make the midday train. Instead we were stuck hanging around the centre with our bags until 3.30pm. Finally we got the train but had to change in Inverness and the Inverness to Thurso stretch took forever. It stopped off in every tiny little village so we didn't make it to Thurso until around 10.30pm. Luckily our friends had a spare room and put us up for a night and we successfully got the boat home on Sunday morning.
 |
| The final leg |
So that's the trip at an end. I had the most amazing time, saw so many amazing sites, met some wonderful and inspiring people and learnt a great deal. Now though, despite the typical Scottish weather, it's just nice to be home.
Before I go here are some last minute tips if you find yourself travelling in Peru:
Do expect to wait an age for things like buses - Peruvian time is a very different concept to ours.
Don't take pictures with the 'traditional' women - unless you're happy paying for it.
Do eat the menu's in the local diners - it's good food and super cheap (not advised for veggies).
Don't pay the first price for things in the market - bartering is a way of life in Peru.
Do go to Machu Picchu - despite the hype it's still one of the most amazing sights you can see!
Don't push yourself too hard when you first get to high altitude - it does have a serious effect.
Do work on your Spanish before you go - it's both necessary and worth it to be able to talk to the locals.
 |
| Peru - what an adventure! |
Well I guess this will be my last post for a while but I already have some new travel plans in the pipeline so maybe it won't be too long until you here from me again on here. In the mean time I will be back to doing my knitting so if you want to keep hearing about what I'm up to check out my facebook page at:
https://www.facebook.com/driftinggipsyswoolcraft
In the mean time, if you're planning your own worldly adventure don't hesitate to contact me, maybe I can help out or give you some tips on how to make the most of your trip.
Until next time, Bye for now!
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