Sacred Valley of the Inca

First day full day of touring with the group. Comfortable bed, hot shower, nice breakfast, clean clothes and three staff preparing and organising your day - hey why am I on a bike roughing it?

Coach to the Sacred Valley of the Inca to see the sights.

Saw a guy on a BMW R1200GS with a huge Koala bear strapped to the windscreen. He overtook the bus and we never saw him again. Pity because I really wanted to speak with him. By the look of the bike and his personbal appearance he was doing it a lot rougher than I have been.

Had a good look around the villages and tourist sites.

Checked out Pisac and Ollantaytambo while following the river valley. We all would have liked more time to explore but the tour guide has a lot to cover.

The village of Tarabamba at the base of the Inca citadel of Pisac.

This fortress was never completed. Lots of evidence how they went about cutting and transporting the huge rocks.

Tarabama market place was hectic and caters for tourists.

Visit Peru and not eat a pet - yeah why not. Love to have the wood fired oven in my backyard.

Fluffy on a plate - yum.

Cuzco

What a great place for people interested in ancient cultures. Not so much the town itself, which is beautiful, but its location high in the Andes and being a central base to explore archaeolical sites.

The plaza Aramas and the surrounding streets have a more Indian feel and appearance to them than other cities in Peru.

Having now joined the tour group I am very comfortable. No need to think and the day is all planned out for you. Missing the bike and independance though.

The morning was free so everyone slept in late and took the time to recouperate from the long bus trip and the altitude sickness. Some are worse than others but everyone is affected to some degree. I feel fuzzy headed with a touch of headache but nothing to serious.

The afternoon was spent at Qorikancha and Saqsaywaman with a guide. His commentary was excellent. Apparently Cuzco was designed in the shape of a Puma by the Inca and this site is the

penis of that animal. The spanish in the 1500 arrived and destroyed or attempted to destroy the Inca temples and palaces before building their churches and public buildings on the same sites. Recent earthquake destroyed the church on this site and revealed this Inca temple. The stone walls show the advanced engineering feats that Inca were able to achieve.

The local council until a few years ago used the site as a resource to quarry stone. As you can imagine the citadel is somewhat depleted.

Arrive in Lima enroute to Cusco, Peru

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Sitting in an airport lounge at 2am waiting for a flight to Cuzco. My temporary papers arrived this morning. Purchased the tickets and was on my way.

I arrive at 7.50am and Shirley arrives at 9am. Hope to surprise her again.

The bike is still in Nicaragua at the hotel. A one way ticket cost the same as a return ticket so I will go back in ten days time and ride the bike to Panama then ship it on from there.

Added later -

Lima has a beautiful, huge and brand new airport. The staff are all young and helpful with a basic knowledge of English. My flight to Cuzco was delayed because the city being high in the Andes mountains was fogged in. My flight was cancelled and everyone was allocated another flight. Being one of the lucky ones to get an early flight, 8.30am, I didn´t have much longer to wait or so I thought.

Rang Shirley and her situation was much worse than mine. The only flight out of Arequipa was cancelled and the tour group had to source a bus and self fund a ten hour journey to Cuzco. My arrival will no longer be a surprise. She is not now expected to arrive until 7pm or later.

My 8.30am flight became a 9.30am flight. We dropped through the clouds to land but had to abort the landing when the weather closed in again. The pilot advised that we would circle the airfield for fifteen minutes and land if it cleared or return to Lima.

Catching glimpses of snow capped Andes mountains and rugged mountainous countryside when the clouds cleared from time to time. We landed eventually and five other planes landed after us making the small airport very busy for a short time. My luggage and that of others did not arrive however and those of us without luggage were told it would arrive on later planes. No advantage of getting onto an earlier flight after all.

Poor Shirley bouncing along mountain roads in a bus. Everyone in her tour group was suffering from altitude sickness. Fortunately Shirley only had a touch with symptoms of feeling fuzzy headed.

The hotel had hot water - that is something of note because for the last two weeks I have been having cold showers. In Gautamala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua the hotels don´t have hot water taps. No need it so hot and humid a cold shower is good but somehow I don´t feel clean without hot water.

Did some laundry and got myself tidied up.

Shirley group arrived late. They were exhausted and one needed the attention of a doctor. All starving hungry so we headed out for dinner. First red wine for quite a while and the meal was very tasty. Early to bed after a couple of wines and slept well. Great to be able to snuggle up to Shirley.

Leon and Granada, Nicaragua

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Leon near the pacific coast apparently is the intellectual and cultural centre for Nicaragua. It was a stronghold of the Sandanistas. Took about an hour and a half to get there. Nearly destroyed the bike getting there. What have I said in the past about taking directions from the locals? Do I ever learn? This road was a shocker but I got there.

The town itself was typical of those I have seen so far in Central America. The people were laid back and accepting of gringos. Young hippie types and back packers everywhere. The volcanoes are the attraction together with the wilderness/jungle. Snowboarding down a volcano is the go apparently. The boards only last two or three rides because of the abrasive nature of the ash.

Found my way to a lovely old colonial building that now houses a hostel. Asked for a private room but they were booked out. The only bed they had left was in a dorm room. The room was occupied by seven female German backpackers. I was worried about my personal habits, farting and the like, but there was no need for concern because the girls were absolute grubs. A couple of the girls were absolutely gorgeous. Wonder what they thought of me??? Ok I have a fair idea.

The bike once again was parked indoors. It was parked this time in the main bar. Had a lot of interest but everyone seemed to respect my property and only touched with permission. The discussion about which beer is better continued. I am falling on the side of Victoria.

Rode the twenty odd kilometres to the beach. Nothing special and the facilities pretty rough. Apparently there are luxury hotels littered all along the coast but I didn't see them.

Next morning rode to Granada via Masaya. The whole area is ringed with volcanoes. Granada is very similar to Leon except of course it is on Lake Nicaragua and not on the Pacific Ocean.

Nicaragua

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Border crossing a breeze and located high in the mountains at a pretty spot. The Honduran official was friendly and signed off on my vehicle. The Nicaraguan was good also. The charge was $7 USD but $3 USD change out of $10 given did not arrive before I was ushered through the boom gates.

Headed towards Managua the capital city.

Most of you now know that I got robbed at gun point later that afternoon.

The hotel where I am staying is run by a nice guy who has been helpful. His name is Alejandra Ortega ( Alex ). Married to a dutch woman who is currently in Holland looking after her elderly mother. Has the same surname as the President but not related.

Only seven rooms but they have been full every night with mostly tourists passing through for the night. Met a couple, more my age, who stayed three days and I went out to dinner with them each night. The same place, Saras, where two young women do a roaring trade having taken over from their mother. The food is reasonable and very cheap. The restaurant is actually the footpath. The cooking is done inside the house and it appears at your plastic table.

Managua has nothing to offer tourists. It is situated on a huge lake surrounded by volcanoes. The water is dead through pollution. It use to support a fishing industry but now nothing other than a dumb for sewerage and industrial waste. On the foreshore of the lake their are restaurants and cafes but I have never seen anyone in them.

The volcanoes and the lake could be beautiful if someone cared enough to tidy the place up and build some infrastructure.

Big discussions about which beer is better Victoria or Tona both 70c AUD per bottle. The local rum, Flor De Cana, is cheap also. Aged seven years??? Maybe.

Huge sprawl of shanties, commercial and residential areas. The people I have encountered are generally unfriendly and very dismissive - perhaps it is because I cannot speak the language other than a few words. All Alex´s friends, staff and associates have been good.

Even the Managuans suggested getting out of town to experience better towns like Granada and Leon. Took their advise.

Honduras

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Now this is one tough country. Poor but with the added dimension of having a hard frontier aura.
The border crossing took me most of the day. Motorcyclists from around the world who have been to the americas, in their blogs, share their experiences and border crossing are always a big issue because of the corruption. One motorcycle rider said that we owed it to one another to remain strong and resolute in not encouraging corruption. That was what I resolve to do.

The border was crowded with queues of truck and cars. Men standing around in groups smoking and talking. Food stalls set up on the roadway. Vendors of all sorts using the hard sell for their goods. Men and women claiming to be accredited officials with photo ID come running at you to assist you through the border.

I rode my bike to the first official looking building I could see. It turned out to be the El Salvadorian Immigration office. The woman was friendly and told me that I had missed the vehicle inspection and had to go back down the road about 150 metres to have the vehicle checked and papers signed off. Did that no problems. Returned and got the passport stamped.

Please pass into Honduras - good luck. Why did she say that?

Rode my bike past all the cars and trucks while dodging the photo ID wielding so called officials. Presented myself to a female immigration officer who took $3 USD, gave a receipt and stamped my passport. She instructed me to present my motorcycle for inspection to customs.

So far the whole process has taken forty minutes.

Why is every second or perhaps third person carrying a weapon. A shotgun seems to be the weapon of choice. Those machetes look grim and why here at the border.

The customs office is crowded with truck drivers, money changers and a mass of humanity. I get myself in a queue while all the time fending off ten, fifteen, twenty men touching me, shouting at me in an effort to drown others out. All of them wanting my business by assisting me through customs.

Standing resolute and ignoring these attempts to get my business I work my way to a window only to have it shut in my face. The person inside simply smiles, shuts the window and walks away to join a group of other customs officials in conversation. I stay at the front of the queue believing that after a break the official will return. The locals laugh at the gringo and say you must have someone to assist but no I am going to remain resolute.

An hour and a half has lapsed at customs and I am no further advanced. I move to another window. That official, a woman, leaves the window and walks out of the office to inspect a vehicle. Stepping in her path as politely as it can be done I get her attention. She does not understand a thing I am saying and I don't understand her. She indicates towards one of the photo bearing so called officials. Pretending to not understand I hand her my passport, drivers licence and registration papers with photocopies of each. She takes them and hands them to this shifty helper - now this scam artist has my documents.

He speaks very poor English and tells me that he will help BUT it is getting very late and the bank where all monies have to be paid and receipted is closing soon. I take the documents from him but he is wearing me like a skin and others of his ilk move away.

Another hour and it becomes even more obvious that I am not going to get through this border without paying well over the official amount. The officials seem to be working closely with others in relieving gringos from their money. Sorry fellow bikers but I paid $55 USD in total - don't know what the official amount is.

Got to the city of Choluteca just on dark and found a safe place for the night with the help of an English speaking pharmacist.

The hotel had huge steel gates that enclosed a court yard. Very glad of that because a huge crowd gathered on the streets to see the gringo and the grande auto. The owner let a few of his mates in to have a look and take photos. No water in the shower recess in the room not even cold - what the?? Watched the locals carry a bucket to an open concrete water trough. They scooped up water and carried it to their room. When in Rome?? Had a wash out of a bucket.

Restaurant next door convenient for a feed. Asked for menu in my limited Spanish. No menu. You have what is being cooked or go without. Ill have what is being cooked thanks. Turned out to be rice, black beans, white cheese and chicken drumstick. Coca Cola tossed in and it cost me the sum of $35 Limpera. That is a bit less than $2 AUD.

Intended to go to the capital city of Honduras but it meant a return trip of about 250 kilometres and out of my way. Headed towards the Nicaraguan border.

Temporary Travel Papers

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The closest Australian Embassy is in Mexico city. It is to them that I had to apply for temporary travel papers that would enable me to get to a city where there is an Australain Embassy. The choice was to either go home (Australia), Mexico city or Lima, Peru. Chose Lima because Shirley is there on the tour that I should be on.

Just been notified that the papers are in the hands of a courier and I should have them by Monday or Tuesday next week. Things are slow around here. Some of these countries do not have postal services and rely on private companies such FedEx, DHL, etc. to deliver mail for them. Nicaragua has its problems and that is just one.

The addresses are unique as well. Example is - house on left 350 metres south of Freedom Square, Barrio Qarth. My hotel has an addres that says it is 200 metres sur (south) of the TicuBus terminal.

Should the papers be delivered as promised I will fly to Lima, Peru the same day all being well.

Sought out a Logistics company and they are putting together a quote to freight the bike from Managua to Lima. The journey takes about a week. They truck their freight to Panama city and then ship it to a port city near Lima.

It was always my intention to ride to Panama and then arrange the shipping to Colombia myself but I cannot cross international borders without a passport. The temporary travel documents will allow me to cross the border at one airport only. It is going to cost several hundred dollars for this replacement passport hope the travel insurance covers it.

If the cost of freight is to high I will store the bike in Managua then fly to Lima and return with my new passport to resume my travels,

Missing out on Costa Rica and Panama would be a pain ( I might not yet ) but I have had a serious taste of Central America. Some of the experiences have been sweeter than others but that is what independant travel is all about.

My next post should be from Lima although I am riding my bike to day to Leon, on the Pacific ocean side, and then to Granada that is located on the shores of a volcanic lake - names of the lake escapes me for now - and they may prove to be interesting. Both places cater to tourists unlike the capital where I am one of a very few tourists on the streets.

El Salvador

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Gautamala was a couple of rungs down the poverty ladder compared to Mexico. El Salvador was a couple rungs back up. Someone obviously cares about the country because the infrastructure is just so much better. Admittedly the country is small and therefore less money has to be spent on maintaining roads etc.

Four laned highway all the way from the border to the capital of San Salvador. The highway actually had a shoulder instead of the 300 to 500mm drop off I have become accustomed to. The city as I rode into it caused me to think of it as a little - mini America. There are huge shopping malls and flash cars everywhere.

Riding into the older part of the city the scene changes altogether. Poverty and the living standards confronted and shocked me. There was a small city of shanties ( plastic, cardboard and corrugated iron homes) within a modern prosperous city.

Found a budget hotel recommended in the Lonely Planet guide called Hotel Australia. More of a guest house really. It was clean and the hostess friendly. The suburb was clean and well tended. Security everywhere and I suspect that only a small minority live as well as this so they protect what they have.

All the American chain stores are there like Sanbornes and McDonalds.

Stopped at a large park and lay on the grass to read. Group of English speaking students cane over and engaged me in conversation. Once again the bike was of interest because they don`t have large bikes here.

Found a Honda and Kawasaki motorcycle dealership. The owner spoke perfect English and we had coffee and we discussed travel. Asked him if could do a quick oil change for the bike but he said that the BMW oil filters had to be removed with a special tool and the filter was also unique -he did not have either. No point putting new oil in if the filter is not changed. He offered for me to go to his beach house in a little town I don`t remember the name. Would have been great but I was on a schedule to meet Shirley in Peru and the time lost in USA made things tight.

A few have a good life here most don`t.

Guatemala

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The border crossing into Guatamala from Mexico went smoothly. No bribes asked for and none given. The whole process only took fifteen minutes. I crossed at La Mesilla on the CA1 highway.

The Huehuetenango province has a majority Mayan Indian population. These people are more confident and communicative than the indigenous people in Mexico. The mountain sides have been terraced for horticulture and the food stalls are loaded with fruit and vegetables.

Worked my way through the mountains to the city of Quezaltenango and stayed the night.

Went down the mountain the next day to the Pacific side of the mountain range. It is a sugar cane industrial area. Trucks, cars and motorbikes abound and congest the roads. Got through all that and got to Guatemala city late afternoon.

Guatemala city deserves the description of being big, crowded, dirty, smelly and unsafe. Got secure parking for my bike and put myself into a hotel where I stayed. Didn´t bother with any sight seeing although I got a good taste for the town looking for a decent place to stay.

This hotel while being modest was not the worst available. They let out rooms for an hour at a time and I thought I had selected a brothel to stay at. I have since found out that is a common practice in Central America because of the housing situation being so crowded. Even married couples wanting a few moments of privacy go to hotels.

Through the mountains again I travelled to El Salvadore crossing at Valle Nuevo.

What next?

Thank you to family and friends that have expressed their concern and have offered help. The situation is not dire by any means. I have access to money and I have a roof over my head. Stolen property is replaceable and I have travel insurance. Unfortunately I look like missing out on joining Shirley in Lima, Peru. Everything depends on when the temporary travel papers arrive.

Considering my options I will decide what to do next in the next day or so. Busy couple of days ahead.


First thing was to get travel papers as replacement passports can take weeks. The closest Australian Embassy is in Mexico and the incident had to happen on a Friday night and of course embassies are closed on the weekends.


Monday morning first thing made contact the Australian Embassy in Mexico and temporary travel papers arranged. The process of getting the travel papers is not easy and involved me sending money via Western Union, getting photos that comply with Australia standards, getting forms filled in and notorised and organising a courier. In Australia that may be a simple enough task but here in Nicaragua that took all day. Just finding an internet service that also had printing facilities was a nightmare.

The hotel owner has been very helpful and concerned. Apparently the Nicaragua authorities see see the hotel owner as having responsibility to make his hotel and the vicinity of the hotel safe for his clients. He had to make a separate report to mine. His hotel is very small and reasonably new. He has a good business and does not want to lose it.

The local detectives turned up to see the foreign policeman who had been robbed. They enjoy drinking spirits and were on for a talk. Being from a third world country they of course were not going to buy the spirits and the gringo (me) supplied the grog. The local rum is about $4.00 USD a bottle so it was not a fortune. They assured me that they would do everything they could to recover the passports and property. They were very impressed with my bike and they all donned my helmet and jacket to pose for photographs.

Late into the night uniformed Migracion officers turned up and joined the party. They made token gestures about the passport but I think they were there to have a drink.

Hope that they are not all show and no substance.

The morning after the robbery I went for a walk into the shopping mall. A young man I met when I first arrived (prior to robbery) in Nicaragua approached me again and said that he was very sorry that I was robbed. The news had travelled fast - wonder what part he played?. I told him that the passports were my main concern and offered a reward for their return. An offer was made to exchange the SD flash memory cards for brnad new ones. Later that day he sought me out at the hotel and said he knew who had robbed me and he was going to try to recover the passports. The camera and flash memory could not be recovered because they had new owners. Late on the Sunday he turned up at the Hotel with bad news saying that the passports had been thrown into the rubbish and they could not be found.

Yesterday, Tuesday, he turned up again. One passport had been found and he wanted a reward and he set the figure of $16 USD. Both passports have been cancelled and are no longer valid and it is a criminal offence to use them. They cannot be un-cancelled. Wish they had been found on the weekend because $16 USD would have saved a lot of mucking about.

Robbed in Nicaragua

Oooops!!!! I have just been the victim of an armed robbery in Managua, Nicaragua. Standing outside my hotel and two guys have calmly walked up and both took out pistols. One pistol at my temple they took everything in my pockets and my rucksack. Both passports are gone. They took everything cameras, etc, etc.

Fortunately I had my credit card in my boot and money hidden in the seam of my trousers.

The local police thought it was a huge joke. "What is your occupation?" (except it was in Spanish)

Yes the answer did give them cause to have a good old laugh at my expense.

The police report took some getting but I had to have it.

Central America

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Been through Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and now in Nicaragua so heaps to post will get around to it.

Did not have access to computers on a daily basis.

San Chrostobel

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Target town is San Christobel. Another huge tourist destination high in the mountains. Another big ride through the mountains. A bit overcast and hoping it will not rain. The mountains are fogged in.

Don´t ask the locals for directions. They look at maps as if they drafted in Egyptian. Yes this is the way - bullshit. A hundred kilometres later I find out but I am enjoying the ride. What is another hour or two?

Yes the mountains stay fogged in all day which adds another dimension to the ride. Apparently the scenery is great but I didn´t get to see much of it.

Tourist towns are just that because the towns have something extra or special to offer. This town is pretty set in amongst the mountains.

A couple of days of rest and recreation is called for after the past two stressed filled days.

Helped by bus driver

Picked Tehuantepec as my next port of call. Nothing there in particular that I wanted to see it was more a case of distance to cover on the bike in a day.

Scared shitless is the only way to describe the day.

There is a small section of the isthmus of Mexico where the wind blows the strongest. Here comes Dave whistling away happy with his lot in life when I get hit by the winds. Well at first I thought bloody hell and then I thought other things. There was no safe way to ride a bike in those sorts of wind blasts. Managed to get the bike off the road and behind a pile of road gravel. Had to lay the bike down because it wouldn´t stay on it´s stand. Huddling there I had no appreciation that these wind blasts can go on for days. The roads are routinely closed because semi-trailers and buses have overturned.

Over an hour later a bus drove up slowly and stopped. The driver suggested that his bus would act as a windbreak for me if I rode alongside it. Great a chance to get myself out of a serious pickle. It worked and for ten kilometres we chugged along like that. The passengers thought it was great helping the gringo.

This area is just out of Tehuantepec - avoid it or travel only when you know the wind isn´t blowing.

Monte Alban treasures and more Oaxaca

Please don´t be critical of the images. They were taken with an eighty dollar digital. No flash photography allowed.

Gold, heaps of it, was found in the tomb. This face mask is pretty impressive.

Could easily find enough to do for a whole week in Oaxaca. Decided to look at the indigenous markets and a general walk around the town. Shirley´s tour group invited me to go with them but they were going to Monte Alban. I arranged to meet up with Shirley in the afternoon.

Health inspectors from Australia would have a field day at these markets but millions of people buy these food products and don´t have a problem with their health. Not game myself. The indigenous people make lovely hand sewn cloths and hand woven baskets.

Joined Shirley´s tour group and went to the markets again and then the convent where a few of the treasures found in the Monte Alban tomb are on display. Great stuff as I enjoy that sort of thing. Heap of jewellery so Shirley was entertained.

Oaxaca

Arrived Oaxaca (Wah Hah Kah ) (What the?????) just after lunch and it was hot.

It is a beautiful city in a beautiful part of the world and as a consequence it is loaded with tourists.

I decided to use a HI hostel in the town because hotels were so expensive and a couple of the budget ones I tried were full. What a good choice because the hostel was the best I have been into anywhere. Very clean, great facilities and friendly staff.

Once settled and had my bike in secure parking I caught a bus to Monte Alban. The ruins consisted of various building and a pyramid. I was interested in looking at the tombs where the treasure was found but not open to the public.

Only one of the tombs that have been found had not been raided. Some of the treasure inside is on display at a local ex-convent. Have a look at that tomorrow.

The hostel has staff that provide three meals a day if you want to buy them. I was the only one to turn up for dinner.

My man servant prepared a meal for me and served me 70c AUD Coronas. He took a photo which I have included. I look a bit startled and the photo a bit staged but hey I´m the one drinking the Corona. Bought a bottle of Mascal, local liquor, and got into that as well.

As I have said before the Mexicans come to life at night. There was literally dancing in the streets. A swing-jazz band was playing and the locals were getting into it. Very social people.

After making a dick of myself with the pronunciation of the place name several times yesterday Shirley rings me late that night and says ¨Where are you¨ and I reply "Wah Hah Kah". She says ¨That is a shame because I am in OXICACA¨. Yes damn shame really but I´ll do my best to find you. Her hotel was three blocks away. Met up had coffee and went for a walk.

Parque Nacional Iztaccihuatl-Popocatepetl

Up early in an effort to beat the heavy traffic. Every tourist brochure and advisory recommends highly to not drive in Mexico city. Well my advice is - "Don´t be so bloody stupid and just don´t do it at all." Especially if you are riding a motorcycle. It is bloody dangerous - no rules, no courtesy, no proper signage, poor road surfaces in places and high percentage of drivers are aggressive beyond common sense.

Had myself on the right road going south but allowed myself, somehow, to be shunted off onto another one but still going south. Ended up after a couple of hours up in the mountains in a National Park. So the outcome was not so bad.

The park is named after the two volcanoes in the area. Both are well over 5000 metres above sea level.

Had a beautiful view of the city of Mexico and the surrounds volcanic mountains.

Stopped in a village in the mountains for lunch. A young man, the son of the cafe owner, was less discreet than most and showed a lot of interest in my bike. Before you know it every young man with an interest in bikes arrived on the scene. One man, Carlos, who had worked in USA was very friendly and interpreted my story. They all took photos of themselves seated on the bike. They bought me a couple of bottles of drink for the road. They suggested that I ride a new road that had just been constructed and not yet on any maps. Great for motorcycle riding apparently and sure it will not take me out of way.

Well they were right on one score. It was great for motorcycle riding but it took me well out of the way. I wanted to get to Oaxaca city but I wasn´t going to make it now.

Found a reasonable hotel in a truck stop type town - Huajapan De Leon. Sweet old lady runs the place and I think she gave me the best room she had. She even gave me toilet paper apparently that is optional.