Lima

Well, we have asrrived in Lima once more after an adventurous day starting at Puno on the shores of Lake Titicaca.  We were  collected from our hotel this morning and were driven to see the ´funerary towers´close to the city of Juliaca. These were the towers built by the pre-incas and later the incas used to bury their VIPs in style.  The towers are located on a peninsular going into a large lake above Puno and were used to bury the dead of the ruling classes.  When a leader died a tower would be built and the body would be laid inside with great ceremony, and their servants would be sacrificed and placed inside the tower to serve their master in the afterlife.  The location of the towers is beautiful, with stunning views over the adjacent lake.
Following this it was time to go to the airport to catch the plane to Lima, passing through Juliaca.  Unfortunately there had been a large demonstration by the local people complaining about the lack of safe drinking water - currently the city only has running water for one hour each day.  As we approached the city there was evidence of a riot in the city with the remains of barricades in the streets making it impossible for our bus to get through.  Our driver was forced to take a detour through the backstreets of the city, thus revealing the true nature of the environment in which the local inhabitants live - all very squalid and sad.
We eventually reached the airport with some relief and made the flight to Lima.
The air here, although polluted, is so much easier to breathe than up on the Altiplano, being almost at sea level. 
We have just returned to our hotel after being out to dinner which consisted of a gorgeous meal of sushi.
I return home to the UK tomorrow, departing at 7 pmish and arriving at Heathrow at about 6.00 pm on Friday.  Dafydd is staying on in Lima until Tuesday as he is attending a wedding here in Lima at the week end.
 
Elwyn

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