Wow, I guess I got quite lucky. IAH-LIM then to CUZCO and later back to LIM and back to IAH. NO BUMPING, NO PROBLEMS, though it was a teeth grinder last night getting out of LIM. The biggest surprise was going offline on LAN PERU to Cuzco. We got there to LIM on a night flight and by the time we cleared customs, it was some close to midnight. Hung out at the airport to see if we could get on the 5 AM flight. Made ever most comfortable by a restaurant upstairs that served excellent food and beer with a smokers lounge where I could kick back and blow a cigar along with my beer while waiting for our verdict on a Machu Pichu quest via Cuzco offline flight on LAN. And made it on the 5:25 flight which the guy said looked much better. Got there no problem. The snow capped flight over the Andes was picturesque and a real pleasant surpise. That plane landed in a very interesting route that took us into some valley overlooking Cuzco and landing was a bit of a teeth grinder. Went walking all over Cuzco, a very nice colonial town indeed, most impressive of the colonials I've ever seen, backpacker haven, lots of tourist from Italy, Switzerland the states, and who knows where else. Altitude kicked my butt a little at 11,500 feet way up there in the ANDES. Could feel it walking around getting winded. Did the Machu Pichu thing, (I'll do a separate story on that one.) That took the whole next day. Slept in the following day after licking our wounds from severe hiking around Machu Pichu area up those INCA STEPS. Got to the airport whenever we felt like it after having our breakfast and BINGO, got the first flight we tried out of there on a full load too, but we made it. Great flight over the Andes and a definate great town to visit on your way to Machu Pichu. Grand total offline ticket was 152 bucks for two of us, (Wife and I) round trip with taxes. And that was the only airfare I paid for us going IAH-LIM-CUZ-LIM-IAH. Not bad for a tough to get place way in there in Peru, and Machu Pichu being a story in itself as far as reachability and YES, danger involved in riding the bus way up there overlooking cliffs off the road. One slip and the whole bus load could be killed instantly. Gotta go, write more later.
