We decided to visit Ecuador on our trip for one reason - to visit the famous Galápagos Islands! As we got off the plane from the mainland, we knew this was going to be what we expected - bright blue skies, vast volcanic landscapes and glistening, turquoise water. We had heard lots about the wildlife here and were looking forward to seeing what rare species of animals we could find.

Peru threw up a few challenging situations for us but it was an amazing country to visit. It is full of diverse adventures - a huge lake, a canyon, more of the Andes, Inca ruins, a desert oasis and a capital city on the coast! The food was tasty here - we enjoyed lots of fresh fish and were pleasantly surprised by how good the meals were on the various tours we did. After this, we were on the last stop on our adventure - the Galápagos Islands.

Lima Even though there was no running water for the first 24 hours of our visit to the capital, we still enjoyed exploring this diverse city. We strolled around the streets admiring the brightly coloured colonial government buildings and interesting graffiti, and took advantage of our last chance to eat ceviche and drink pisco sours! 

Huacachina (waka-cheena) One of the most surreal destinations on our trip brought us to this real life oasis which we just had to see for ourselves! We booked onto a open jeep safari which took us deep into the sand dunes. It was great fun sitting in the front and we got to have a go at sand surfing and witness a perfect sunset. 

Nazca We stopped very briefly here to do the quick 30 minute plane ride over the desert to see the famous Nazca Lines. We boarded the six seater plane and were soon wobbling around in the air! The Nazca Lines are a group of geoglyphs etched into the desert sands which show different figures, including a spider, a monkey and various birds. Greg got a bit dizzy taking the photos but it was a great sight and definitely worth it!

Machu Picchu Such a magical place! After waking up at 3am and being the first in line to go through the gates when the park opened, we were exhausted but extremely excited for the finale of our four day trek! Finally, at 6am, we climbed the very steep monkey steps to the sun gate and caught our first glimpse of an empty Machu Picchu through the clouds - an incredible sight. After lots of photos, we carried on the long walk down to the ruins. Once we reached the gates, we were finally able to put our bags into storage for the day - our shoulders were in pain! We spent the rest of the day exploring Machu Picchu and learning all about the history of the Incas. When we returned to Cusco and finally had a warm shower, we slept extremely well! One of the highlights of our trip and 100% worth the challenge!

Inca Trail We were so glad that we decided to trek the Inca Trail - it was a huge challenge for both of us but it was definitely worth it for the amazing views. We walked 45km over four days carrying 10kg - we were aching so much when we reached Machu Picchu. The first day of the trek started quite flat and was relatively easy - it was good to get to know the others in our group and start to learn about the Incas and the many buildings dotted along the way. However, the second day was a lot tougher! Most of the trekking was uphill which is extremely tough when walking at over 3000m above sea level! The hardest part was walking uphill to the highest part of the trek, Dead Woman’s Pass, over 4000m above sea level! The downhill part wasn’t much easier but it meant we were getting lower. Day three was the longest day, 16km, starting at 5:30am. The steps on the trail were huge and made it quite challenging to go up and down comfortably! We finally reached our last camp site before dark and relaxed with a freezing cold wash in the river!

Cusco After spending a night recovering from our trek, we made our way further north to the gateway of the Inca Trail. We spent a few days wandering around this lovely city relaxing before the main event of Peru, the Inca Trail trek! We had a lovely, but painful, massage, drank lots of tasty coffees and enjoyed watching the locals walk around with their alpacas on leads!