On the road again, this time at my kinda pace. With a fresh paint job and a custom-made rack to accomadate my bicycle panniers, I was re-discovering the Andes with a twinkle in my eye and a windswept smile on my face.
The route to Cusco took me through some stunning country via several roads I had nearly forgotton about. The roads in the Andes are as freestyle as the mountains themselves, offering their fair share of obstacles that seem to appear rather unexpectedly, and quite often. The obstacles come in a variety of forms. It could be any combination of the medley of animals out and about (bulls, goats, cows, sheep, llamas, alpacas, dogs, pigs, chickens- to name a few of the more frequent encountered species), it could be an unsuspecting pedestrian (normally colorfully clad, so fairly
easy to spot), or it could be the condition of the "carretera" itself (housing a variegated combination of slicks, boulders, and potholes the size of bathtubs.) By far the most precarious of all hazards is the stunning scenery in all dierctions, beconing to the viewer to glance away from the ribbon of road ahead.
These rural roads may not prove to be the most comfortable or fastest routes to travel, but they minister to this travelers´soul, offering amazing vistas, genuine and fascinating people, and glimpses at the true heartbeat of a culture. After a week of treasuring and battling all the elements the Andes are known to bestow, I found myself looking down on the town of Cusco. Somewhere in this maze of narrow streets, churches, and tourists, my brother awaits my timely arrival, two days before Christmas.
The route to Cusco took me through some stunning country via several roads I had nearly forgotton about. The roads in the Andes are as freestyle as the mountains themselves, offering their fair share of obstacles that seem to appear rather unexpectedly, and quite often. The obstacles come in a variety of forms. It could be any combination of the medley of animals out and about (bulls, goats, cows, sheep, llamas, alpacas, dogs, pigs, chickens- to name a few of the more frequent encountered species), it could be an unsuspecting pedestrian (normally colorfully clad, so fairly
easy to spot), or it could be the condition of the "carretera" itself (housing a variegated combination of slicks, boulders, and potholes the size of bathtubs.) By far the most precarious of all hazards is the stunning scenery in all dierctions, beconing to the viewer to glance away from the ribbon of road ahead.These rural roads may not prove to be the most comfortable or fastest routes to travel, but they minister to this travelers´soul, offering amazing vistas, genuine and fascinating people, and glimpses at the true heartbeat of a culture. After a week of treasuring and battling all the elements the Andes are known to bestow, I found myself looking down on the town of Cusco. Somewhere in this maze of narrow streets, churches, and tourists, my brother awaits my timely arrival, two days before Christmas.
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