And so it is over … what did we learn

We are home … we survived the 31+ hrs in transit thanks to some last minute upgrades I made to our flights taking us from economy to premium economy. This gave us extra leg space and access to the LATAM lounge in Lima. It was lovely to be able to sit in comfy chairs, have something to eat and drink, relax and recharge. I would highly recommend looking into last minute upgrades if possible. It didn’t cost that much more, as opposed to what it would have cost if we had purchased them when we originally bought our tickets.

So what have we learnt from this adventure?

• This was a tough trip … the toughest one we have ever done. The nature of the trip with its high altitudes, the humidity in the jungle, the physical demands of getting into and out of pangas and river boats, hiking in the mud and lots of super early mornings. Added to that the physical impact on the body with tummy bugs, a spectacular fall, losing my voice, coughs and ending up with the flu. In hindsight … would we do anything differently? Probably not! But it certainly it was hard!

• Aim high … live out your childhood dreams. Chase the adventures. Do what you want to do when you can. There is one thing to see pictures of Machu Picchu, Uros Floating Islands, the Galapagos or the Amazon but when you stand there, looking at something you have only seen on books, magazines or TV, it can bring tears to your eyes.

• We have decided our travel is all about SUE - See, Understand, Experience. We don’t just want to see it and take the photo. We want to understand, be immersed, to learn, and delve deeper. And we want to experience … the food, the culture, the people. This requires good guides, an open and enquiring mind and a willingness to push beyond the basics.

• Know your limitations … do the hard stuff while you can. Don’t sign up for a trip not knowing what it entails. It could be argued that we may not have been fully prepared for this trip (see point 1) but we came across a group of older Australians on multiple occasions (older than us!) who because of their age and physical limitations were not able to truly experience all that Peru had to offer. One man couldn’t climb stairs and so his experience in the Amazon was sitting in the lodge with his ever patient wife, waiting for their group to return from whatever excursion they were on. This was not the trip for them!

• Be a considerate traveller … don’t push in, don’t expect others to carry you, be aware of your surroundings, don’t intrude on others’ experience. We saw many examples of travellers not being the best they could be such as the Christian group taking over the waiting room with their prayer meeting prior to boarding the train, and then once they did board being loud and intrusive of others on the carriage. We saw large groups of travellers eating all the desserts at the buffet not thinking to leave some for others. We witnessed older people pushing in front of younger people for no reason other than they thought they could. One man cut in front of me at a drinks station as I held two tea bags … and when he had made his drink he looked at me and just shrugged.

• Be considerate of the locals. Respect culture, traditions … we don’t get to impose our way of life on to the locals. Try to honour their ways. Make an effort with language … I am awful at language but I still tried. We were fortunate to participate in some local traditions such as a welcome dance and an offering ceremony … both very much out of our comfort zone but ones that we will treasure the memories of.

• The Vistadome train from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Caliente… should be on the world’s best train journey list. It is such an incredible experience as you travel along the valley floor, beside the firstly calm river until it becomes a raging river, with the mountains rising high above you. Our journey was enhanced for us by being in front-facing seats 1 and 2 but even if you didn’t have those seats it would be worth every single minute. It amazed me that one group of tourists played cribbage for the entire journey … missing out on the incredible vista emerging right outside their windows.

• You are never too far from home when you see eucalyptus trees in a foreign country. We have seen them before in Morocco but on this journey we saw forests of gums in Cotapaxi and at Lake Titicaca. An odd but fascinating experience . It is reassuring to know that these plantations have made a significant difference to the locals … as they can build bigger dwellings because of the quality of timber.

• Treasure the unexpected moments that can change an experience from something simple to the spectacular . Our lunch setting at Taquile Island where we sat at a table for two overlooking Lake Titicaca was incredibly special. Bumping into Emily and James at Machu Picchu purely by chance and being reunited with this lovely young couple whom we had spent 3 days with on the Amazon. Bumping into friends from home (Patti and Theo) on the steps of a church in Quito. Being assigned seats 1 and 2 on the Vistadome. Spotting the capybara on the river bank at dusk, the sunset on the swollen Tambopata River after rain, and the monkeys at the tower when you hadn’t expected them to be there.

• Do the things that you can only do in that country. Make sure when you plan your itinerary that you get to do the things that are one off experiences in that country. For us it was the Middle of the Earth in Quito. Just before we left for our trip the agent told us we wouldn’t be able to do it and we said that it was a non-negotiable. It is the reason Ecuador has its name … we were not going to miss that!

This trip was amazing … South America is an incredible continent. This trip, along with our trip to Brazil, Argentina and Chile have fulfilled a pile of childhood dreams. We realise not everyone can get to travel like we do … so we encourage you to read, watch documentaries or follow along with us.

We hope you enjoyed this journey. Stay tuned … the next one is less than 6 weeks away!