Sense of Helplessness

Day 58

One of the main attractions in Puno is a 2D1N tour to the nearby islands - Uros, Amantani and Taquile. To reach these islands, we will have to take a boat that is somewhat similar to those boats that we use for Pulau Ubin. The main attractions about these islands are the use of reeds to build island and houses in Uros, the peaks - Pacha Tata and Pach Mama - in Amantani, and the pre-Inca and Inca ruins in Taquile.

Our tour involves staying spending one night with a local family in Amantani and we ended up staying with Pedro. Besides my friend and I, there were two other German girls who will also be staying with this family. After a quick wash-up, we sat down for lunch and started chatting with the German girls - J and C. 

J was keen to join us in climbing up to the two peaks on Amantani Island though C commented that she was not feeling well and declined the offer. When we tried to convince C that we will take it slow, she suddenly burst out crying. I was caught by surprise by her sudden emotional outburst and we decided not to broach the subject further. After a while, C apologised for her behaviour but left the dinning room shortly after when her nose starts bleeding.

Not thinking much about it, my friend and I continued to have our lunch. A couple of minutes later, J ran into the dinning room saying that C could not stop her nose bleeding. We went into their room and that's when I was shocked by the sight that greeted me. There was a bin on the floor with C bending over it and it was filled with bloodied tissues. Blood keeps flowing out of C's nose and when we tried to tell C to tilt her head back to stop the bleeding, she refused and said that by doing so, the blood may end up flowing into her brain(?). Ok, now, if somebody asks me about financial investments, I may be able to provide some pointers. But when it comes to medical knowledge, I have to admit that I only know the bare minimum. Will tilting her head back to stop the nose bleeding end up causing a brain haemorrhage? I highly doubt so but who am I to voice this out? 

So what's next? Ice? Yes, but what should you do when you are on an island and these people are too poor to afford a refrigerator? How about doctor? Yes, but what if the island that you are on has no doctors and the nearest doctor is 4hrs boat ride away? As there is no wifi or Internet connection available on the island, this also means there is no way for us to google for more information. By then, we have alerted Pedro and he started to use some water to wet C's hair. He too, suggested that C tilt her head back, but she refused. At this time, I can hear the panic in C's voice and I started to feel scared for her too. Too much blood has been lost and something must be done to stop the bleeding.

I asked J if C ever had nose bleeding before. Apparently, this is the first time that it happened to her. Then I told C point blank that we have to stop the bleeding now and the only way to do it is to try and tilt her head back. I said the probability of 3 persons being wrong is definitely lower than one (Err...now thinking back, I'm not too sure about this statement. It could be a case of common misperception as well). We can do it slowly and if she does not feel much better, she can always bend forward over the bin thereafter. After a few minutes' of coaxing from J and myself, we started to tilt back C's head. She resisted initially and complained about not being able to breathe. However, we kept reassuring her that all is fine, she is doing a great job and she just have to hold out for a couple more minutes. Finally, we notice that the blood flow has subsided. Not sure if it helps, but we gave C two painkillers before she slept thereafter. Thankfully, she felt much better by evening.

It was much later that we realised these two young girls have been rushing through their trip. Just before this trip, they did a 2-day trek in Colca Canyon and on the same night, took a night bus to Puno and joined this tour on the following morning. Exhaustion, high altitude coupled with dehydration are some of the key causes which these girls have seriously ignored previously.

It also dawned on me that Singapore has truly spoilt me. I have taken the medical facilities in Singapore for granted where doctors and medicines are readily available. As access to Internet is also easily available, it is extremely easy for one to search for information online just by using a smart phone. Yet, what today's incident has taught me is that one could always be caught in the same situation as what I have just gone through. Without basic medical knowledge, you will feel completely helpless in such situations where facilities are lacking. I have decided that when I'm back home, the first thing that I'm going to do is to sign up for a first-aid course.

Taking to the skies

Day 55

I have always dream about taking to the skies since watching a particular episode of "The Amazing Race" a few years back. If I remember correctly, the participants were in South America and one of the challenges which they had to complete was a tandem flight from the mountain top. The view of the surrounding area when they were up in the air was spectacular. Since I have decided to come to South America, this has become one of the must-do items on my checklist.

And what better time to do a tandem flight than on Christmas Day?

It was a bright and sunny morning. My pilot, Jose Luis, was punctual in picking me up from the hostal which is something very rare in the Peruvian culture. We drove for approximately 1.5 hours before arriving at our destination called Chinchero.

View of the surrounding area

Even though it was all sunny and windy up at the top, Jose mentioned that the current wind situation was not ideal for paragliding. We will have to wait for the warm air current from the bottom of the mountain. By doing this, we will not only be able to fly for a longer time, but will also land closer to our take-off station and hence, less walking.

Jose preparing the wind stripes

Jose laying out the wings

Orange seat for me and red seat for Jose

We waited for another 2 hours before we are ready to take off around noon. Before I realised it, I was suddenly up in the air! Was I nervous? No, I don't remember feeling so. Rather, I felt a sense of exhilaration. The feeling of being up in the air is incredible - I felt really light and carefree. During the flight, it was really windy and I felt cold. However, cheapo me refused to tell my pilot in order to enjoy the feeling of being up in the air much longer. We ended up spending 35 minutes up in the air which is considered longer than average. During the flight, not only did I get to enjoy the beautiful landscape of the Sacred Valley, but it was truly memorable to fly above a farm with a dog barking at us, a herd of sheep grazing at the field, and even flew next to a flying bird at one point in time!

I tried to take a video of my tandem flight for the first 10 minutes but failed to realise that it was not on recording mode. Pity, pity, pity!! Luckily, I took a couple of photographs when I was up in the air that will remind me of my first paragliding experience.

View in the air

In case you call me bluff, see my shoes at the bottom left corner?

Machu Picchu

Day 54

It was a cold and wet morning. At 5.30am, a queue had already formed for the tourists buses parked next to the road. Despite the cold, everyone is chattering away and smiling in anticipation of what's waiting ahead for them. This is Aguas Calientes, the town nearest to Machu Picchu. Today, I'm one of the those early risers queuing for the first buses that leave for Machu Picchu on Christmas Eve.

The morning queue at Aguas Calientes

A welcome board on the way up to Machu Picchu. Photo taken from the bus.

After a 20 minutes bus ride, we arrived at the entrance of Machu Picchu. It took another couple of minutes before the park wardens open the gate at 6a.m. to admit the visitors.

Waiting to be admitted into MP

Machu Picchu means "Old  Mountain". Being one of the most iconic sights in the world, I have seen Machu Picchu many times, be it on the television, posters or even magazines. Yet, to finally see it with my very own eyes literally took my breath away. I was awe struck by the view of the magnificent architecture that greeted me when I turned round the corner. Rows and rows of terraces lined the slope of the mountain while the walls of buildings built more than five hundred years ago still stand proudly erect today. Even though we were initially dismayed by the light morning drizzle, we realised that the mist had created a more mysterious mood on Machu Picchu which is perfect for our photographs.

Way up for the view

MP in the morning

To date, nobody really knows what happens to the inhabitants of Machu Picchu. Archaeologists commented that the Incas had built and abandoned the site in less than 100 years. However, the real reason for the Incas in doing so is not known. Different theories were raised such as the Incas were fleeing from the Spanish when they invaded South America or there was a smallpox epidemic that killed most of the inhabitants. Regardless of the reason for the abandon, the ability of the Incas to build a palace at such high altitude which can withstand multiple earthquakes after hundreds of years is truly a remarkable feat.

Machu Picchu

Llamas at MP

Huchuy Qosqo

Day 52

After factoring in the cost,tour group availability and the concern of my travel buddy on altitude sickness while trekking, my travel buddy and I ended up doing a 2D1N Huchuy Qosqo trek  followed by a visit to Machu Picchu on the third day.

Huchuy Qosqo is an archaeological site located north of Cusco. The name " Huchuy Qosqo" means "Little Cusco" in Quecha (the language spoken by the Incas). It was believed that the eighth Inca King, Viracocha, built this  palace after running away from the Chancas who attacked Cusco. The palace is perched on a cliff that offers a panoramic view of the Sacred Valley and mountain passes.

Huchuy Qosqo





View of The Sacred Valley

Huchuy Qosqo trek is not as popular as other treks such as Salkantay, Lares or even Ausangate, but I still enjoyed myself immensely over those two days. We did not come across other trekkers along the way, and the trail we took consistently provides us with picturesque views of the mountains and valleys. Even though Huchuy Qosqo is rated as an easy trek, it is certainly no easy feat when you have to trek at 3,800m above sea level. Hence, imagine our joy when we finally crossed the high pass at 4,200m!

At the high pass

Gate with double corners signify an important area for the Incas

Accommodation for the night was with a local family up in the mountains. Our room was really basic and it only contained fours beds and one small light bulb.  Up here, the local community relies heavily on solar power for electricity. As November to March is the rainy season in Peru, this means there weren't much electricity that can be used and hence, no heaters and hot showers for us. By the time the sun sets, it was so cold that for the first time in my life, I can't be bothered with personal hygiene. For that night, I slept in my trekking clothes (excluding my rain jacket) and socks and neither did I wash my face nor brush my teeth.  Sounds yucky? Yes, but I survived. :)

The backyard

The kitchen and dining room

The toilet

I love Boobies!

Day 31 - 1 December 2012

Seeing Blue-footed Boobies is one of the bucket-list of things that I want to do in South America. For those who can afford the hefty price tag, the Galapagos is not only the place to see the blue footed boobies, but also to experience the wildlife where animals have little instinctive fear of man. A trip to Galapagos would set one back by at least US$1,000.  Since I have another expensive trip planned in Chile, I have decided to remove Galapagos out of my itinerary. It was only much later that I heard from Paul, a fellow Singaporean who is also doing long term travel in South America, that I should check out Isla de la Plata for these boobies.

Isla de la Plata is a small island that can be reached by boat from Puerto Lopez. I was there during the low season and a trip to the island costs only US$30 inclusive of a return ferry, a guided tour and a light lunch. Since the majority of the animals in Isla can be found in Galapagos, the island is also commonly known as Poor Man's Galapagos due to its much friendlier price tag.

There are three different types of boobies that can be found on Isla - the Blue-footed Booby, the Red-footed Booby and the Nazca Booby. After a 15 mintues' hike, I was really excited when I sighted the Blue-footed Boobies. It was a family of three - the father, the mother and the baby. The Blue-footed Boobies have yellow eyes. The difference between the male and female is that the former is smaller in size than the female, has a smaller pupil with more yellow in their iris than the female and supposedly to have lighter feet as well.

The family

These boobies maintain a monogamous relationship. The mating season is from June to August. Typically, two males would try to compete for the attention of a female by performing a dance. The male would spread his wings, point his head and tail to the sky, and flaunt his blue feet to the female. Apparently, the blueness of the feet plays an important part during the courtship process. The brightness of the feet indicates the fertility condition of the male boobies. As the brightness decreases with age, female boobies tend to go for younger males to ensure that their offspring would inherit good genes. Female boobies usually lay two to three eggs each time. The nests are built on the ground surrounded by a circle of guano (excrement) where the eggs are laid.

Nesting

The circle of guano

Blue-footed Boobies guard their youngs jealously. There were a couple of times during the guided tour where we had to make a slight detour so as not to "trespass" on the nest of these boobies that were built on the trail. When these boobies feel threatened, they can turn into pretty feisty birds! Definitely not a bird to be trifled with!



Boobies along the trail



A provoked Booby

Besides the Blue-footed Boobies, we were also lucky to spot the Nazca Boobies and a sea lion during the guided tour. Though I'm sure Isla would not be able to provide the similar type of experience as one get in Galapagos, for the price I'm paying, I'm definitely happy with what I've seen today!

Nazca Booby

A young Nazca Booby

Otavalo

Day 24 - 24 November 2012 

Otavalo is a town located in the Imbabura Province, north of Quito. The Otavalenos, the indigenous people from Otavalo, is considered the most successful indigenous group of Latin America. They are famous for their weaving and craftsmanship and today, many Otavalenos own some of the grandest houses, hotels and vehicles in Ecuador. Despite their success, many Otavalos continue to dress in their traditional costumes. The men wear white cotton pants, dark blue ponchos and dark felt hats. As for the women, they wear white frilly blouses with colourful embroidery, long black skirts and colourful or gold necklaces.

Every Saturday, the Otavalo town would be transformed into a mega market place. This is the day when the Otavalos from the nearby villages would come to the town to sell their textiles and crafts. The Oatavlos are certainly not dull people. Walk into a textile stall and you will be greeted by a huge array of bright colourful textiles!

On this day, the roads around the town centre are closed to traffic and dozens of stalls are set up on the roads selling a huge array of products which include accessories, bags, shawls, clothings, shoes, food and even animals! The Saturday market in Otavalo has gained so much attraction over the years that it is now considered a must-do sight on any tourist itinerary in Ecuador. It is also common to see many tourists making their way up from Quito just to shop at the market on every Saturday.

A Strange Twist of Luck

Day 23 - 23 Nov 2012

The sun is slowly setting over the horizon, turning the earlier clear blue sky into a purplish-pink shade. Next to me, the shoe polisher started packing his mobile store and was gone within five minutes. I started to get nervous and began to tap my feet impatiently. Every few minutes, when a bus pulls into the bus stop, my hope will be up thinking that this could be it - the bus that will bring me to my intended destination. Yet, my hope is dashed once again when I see that it is not the bus that I've been waiting for.

I just did an overland border crossing from Colombia into Ecuador an hour ago. Earlier in the day, I was traveling with a couple from Argentina - William and Lily - whom I met on my way to Pasto the day before. We realised that we were heading towards the same direction and they invited me to travel with them to Otavalo the following day. Thinking that this should not be too difficult, I agreed to their offer.

We were supposed to leave our hotel at 8 a.m., and I was all packed and ready to go. However, there was nobody else at the lobby when I arrived and I decided to make myself comfy at the sofa and wait for them. It took another 10 minutes before they appear. Due to some miscommunication the day before, they were under the impression that we were supposed to meet at 8 a.m for breakfast and depart thereafter. Since it was still early, I told them to go ahead and have their breakfast while I will wait for them at the lobby. We finally set off from our hotel at 8.50 a.m. and caught a 9.15a.m. bus to Ipiales, the town nearest to the border. At Ipiales, we shared a taxi to the Sanctuary of the Virgin of Las Lajas. The Sanctuary is a gothic style basilica church famous for its magnificent architectural conception. It was built over a canyon with a bridge connecting to the other side of the canyon.

Las Lajar

Las Lajar

I finished touring the Sanctuary earlier than William and Lily and spent another 30 minutes waiting for them to finish taking their photos. It was close to 2 p.m. before we finally had our lunch at the border after getting the Colombia exit stamp. When I thought we could set off to the Ecuador immigration control at 2.40 p.m., William suddenly mentioned something along the line that he needs to go back to Ipiales again and will meet us at the border in 10 minutes' time. Since it's just 10 minutes, I said fine. Well, that was simply just too optimistic. It was 3.20 p.m. before he finally came back. When we reached the Ecuador immigration control building, there were already about 25 peopple in the queue and yet only three counters were open. I spent close to an hour just to get clearance. By then, it was already 4.35p.m. and I started to feel uneasy.

Whenever I do any free and easy travel to a new country, I always believe in arriving at each new destination during the day due to safety reasons. I recall from my earlier research that it takes approx 30 minutes by a shared taxi from the Ecuador border to the nearest bus terminal - Tulcan, and it will take at least another 3 hours by bus to reach Otavalo. In South America, the sun usually sets between 5.30 - 6 p.m. and this means we will definitely arrive in Otavalo at night. Since the Argentina couple is traveling with me, I thought my worries are unfounded.


Strangely, after a 15 minutes' ride, the Argentina couple got off from the shared taxi. When I asked them if this is Tulcan terminal, they gestured with their hands and were pointing in one direction and then the other. That's when my patience finally worn out. I quizzed them if they are indeed heading to Otavalo for the night. After a couple of minutes, I gathered that they have a change of plans and would like to spend the night in Tulcan instead to take some photos. I was groaning insde when I heard that. I can't believe this is happening to me now. I said a quick goodbye to them and immediately set off in the direction where I thought the buses were. I did not realise that I had walked past the bus stop. When I asked a señora on where to take the bus to Otatvalo, she pointed back to the bus stop which I walked past earlier. Unfortunately, the bus to  Otavalo was already there. I tried to make a dash for it but I was too late. The bus had already pulled out of the bus stop. For the next 25 minutes, I stood waiting at the bus stop hoping that the bus to Otavalo will arrive soon. I looked on with dismay each time the bus that pulls in is not the one that I've been hoping for.


I had mixed feelings on what I should do. I can either spend the night in this sleazy town that I believed to be Tulcan or continue on to Otavalo. As I did not like the particular feel of this town, I decided to press ahead with the latter option.. Finally, a man at the bus stop asked me if I'm heading towards the terminal. When I told him I was waiting for a bus to Otavalo, he told me to board the bus that will bring me to another terminal. From there, I will have better chances of catching one of the inter-provincial buses to Otavalo. I was getting desperate and decided to heed his advice and board the bus.


I got off at the bus terminal and immediately went to the nearest ticket counter to enquire on the next available bus to Otavalo. It seems there will be a bus departing at 5.50 p.m. When I pasked if this bus will bring me to the Otavalo Terminal, the lady at the counter said "yes". I vaguely recalled from my guide book that there are some inter-provincial buses that will drop passengers off at the Panamerican highway. While this is ok during the day, the guidebook has stated that it is NOT SAFE at night. Armed robbery, bag snatching/slashing, holdups at expressways and " express kidnapping" are the most significant hazards within Ecuador. I decided to take a leap of faith and believe what the ticket lady told me. Big mistake! When I went down to the departure hall and found the bus, my heart sank. She was lying. The bus was heading to Quito and it will drop me off at the highway.

I was extremely upset with William and Lily. Since I've started my travel, I have never been caught in such predicament. I can wake up early even at 4 a.m. just to make sure that I will get to my destination during the day. Now, because of them, I'm caught in this dire situation. As the sky turned darker, I begin to feel really scared about what's lying ahead of me. In fact, I had never felt more scared or alone than that night. After spending a couple of minutes worrying, I told myself to calm down and start weighing the available options I can take. I can either:

1) Kick up a big fuss if they drop me off at the highway and insist that they bring me to the terminal,

2) Continue on to Quito and find a hotel there for the night; or

3) Fought ahead to Otavalo and pray that all's well when I walk from the Panamerican highway to the town.

After much consideration, I decided to choose Option 3 and began to pray really, really hard for my safety.

3 hours later, I asked this young boy sitting next to me if we are reaching Otavalo. He said no, but just before he alighted for his stop, he told the man sitting in front of him to alert me when the bus is reaching Otavalo. That's when a strange twist of luck happened and I think my prayers have been answered. The man and his companion both spotted long hair (longer than mine by the way) and it turns out that they are Otavalenos and are heading to the Otavalo town as well! Knowing that I can't speak Spanish, they gestured that I should follow them when they get off the bus. Eventually, when we got off the bus, instead of being all alone as what I had feared earlier, I had company of six Otavalenos men accompanying me! One guy mentioned that they will accompany me to the town centre and it is cheaper for me to take a taxi from there to my hostal which costs only US$1. They got a taxi for me, told the driver my hostal address, negotiated the price and made sure that I was well seated in the taxi before they left. I finally arrived at my hotel close to 10 p.m. and I had never felt so relieved than before.

It had been a tumultuous day for me. Looking back, I'm not even sure if I should blame the Argentina couple for what happened or just myself for not being assertive enough and being too accommodating. When you are travelling alone, it is always great to meet new people and make friends along the way. However, I realised that one has to be cognisant of the fact that different people have different traveling style. Another lesson I have also learnt is never lose hope in what you are doing. When everything around you looks bleak, there may actually be a light just around the corner. And for that, I'm very grateful to the group of Otavalenos men that I had met tonight.

San Agustin

Day 21 - 21 Nov 2012

San Agustin is a small town located in the southern part of Colombia. Most people use San Agustin as a base to visit the surrounding area well-known for the pre-Colombian statues. In fact, this region is classified as a UNESCO Heritage site since 1995.

These pre-Colombian stone sculptures include figures of men, animals and mystical creatures. They are commonly found at the burial and ceremonial sites with other grave goods such as pottery, miniature stone artifacts, gold and even children sacrifices. The figure of a shaman would usually be placed in the middle to protect the body from harm. It is also believed that some of these stone sculptures have Asian influences but to date, no documented writing has been found to support this belief.

A Shaman

A bird



To pray for sun, water and food



A typical layoutof the tomb

A local guide that I hired for a 4 hour private riding tour told me that during his spare time, he will be exploring the surrounding area to try and find new burial sites using just a metre long thin metal bar. He claimed that a guide does not earn much in this region and he needed to do this to supplement his family income. He further commented that for each new burial site found, he will only keep the small sculptures while leaving the big sculptures intact to the authorities after notifying them about the latest discovery. Nevertheless, I don't feel good about his actions as I always believe that national or archaeological monuments/artifacts found in a country should all be kept within the country museum. Hence, when he offered to sell me some of these miniature sculptures, I politely declined. And a good thing that I did so as it is a crime to bring out any national artifacts out of a country!!

Salento and Valle de Cocora

Day 16 - 16 Nov 2012

The Cordillera Central range is one of the three branches of ridges in the Andes Mountains that extends from southwest to the northeast of Colombia. Located on the western slope of the Cordillera Central is La Zona Cafetera, the heart of Colombia's coffee production. This is where you will also find Salneto, a small colonial town located at the foothills of the Cordillera. In recent years, Salneto has gained increasing popularity among foreign tourists due to it's beautiful rolling countryside of coffee and banana plantations.

Salento Town

Salento on a cloudy day

Salento on a clear blue day

A 35 minutes jeep ride from Salento will bring you to Valle de Cocora (Cocora Valley) - home of towering wax palm trees. After two days of wet weather, I was really happy when I woke up at 6.15am to a bright and sunny morning. I grabbed a quick breakfast at the hostel and was just in time to catch the first batch of jeeps that will depart from the main plaza at 7.30 a.m.

I boarded this shared jeep where there were six people sitting behind (including myself), two people sitting in front with the driver, and two people hanging off by the side of the jeep at the back. I recognised three of the people whom I met yesterday on my way back from the coffee farm. They are Ariel from Canada, Pete from U.S and Josh also from U.S. (I think). The jeep ride to the centre of the valley costs COP3,000 (approx US$1.80) per pax. When we arrived, I realised that I only have a COP50,000 dollar note which the driver does not have sufficient change for me, and coins that adds up to only COP2,000. Josh, who was nearby and heard what happened, offered to help me pay for the balance of COP1,000. Even though COP1,000 adds up to only ~US$0.60, I was pleasantly surprised that he's willing to help me even though we do not even know each others' name at that time! Such a kind gesture!

Ariel, Pete and Josh were joined by two other ladies sitting in the front of the jeep who happened to stay in the same hostel with them -  Hana from U.K. and Aurelie from France. Knowing that I was alone, there was a kind of unspoken consensus within the group that I will be hiking alongside them. For the second time in a day, I was totally blown away by the kindness displayed by these complete strangers.

There are many different hiking routes that one can choose to do in Cocora Valley. Since we are here to see the wax palm trees, we decided to head to Acaime first, followed by our final destination - La  Montana. The loop trail to La Montana was rocky. After two days of rain, it was extremely muddy and slippery as well. We also did a number of river crossings during the hike and at times, the "bridge" is only held together by by three tree logs tied together with a rope.



Pete in one of the river crossings

Early morning mist

Acaime is a popular rest point where you can enjoy a drink for COP3,000. Most of us decided to order Agua de panela (hot water with unrefined sugar) with cheese, a common local beverage in Colombia. Unfortuantely, this drink does not sit very well with most of us as it was too sweet. As Ariel puts it, it tastes like "diabetes in a bowl".

From Acaime, it was another 1-1.5 hrs of steep ascent before the path levels off. To past our time, Hana, Pete and I started playing some games including memory games, number games and Guess  Who. Before we realised it, we have arrived at the Cocora Valley. The sight that greeted us was stunning and I was really glad to share this beautfiul scenery with my group of new found friends. The 5 hour hike is definitely worth it!

La Cueva del Esplendour

Day 13 - 13 Nov 2012

One of the main attractions in Jardin is the La Cueva del Esplendour which is a waterfall within a cave. There are two ways of getting to La Cueva from Jardin. One can choose to do the more challenging option of hiking up there from the town or the easier, but more expensive option of horseback riding. Since I have always dreamed of riding a horse, I opted to pay a little more money for the latter option. :)

Irma has kindly helped me to arrange a local guide who will bring me to La Cueva. Jaime, my guide for the day was already waiting for me 10 minutes before the scheduled departure at the lobby.

My very cool guide - Jamie

Once again, Jaime couldn't really speak English. After a brief introduction where we tried to understand what each other is talking about, we boarded a shared jeep which is also known as taxi in these small towns. We rode uphill for about 20 minutes before Jaime signalled to me to alight from the jeep. There, in front of me, were two horses waiting for us.

My horse

After spending a couple of minutes saddling the horses, Jaime gestured to me to get onto the horse for the ride to La Cueva. That's when I realised that Jaime will not be leading the horse but I'm supposed to ride it by myself! Oh-oh. I started to feel nervous. I have never riden a horse before in my entire life and thoughts of the horse running berserk went through my mind. While trying to keep my nervousness under control, I decided to spend some time to bond with my horse by stroking him and talking to him in a soothing tone. I think Jaime sensed my discomfort. Even though we started the accent at a snail's pace, he was really patient and stayed behind me all the while with no complaints.

Not long after, we came to a steep, narrow muddy path. Jaime gestured that I should head up that way. My jaws almost dropped upon hearing that. The first thought that crossed my mind was how am I, an amateur in horse riding, would be able to guide the horse along that way. Still, Jaime mentioned something in Spanish and gestured with his hands that I should relax and let loose the reins. Though I was sceptical with what I perceived him to "say", I decided to follow suit. Turns out that Jaime was right. It was only much later that I realised that I'm riding a trail horse. This horse must have done the same route multiple times, and without much prompting from me except a steer in the right direction, it made its way up the narrow path. There were also a couple of times that I almost freaked out when my horse got too close to the edge of the moutain where there is a treacherous drop below. After 30 minutes of riding, it dawned on me that horses have their own survival instincts. Like human beings, they tend to look for the easiest path to make their way up and inevitably, there will be times when these paths are close to the edge of the mountains. However, horses based on their instincts, will know when they are putting their lives at risk by getting too near to the mountain edge. Hence, with that deduction, I finally begin to relax and enjoy the rest of my ride.

The scenery at the top of the mountain was spectacular. Lush green mountain ranges extend beyond the horizon and flowers of different colours are blooming on the trees. During the ride, we did not see other people. There was a constant cool breeze and all was quiet around me except for the sound of birds' chripping in the distance and horses' hooves striking the trail. Occasionally, we would come across a farm and dogs would run towards us barking, with cows grazing in the distance. Most incredibly, there was once during the ride that I have to steer my horse to cross a small river and what an expereince that was! I can't help but feel as if I'm back in those medieval days albeit my dressing doesn't seem to quite fit the description. :) Throughout the ride, I could feel a sense of peace and tranquility coming over me like I've never felt before. To me, this experience is simply magical...

After 1.5hrs of riding, we finally got off from the horses and I followed Jaime on foot downhill. That's when we came to the most challenging part of this trip. Hidden among the trees was a steep mud track that was tilt circa 70 degrees. Jaime who brought along a rope specially for this, tied it to a tree before he guided me down slowly while I hang to the rope for dear life. There, hidden below among the trees was La Cueva.

Yes - it was truly a splendid sight. I have seen many waterfalls in different countries but I have never seen a waterfall inside a cave. While I enjoyed La Cueva, I feel that this trip was how one of my friends, Shirley, who recently mentioned it to me just before I left for South America that sometimes, "It is not the destination, but the journey that matters." This description aptly fits the bill of what I've gone through today.