Safely and within good time we got onto our transfer and then the Peru hop which was very comfortable. I do occasionally feel of like an OAP (old age pensioner) on a coach holiday but I love it! You meet so many people and everyone is doing the same thing meaning you see many familiar faces along your travels. The first stop was for breakfast were we stopped at this beautiful little cafe where we both got avocado sandwiches. The avocados here are incredible and you don’t have to feel guilt about importation or paying £12 on brunch! Meeting Joe and Sharon will definitely be the highlight of the Peru Hop apart from the convenience. I think their impression will be ever lasting! Joe is a 70yr old stereotypical American tourist, an ex-veteran and ex-businessman. Joe is a little plump and absolutely loves the USA. The first time his Americanism really struck me was when I overheard him go to the Peruvian chef “muchopork” when ordering his traditional sandwich. This one phrase is already a token of our trip and both of us burst into hysterics whenever we say it in our LA girl voice. He also made it his mission to ask everyone eating the avocado if they were vegan and crazy. Alongside Joe is his wife Sharon, who is a lot shorter and half blind. Now their relationship is the definition of love as he held her hand at every moment. Don’t worry they will pop up a few more times and there will be photos! As beautiful as the cafe was you could tell it was a tourist trap (which is fine, we are on the most touristy tour bus) as there was a Peruvian cowboy just riding up and down, guinea pigs to see and a pool!

The next stop was probably our first “properly cultural” thing. Peru Hop comes with a free tour of the secret slave tunnel, Hacienda San Jose, which was built at the end of the XVII century. It was beautiful but I found something quite eery about the place especially as it has been converted into a beautiful hotel, so I’m not sure I could stay here. After looking at the beautiful grounds we were greeted by Joe standing by the free soft drinks or, as he claimed it had become, “Joe’s lemonade stand”. Unfortunately Joe and Sharron didn’t come with us into the tunnels as Joe was secretly told he was too big and Sharron would not have made it down. When we go up we were greeted by Joe shouting in his Californian accent “we could have done it faster than that!” The one thing I did love about this experience was the passion our guide spoke with. He was from the area the haciendo was in and he was so proud for people to come and learn about the history of his people as he was of African descent. I know I’m skipping a few days forward but I am currently writing this post from a wild rovers hostel in Huarachina while Kate plays beer pong and I’ve decided I preferred the former.