Take your breath away

OXYGEN tanks at the airport and in hotel foyers of Macchu Pichu's base town in the Peruvian Andes suggest something extraordinary.

BREATHLESS and lightheaded ... and that was just while sipping cocoa tea in Cusco's Plaza de Armas, its centre square.

It wasn't the lucerne-tasting tea the locals swear by for reducing altitude sickness or its euphoria-producing properties, which I never experienced despite downing several cups, but the altitude itself.

At 3350m above sea level, Peru's base camp to the Inca ruins of Macchu Pichu and the jungles of the Amazon is not for the altitude-sensitive.

The suspicion you could have problems begins at the airport where oxygen tanks are placed ready for arriving passengers, as they are in hotel foyers.

For me, the effect was not immediate. It was a headache that persisted and a need to gasp for air. I discovered the sickness is indiscriminate in its attack, so age and, in particular, fitness offers no protection – only time helps.

I now know that what I should have done instead of spending weeks of preparation rising at the crack of dawn to cycle along the Wynnum foreshore would have been to take an extra week or two and hang out in Cusco's coffee shops.

The first few days in the ancient town were slow-going, as climbing a set of stairs required a couple of stops to catch my breath. But the beauty urges you on.

Rimmed by the Andes mountains Cusco's ancient cobblestoned streets are filled with grand churches and Inca ruins and markets and restaurants geared to the tourist trade.

The stocky Peruvian people love a parade and I was lucky enough to wander into a parade that culminated in a celebration of music and dance in the town square.

The women who wear an everyday traditional dress of full pleated skirts and bowler hats brought out their most colourful clothing.

Skirts swirled as they danced through the streets while the men donned costumes including robotic-looking dress and spirit-scaring masks.

Throughout Cusco, as in its centre square, the country's history can be seen in its buildings.

When the Spanish invaded about 500 years ago they destroyed all but the bases of the Inca buildings on which they built their own churches.

The perfectly cut and positioned rocks of the Inca walls attest to their building skills, making the Spanish construction above appear all the poorer in comparison.

Untouched by the Spaniards was Macchu Pichu. Located about 120km from Cusco, reached by a four-day trek or four-hour train ride, the Inca village was built from the rocks of the mountain peak it replaced.

Not surprisingly I opted for the train trip, followed by a 30-minute bus trip that ascends about 1000m and a crawl on foot up a mountain to the site.

It is more magnificent than photographs give it credit and its construction is mind-boggling, especially given its isolated location.

Its demise remains a mystery. At the end of its occupation only the women remained. What became of the men is unknown.

After the wonder of Macchu Pichu you think nothing will compare. But a 20-minute flight from Cusco is the Amazon ... magnificent in such a different way.

Hot and steamy at sea level, the Amazon made me understand how tourists feel when they reach north Queensland's crocodile-infested Daintree.

It's isolated and unknown territory. Half a kilometre in width at some parts, the river is so swift-flowing it washes away established trees from its banks and drags them along.

Lodges are dotted along the river where tourists can experience the jungle without the interruption of mobile phones, TV or radio.

A two-way radio provides emergency contact and a generator is cranked up a few hours a day for light.

It's always safer in a group – and that must be the philosophy taken by the Amazonas Ecolodge where we stayed. I skipped dinner one night and it seemed to cause some panic.

Probably thinking I'd been taken by a passing jaguar, there was a knock at the door to check.

You have to wonder though, how much protection is offered by the machete-wielding guides who lead groups through the dense jungle.

Monkeys crash through the trees as you walk along the swampy paths.

"You want to see tarantula?" asks the guide.

Of course you do, but you can't help edging backwards as the monster spider is drawn out from its underground burrow. A boat ride up tributaries where the jungle encroaches across the banks was another option. In a small group that included two Englishmen who the mosquitoes loved, we went fishing from a long canoe for piranha and thankfully, didn't catch any.

Getting there: Flights with LAN Chile Airlines depart from Sydney to Santiago. Domestic LAN flights go direct to Cusco.