ab 02.08.: Limatambo - 2,550 m

02.08.

the view from my hostel window on a misty blue morning sky with a mountain backdrop that never fails to fascinate me: sharp peaks that stand out against the blue sky.

the first people are heading to work. the road is wetted to protect against dust fountains

I already cancelled breakfast here yesterday because I don't want to miss the breakfast at the hotel. But when I come downstairs, the host person insists on quickly offering me a freshly squeezed passionfruit-orange juice. I would have preferred a hot tea.

At Kalle's, I am greeted with a good breakfast and a nice conversation with him. It turns out he grew up just a few kilometers from Deifeld.
As nice as it is, time is running out, the Vespa needs to be packed, and I just want to get going. Farewell to everyone - as always, very warm and friendly here too, Kalle takes a photo of my departure for his loved ones in Deifeld.
He will send them the photo of my departure and ask them - if they know Ronny - to pass it on to him at the next opportunity. I'm curious to see what comes of it.

Today is not an easy ride.
at the beginning it is the same route that I took yesterday to the salt flats, only now I am fully packed and driving up the steep switchbacks at a moderate pace. In front of me, there's a red beetle with a roaring exhaust, struggling and forcing me to slow down, but still too fast for me to overtake.
then we reach an altitude of 4,200 m again and drive along a scenic plateau.
Already mentally prepared for a beautiful and challenging descent and relaxing high plateaus with wide views, suddenly the friendly voice in my ear points out: 'RIGHT!' right ??? can that be? but the destination Limatambo is clearly defined, it fits in terms of time, so right. through a street village and then suddenly gravel!!!! that can't be!!! no one told me about that! all I heard was 'asfaltado'.

lagoons, sheep and donkeys - if only there wasn't the gravel

scenic, though, with lagoons, snow-capped mountains against a blue sky, fields laid out like a chessboard, with sheep and donkeys - a pure idyll, if it weren't for the bumpy ride. every bump hurts me three times on the Vespa. A car driver coming towards me says it's only 4 km. Well, not so bad, we can manage that too. But it doesn't end. The nice thing is that there's no traffic except for minibuses overloaded with Peruvian women, driving home from the fields. Then it starts to slope with switchbacks and in the narrow corners there's no more gravel, but soft, slippery sand. I would never make it up here. In the corners, the 12-inch tires would spin and that would be it. Man, it shoots through my mind: you have to drive back when you come from Lima... but then I realize that I have now bypassed Cusco and will take a different route later.
Then it's over, asphalt appears and it's a beautiful stretch. hardly any bumps, smooth asphalt, and it's a real relief after this bumpy ride.
However, I feel guilty. I should change the jet slowly, until the Vespa clearly tells me on uphill slopes that it's time. It slows down and when it wants to go up a mountain at 40 km/h, I stop briefly and want to start working routine. Three screws can be loosened from the float chamber cover, the fourth one just won't budge and in the end, the screw head is so messed up that there's no way to proceed. Then a BMW rider from Thuringia stops, whose motorcycle I saw at the campsite in Cusco, but he can't help me either.
He has been traveling all over the world since 2014, is a carpenter by trade and finances his trip through jobs that pay 25 euros per hour. Yes, craftsmanship is profitable. Alex is also a carpenter and did the same thing. the Thuringian then gives me the tip to just keep going and ask for help at the next workshop. I wouldn't have thought of that so quickly. I would have tried it for a long time. But basically, it's still running - just rough and somehow uneven. Well, as it always goes: I meet the well-traveled and experienced globetrotters on their 650s or more, who like to tell horror stories about Bolivian fuel, road conditions, and never-ending and stinking truck queues - adventures that they have easily survived, but that are still waiting for me and really get to me!!! What we have already accomplished!!! They have a category for me now, and they are called: "thick-makers"!

Alright, then I closed the carburetor again and connected it with the hoses and I notice that this break did the Vespa good. Despite the uphill slope, the speedometer needle effortlessly reaches 50 to 60 km/h, the engine is purring, and soon we'll be going downhill again.

it's worth the ascent with all its discomfort

although very exhausting because of the many tight turns, but an unforgettable view over a fantastic valley, great weather, mild air, green trees, even willows standing near rivers, almost like in our pre-Alpine region - simply amazing!!!
I definitely lost an hour due to the jet incident, so I realize that I will stay in Limatambo to find a workshop and a hostel. That's the right decision. The hostel is quickly found. private with its own bathroom. price-wise, it's similar to the 8-bed room in Cusco. It's located next to a sports field, and as luck would have it, the groundskeeper is there. I ask him if the Vespa can park behind the secure gate and then I immediately ask him about a workshop. At first, he wants to send me to Cusco, but I explain myself more clearly, he understands and promises to find a mechanic who can only come around 5:00 pm. he is punctual, and he manages to open this screw with pliers and other torture instruments. I don't really trust him and secretly think that it was a mistake, I should have gone to a proper workshop with proper tools tomorrow... But then I see how his hand makes lighter and lighter turns and indeed: he has the screw in his hand!!!!!! saved!! and he was so clever as to bring a replacement with him. we immediately change the jet from 88 to 92 mm - he tightens it with his screwdriver - too tight! Payment: 5 dollars and 5 soles. He is proud and I am relieved, the groundskeeper with his buddy is proud that he accomplished something. Hard to believe.
the mechanic insists on taking a photo with his smartphone - the two of us in front of the Vespa! Unfortunately, not with my smartphone.

I chat a little more with the groundskeeper and his friend. We exchange our names and realize that we both have biblical backgrounds. his name is Elias and I admit that I'm not well-versed in the Bible - neither is he. but I can tell him something about doubting Thomas. his friend's name is Asuncion, which means ascension.
nice farewell, and I'm looking forward to a good dinner. I don't expect much from this little place, but I'm lucky to be treated to grilled fish.

Tomorrow I can continue to Abancay in a relaxed manner. a jet change is not necessary, it's only downhill from here... who believes that...