Cuzco to Puno by train

We did not know quite what to expect from this journey, as all we knew was that it would take 8 hours, in fact it took 10! Initial trepidation was dismissed when we saw the luxury compartment we were to travel in. Tablecloths, flowers and later cutlery and glasses, all placed with great care and minutely re-adjusted by each waiter. Even better was the bar and observation carriage. Tables and chairs to relax and then an open air section right at the back for the best photos.
We set off precisely on time, descended out of Cuzco before climbing with increasingkly splendid views of the mountains and exciting glimpses of the snow covered high Andes. We had a wonderful blue sky and a few well defined clouds but as we got close to the high point of 4,300m the sky became dark, there was lightning about and it hailed! This was sad because we stopped for 10 minutes and there was a small market for tourists to buy local made goods. This is probably the only income for these people and nobody ventured from the train into the cold! We moved on and descended slightly to the high plateau (altiplano). We had gone from fertile valley to the this brown flat landscape. There were occasional collections of a few dwellings, made from mud and straw bricks, and small herds of cattle or llamas. It seemed a meagre subsistence living. We saw one or two persons, usually women in traditional clothing, every few miles on this lonely landscape.
Then our splendid gourmet lunch was very slowly served - probably deliberately slowly as we were not being distracted by the scenery! A small group of waiters would march out in step and simultaneously place plates in front of us. Excellent food. Afterwards, we were entertained by some music and dancing and a demo of how to make a pisco sour and since happy hour followed, we indulged!
Now we pulled into Juliaca, the town before Puno and location of the airport. Here we saw desperate 3rd world poverty, contrasting to our life on the train. The rain added mud to the squalor. Stalls selling everything imaginable, workshops, some brick, more corrugated iron, almost blocked our way. They had to part for the daily train but reformed behind us as that space was too valuable to leave empty. Obviously we moved slowly, there being no protection of people or property from the train. Despite our feelings of despair for these living conditions, children smiled happily at us and waved.
A light but very fancy tea was served before we arrived in Puno and were transported to our luxury hotel. A world of 'haves' and 'have nots'.