I flew into Lima in the late morning after an overnight flight from Dallas. It was funny sitting in the airport and seeing everyone in Merrell hiking shoes and backpacks. I wondered how many of them I would see at Machu Picchu in a couple of days.
For the airplane between Lima to Cusco my flight was supposed to get in an hour before Logan's (He was coming from Chile) but the airplane had to be fixed and delayed us over an hour while we stat on the runway. Funny enough both our flights got into Lima about an hour apart but as I waited on the airplane Logan boarded his and left before me. It really wasn't an issue because luckily they were able to fix the plane and Logan was at the airport waiting for me.
Flying from Lima near the coast to Cusco was really interesting as we gained altitude flying over the Andes Mountains. Usually you fly up above the clouds and there is a big gap from them to the ground but as we flew it looked like the clouds barely floated above the ground.
Fun fact. Lumberton, NJ has an elevation of 36 feet above sea level (basically if a huge tsunami directly hit the coast we would be toast). Lima is a coastal town around 505 feet. Machu Picchu is 7,972 feet but Cusco is a whopping 11,152 feet! Just as a reference Durango, Co is 6,522 feet, Albuquerque is 5,352 feet and Provo, UT is 4,551 feet. Later I will talk more about why the elevation was important.
My first impression of Cusco was that all the buildings were made of brick. Once you take into consideration the elevation it makes sense that there are not a lot of trees because it is almost above the treeline thats between 11,500 and 13,100 ft. Peru is not a very wealthy country even though it is one of the most visited places in South America (Machu Picchu). A lot of the brick buildings didn't have windows and didn't look completed but there were still people living in them.
Yay! After several weeks I finally reunited with Logan at the Cusco airport! He is my favorite (and a hottie in a beard) and did I mention he %100 planned the whole vacation and booked and paid for everything! Seriously he is the best! Also, it is early but this trip was kinda to celebrate our 10 year anniversary thats next April because Logan will be gone and it was too good of an opportunity to not take (Logan's flights to and from Chile were paid for by the language program and we used a voucher Logan got another time to pay for my flight from Chile to home. Basically to get to South America we only had to pay for one big flight out of pocket instead of 4).
We checked into our hotel called Yawar Inca Hotel. The lobby played well known oldies from the states but was in all in peruvian wind flutes.
It was around 10 or 11 so we went out to find some lunch before going back to take a nap because we both had overnight flights the night before. We walked over towards the main plaza. That’s when we found ladies dressed in traditional clothing with baby alpacas! I knew when she put it in my hands I’d be paying for it but didn’t care because BABY ALPACA! One of my favorite pictures from the trip!
We had walked around for a while and I was getting really hungry when a lady from a resturant walked out with a menu telling us a meal would include free Pisco Sours (alcoholic drinks) but when she said it had a balcony overlooking the plaza I knew we had found our lunch location. Logan is so handy and asked them in Spanish to replace our drinks with something else and I got the best lemonade I’ve literally ever had!
We got a trio of meat to share. Alpaca (yes the same animal I was just gushing over being so cute), pork and beef with potatoes and veggies. I actually liked the alpaca better than the pork but beef is always my fav.
Walking back to the hotel we found some coca candy I’d read about. It’s made with coca leaves and very popular in Peru. It’s also often served as a tea. We got some to try because I’d heard it was really good for altitude sickness. Yes it is the same leaves that make cocaine but when just using the leaves it is only an herbal tea that is a natural source of energy and even safe for kids.
Like I said before Cuzco is 11,152 feet above sea level. It’s actually even higher than Machu Picchu. I read some hotels even have oxygen for hotel guests should they need it for altitude sickness. I could definitely tell a difference from New Jersey that is basically sea level. I was really worried about being hit with it and not enjoying Peru. So I bought several things on amazon to help with altitude sickness and definitely drank coca tea when it was offered. The first day I felt dizzy and had a headache I couldn’t shake but by day two I felt much better.
After a nice nap we went back out to the historic plaza and dinner. We stayed close to the old city and tourist areas. It was beautiful and looked a European to me.
We found a chocolate museum with free samples! It was fun to see chocolate from the pod to nibs and chocolate as we know it all grown there in Peru.
I thought it was super funny that in this super historical center there was a McDonald’s, KFC, Starbucks and a north face store.
In the picture below, we had lunch earlier that day at the balcony that was three from the right.
Dinner meant time for cuy or guinea pig! It was something we had planned to do. It is another traditional food in Peru. Logan found a place on TripAdvisor and it didn’t disappoint although to walk to it was a little scary at night as we walked out of the clean and nice well lit tourist places up an ally with beams holding the walls up. I almost made Logan turn around but I'm glad we didn't.
Once we were inside it was really nice and beautiful although they locked the door after us and each guest that walked in.
My new favorite drink it Inca Kola! Its bright yellow, tastes like cream soda with a bubble gum aftertaste! What’s not to love! We drank as much as we could there and anywhere we saw it in South America although it was really only a thing in Peru.
They brought out our Cuy whole for pictures but then took it back and cut off the stuff you don’t eat leaving the rest quartered like it was just a bone on chicken thigh. It was completely stuffed with an herb the owner called Peruvian Mint. It was a very unique taste but good!
I tried the cuy too and it was very pleasant. The empanada seen in the picture was actually my favorite! It had a pepper with ground alpaca inside. I was also really happy with my meal. It was a mild cheese sauce with chili and grilled chicken. We ate until we were completely stuffed but I wish I could go back to eat more.
After dinner we walked back through the plaza one more time.
That night when we got back I realized I had gotten sunburned the afternoon when we had walked around. It was in the 60s and partly cloudy the whole time not to mention we spent a lot of time inside or in shade. But when you are that high up it is so easy to get burned. This was the only time I got sunburned on the whole trip. It was only on one side of my neck but the red and pain lasted several days and it took over a week to fade before it peeled. The sun is no joke when you are that high up.
Day 2 Machu Picchu
We got up early in the morning so we could get breakfast before getting picked up by our driver.
Here is a pic of what the coca tea looked like. Just leaves with hot water and I added a little sugar. It totally tasted like the lactation tea I had tried when I was nursing Liam. I really liked its flavor.
We booked a tour with a company that set everything up. It was nice except we almost missed our train. To get from Cuzco to Machu Picchu we had to take a car to a train to a bus. Our driver apparently got in an accident and so the tour company had to send another driver that raced through the windy roads it to get up to the train on time. On the drive we still got to see a lot of the country side and listen to more Peruvian Flutes that I think was just something they do for tourists.
Dogs were EVERYWHERE!! Lots of them were strays but our driver said some had owners that during the day would let out to wander until night when they let them back inside to be family pets again. Still everytime we saw people there were dogs. On the drive out of the city I don't think we went even 10 seconds between seeing them.
To get to the train station in Ollantaytambo we had to drive out of the city and took over an hour. A lot of people stay in Ollantaytambo that is in the Sacred Valley and much closer to the ruins and Incan trails but I loved seeing Cusco and we both wanted to go back again someday.
It was interesting to see what real life for people outside the touristy locations looked like. They definitely live much different lives in brick houses and shanty’s.
We made it to the train on time! We got tickets for the Vista Dome. It was a cool train car with windows on the ceiling too and you definitely needed them as it went through the sacred valley and mountains towered over each side of the car.
Here are a bunch of the beautiful views we had on the train to aguas caliente. It was crazy to see it go from a desert like landscape to lush jungle! I almost didn't believe it could change that much but it did!
Below is the start of the Incan Trail (at least what is open to the public)
Starting to see more green and trees.
Aquas Caliente (hot springs) is also called Machu Picchu Pueblo. This is where we met up with our tour guide and had to take the bus up the mountain.
Waiting in line.
On the bus! The night before I left Connor gave me this necklace to take with me so I tried to take a few pictures with it on in each of the places I went so I could send it to Sue for him to see.
On our way! Going up the switchbacks we had some beautiful views as well.
We made it to Machu Picchu. Honestly this has been on my bucket list since high school. It was one place I never really thought I would get to but I’m so glad I did! We were really lucky it was only partly cloudy. Our tour guide said because of the elevation it almost always has clouds and sometimes you can't see a thing. He said he had seen a lot of people cry because they spent all the time and money to get there and they don't get to have any of the iconic views you see here.
It was also the most perfect temperature ever and with the cloud coverage I didn't have to worry about getting sunburned as much. It also misted for about a minute but was dry the rest of the time. When I looked at the forecast the rest of the week after we left said it was non stop rain. We really lucked out!
Machu Picchu means "old mountain" in quechua. It is named after the side of the mountain the city is on but the whole city is surrounded by 4 much higher mountains. They built the city only for the rulers, spiritual leaders and their families. It is thought to have had a population between 500-1000 people and is fully supported by natural water sources and farming that was done on the terraced hills. It was high in the hills because the people believed they could be closer to the gods the closer to the sun they got.
They believe it was built around the 1400s from the stone quarried from the mountain and then abandoned around the time the conquistadors invaded but it was never found by the Spanish. In the early 1900s Hiram Bingham from Yale heard about it and was taken up to it by a little boy. It is considered to have been "discovered" by Hiram Bingham as he is the one who reintroduced the site to the world through a book he published. Yale University still has artifacts that Peru says is theirs.
The real name of the city is not know and there is no written text that talks about the city so relatively little is known about Machu Picchu. To be considered a World Heritage Site over 50 percent has to be original so that is why a lot of the structures have not been rebuilt. Originally the buildings had thatched roofs.
They say there is a Incan face profile behind in the mountains. I told Logan it had his chin! Haha. Fun fact Inca was only the name of the rulers and the population was called Quechua.
After getting the scenic views up top we walked around the city learning about it from our tour guide. It has several temples where they worshipped the sun, moon and creator. They sacrificed llamas on the alters.
The tall peak behind Logan is another site people can climb up to but you have to book tickets online a couple months in advance to do. I decide to opt out before we went for sake of time.
This was a wishing rock you had to close your eyes and make a wish believing in Mother Nature and it would come true. It is also in the same shape as the mountain behind it. The people who lived there used to climb up to the peak of that mountain to do sacrifices but because it was so hard and dangerous they found a rock and moved it to the city to represent the mountain and did their sacrifices there instead.
Yay llamas!
The north side of the city was farmed using the terraces. You don't usually see them as they are below where most people take the overhead shots of the city. They go all the way down to the river but still a lot has not been uncovered from the jungle.
Last pic at Machu Picchu with our tour guide.
Back is Aguas Caliente we had lunch overlooking the river before taking the train all the way back to Cusco this time. Don't look at the pic behind Logan too long it was really weird. All the art in the restaurant was odd like that.
Corn soup. It was good but not the same as in Japan.
Toasted Peruvian Corn with salt was super yummy snack.
Getting back on the train.
It was nice to have a little snack on the train because the way back was about 3 hours.
Not long after we got on the train it was too dark to see anything. I thought it would be a boring 3 hour ride back but then they started to play loud music on the speakers and shared a local dance and the story behind it. That was then followed with a alpaca wool clothing fashion show (the attendants that served us our drinks and snacks walked up and down the isles in the clothes). It was fun and I laughed when the dancer made Logan get up and dance with her.
For the fashion show part (that was just a way to show off clothes to sell) the dancer stayed at the end of the isle the whole time and encouraged us all to clap. I thought it was great that when I tried to get a pic of her with us she noticed and leaned over to make it a better pic!
I loved Peru! The culture is so rich and the incas were just one of the groups of people to live in the area. Logan and I both had a lot of interesting conversations about how a lot of them were descendants of Lamanites during that time. I had heard good things about peruvian food and it did not disappoint. I did feel the altitude and get a little dizzy with headaches but it wouldn't stop me from going back! I hope we get to again someday!
FYI-- I have more pictures to go through so I may come back and add more later with some more descriptions but I wanted to get up what I already had.
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