Peru to Cusco and Sacred Valley


May 24 – During our visit to Peru, we’ve been learning about the Inca history - sometimes referred to as the “lost civilization” because they seemed to have disappeared after only a little more than 300 years of existence. Today we leave Puno and travel on the Andean Explorer rail to Cusco – the ancient capital of the Incas. Our journey of 228 miles will take about 9 hours over beautiful terrain and of course across the Andes. This luxury train provides comfortable seating, breakfast, lunch and high tea. Along the way we are treated to local entertainment, a fashion show and a mixology course to make Pisco sours. Our train travels right through the region’s capital, Juliaca. Stalls have been set up actually on the tracks. As the train slowly makes its way, folks scramble to move aside leaving just enough room for the train to pass. This goes on for miles and miles. Market stalls for every kind of local shopping. People wave to us as we past and seem to make a game of this. The highest elevation during the trip is 14,162’ – where we make a brief stop to change tracks and wait for the train coming from the opposite direction to pass. Guess what we found – shopping. It’s amazing in the middle of nowhere on top of the mountain ladies have set up stalls of local handicrafts. Enroute we will pass through small villages and see dramatic scenery from over the barren mountain range down to the fertile farms along the Vilcanota River into Cusco. By the time we arrive Cusco, one member of our group has taken 1400 pictures of just this day.



May 25 Cusco is 11,000’ but we are now used to the high altitude and get right into our visit of this sacred city thought to be the center of the earth by the Incas. And why not? It’s location between two river valleys with very fertile land provided great resources and protection. Today we see how the Incas were great engineers and architects by visiting two ruins – Sacsayhuaman and Koricancha (the Sun Temple) now the Convent of Santa Domingo. At Sacsayhuaman we see walls built of stones weighing nearly an average of 80 tons (the largest however is 361) each moved from a quarry about 10 miles away. The stones (like most of the Inca’s structures) are so well engineered that even today you cannot get even a piece of paper between the walls. Koricancha monument was one of the most important in the entire empire. They found burnt offerings in thanks to the sun. Smaller rooms were devoted to the moon, stars, lightning and rainbows. This place also served as a solar observatory and mummy storehouse. While there were many gold and silver deities throughout this temple, Inca’s believed the real wealth was in the abundance of food and water.



May 26 – 28

Before getting to Machu Picchu, one must past through the Sacred Valley but better to take a few days to visit. From the snow-capped mountains to the Urubamba River, this was (and still is) perfect climate for agriculture. It was the most populated area by the Incas. The entire Inca civilization covered from Ecuador to the north down to Chile and parts of Columbia and Brazil and grew to about 15 million total. Our visits included the ruins of Pisac Fortress – the largest of Inca fortresses and sits high on top of a hill. Most of their construction is high on the mountains as I will tell you about during the one-day hike on a portion of the Inca trail which brought us into Machu Picchu from the Sun Gate. Pisac is a picturesque Andean village with a lively local market around the main square.

Ollantaytambo – 2600” above sea level – The town is the only one in Peru that conserved it streets of stones with most of the Inca construction still intact. It is an example of how the Incas divided their cities into blocks. It shows 3 specific regions or plan the Incas had for every village – the agricultural is seen by the many many terraces used to grow crops. The 2nd region was urban for daily life of the Incas and the 3rd was for religious ceremonies. Our visit to this fortress continues to show their wonderful architecture skills and planning.



By now our group is ready for the icing on the cake – Machu Picchu. Due to the heavy rains last January, we are taken by bus to a bus depot where we change to a minivan. And when you see the very narrow, dirt road, it’s amazing anything gets through. We arrive Ollanta to board the train to Aqua Calientes and from there yet another bus along the switch back road up – up – up to the entrance of Machu Picchu. But for 4 of us we “jump” the train at marker 104 to begin our one-day hike along the Inca Trail to arrive Machu Picchu high above the site. We carried back packs with water, sunscreen, bug repellent, sunglasses, hat and lunch. They say the first 4 hours is the hardest because it is a lot of up and down on uneven stones directly along the cliff of the mountains with very little cover from the sun. We took lots of rests to view and take pictures. Once in awhile we could see the train tracks – but they looked so small from our vantage. Mid day we arrive to Winayhuayna – an amazing Inca site in the middle of the cloud forest so high ontop of the mountains you can almost touch the sky. This is truly spectacular. Here we stop for lunch and admire the many terraces and rustic dwellings. How did they get all those rocks up so high?? But all too soon we have to continue our journey another 3 hours to reach the Sun Gate. We are now in the forest, cool and lots of plant life. Many wild orchids – we are told there are over 2000 different species of orchids. The walk is hard for me, I will admit it. There were times I wondered what did I get myself into. But there was no turning back – just the vision of looking over Machu Picchu gave me strength to put one foot in front of the other. Until we came to an area – no walking – but climbing. Climbing hand and feet - pulling yourself up higher and higher. Even with lunch gone the pack back seemed so heavy. I was so tired. But we finally made the top – to be told only one more hour to walk. Again the hike goes up and up and up. And finally – you see part of a stone gate and those ontop are giving you support – come up you can make it –this is it – keep climbing. I climbed and climbed and together one of my hiking companions took each other arm and arm to turn the corner. 180 degree view of Machu Picchu in all its glory. I can give you all kinds of words but I will only say that it’s a feeling you get few times in your life.  A feeling of great physical accomplishment because when you start you wonder "will I make it".  You don't let on.  You keep going.  And when you finish and have that feeling, it will live in you forever  – savor it.

We returned to Puno this afternoon.  What a fantastic few days.  After our brief tour of Lima which included the 16-century convent, San Francisco and access to the catacombs said to house over 25,000 people as well as a visit to the National Museum of Archeology.  We departed Lima mid afternoon and arrive Puno by night, the jumping off city to visit Lake Titicaca.  Up a little over 13,000', I begin to get symptons of high altitude sickness and for the next 24 hours I really don't remember much.  Our guide recognizes immediately my condition while we have dinner in town and provides a cotton ball of rubbing alcohol to put around my face and breathe deeply the smell.  Within minutes I seem to be OK long enough to return to the hotel. But throughout the night my condition, well, let's just say I never want to repeat a night like that - nor a day like the following one.  We had to leave the hotel early but my mind was in such a cloud, a few folks had to help me repack, get dressed and get on a minivan and then on a 12 passenger boat on Lake Titicaca to get to Isle Suasi.  Of course this is the day to see the Uros Islands or floating islands.  For centuries these people's way of life are centered around the "totora: or reed.  They cut and pile to form giant floating islands which are anchored to the shallow bottom of the lake.  I was off the boat and int he warm sun hoping to feel better.  Each of us was invited by a local to visit their hut.  Melinda was motioning me to follow her which I did.  It was a strange sensation walking across all of the reeds piled on the water and wondering will it really hold me.  Once in the doorway of the hut, my stomach started rumbling, I broke out in a sweat and figured I had 10 seconds to get myself over the edge.  I ran across the entire floating island holding my mouth.  Once behind our boat, a few noises, and I knew I was finally on the road to recovery.  I missed most of the tour to our 2nd island, Taquile.  This is not a floating island but an island about 4 miles long and 3/4 miles wide.  They are known for eleborate and colorful costumes. Here you could stay overnight with one of the families to get a great experience of what it's like living on this beautiful (but isloated) area. Our destination is much more to Joyce's standards,(although 3 hours away from Puno by boat)  Isle Suasi.  This privately owned island has allowed Casa Andina to build a small hotel where you can't help but unwind, relax and settle in.  There are opportunities to take one of 4 hikes, canoe around the island, go bird watching, have a massage, or read a book on the terrace while only the lapping of the water on the beach will be heard.  There are 3 kinds of animals living on the island, alpaca, vecunas (similar to a deer) and vecaches.  Now these little creatures are a delight to watch.  They have a tail of a squirrel, a body of a rabbit with long whiskers like a cat and they can sit back on their haunches like a kangaroo and jump up to 15 feet.  This island is truely heaven on earth.  The sky is a bright blue with just a few puffy white clouds and the sun is warm (got low 80's) but the evenings get very windy and cold (high 30's) and we even had a fast and furrious rain showere the first evening.  But that gave way to a 2nd evening of late-night star gazing - absolutely beautiful.  All too soon, we had to say our goodbyes to this beautiful place, get back on the boat for our 3 hour boat ride and head to Puno.  And what a ride.  The wind picked up and the waves were crashing over the top.  Spray and mist everywhere.  Sometime during this trip it was brought to our attention when you see white caps on the water it means the water is smiling and showing its teeth.  I'm not sure this water was smiling, it looked more angry.  Finally after 30 minutes of rocking and rolling the "seas" calmed down and we enjoyed our trip back to Puno which is where we are tonight.  Tomorrow we board our train from Puno to Cusco - 9-hour ride through some of the most beautiful scenery in all Peru. 

Our last afternoon in the Amazon was spent visiting one of the small villages along one of the tributaries.  Although dressed in traditional garb, we knew this was purely for our benefit.  But it's important for the tribes to keep traditions and this is a way for them to pass from one generation to another as well as give us a glimpse of their life not so long ago. We had our turn at the blowgun. I hit the target twice.  We learned the difference between poisonous (plants are poisonous as well as darts) and venomous (snakes and spiders).  We learned a few new dance steps too.  The idea of "Amazon women" came as a result when Spaniards saw people in grass skirts and what looked liked long hair.  It wasn't long hair but rather grass headdresses with a long back for brushing bugs away.  From afar, they looked like very big women and thus the story started. 
PARACAS - Yesterday morning (tuesday) we left the Amazon with all its greenery and lush jungle to arrive in Paracas. We drove over 4 hours along the desert coastline south of Lima.  This is very dry, rugged and very little vegetation. It's a hard life for people in this region.  Today our morning visit was to the Ballestas Islands just off the coast.  Some say a "mini" Galapagos.  Known to have the world's largest collection of sea birds, it was an amazing sight. We saw: Cormorants, Frigate birds, Peruvian pelicans, boobies, and the endangered Humboldt penquins. Of course we saw sea lions as well.  Thanks to these birds, their guano (poop) they produce is a highly coveted fertilizer ingredient making it 1 of 3 main industries (the other 2 are salt and fish meal)
The afternoon was another adventure as we took to the air in a small cessena to view the Nazca Lines.  Scientsits are still baffled by these picture lines that include a monkey, spider, dog, hummingbird, just some of over 200 designs etched in the earth and can only be seen by the air. Discovered in the 1920's, the first of these were probably made around 400bc and are still in tact.
We're now in Lima for one night.  After a brief tour of the city tomorrow, we fly to Lake Titicaca.  We will be just over 10,000. WOW.

Peru Amazon May 15, 2010

We arrived Iquitos, the main city in Northern Amazon, mid-day on Saturday. Known to be the largest city in the world that is not accessible by road. It’s a melting pot of various Indian groups blended with immigrants of Italy, the Philippines, China and of course Spain. Our drive from the airport to the pier introduced us to this busy, crowded, noisy, hot city. We passed a market that went on and on for many streets and a house known as “Iron House”, designed by Gustav Eiffel (Eiffel Tower) and shipped in pieces by a wealthy rubber businessman in the late 1800’s. Within minutes of leaving the dock, we were in a different world. Our 45 minute ride along the Amazon brought us to our home for the next 3 nights, Cieba Tops Lodge. The most comfortable of the 5 jungle lodges owned by Explorama. The staff are very friendly. Our buffet meals are made from local produce, fish and goes down great with local beer. Each group is assigned a guide for the duration of our stay. Willy (named after William Shakespeare – really) is wonderful. Less than an hour of our arrival, our first adventure was a hike around the jungle area of Ceiba Tops pointing out various plants and trees such as the “telephone” tree. It’s trunk has 3 or 4 hollow sections of different sizes (for different tones) provides a way for tribes to communicate. We finished at the giant Ceiba Tree for which our lodge gets its name. It stands 145 high and is about 400 years old. A magnificent tree with branches that reach so high, it seems to touch the sky. The locals believe there is spirit in everything about the Amazon. Looking at this tree, you can feel it’s life, its spirit.

Sunday - our 2nd day we left 5:45AM for our 2-hour river boat ride to the Napo River. Our first stop was to enjoy breakfast at the Napo Lodge (also owned by Explorama), more rustic and certainly gives you the sense of being in the jungle. We continued by open boat further into the jungle to yet another even more rustic lodge (ExplorTambos Camp)– about 75 miles from our “home”. We get introduced to a capybara, an aquatic rodent or the biggest rat you will ever see with webbed-like hooves. They can get up to 400lbs. This one is just a baby weighing in at about 200. It’s the camp’s pet. It makes cooing sounds and even rolls over for a tummy rub. Our short hike takes us to the Amazon Canopy Walkway where we begin our ascent into the trees. Opened in 1993 by ACTS, Amazon Conservatory of Tropical Studies, this is a research station for scientists. There are 14 platforms which are connected by suspended walkways extending about one-third of a mile reaching a height of 118 feet above the rainforest. It’s an amazing walk and gives you a vantage point to see the vastness of the rainforest. As you walk, listen and watch. Monkeys, birds, anteaters, and so much more of the Amazonian wildlife is possible. After a full morning, our afternoon included a short walk into the botanical gardens to hear about the medicinal value of many of the plants in the jungle. As the shaman spoke Spanish and Willy translated. He showed us remedies for upset stomach, arthritis, bruises, burns. The one I thought was most interesting was a specific species of a black ant about 3 times larger than our carpenter ants. Their pinchers are used as souchers for cuts. They put the ant on the open cut, the pinchers close and they separate the body, locking the pinchers around the skin.
This evening’s dinner we enjoyed an anniversary celebration of friends. The staff turned off the lights, and strolled around our table playing guitars and singing by the light of cell phones. Yes, it seems technology has invaded even the deep dark jungle of the Amazon. However, they are not as addicted of the need to be in constant contact with each other by phone. We have been here for 3 days and not once have I heard one of their phones ring. Not quite the same for the tourist I’m afraid. We even have free WIFI. It’s amazing how many tourists congregate in the lobby with laptops and cell phone. I suppose at this very minute I too am guilty.

Monday – another early morning. They say the early bird catches the worm but this morning we went out to catch the bird. Our bird watching adventure was very successful. Sightings included, the Laughing Falcon, Snail Kite, small white headed “Grampa” birds and too many to name. We’ve seen beautiful McCaws, the largest in the parrot family. This morning we saw the range from the smallest, parolet, to parakeet, to parrot to macaw. Back in time for a quick breakfast and off in the boats again to fish for piranhas. If you read my old blog from the Brazil Amazon visit, you will get an idea about fishing for these guys. Once again our group was very successful with a total of 4 (yes I caught one again). They were included on our lunch menu.

Is there a difference between the Brazil side and Peru side – absolutely. Peru means great abundance and it certainly lives up to its name. This country is the 3rd largest in South America. Almost 70% of Peru is jungle making it as accessible, biologically diverse and comfortable to a traveler of any degree. Even with most creature comforts of home, this is wild jungle. This is mother nature in all of her wonder and amazement. One comes here not to see but to experience.