Peru — My Travel Stories

Lima, Peru

Lima, Peru skip render: ucaddon_blox_line_text_divider Layered Lima It’s Holy Week in Lima and what a treat to be here for all the action, religious and otherwise. History, art, food and of course the Pisco Sour! skip render: ucaddon_card_carouselhttps://videos.files.wordpress.com/GBD97ceC/img_0782.movWhilemany of the indigenous people are Catholic, they put their own riff on their faith and rituals.

Cusco, Peru

Cusco, Peru skip render: ucaddon_blox_line_text_divider Colonial Cusco We arrived in Cusco to spend a few days to acclimatize to a higher altitude before heading out on a seven day hiking and culture trip in the Sacred Valley. Such a lovely town and so hard to follow the acclimatization rules of taking it easy…there’s too much to explore!

Chinchero, Peru

Chinchero, Peru skip render: ucaddon_blox_line_text_divider Cultivated Chinchero We have left the city of Cusco but we remain in the province of Cusco where we have begun to explore the peaks and valleys of the Andes Mountains. It’s a remarkably rich region with everything from beautiful artisan handicrafts to amazing Inca sites giving us a glimpse into the culturally rich and sophisticated society that was the Incan empire. All that in a stunning landscape!

Pisaq, Peru

Pisaq, Peru skip render: ucaddon_blox_line_text_divider Preserved Pisaq Our first day of proper hiking took us to the Pisaq Ruins, a key Inca town in the Sacred Valley. Surprisingly, it is way less popular than Machu Picchu, at four times the size! skip render: ucaddon_card_carouselhttps://videos.files.wordpress.com/zIZ1QFoH/img_1357.movCarvedinto a rock face connecting the military zone of the site to the Intihuatana ceremonial area is a tunnel (called the Intihuatana Tunnel), a narrow,…

Calca, Peru

Our day started with an early trip to the Calca market, a small local market very much geared to the daily shopping needs of the community (no tourist trinkets to be found) before we went to explore the Ankasmarka archeological site which was quite different from other sites we saw. We then hiked right to the door of our lodge with a surprising incident along the way.

Quiswarani, Peru

Today’s hike from Quiswarani to Quelquena included another mule assist; our summit was higher than yesterday! I sure felt every one of those 4440m in my lungs even though our elevation gain was only 600m. On the way to our hotel we passed an accommodation that I’m glad was not on our itinerary!

Ollantaytambo, Peru

Before our hike to Ollantaytambo, we made a stop at Pumamarka, another set of Inca ruins with a bit of a complicated history. No written record of the time means the archaeologists give their best guess, often questioned by others. That’s what science is all about!

The Hike to Machu Picchu, Peru

Our Machu Picchu adventure started on the early morning train from Ollantaytambo to stop “106km” aka Choquesuysuy. We climbed about 530m over 11 kmup to Inti Punku, the Sun Gate (no big deal after Cusco and the other hikes we did), through beautiful trails dotted with stunning flowers, overlooking spectacular views. And the jewel of one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World waited for us at the end.

Machu Picchu, Peru

After an evening in our stunning hotel in Aguas Calientes, we went back up to Machu Picchu (this time by bus snaking up the switchback road) to explore the lower part of this amazing place. We poked around where the elite lived and prayed and took care of important Inca business, before heading back to Cusco and a bit more altitude adventures.

Rainbow Mountain, Peru

Our day trip to Rainbow Mountain and Red Valley was big change in elevation and a big change in scenery. Absolutely spectacular and definitely worth the 3am pick up from our hotel. We were among the first up the mountain and by the time we left, there was a steady stream of people heading up.This is such a beautiful place that it was hard to choose which photos to share. Some I don’t have much to say but just decided you needed to see them too!

Iquitos, Peru

Iquitos is our jumping off point for our Amazon jungle adventure. This frontier town was at the centre of the rubber boom for around 30 years (1879-1912). When the boom busted, Iquitos didn't have much going for it but it lives on through thick and thin. Our arrival was very delayed so we ended up only having a morning to spend here before heading to the jungle. We went to the Mercado Belén and floating village, both of which were amazing!

Amazon, Peru

Our last leg of our Peruvian adventure took us to the Amazon. We were surrounded by a whole new set of sights and sounds in a completely natural world. It was amazing to witness chemical-free life in the jungle...that is until our departure!