Happy Thanksgiving 2014

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

For "turkey day" today, here's a picture of a beautiful bird I took in Peru a couple years ago...

300,000 Views Merits Celebration - Picture of the Day #1 and #2

Recently, "views" of my pictures online at Flickr surpassed the 300,000 mark. While in the big scope of the world and of the Internet, this might not be a big deal...to me it is significant. People have viewed my pictures 300,000 times.

To celebrate, I'm posting a "picture of the day" from my collection each day this week. To catch up, below are pictures from yesterday and today.

YESTERDAY
I posted the below shot of a Peruvian girl that I took when my wife and I visited that country in 2012.

Photo by Marc Osborn, (c) Marc Osborn

People pictures are both rewarding and challenging. On one hand, nothing communicates the true nature of a place or situation as a picture of a person or people. The emotion, humanity, the drama...nothing communicates better than a face, a body, a person. But on the other hand, getting pictures of people - especially close up - can be challenging. Think about it. Would you want someone walking up near you and taking your picture as you went about your daily business? No.

I've found only two ways to get good people pictures: 1) Simply ask. Just walk up and ask to take a person's picture. Sometimes they'll say yes, sometimes no. And, as I've experienced, in typically poor countries people will say yes but expect some money. In any case, asking will often get you the access and good karma to get great people pictures. 2) A zoom lens. Yep, one way to get candid shots is to put a long lens on your camera and have a sharp eye for people or groups around you that look interesting. From your removed location, you can zoom in and get interesting pictures that are not staged or posed.

You can see my collection of people pictures I've taken over the years and around the world HERE. Can you spot the ones I asked permission and which one I took from a distance?

TODAY
Animals are our co-inhabitants on this planet and they are compelling subjects for photos too. I prefer to take pictures of animals in the wild vs. in a zoo because I love the idea of seeing and capturing an animal in its natural setting doing what it and its ancestors have done for centuries.

Below is a picture of an elephant and her two babies charging at us.

Photo by Marc Osborn, (c) Marc Osborn

I took this shot on our visit to Tanzania back in 1998. My aunt and uncle lived in Tanzania at that time, and my wife and I paid them a visit. One benefit was that my uncle had an all terrain vehicle and made reservations at a great game reserve. So, we were able to hire a guide and cruise around the park in search of lions, elephants, cheetahs and more. We'd seen most the animals we had wanted to, but by our third day we had still not seen an elephant. Late one afternoon we were driving around an area the guide thought might have elephants and lo and behold he was right. We stopped in a wooded area and saw a number of elephants on both side of our vehicle. I got on the roof and took a few pictures and got back in. Impressive.

My uncle pointed out that there were two babies with their mother pretty close by. As he said this, the mother started charging us - moving swiftly toward our SUV, her babies close by her side. As she did, I stuck my camera out the window and took the picture you see above. My uncle waited only a few seconds before gunning the engine and getting us safely away. We speculated that the mother was protecting her babies by sending a CLEAR signal for us to get out of there. In the end, however, we got a great experience seeing elephants in the wild, a good story, a little thrill and - I think - quite a good picture.

You can see other pictures of animals in the wild that I've taken HERE.

NOTE: Pictures in this post are not permitted for any use without prior written permission from Marc Osborn.

Exploring Peru - The Series

Thanks to anyone and everyone who checked in on this blog over the past month or so to read about our trip to Peru this past August. I had fun reliving the experience, sharing some knowledge and posting pictures I took.

So that everything can now be gathered into one place, below is an aggregation of the entire series for easier reading now or later. Just click on the headlines to go to those pieces.



EXPLORING PERU - THE SERIES
Series Kickoff & Cusco
Trekking in the Andes Mountains I
Trekking in the Andes Mountains II
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Photo Feature - Peru
Photo Feature - Machu Picchu
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Jungle Trekking & Machu Pichhu
Cusco Again, Lake Titicaca, Home

Details of our trip:

• Dates: August 17-September 2

• Route to get there: Seattle-Dallas-Miami-Lima-Cusco

• Tour service: REI Adventures

• Guide: Miguel

• Cities visited: Cusco, Puno, Lima

• Inca ruins visited: Machu Picchu, Tarawasi, Sacsayhuman fortress, Temple of the Sun in Cusco

• Other: Salkantay Pass at 15,000 feet above sea level

For anyone interested, below are links to other series I've written about other trips we've taken...

Excursion to Egypt

The China Reports

Romania: On the Trail of Dracula

Visiting the U.S. South

La Dolce Vita: Italy

Exploring Peru - Cusco Again, Lake Titicaca, Home

Well, it's time for the big wrap up...the last post in my "Exploring Peru" series recapping our August trip to Peru. This time, I'll re-cap our second stint in Cusco, describe our trip to another part of Peru and our nine hour Lima stopover on the way home.

If interested in catching up on previous posts in this series, you can do so in sequence by going HERE, HERE, HERE and then HERE.

And, as usual, I've updated my Flickr Photostream with new pictures that match this post. Just go HERE to see the entire set. The ones in the lower quarter of the page will relate to this post.

CUSCO AGAIN, LAKE TITICACA, HOME

Cusco - Take Two

Our group at Chicha in Cusco

Our first stop in Cusco was short. Just about 24 hours. So, we did not have the time to really look around and check the city out. Sure, I went on that half day tour to see some of the historical highlights...and I was glad I did...but really seeing a place involves walking around, getting off the tourist track a bit (but not too much in this case), doing a bit of shopping...and eating...and just, well, people watching and soaking up the atmosphere. Luckily, on our second stint in Cusco on this trip we would have an evening, a whole day and then another half day to do just that.

After saying our goodbyes to our guides and, we thought, our fellow tour mates, Diane and I cleaned up and rested some at the hotel. We had made arrangements to meet up with our now good buddies Kevin and Josh for dinner, so we went to the lobby to meet them as discussed. As we waited, other members of the tour group filtered in. Naturally, they asked what we were up to for the evening. Learning that we were off for dinner, they all decided to tag along. So, suddenly we had a group of 10 and not four. Hey, the more the merrier! I also thought this was a good sign that our group overall had been a good one for the tour. After all, they would not have wanted to hang out if they didn't like each other - or us!

As it turned out, we found a great place called Chicha not far away and cajoled the greeter there to set up a table for ten people. Chica is an upscale place with a wide ranging menu...and hence why we thought it would be good for a group of ten people. Want nicely done and presented alpaca? They had it. Want delicious pizza? Done. How about some Peruvian classics done up in a "gastro pub style"? No problem. Something for everyone. And speaking of everyone, I was impressed with the camaraderie and openness exhibited by each member of our group. Diane and I had quickly go to know Kevin and Josh right off the top of the tour, but most of the rest of the group already knew each other...so, nice and cordial as they were, it took some time to break the ice. And at this last meal together, the ice truly was broken and we all had a great time. Full and contented, we called it a night after the meal...strolling back through the nigh time Cusco Plaza de Armas and back down the narrow streets to our hotel.

We awoke the next morning and saw that the weather was going to be very nice...perfect for a walking tour, shopping and lunch. By 10 a.m. we out of our hotel and checking into another for one more night in the city. We stayed at the delightful Hotel Arqueologo. After that, we were on the streets looking for knit hats, sweaters, art and souvenirs of all different types with Josh and Kevin along for the fun too.  We visited nice boutiques, typical tourist stalls and pretty much everything in between. Lucky for Kevin and Josh, Diane was there to lend her keen eye to their potential clothes and art purchases. I can summarize our shopping thusly: we went to a lot of shops, it took most of the day, it was fun, we bought many items (art, sweaters, hats, scarves, gloves, etc.), it's all nice and unique stuff and it was a good way to see the old town.

Early in our adventure this day, we came across a woman dressed in typical highlands attire and holding a small baby alpaca. Very cute. Naturally, we had to get a picture. Now, with situations like this, you know you're going to have to pay the person something for taking their picture. Typically, you ask how much and they say, "whatever you want" or "it is your choice." Also typically, no matter how much you give ($1, $2, $5, $10) they respond with a look or a reply that is along the lines of, "you've got to be kidding...that's all you're going to give me?" So, the thing to do is just figure out how much you think the picture you're taking is worth to you and give them that amount undeterred. My feeling is not to be a cheapskate just because I can. So, I gave this woman the equivalent of $5 U.S. She didn't like it, but I didn't think twice about it.

In between all that, we all visited the Inca Museum for a short look around at art and artifacts from the Cusco and highlands area of Peru...you know, learn a little something! We also spent a little time at the Plaza de Armas to people watch. And, out on the street, we ran into a couple other members of our tour - Sally and Evelyn. Together, we hit lunch at a great little place in the San Blas area of Cuco called Jack's Cafe. Later in the afternoon, Diane and I toured through the big Cathedral on the plaza.

Inca foundations on Spanish buildings in Cusco

One thing I thought interesting about Cusco was the architecture...at least in the old town...because the ancient Inca foundations remained on most the buildings. They were easy to spot: big, insanely tightly fit together blocks of carefully carved rock rising from street level. These were the foundations of Inca palaces, temples and everyday buildings. When the Spanish arrived and took over, they eventually tore all of those structures down, building their own buildings - what you see today - on top of the Inca solid foundations. I could not help think about what those original Inca buildings would look like today. How tall? How big? What shape? Some clues were given when we saw things like the Temple of the Sun across town, Machu Picchu and the ruins at Tarawasi. But who knows?

In the evening, we had a nice stroll around the old town - down cobbled streets, under pleasant streetlights and among the hustle bustle created by the mix of fascinated tourists, working people on their way home or our to dinner and school children trotting along to some sort of function or another. We ended up at a nice restaurant off the Plaza de Armas called Tupananchis. There we sat next to the window and had a great meal of causas (little pillars of potatoes with differing toppings), alpaca, Peruvian red wine and a dreamy desert. Behind us sat a large group of German tourists, clearly having a good time. As we ate, a few children came up to the window and inevitably tried to sell us something from the other side of the glass. The only thing that works to get them to leave you alone is to ignore them.

Cusco Plaza de Armas at night

After dinner, we met up with Kevin and Josh for a little bar hopping. Before we got started, curiosity got the better of us and we decided to try chewing coca leaves. Hey, why not? Your there, it's available. Just so happened that Josh procured a bag of leaves when he and Kevin visited the coca museum in Cusco earlier in the day. Excellent. With that we each took 4-5 leaves and stuck them in our mouths, chewed on them for a while, then repeated. After a few minutes, we all conceded that while there was  a mild stimulant affect (very mild) and a bit of numbness in the gums, the leaves were having  surprisingly little effect. After a while we just gave up and agreed that a good stiff drink was the better way to go. Later in our trip in Puno, Diane and I figured out why the leaves didn't have as big an effect as we thought they would. Check out the section of the blog post below for that.

Anyway, not much later that evening, we ended up at a place on the plaza called Mama Africa. This was a typical nightclub. As we sat sipping our Peruvian beers, we speculated that a couple shady guys sitting at the bar might actually be pimps for a few of the "service" staff. Who knows. I will say that a couple the waitresses seemed a bit over the top friendly. Another interesting thing was that while we sat there in a maybe 1/3 full club...all of a sudden a big pack of people came walking in all wearing some sort of wig. Yep. Wig party. Turns out these were recently accepted students to the Kellogg Business School. As they told the story, as a class they were given some options of places around the world to go to "bond," and Cusco was one of the choices. That's why they were there. As for the wigs? Well, even really smart people can have bad ideas.

The night got late and we called it...walking back though the nighttime Cusco streets bathed in street light glow. The next morning we had a few hours to kill before our flight to another part of Peru to continue our trip. We used the time to finish up our shopping spree, say our goodbyes to friends Josh and Kevin and to have a stunningly delicious ceviche lunch at Limo. Soon, we were back at the hotel and into a car headed to the airport for our next destination - Lake Titicaca.

Lake Titicaca
That's right...Lake Titicaca. You read that right. Titicaca. That's the name of the lake we visited. Giggle, giggle, laugh, laugh. Yes, it is a funny name. But, it's ancient and translates to "Rock Puma" as many locals have said the shape of the lake resembles a puma chasing a rabbit. Pumas are another traditional sacred beast in Peru along with Condors.

OK, now that we got that out of the way, I can also tell you that the lake is at 12,000+ feet (higher than Cusco) and the highest "navigable" lake in the world. This means there is no other lake in the world higher in altitude that is also deep enough to enable "vessels" to ply its waters - vessels being large ships. It's also a huge, huge lake...and very pretty. Our thought was that after 10 days hiking through the Andes, it would be good to spend some down time at the lakeside and relax.

Following a few hours on our last morning in Cusco, we packed up our stuff and headed to the airport where we took the short 45 minute flight to the airport at Juliaca - the nearest one to our final destination. Juliaca is not a city you'd want to stay in as a tourist. It's large, dirty and without any real tourist or historical attractions. It literally was built around the airport and today serves as a trade center.

By prior arrangement, we were picked up by a driver and a local contact named Omar who drove us from the inner city of Juliaca out to the lakeside - and much nicer - town of Puno. As the sun set, we made our way through the Juliacan streets choked with cars, carts, moto-taxis, pedestrians, stray dogs. As we moved along in our nice private vehicle, we could see into each shop or dwelling we passed by - seeing what was up with the locals all along the way through town. We also noticed that on every block in this city, there were dentist offices - each with its own clever sign advertising dental services on offer. Diane asked Omar about this and he said that, yes, many, many Peruvians went to dental school with the thought that they could make a good living only to find out that the market is flooded and they cannot make enough money. He further said that the signs we saw were for actual businesses, but there were many more who either moved to another city or country to practice or just quit to become something else.

View from our hotel room in Puno

Our drive to Puno lasted just about an hour and a half. By the time we arrived at our hotel, the Libertador, it had been dark for an hour already. This big, white hotel is part of the Westin chain, and sits on a peninsula just outside Puno - situated so on one side you can look back at town and on the other you look out to the lake. We checked in and went to get dinner at the dining room on premises. It had been a long day and we had no desire to go into town. Funny enough, as we were checking in, we ran into the same German tour group who had been at the restaurant we had eaten at the night before in Cusco. We talked for a minute and went on our separate ways.

For the first of three full days in the Puno area, we decided to just relax, go into town for lunch, see the sights and go back later for diner. However, we had thought that as part of the "relax" portion of our stay at the hotel, we'd have access to a pool and pool deck, spa, nice gym and related facilities. We were wrong. Nice though it was, the hotel had none of those things. So all of a sudden, we had a lot more time to kill on our hands than we originally thought. This was primarily filled with extended shopping and walking around Puno town. Arriving in the sunny afternoon, we toured around the main plaza, went into the cathedral, strolled down the pedestrian streets, hung out at another plaza where we saw a kids parade and perhaps the aftermath of a wedding and just generally indulged in people watching.

We also took in the city's Coca Museum. Yes. The coca leaf is quite important in the tradition of the Peruvian culture. Dating back many centuries, the affect of chewing of the coca leaf for its stimulant powers, its utility as a medicinal substance...and related reverence of it for both those properties...made possession and distribution of the leaves a duty only for those in power or control - tribal or village leaders, shamans and similar. He who has the coca leaf (and it was always a he) shall be respected.

Oh, and just for the record...yes, the coca leaf is where cocaine comes from. But, making cocaine requires a complex process of extracting a specific alkaloid from the leaf and processing it in certain way. And apparently that "business" is still going strong because we learned that Peru is the number one producer and exporter of the raw coca leaf.

While there is a stimulant affect of coca in tea, candy or chewing the leaves, it's not a"cocaine" like affect. None the less, after learning from the various displays, one thing we came to realize was that our earlier attempts to chew the coca leaf in Cusco were not done properly. More specifically, we should have jammed a whole wad of leaves in our yappers and not just three or four. No wonder we were unimpressed.

The other thing the museum had was a pretty good collection of wild and traditional costumes that the locals have come up with over the centuries and wear in annual festival parades and celebrations - complete with a video to explain it all. What this had to do with coca was never explained nor evident. But, it was kind of interesting to learn about the different festivals, what each costume represented and why it was created.

More walking around, a rest back and the hotel and dinner back in town rounded out or first day at the lake.

Urus Islands

The next day, we got ourselves out on the water to visit some of the islands. The first stop on this clear, sunny day tour was to the Urus Islands. Not more than four kilometers from the Puno harbor dock,these islands were interesting because they are man made. That is, way back in the centuries, the Urus tribe decided it did not want to be dominated by the Incas, so instead of fleeting over land...they simply decided to make their own floating islands safely off in the lake. These would be much easier to defend and literally separated them from the control of the Incas. That tradition has held up over several hundred years, and today the islands still exist. Urus people still live on them. However, it must also be said that today their continued existence is directly related to them being primarily a tourist attraction.

After that, we boarded our boat again and struck out for an actual island way, way out in the lake called Taquile Island. The attraction here is not only the view, but also the traditional town and culture of the people on the island. Sure enough, as we approached the island, we could see a massive white capped mountain range on the horizon. We quickly learned that this was Boliva on the other side of the lake. Docking, we walked uphill to the town square. Every 50 yards or so, we'd pass under a traditional rock gateway or encounter girls and old women selling local handcrafts. Up at the town square, we took in the view again, and also looked around at the various shops - all offering island-woven hats, gloves, scarves, sweaters and other items. Lets just say, we went Christmas shopping in August. Next, our little day-trip tour group went to a local restaurant for a nice lunch of fish and frijtes.

View on Taquile Island

The rest of our time on the island was spent strolling across it's width on stone paths that took us through little villages and, ultimately, back downhill to the water's edge at a different dock where our boat awaited. Along the way, we got to chat with our fellow tour group members and met quite a few very nice people - including a guy named John from California and his girlfriend Stephanie from Australia. Satisfied with our visit, the boat cast off for the two hour ride back to Puno. Mostly, people in our group napped or read on the way back. We arrived back to town about 5 p.m. As we walked off the boat and up the ramp, we made plans for dinner with John and Stephanie. Later, we met up with them, hung out and even met some other travelers - a woman from L.A. and a couple backpackers from the Netherlands. That's a cool thing about travel, you can have these pleasant run-ins with fellow travelers, hang with them for a few hours and gain their perspective on things (from soccer, beer, politics, the country you're all in and more). It's one way that I think travel really is valuable - you gain access to very different world views and perspectives than your own. Whether you like them or not...well, who knows...either way you come away with a better appreciation of just how big and different AND similar at the same time the people of the world are.

Pre-Inca tombs outside Puno

Our final full day in the Puno area was spent half at the hotel resting and then an afternoon tour out to some ancient tombs in the countryside. These monolithic style tombs dated from pre-Inca, Inca and post-Inca time frames, but in total were quite interesting to look at. This is doubly so because of the beautiful place they are located near a pretty lake. Among the many things we learned was that the tombs really didn't fall apart and crumble as they appear to have over the centuries. Rather, the main reason most were torn down or have sections ripped out of them is that the Spanish who came to Peru in the 1500s deconstructed them because they believed that surely these tombs would have gold in them. They didn't.

On the way back to Puno, our group stopped at a typical Peruvian homestead...complete with housing, a courtyard, kitchen, llamas, and of course a pen full of "cuy." One last dinner in Puno and then back to the hotel. The next morning we were on our way back to Juliaca airport for our flight to Lima and, ultimately, home.

Lima and then Home

Sunset over the ocean in Lima

We arrived in Lima at about 3 p.m., but our flight back to the U.S. didn't leave until 12:30 a.m. the next morning. So we had about nine hours to kill. What to do? Not sit around the airport, that's for sure. Instead, before our REI tour had ended, we had asked our guide what he would advise we do. He said that going into the old center of Lima would not be a good idea after 2 p.m. because it was too dangerous for tourists. He'd lived in Lima for several years and said that we should trust him on this. Instead, he suggested we head to one of the upscale seaside neighborhoods - in particular a place called Miraflores. So we did. We went to a massive shopping center overlooking the ocean and spent our time eating, drinking and shopping. One of us also visited a couple spas for some face and nail treatments. I'll leave it to you to guess if it was me or Diane.

All and all though, not too bad! By 9 p.m. it was time to head back to the airport. We boarded our flight - first class seats! - and lifted off for home. After a three hour layover in Atlanta, we were on our way to Seattle.

And that was it folks. Trip over. What an adventure. Physically challenging, natural beauty the likes of which we had not seen, ancient culture explored, Machu Picchu visited, new friends made and a new culture experienced. Will we go back? Hard to say. Peru is like so many other places we've been...yes, notionally, we'd love to go back. But will we? Probably not...or not soon. There are just so many other new places around the world to go. However, I would say that our appetite is whetted for more South American travel. We've discussed going to Buenos Ares and Patagonia in Argentina, as well as Rio and the Amazon in Brazil. Those would be high on our list now because of our experience in Peru. We shall see!

Thanks to everyone who has read my posts about the trip. Soon, I'll do one more post that aggregates links to all the posts in this series, as well as the related photo set on Flickr so everything is all in one place long term.


NOTE: All pictures in this post were taken by Marc Osborn. No use of these pictures for any purpose is permitted without advanced written permission from Marc Osborn.

Exploring Peru - Jungle Trekking & Machu Picchu

OK all, below is the next post in my retelling of our recent trip to Peru. You can catch up on the series by reading previous posts HERE, HERE and HERE.

Also, I've updated my "Peru" set on Flickr with new photos that are related to this new post HERE. Note that I've created another set exclusively on "Machu Picchu" with, well, probably more pictures of the ruins than you want to see! If interested, you can check it out HERE.

JUNGLE TREKKING & MACHU PICCHU 

Dusty Downhill Day

Dusty downhill day

Our next day trekking after acceding to Salkantay Pass was actually downhill the whole way. While not without its charms - valley views, white water rapids to hike beside, a few humming birds to see, horse "trains" clopping by - I'd characterize the day as a "transit" hike to get us off the mountain and into the valleys and jungle environment that would lead us to Machu Picchu.

I'll note that this hike in particular is where the bandannas came in handy. Those of us who brought them on the trip were glad we did, and those who bought them in that village a couple days earlier acknowledged that our guide had been right. Why? Well, the trail all day long was very dusty...to the degree that you needed to tie on your bandanna "bandit" style across your face to keep the heavy, dirty dust out of your mouth. We spent most the day walking downhill and many of us commented that we felt lucky not to turn an ankle or worse.

Firing up the BBQ

Anyway, our efforts were rewarded with a fairly early arrival at the next lodge...early enough that a big late lunch BBQ was arranged for us following the standard wash up needed after hours on the trial. Now, many of the items put into the coals were your standard issue meats - chicken, lamb, beef. So were the vegetables. Can you guess what else was put in to cook? Yes, cuy. If you've been reading my previous posts, you know that is. That's right. Guinea pig on the barbie.

When it came time to sit down and eat, I grabbed one each of the meat types and a big bunch of vegetables. Everything tasted good, and at some point I turned my attention to the cuy. Should I eat it? Keep in mind, this was nothing like the elegant, minimal presentation of the same animal meat we had back in Cusco. No, this was basically a half of a guinea pig minus the head, tail and feet...BBQed up and ready to eat. I tried. But, you know, I gave up. Not because it was gross or tasted bad, but rather because it was really difficult to get any meat off the thing...and when I did, it was so small and bland that, well, why would I eat that when there's other great stuff on my plate.

The rest of the day and evening was spent resting, having a little wine and learning some more from Miguel about native culture. A late dinner helped cap off the night and we were off to sleep once again - sleeping the sleep of the exhausted but pleased hiker.

A 10 Mile Hike
Morning brought a 10 mile hike along the Santa Teresa River Valley. Most of the day, the trail went up and down, along the river, away from the river...valley views, river views, jungle views. One of the more interesting things was our lunch spot. Arriving in a clearing that featured a covered dining "hall" and a few other huts, we quickly saw the lawn out front was home to a host of animals - animals such as pigs, horses, donkeys, a couple friendly dogs and...yes...a big old turkey. Just like you think of on Thanksgiving. If you made a funny noise with your voice, the turkey reciprocated with it's own "gobble, gobble" call. Funny.

Turkey at the lunch stop

We continued on after lunch along the river, eventually arriving at clearing where we were picked up by a vehicle for a short ride through an area that, according to our guide, offered no views and where the trail was not well maintained. As we bumped and rumbled along, I thought to myself that this was probably the most dangerous thing we'd do the entire trip...riding in a vehicle on narrow, windy, poorly maintained dirt roads high up on a ridge. In fact...sadly...just how dangerous riding in a vehicle in the third world countryside actually is was proven anew in a story I read once we returned safely back home to Seattle. Unfortunately, a couple from the Seattle area celebrating their 15th wedding anniversary in a dream trip to Peru (actually in Peru the same time we were) were killed when the SUV they were traveling in plunged off a 1,300 foot cliff when their driver misjudged a corner of the road. Very sad.

Lady roasts coffee

Soon, we disembarked from our bus and resumed hiking - this time on a section of the actual and original Inca Trail. The track was mostly uphill through the jungle. After about 45 minutes of walking we pulled off to explore a small coffee plantation ensconced on the hillside. This was pretty entertaining. We saw the plants, viewed the small production line facilities (such as they were) and then entered a small hut to get a demonstration on how coffee is roasted, ground and served - hot and fresh. This in and of itself was neat, but while all this was happening...quite a few cute little guinea pigs scurried around on the floor near our feat as they chased after some leafs that had been scattered there for their meal. And speaking of meals, while these little animals are cute, they were not the coffee lady's pets. Nope. They were for sure a future meal for she and her family. Heavy sigh.

"Cuy" on floor of coffee hut

We bought some of the local coffee beans to take home and turned our attention to finishing the day and getting to our final lodge of the trek. Luckily, this wasn't far. Once there, Diane called it a day and retired to our room. I did the same, but did join the group for a meal and an after dinner beer.

Jungle Pass: Final Day of Trekking
In the morning, we saddle up and started off on our last big hike of our trip. This time, we were to hoof it up an over the Llactapata Pass - topping out at 8,900 feet. This was almost exclusively up, up and up. For sure, an aggressive workout. We paused many times to catch our breath and take in views. Once over the top, we walked about a half hour to a clearing on a ridge overlooking the Urubamaba River valley. Here stood a small Inca building in ruins, a view across the valley to where Machu Picchu could just be seen hugging the top of one of the peaks...and a lunch spot where we settled in.

View from our lunch spot

Lunch this day featured perhaps the very best avocado we've ever had. Prepared with tomatoes, spices and, well, who knows what else...these things were divine. Throw in a beautiful view and you've got an astounding stop. We continued on after eating, this time going down the other side of the ridge we had just climbed. Down we trod, down through the increasingly hot weather on a twisty path, down through more lush green jungle trees, down past the occasional hut and a lazy dog or two and finally down to the Urubamba River where we crossed one-by-one over a suspension bridge and into the shade. The next part of the walk hugged the riverside. Earlier in the day, our guide Miguel mentioned that we'd made very good time. Now, he turned us off the trail and down to the river. Turns out, we had completed the pass hike and decent fast and had an hour to kill before we needed to catch the train that would take us into the town of Aquas Caliente - our home base from which we'd explore Machu Picchu.

Relaxing at the Urubamba River

The river respite was a welcome surprise given how hot the weather had become and how hard we'd hiked. Peeling off shoes and socks, rolling up pants and wading into the cold, clear Urubama felt like heaven. Achy feet relaxed, warm skin cooled and all felt better. A couple of the group did the full on dip into the river, but not us. Rest over, we walked another half hour to a little train stop where we sipped on some cold beer and then loaded up on the train for the ride into Aquas.

Sliding throughout he jungle, the train delivered our weary group to the town in the late afternoon - time enough for checking in at the wonderful Inkaterra Hotel, take a shower, get some rest and meet up for dinner. All of which we did, happy in the knowledge that we'd completed our trekking and tomorrow we'd see the famous Machu Picchu ruins. As we walked back from dinner a few drops of rain fell, which we ignored.

Machu Picchu - Holy Crap Part One
OK...so far in our trip, we'd experienced nothing but beautiful weather. Sun, virtually no clouds, warm daytime temperatures and all around goodness. It had occurred to me before we left for Peru that it could come to pass that on the one full day that we would have a Machu Picchu, it could rain, clouds could obscure our view or both. But, I put those thoughts aside in favor of optimism. After all, what were the odds?

Oh how naive I was. Those little rain drops we ignored on our walk back to our room after dinner? They turned into a massive rain storm that lasted all night long, into the morning and all the way up to our boarding the bus that would drive us from the valley up to the ruins at the top of the mountain. "Holy crap," I thought, "My worst fear has come true." The one f-ing thing that could turn this "dream trip" into somewhat of a disappointment was playing out right in front of our eyes.

Our fist "view" of Machu Picchu

Indeed, when we finally got to the top of the mountain and exited the bus, we were hit by an ABSOLUTE DELUGE of rain. We all had gortex or similar gear on, but we all were soaked instantly by what was happening. I cannot understate this enough. It was major, major rain combined with cold temperatures and wind. Oh, and clouds. Clouds that...guess what...obscured our view of the ruins. The complete quad-fecta of doom - wind, rain, cold, clouds.

I took pictures during this part of our visit, but I have to say that these photos do not capture how miserable that day was.

Slightly better view on day one

Our guide attempted to show us the sites despite all this, and bless him for doing so. He cannot control the weather and he knows we are there to learn what we can. But, things were so bad that even he conceded after about an hour in this stuff that the responsible thing to do was cut it short and head into the nearby restaurant outside the gates of the park to warm up, dry off and hopefully wait for the weather to clear. Guess what? It didn't. Or, at least it didn't for the next three hours. About half of the group, including Diane and I, decided to bail and go back to town to get a hot shower, get out of the rain and drown our woes in some lunch, drinks and shopping. This we did. The rest of the group decided to stay at the top none the less. Later in the evening we learned that about 4-5 p.m., the rain did stop up there and some of the clouds cleared...so those who stayed did get a pretty good view. I was, of course, bummed when I heard that. But, what are you going to do? Luckily, we knew that we had a full morning the next day up there, and we hoped that the weather would continue to improve so we could experience Machu Picchu in its full glory.

Machu Picchu - Holy Crap Part Two
Awakening the next morning, signs were looking good as, well, it wasn't raining! Also, we could see the tops of the surrounding mountain peaks. Our group gathered, ate and got on the bus once again. Slowly, as our bus made its way up the steep switch back road, we became more and more convinced that today would be good weather at the top. And indeed, as we got closer and closer, we started seeing things from the road that we had not a day earlier - peaks over here, remnants of Inca ruins over there, a valley showing through.

As we exited the bus at the top, the whole entry area of the park just looked different - open skies, people walking around a leisure, brighter. This was at about 7 a.m.We showed our tickets, walked through the turn style and entered the park. Following the path from the entrance to the ruins, we got our second - and far better - view of Machu Picchu. And this time, I was thinking, "Holy crap, this place is so spectacular."

Miguel took us next to a series of places we had not visited the day before in the rain - the Temple of the Sun, the Temple of the Condor, the Inca king's apartments and a few other such notable areas of the ruins. We went up stairs, alongside still-functioning fountains, through narrow passages, underneath doorways, around corners, skirting building facades and always looking to see something new. We learned about the construction of the ruins, saw the differences in the type of rocks used and observed the results of different techniques deployed by the Incas for building the walls. And we learned that the whole structure was a royal Inca retreat - a "Camp David" for the Inca king if you will. We also picked up the knowledge that the city had very likely been abandoned about the time the Spanish showed up in Peru, and that this played an important role in the place not being rediscovered until the early 20th Century. This was our walk. As we went along, the clear but still gray ski gradually started turning blue as the sun came on to do its job for the day. This had the effect of "lighting up" the ruins and surrounding mountains - not only bringing their color to life, but also putting them into greater relief. What a view!

After an hour or so of this, we had a decision to make: should we continue rambling around the main part of the ruins or should we hike up the close by Huayana Picchu peak for an unbelievable view back down on the ruins? There were benefits to both of course - don't hike and get to explore more of the ruins, do the hike and get the exercise and the unique views. We opted to do the hike and went for it. Let me just say this...that is one STEEP ass trail. This was steeper than anything we'd hiked on our trip to date, and in parts dangerous if you weren't paying attention. Also, keep in  mind that you are still at 8,000+ feet above sea level. But all the huffing and puffing, sweating and pulling ourselves up along the cable handrails was worth it because when we neared the top we were rewarded with one of the most jaw dropping views we'd ever seen. Check it out below right.

View of Machu Picchu from Huayna Picchu

That's right, that stuff way, way down there that kinda looks like it might be a town? That's the Machcu Picchu ruins we'd just been at. Woah. It's like you're flying in an airplane and looking down on it.

Now, the other thing about being way up high on a steep peek is that...well, you are way up high on a steep peak. It doesn't exactly make for comfort. You literally feel like you could fall to your death with one wrong step. And, the ledges and edges around you are on such a steep incline that the only thing you see over their edge is the massive drop off. I say you feel that way, but in reality most places on the trail were not literally on the cliff edge. If a person did slip, they might hurt themselves, but probably wouldn't plunge to their death. Probably.

We made the final push for the very tippy top. In doing so, we had to crawl through a narrow cave and up through a hole back into the sunlight. Once through that challenge, we were at the top. There were more people up there than you'd think! We decided that we weren't going to linger because we wanted to get back down and look around the ruins some more before we had to leave. So, that's what we did...slowly. We precariously made our way down the steep steps and trails and eventually made our way back to where we started a couple hours earlier.

By this time, the sun had really come out to bathe the ruins an bring out the brilliant green of the grass and the colors of the rock. Also, a few friendly llamas had now strolled out onto the grounds and were in various stages of lounging, grazing or scratching. We went back to a few places we had been the day before, but wanted to see again in the good weather. This was well worth doing because 24 hours earlier, all we could do was concentrate on staying warm and dry rather than what we were looking at. In our re-visit venture, we knew we had to make our way back to the entrance to catch our bus to the bottom of the mountain by 11:45 a.m. So, we tracked along and made it back to a beautiful viewpoint looking back on the ruins. Here we stayed for a while just soaking up the views...and the sun. Below is a picture I took then. I think you can see why we lingered...

Machu Picchu in all its glory

View from train taking us toward Cusco

After that, we said our goodbyes to Machu Picchu and exited the park. Just before doing so, we stopped at a little desk where you can self-stamp your passport with a Machu Picchu stamp. Kinda neat.

On the bus, down the mountain, back to the hotel, change of clothes, a civilized lunch and then onto an afternoon train that would take us about half way back to Cusco - and in doing so, give us a tour of the sacred Urubama Valley.

Off the train, into a private vehicle, ride the second half of the way to Cusco through the valley - passing through towns, villages, crossroads and even a city. Political slogans painted on the sides of buildings, stray dogs, Inca ruins on some of the hillsides, run down houses, snow capped mountains, and people walking on the sides of the road made for an unending supply of visuals to look at as we cruised onward back towards the town we started our adventure in.

Our tour completed its loop when our bus pulled up outside the hotel where we started nine days earlier. After unpacking and checking into our rooms, our group met in the lobby for a farewell to our guide and, at least officially, to each other. Each of us said our goodbyes to Miguel for his expert leadership, knowledge and friendship as our guide. I think a great guide transforms a trip like this from being an sight seeing trip into a full fledged adventure...and I thanked Miguel by telling him that I thought that's what he did for us.

And that was that...at least in terms of the tour. Diane and I would spend the next day and a half in Cusco and then head south to visit another part of Peru and relax following the hiking portion of our trip. All of which will make up the last two posts in my series recapping our trip. So, come back for those over the next few weeks.



NOTE: All pictures in this post were taken by Marc Osborn. No use of any kind is permitted without prior written permission from Marc Osborn.

Exploring Peru - Trekking in the Andes Mountains I

I hope you enjoyed the kickoff post to my "Exploring Peru" series that will recap our recent trip. You can check out that post HERE if you haven't seen it and want to catch up.

Also, I've posted a new round of pictures that correspond to this new post in the "Peru" set on my Flickr Photostream. See them HERE for more visuals from this and earlier portions of the trip.

And now, picking up where my last post left off, on to...

TREKKING IN THE ANDES MOUNTAINS - PART I
My initial thought was to do one big post retelling all of our hiking adventures, but then I thought that might be way too long as we did and saw quite a bit. I mean, I know you're interested, but I'm not going to make you read through one massive post. So, I'll divide it up a bit...probably three parts. Today, we'll look at our trip to our first trail head and Day 1 of trekking.

Hitting the Road
Awaking in Cusco on the second day of our trip, the group had a delightful breakfast at the hotel and then loaded up into two vehicles for a drive through the Peruvian countryside and to the first trail head. REI Adventures advised that each of us "pack light" for the hiking portion of the tour as donkeys would be carrying our bags for a great deal of the journey. I scaled back my pack and left a lot of stuff in Cusco for when we returned. Diane took a different approach, which was to bring her whole bag. We kind of laughed about it, and I said to her, "I want to shake the hoof of the donkey that carries that bag on our hikes."

Typical scene on the side of the road

In any case, off we went. Driving up out of the city, our guide Miguel informed us that the street we were taking was also the route that the Spanish took in the opposite directly when they arrived in Cusco the very first time. Soon we were in the countryside and whizzing past fields, farms, huts and brick-built villages. It was along these roads that you could see how much of Peru lived their daily existence - buying produce on the side of the road, waiting for a bus, walking to a job and more.

Some in our group had not brought bandannas for the hike, and we stopped in a town along the way to so they could pick some up. Miguel assured us that we'd want them on certain portions of the trek where it was dusty. Back on the road, our vehicles wound up and down hillsides, cresting passes and circumnavigating ridge lines...ever deeper into the Peruvian wilds. As the green and brown valleys came and went, towns gave way to villages, villages gave way to clusters of two or three huts. Suddenly we rolled up and stopped at a valley site that featured Inca ruins, a spot called Tarawasi.


Tarawasi Ruins

Inca Tarawasi Ruins

In a valley, near a river and strategically placed on an Inca trade route radiating out from Cusco, one could easily see why the Incas decided to build a temple and other structures here. Similar in construction to what we saw in Cusco at the Temple of the Sun, the ancient structure featured tightly fit stones and alcoves. Because it was an important location to the Incas, the Spanish of course built their own structure here when they arrived in force. That building was also still standing. Interestingly, here the Spanish did not build a church or chapel over the top of the Inca structure. Rather, they built their building alongside near by. In any case, the two structures offer a stark contrast of the two cultures and styles.

Another important thing Tarawasi included was a restroom. Yes, the family living right next to the ruins had a restroom that we could use. Remember, we're drinking, drinking, drinking water continuously to avoid altitude sickness...and this creates a pretty much continuous need to, well, pee.

Relieved and educated, we jumped back in our vehicles and continued onward.

Mollepata

Mollepata market

About an hour later we disembarked out of our transports and alighted in the town of Mollepata where we learned a little bit about how Peruvian artisans color their wool yarn to create the hats, scarfs, sweaters and sock they are so well known for. Turns out that most the colors come from various plant leaves, bean innards, molds and other natural compounds. Next we walked through the town square where there was some sort of festival or town market happening.

We popped in the front of a little shop and then quickly out its back door into a quiet courtyard where we had a snack and some hot coca tea. That's not chocolate tea people, we're talking "coca" - as in the same leaf that cocaine is made from. To my mild disappointment the tea did not have a "cocaine affect," but it is supposed to be good for avoiding altitude sickness. It tasted OK too. More on the importance of the coca leaf to Peruvian culture in a future post in this series. For now, suffice it to say it was a pleasant and very mild stimulant (like any tea really) addition to the round of snacks we were having.

"Cuy" in Mollepata

We humans weren't the only beings in the courtyard either. Right behind our tables stood a hutch with, mmm, I'd say about 30 cute little guinea pigs ("cuy" to the Peruvians). Now, the shop owner didn't have these as pets. No, they were future meals for him and his family. You only needed to look at the rather explicit poster on the wall showing the steps of a sanitary butchering of a "cuy" and you knew that these little critters were on borrowed time.

At this point we changed into hiking gear, slathered on sun screen and slapped on our hats as we were finally near our first hike. After about 20 min. of driving outside of the village, we got out, geared up and hit our first trail.

First Hike, First Lodge
Today's hike was billed as a "4 mile warm up," but the group consensus was that it was more like "a 7 mile challenge." No joke, even one of the guides said it was actually seven miles. And, for the first part it was all up, steep. That's challenging for people still acclimating. But I'm not complaining. The views were spectacular as we ascended up through meadows to the first ridge, then we hiked along that ridge going up sometimes, down others as we paced our way toward our first lodge destination.

First valley of our first hike

Perhaps the highlight of the hike was the lunch stop. Situated at a bend in the trail, this vantage point offered views of where we had came from, but - enticingly - where we were going...with the main feature being our first view of both the Humantay and the towering Salkantay peaks. Yep, from where we sat on the hillside munching our lunch, we could see the simply stunning peak and ponder its beauty, its history and, well, just how tall it is.

First hike, nearing our final destination

Speaking of the history of the mountain, the Andes range was formed by two great tectonic plates running into each other and the land being shoved up...way, way up. So, similar to the Rocky Mountains in the U.S., there are not any volcanoes. Also, the Incas worshiped the mountains given their obvious immensity and proximity to what people thought of as "heaven" or "the spirit world." This practice endures today among the indigenous people of the Peruvian highlands.

Anyway, we packed ourselves up after lunch and moved out toward the lodge - eventually arriving at Salkantay Lodge about 4 p.m.. With sweeping and spectacular views of the mountain, llamas plodding around the grounds, a warm and welcoming interior, private rooms and a hot tub...the lodge was a welcome oasis. We would spend two nights here as further acclimation before heading up to Salkantay Pass.

Our arrival at Salkantay Lodge

The next two days would bring hikes up to Humantay Lake and then the big push to the tall Salkantay Pass at 15,000 feet - subjects I will cover in my next post. But for this evening, we rested, ate well and called it a happy night. Slipping into our bed, contented with a tough day of hiking and views, we drifted off in the absolute darkness only possible when you are literally out in the middle of nowhere.

Check back in a week for my next post!





NOTE: All pictures included in this post were taken by Marc Osborn and are not permitted for any use by any part without prior written permission from Marc Osborn.

Exploring Peru - Series Kickoff & Cusco

When most people think of Peru, majestic and misty visions of the "lost Inca city" of Machu Picchu come to mind. And sure, if you were paying attention in high school when you were forced to read Moby Dick, you would remember the artfully crafted passage referring to the typically gray/white pallor of fog and clouds that hover over and inundate the coastal capital city of Lima. And OK, if you think for a minute you realize that virtually all nations south of the United States speak Spanish, so you might deduce that the Spanish must have arrived in Peru at some point in history.

But that's about it. End of common American knowledge about Peru.

Well, Diane and I knew a few more things about that country that tipped the balance in its favor as our big travel destination for 2012. For example, neither of us had been anywhere in the Americas south of Costa Rica, so Peru offered a first foray into South America. That was an enticing prospect, and we'd known others who had been there and liked it. We also knew that the Andes Mountains are among the world's tallest and most spectacular landscapes. And, we knew that hiking through those mountains would offer us not only a visual feast, but also a bracing physical challenge that would focus our minds and clear our stresses. All things we were up for and enjoy. And finally, we knew that one could do all that in a small tour group via the excellent REI Adventures.

We had to get some of that! And of course visit Machu Picchu. So, we booked our trip and set off last month for an adventure of a lifetime.

For those interested, I will be writing about some of the highlights and anecdotes from our journey over the coming weeks under the series title of "Exploring Peru." Just check back to this blog a few times this fall to read new chapters. First up is a bit on how we traveled to Peru and our initial visit to the city of Cusco.

Also, while I have posted some of my pictures directly in this piece, you can see more that go along with this post on my Flickr Photostream HERE. I will add more pictures as I add more reports. Another reason to check back!

EXPLORING PERU - CUSCO TAKE ONE

Travel Trevails from the Get-Go

Getting to Peru proved to be a bit of a hassle. No, not because it's difficult to book flights, but because of the airlines themselves on the day of travel. Let me explain. We arrived at SeaTac airport on time - or so we believed - and attempted to check in at the Delta desk for our flights to Atlanta, then on to Lima. The kiosk I was using said I could not check in and to talk with an attendant. I did and she asked what flight I was on...and I said, "The 8:10 a.m. flight to Atlanta." She said, "Oh, that's not our flight, it's code share with Alaska...go down there." We did, but time was ticking away and the line at Alaska was really long and REALLY slow.

Eventually, I realized we were going to miss our flight if we stayed in the Alaska line, so I asked for help from a manager who was walking by. He took our passports and looked into it. He came back and said that no, we were not on an Alaska flight and that we really were on Delta...and the kicker...that the flight had been changed to 7:30 a.m. Given that it was about 7 a.m. already, we knew our goose was cooked.

We hustled back to Delta and to make a long story short, they initially said "too bad, you'll have to re-book for tomorrow," but after I reminded them of how they sent us to Alaska Airlines...they swung into action to see if they could get us to Lima some other way so we could arrive on time for the start of our tour. 

At this point, I'd just like to say, "UGGGGGGGGGGGGG!" At least that (or a more profane version of it) was what I was thinking at that point on that morning. But, it turned out OK as the lady behind the desk did get us on a series of American Airlines flights (Seattle to Dallas, Dallas to Miami, and then Miami to Lima) that would ensure we could catch our plane from Lima to Cusco and the start of our trip as planned. More rushed, more exhausted...but there on time.

Except for the super long day of travel and a few wee hours in the Lima airport Saturday morning, everything else went fine from there.

Instant Altitude

We live in Seattle. That is at sea level. So is Lima - the capital of Peru and our point of entry to the country. Cusco, on the other hand, is at 11,200 feet above sea level, and it only takes an hour to fly there from Lima. So, when we went there by air, we experienced a quick altitude gain and it was obvious as soon as we disembarked from our airplane.

Cusco, Peru

Now, we didn't have any dramatic problems, but for sure we could tell the air was thinner. Any slight uphill incline elicited heavier breathing, we both had very mild (but present) headaches and we had a bit of tingling in the legs. And the sun seemed unduly harsh on the skin. All of these are symptoms of altitude on someone not acclimated. We agreed that while it was a bit uncomfortable, if this was the worst of it we'd be fine. And, you know what? That's pretty much how it played out. We spent the next couple days getting used to the altitude and drinking a lot of water...and all was good. By the way, drinking a lot of water is the key to altitude acclimation. The thin, dry air just sucks you dry so you gotta stay hydrated.

Seeing the Town & Starting the Tour

Arriving by transport to our hotel at about 9 a.m., we met one of our fellow tour mates, Josh, but were also told that we couldn't check in until 12 p.m. So, we took our sleep deprived and altitude challenged bodies on a stroll around the old part of Cusco in search of some views, some food and, well, just a place to sit and rest! We quickly learned that virtually no restaurants in Cusco is open for lunch until 12 p.m. at the earliest. We were forced into a 24 hour pub along the Plaza de Armas where we ordered omelets, lots of water and...eventually...some local beer.

Yes, I know. People say you shouldn't drink alcohol at altitude or when you're trying to acclimate. But you know what? Screw it. We did anyway. It was sunny, we had a nice view of the plaza and all the colorful people and activity going on there...it just made sense. And it tasted great! Cusquena beer ladies and gentlemen. That's the stuff.


Woman selling tamales

While sitting in our second story pub perch, we noticed a woman roll up and establish a table nearby on the street. Out of nowhere, a crowd of locals and tourists appeared and started buying and eating whatever she was selling. Diane said, "You should go down there and get us some of whatever that is." I was tired and put up a little resistance, and she just repeated her opinion...to which I got up and went down there. I'm glad I did because what the woman was selling hot, fresh tamales. You could either get sweet or savory. "Con azucar?" "Si!"I got to sweet ones and brought them back for us to eat in the pub. Wow! What a sugary treat.

Soon after, we worked our way back the hotel and checked into our quiet room. With our tour starting at 1 p.m., we had a choice to make...go on the tour or crash in bed. Diane opted to stay in the room and I decided to link up with the group and participate in the tour of Cusco town.

Temple of the Sun detail

After meeting our guide Miguel and and the rest of the group, we headed out for a three-stop tour of  the city. First up was the former site of the Inca Temple of the Sun. This is right in the old part of town, and as you might expect in an area conquered by the Spanish...they stripped it of any and all gold right away and then, of course, built a church over the top of it. Today, you actually enter a church and courtyard, but then inside there are sections of the temple still present. This site, therefore, served as a good jumping off place for the tour for Miguel to explain not only Inca culture, architecture and religion, but also the Spanish conquest. (Side note: I read the excellent "The Last Days of the Incas" before our trip and I have to say it was fascinating. I'd recommend it to anyone, whether or not you ever go to Peru...it's just an engrossing and compelling story).

Ruins of Sachsayhuman fortress

Our next stop took us just outside of town to a ridge overlooking the city. Here sits the ruins of a massive Inca fortress built for the defense of Cusco well before they knew anything about the Spanish. Named Sachsayhuman, the fort actually did not prevent the Spanish from taking over the city in the early 1500s. Rather, at the time, the Inca king invited them in with the hope that by acquiescing to the Spanish desire for gold, they would either leave the Inca kingdom be or - better yet - go home. Oh how tragically wrong they were! The fort did come into play later once the Incas figured out they were being grossly exploited, disrespected, abused and murdered. They massed a great army outside of Cusco and inhabited the fortress. From there they rained fire bombs down on the Spanish in the town. They almost succeeded in driving them out. Standing on the fort and looking down on the city, you can see how this might have worked.

Ultimately, however, the Spanish were desperate enough to mount attacks up from the city on the fortress and were able to overtake it with their superior weapons - horses, steel armor, swords, lances and rudimentary muskets. Going forward, the huge stones of the fortress were dissembled by the Spanish for us in building structures in Cusco. This is why today the fort is just a ruins rather than standing tall as it did all those centuries ago.

We took in the view from the top of the fortress, then visited another site nearby where Inca shamans used to sacrifice llamas and then we returned to the city for a look inside the huge Cathedral.

Cusco Cathedral

Diane and I have been to Europe many times and, to a large degree, we're "Cathedraled out." You know what I mean...how many churches can a person possibly take in? Most all of them look the same and feature similar art - Jesus, Mary, Joseph, Saints, Jesus again, Mary, Mary, Mary and so forth. It's just a matter of which architectural style they are built in and if they happen to have any out of the ordinary artwork.

In the case of the Cusco Cathedral, it's the later that is of interest because you see in many of the pieces a blending of traditional Catholic themes along with local Inca ideas. This is for two reasons: 1) the Spanish wanted to co-opt the Incas religion to trick them - or at least make it more palatable - to convert to Catholicism, and 2) the Incas wanted to retain elements of their beliefs while avoiding imprisonment or execution by converting to Catholicism. For example, the Incas worshiped the mountains and the sun. Therefore, in the Cusco Cathedral you see paintings or sculptures of Mary wearing a dress that lo and behold looks a lot like the silhouette of a mountain. You also see her wearing a crown that looks a lot like the sun. Another example is in the locally created Last Supper painting that hangs near the main alter. The featured dish in the middle of the table is the distinctly Peruvian fare of guinea pig ("cuy" in their language).

At this point, my exhaustion caught up with me and I probably resembled a zombie more than a happy tourist. Somehow I made it back to the hotel when we finished at the church. There I happily jumped into bed and rested for a couple hours until we hit the streets for dinner.

Dinner and Done
Our final act on our first day in Peru was to head out with two of our tour mates for dinner at a great restaurant called Ciccolina's in the old quarter of Cusco. After or pub fare at lunch, we were ready to delve into something a bit more refined and this place did not disappoint. Most of us went "all in" on Peruvian style food. We got "causas" which are short, soft potato pillars usually with something inside them or on top of them. Their construction varies based on the restaurant you order them at. In this case, Ciccolina's causas are served...with guinea pig on top. You wouldn't have known it by looking as it was just a little strip of meat on top of the potatoes, but yep...guinea pig. The three guys in the group ordered alpaca, which tasted to me like a combination of beef and pork. Somewhere in the middle. But good as prepared. And we had a nice Peruvian wine to go with it all. Again, don't believe the hype on not drinking at altitude. Don't be stupid and go overboard, but please...enjoy yourself.

With a nice walk back to the hotel, thus ended our first day in Peru. We would be returning to Cusco later in our trip, with more adventures to come - shopping, eating, drinking and more sight seeing among them. But until then, questioned materialized. Would we like the rest of our tour group? Would we get altitude sickness later at even greater heights? How would the weather be? Would we get "gut sick" due to eating or drinking something our American systems could not handle? How would the trekking be? What would be be seeing?

I'll answer these and talk about our further exploration of Peru starting in my next post - which will be about the hiking we did in the Andes Mountains. And yes, I'll revisit Cusco to detail our second stint there following all the hiking.

Check back in a week or so for the next post, updated pictures on my Flickr Photostream set, and then come back again later for more installments.


NOTE: All pictures in this post were taken by Marc Osborn and are not authorized for any use by any party without written permission by Marc Osborn.