Peru

Photo of the Week: Machu Picchu

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IMG_3919Machu Picchu, Peru

Sometimes the journey teaches us about the destination, and in this case, it couldn’t be more true.  Walking the same path that was used by the ancient Inca in their pilgrimage to the top of Machu Picchu was surreal.  I learned to pause along the way and admire the quiet beauty of nature.  The days it took to reach Machu Picchu  were hard, pushed me to my limits, and made me appreciate this magnificent sight that much more.  On the fourth day, we woke up early to make it to the Sun Gate in time for sunrise.  Looking down at this sacred city with the sun light breaking through the clouds is an image I’ll never forget.

Every week, I’ll share a photo with you from my adventures around the world and at home.  Most of my photos have little or no post processing.  If you would like to see more, please click the Follow button.

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Trip Report: Peru

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It’s hard to believe that it’s almost 2 months since our trip to South America.  Time flies! This trip report summarizes all the posts related to our trip to Peru and provide a break down of the cost.

  • Time Cost
    • Total Days In Peru: 8 day  –  1 days in Lima, 2 days in Cusco, 1 day in Sacred Valley, 4 days in the mountain
    • Total Days Off From Work: 4 days (we went over July 4th weekend).

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Peru: Machu Picchu

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Getting ready for the Inca trek

Finally, after all the preparation and anticipation, we made it to the day of the trek. Starting off from Ollantaytambo, we packed our bags, said goodbye to civilization and got on the bus taking us to the km marker 82, the official start of our Inca trail. As we wound our way along the Urubamba river, the bus driver was blasting music, pumping us up for the adventure ahead. Sitting at the back of the bus, staring out at the Andes mountains I contemplated if I really wanted to go through with it and if there was time to turn back when I heard the lyric “everything that kills me makes me feel alive”.  I think that’s a sign.

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Peru: The Sacred Valley

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On the first day of our tour, we visited the valleys of the Andes. This fertile land of the Incas stretches between Cusco all the way to Machu Picchu and is filled with many archaeological sites in between.

Our first stop of the day was at the statue of Cristo Blanco (White Christ) standing tall on the hillside, overlooking the city of Cusco. From this vantage point, you can view the entire expanse of the city. The locals believe that the city was built in the shape of a puma, a sacred animal for the Incas. If you squint your eyes (and have an active imagination) you can actually see the shape of the animal forming with the Plaza de Armas being the heart and the hills where we stood being the head. Adjacent to the statue is the archaeological site called Saqsaywaman (pronounced sexay-woman) a name that means satisfied falcon. Continue reading →

Peru: A Glimpse of Cusco

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Flying over the Andes mountains on the way to Cusco

Cusco is about an hour flight from Lima, but it feels like a completely different world. This historical capital of the Inca Empire is nestled in the valley of the Andes mountains. Flying in, your first glimpse of the city are the red terracotta rooftops. Since this is considered a UNESCO World Heritage Site, most of its buildings and plazas date back hundreds of years, there are no high-rises here. Continue reading →

Eating in Lima

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I love to eat. 

Aside from traveling, my other passion is food. I am a curious eater, which means I tend to go for the strange food people shy away from.  My philosophy is: you have to try it before you can completely write it off, and most of the time the weird wacky food ends up being the highlight of my trip. Usually when we travel, I always want to try as much new and local cuisine as I can.  Since I only have one stomach, sometimes the result is comical. My mom always says that my eyes are bigger than my stomach, but what’s a girl to do when there is so much good food around?

I knew the food was going to be amazing in Peru. After all, it is where ceviche is thought to have originated! There are so many things I wanted to try, but also knowing that we only had a day in Lima, I tried to be selective. Here are the highlights of all the food we ate while in Lima.

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Peru: Layover in Lima

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View of the ocean from Larcomar

Over the years we’ve talked about going to South America; even booked a flight, but some how things always came up and the plan was postponed.  Of all the places in South America, we dreamed about going to Machu Picchu like many other travelers before us, and after a year and a half of planning, we finally made it to Peru. First stop, Lima.

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Photo of the Week: Starry Night

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IMG_3457Inca Trail, Peru

We made it back from our Inca trail trek in one piece! As I sort out my notes and pictures from the trips, I knew I wanted to share this particular one as a photo of the week. This photo was taken on the second night of our hike after we crossed Dead Woman’s pass. From our camping area when you look up, all you see is the open sky and millions of stars twinkling. Personally, I don’t know any constellations, but I did recognize the Milky Way. As a city girl, I never get to see the sky like this. The view was so amazing, I knew I had to capture it. So in the freezing night, I was sitting outside of my tent playing with my camera.  I didn’t bring a tripod because it was too heavy, so I put the camera on the ground and propped it up with some rocks (I had a McGyver moment) and set the exposure to 30 seconds.  This is the result.

Every Monday of each week, I’ll share a photo with you from my adventures around the world and at home.  Most of my photos have little or no post processing.  If you would like to see more, please click the ‘Follow’ button.

Preparing for Our First Trek

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In one short month we will be embarking on our first ever trek to Machu Picchu. Fausto, of course wanted to do the 4 days hike on the Inca road, traversing the well-worn path that leads to the ancient city. I on the other hand have many misgivings. We don’t camp or hike or embrace nature in general (unless you count walking around Central Park on the weekend). We are definitely city folks, so this feels like going from beginners to experts to me.


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