we started at sea level and immediately went to 12,000 feet above sea level, so you can imagine how difficult it was for us from the get go. first stop, the sullistani burial tombs...
we made an unexpected stop at a farmers house on the way to our hotel. they were in the midst of cooking dinner but invited us is to see their home. and, they had the MOST adorable little boy of about 3 or 4 years old, Roy, whom i instantly fell in love with. it was amazing to see how these people live, how little they have, and how hard they work...
then we were off to lake titicaca, where we first visited the floating reed islands of uros. a local woman invited us into her house and proceeded to dress me up in her clothes...very random but very sweet, and very colorful! at first we thought the locals just dressed like this for show, but we were wrong...people actually still continue to wear their native clothing all over the country, it's actually quite unique to see...
our last stop on lake titicaca proved to be the most challenging for my mother and i. as if being 12,000 feet above sea level wasn't hard enough, we then had to hike nearly 1,000 feet more to the top of taquile island...not our finest moment, but picturesque nonetheless. my mother also happened to run into a woman she worked with nearly 25 years prior in nyc, talk about your all time randomness...
we left lake titicaca and took a train headed north bound to the city of cusco. let's just say it was a bad day. about an hour and a half into the trip our train hit a bus in the town of ayaviri. four hours later they clear the track, we're off, only to have someone hurl a rock at our window and shatter it. yes, it was scary, yes i was upset, but no, it did not deter me from enjoying my time in this country with the many wonderful people we met along the way...
cusco, which i believe is the second largest city to peru's capital, lima, made up for the travel calamity we experienced. our stay at the luxury monasterio hotel was just what we needed and the city itself was charming. although, when you hear about how the spanish conquered the incas you can't help but feel that they really destroyed something special (even if the spanish colonial look of the city is quite appealing)...
we had an incredible guide over the next few days who took us to see many inca sites all over the sacred valley, day trips from cusco...
he even made a special stop for us at an alpaca/llama farm to see these creatures up close and personal. they had a display of how they use natural elements to dye the wool all those beautiful colors you see woven into their textiles...
and we were fortunate enough to pass through pisac on the day of their infamous open air market. the colors, textures and smells were something else. you better believe we did our fair share of shopping here...
our next train trip was far less drama filled and way more luxurious, as we boarded the hiram bingham train to machu picchu for a few days...
we stayed at the inkaterra peublo lodge in the village below machu picchu...i loved, loved, loved the decor of this place. it was so cozy, great atmosphere, i never wanted to leave...
machu picchu was something else. it's hard to describe, pictures just don't do it justice. i guess you could say it's literally a place amoung the clouds, it's easy to see why the incas held it in such high regard. i have to admit though, many of the tourists are ruining its beauty, they're just so careless climbing around, lounging across the green spaces, obnoxiously talking on their cell phones (can you imagine?). fortunately my mother and i were there both times later in the day when many of the visitors had left for the afternoon, so we had much of the site to ourselves. on our second day there we decided to take a nice little hike up to the sun gate, the final part of the inca trail, to take in a better view...
our final leg of the journey was to the amazon rain forest. i wish i was more excited about this, but when we got there it was HOT, i mean stifling hot. the kind of hot you can hardly breath in and don't want to move a muscle in. we did a few light excursions but for the most part lounged on the hammocks and read our books, and showered several times a day. even without much effort we were able to see lots of wildlife. our accommodations at the inkaterra amazonia reserve were considered luxurious by jungle standards, but let's just say privacy was severely lacking...
wild flowers galore in peru, truly inspirational...
being the dog lover i am, i could not resist taking photos of some of the thousands, yes thousands, of dogs roaming all over the streets of peru. it broke my heart to see so many of them, unsure as to whether they have homes to live in or not. it makes me want to buy that farm in vermont and transplant them all to the green mountains, sort of like a rescue mission, and re-home them with families...maybe someday i will...
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