San Agustin Urubamba Hotel

... angeschaut. Das Sungate war frueher quasi der Eingang zu Machupicchu wo nicht jeder Zugang bekam, Mapi war nur fuer Ausgewaehlte zugaenglich.<br>Nach einem Tag mit unzaehligen Stufen schmerzten die Beine und wir waren froh wieder im Bett liegen zu koennen. Zum Glueck hatten wir noch einen ganzen Tag zum Ausruhen bevor es zurueck nach Cusco ging, von wo aus wir nach La Paz aufbrechen wollen.

... at Aguas Calientes, before catching the train to Ollaytaytambo, then the bus onto Cuzco.<br><br>It is a long trek back to Cuzco and the group is extremely tired. By now I am feeling the ill effects of having caught cold, but we all manage to drag ourselves out to a fine restaurant to celebrate. And what amazing food!! Wow- and so cheap! I love Cusco! But tonight is not the night for eating the local delicacy, Guinea Pig....that will wait until tomorrow....

... as an estate of the Inca emperor. In addition, there are evidence that the site was selected because of its position relative to sacred landscape features such as its mountains, which are purported to be in alignment with key astronomical events that would have been important to the Incas. However, Machu Picchu is not only fascinating because of its history but also to see the gigantic monuments the Incas built! Even though we very tired, we still ...

... group photo. It´s cheesy, but it´s beginning to feel like the family Juan is forever calling us. <br><br>What goes up must come down. We start on the forever downwards spiral towards our second camp for the night and are relieved to reach home after watching the hoards of inhuman elf like porters skip down the mountain ahead of us like like fauns skipping through a wood.<br><br>Our first bout of rain brings on a batch of Macchu Tea, a strange concoction of herbs ...

... tough climb the same day. Officially, we were supposed to stop here for the day but none of us wanted to spend the afternoon twiddling our thumbs so we persuaded the guides to push on to another site some 4 hours further. Abra Runkurakay, the second pass was, therefore, punishment for such a decision. Although not as high as Dead Woman&#8217;s Pass, it was steeper and had two false summits to test the resolve. Aldo suggested we carry some stones to the top so as to leave them in the ...

Hello again everyone. Just wanted to say thanks so much for reading and (hopefully) enjoying this blog. Not only is it for you to read about our adventures, but it is a great way for Amy and I to keep a record of our travels so we can remember the details later on.<br><br>Today is our last day at K'uychi Rumi (our house) in the Sacred Valley. Tomorrow we take an early train to Aguas Calientes, which is the town at Machu Picchu, but that is a tale to be told later.<br ...

... same time. On deck: more ruins, a salt mine and more shopping. And of course more wonderful Peruvian food!<br><br>I'm thinking about just throwing in a random thought or funny story at the end of each of these. Today's story: how your humble narrator almost lost his mind last night after dinner. I am carrying a messenger bag around with me here to hold my camera, camcorder, etc... (my man-purse as Amy likes to say). It also had my passport in it last night. No ...

After our hike back to the bus after investigating the ruinas of Pisac (the hike back was, at times, just as hard as the hike there!) we got back on the bus and drove an hour to lunch in the city of Urubamba. The city of Urubamba is nestled quietly at one of the lowest points in the Sacred Valley and is right next to the famous Rio (River) Urubamba. We ate our lunch with a beautiful vista of the mountains and then got back on the bus again for another ...

... a real estate website which he hopes to franchise. The bike ride itself went extremely well. There were enough challenges without it ever being death defying (unlike our prior Antigua Guatemala experience). The general scenery was breathtaking - mountains, clouds, verdant hills, postcard peasants shooing cows or sheep, and little kids calling out "hola!" The sites themselves-- first Moray, then Salinas-- way out-did the innumerous guide book pictures ...

... of scandals involving controversial appointments of friends to high places, and the awarding of lucrative contracts to family members. Now the Peruvians can have their revenge by blowing Fujimori up for Christmas! That´s respect for you. The other custom at this time of year is the wearing of bright yellow underwear - and there are stalls selling vast quantities of it everywhere you look. I am yet to find out exactly how ...