Cusco, Sacred Valley of the Incas and Machu Picchu

  Cusco, Peru
Wednesday, June 4, 2008

Greeted by Alberto in Cusco

Monday 2nd June
Alison: We were up at 6.00 to get to the airport for our flight to Cusco. It was wonderful to fly over the Andes' spectacular mountains and arrive in sunny Cusco, with traditional music played by a band greeting us as we collected our luggage. We were met by the cheerful Alberto who took us to our lovely Hotel Inca 1 in the midst of downtown Cusco. Our large room was very comfortable and we enjoyed relaxing for a few hours and adjusting to the altitude before our afternoon tour. It was interesting how the altitude affected us. Cusco is about 3500 m above sea level and most of the time you feel fine, except when you try to exert yourself in any way, such as walking up stairs or running rather than walking, and then you find yourself short of breath and heart racing. Unfortunately, wherever we went we were greeted by huge Incan ruins with LOTS of steep stone stairs, so it tended to be 10 steps up and then stop for deep breaths!

Rudi explaining Inca Ruins

We had a nice lunch at the hotel and then were met by our guide Rudi who took us out to the ancient Incan ruins surrounding Cusco.

Lovely stonework in Sacsayhuaman

We wandered around Sacsayhuaman Fortress which was very impressive, and then Tambomachay, Puca Pucara and Kencco Amphitheatre.

The Largest stone the Incas used

Smallest stone used by Incas

Then it was back to Cusco and the Temple of the Sun, which was an Incan temple which the Spanish invaders destroyed and turned into a church, and then the huge cathedral with stunning art work. I especially liked the painting of the Last Supper with guinea pig being served and various other South American delicacies!

Plaza and Cusco Cathedral

That night I took a lot of laundry up to a nearby Lavanderia which was to be ready by 7.30 the next evening and then we had dinner at a nice restaurant next to the hotel. It was interesting how the altitude affected my appetite - I really didn't feel very hungry the whole time I was at altitude. Michael and I had both taken special pills for 2 days before we arrived and continued to take them while we were up in the Andes, and it was interesting that although we felt breathless etc, we didn't get altitude sickness. This was great as I had experienced a mild version of it years ago when skiing in Aspen, so I was scared I might well get it. Apparently it affects young, fit people more than older unfit ones like us, so that might have helped too! Rachel was probably the most affected by headaches and she is the fittest amongst us!

View towards the Sacred Valley

It was blissful to get to bed nice and early and have a good sleep, in the knowledge that we weren't being picked up until 9.00 the next morning - positively late after the last few early starts!

Tom on a llama

Tuesday 3rd June
Alison: We had a lovely sleep, although I found it interesting how much harder it is to breathe normally when trying to sleep up at this altitude. We arrived in the lobby at 9.00 ready for our tour with Rudi, but the driver explained that he was unable to come for some reason and that we had to wait for a new guide to be arranged. This turned out rather well as Rudi, although informative, had not been incredibly warm and enthusiastic, and the chap who turned up, Christoph, was both. We immediately warmed to him and had a lovely day in the Urubamba Valley with him. 

Material for dying the yarn

The gorgeous drive to the Sacred Valley of the Incas took us across the mountains and first to a little demonstration farm cum shop which had llamas, alpacas and vicuna which we could feed and pat. The kids even got to sit on a llama, which was unusual as they only take loads of 40 kilos or so - Mike and I had Buckley's of being allowed on! They also demonstrated how they spun and dyed the fibre with various plants and also the cochineal insect. Then we saw them weaving the yarn into various designs which were traditional for their particular community.

Weaving a traditional design

Finally we went through the shop which had some lovely garments and wall hangings which we resisted buying as we were on to the Pisac markets next. 

Views down to the Sacred Valley

We wound down the road overlooking the valley with spectacular views of the Urubamba river bordered on each side by fields of maize, quinoa, barley and various other crops. The corn had largely been harvested and husked and now was drying in the sun, making a patchwork of bright yellow fields, contrasting with the red of the quinoa fields. Crossing the river, we came into the village of Pisac where the local people barter their products every Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. We first went to the baker in the centre of the market who brought out some yummy stuffed rolls from his wood fire oven, and we looked at the guinea pigs kept in a kind of house there.

Guinea pig run

Apparently most of the traditional people keep guinea pigs in a run in their kitchens as they are a popular food, tasting a bit like chicken. Rachel and Tom of course were horrified at the thought of eating them though! Then we wandered through the markets and bought lots of nice things, Michael having a lovely time bargaining and driving down the price as much as he could, then paying them extra anyway!

Rachel and Tom with purchases

Rachel & Tom serenading the macaw

From there it was onto lunch at a nice restaurant halfway along the valley, very much designed for all the tourists who come along, with a huge buffet and beautiful garden surroundings. The kids had a great time serenading a pet macaw there with their just bought clay whistles. Then it was onto the end of the valley and Ollantaytambo. This traditional village was quite lovely, with its narrow stone streets and houses dating back to the Incas. The enormous Inca ruins there were again quite spectacular, but again we were faced by huge steep stone steps going up the mountain in a series of terraces, which we slowly climbed in the thin air. The view from the top of course was well worth it!

More b... Inca steps!

Afterwards we had a lovely walk through the village, wandering down the narrow streets and marvelling at the cactus growing on the top of the walls to prevent cats from climbing over and getting into the kitchen and eating their guinea pigs!

Cactus on top of walls to keep out cats

Finally we climbed aboard the van for the long drive back to Cusco, with a spectacular sunset lighting up the snow-capped peaks behind us. We also stopped along the way at a local bar where they brew their own corn  beer and were shown around which was very interesting.

Making beer in local bar

We had such a great time with Christoph that we asked him to see if his company would let us have him again the next day, and luckily that was able to be arranged, so with high spirits we farewelled him at the hotel, looking forward to the next day's early start for Machu Picchu.
That night we went to dinner at the Inca Grill and on the way there I bought a really lovely ruby coloured cardigan made from baby alpaca for only $89. Then I collected the laundry and we had another nice early night as we had to be up at 5.30 the next morning.

Sunrise as we travel to Machu Picchu

Wednesday, 4th June
Alison: At 5.30 we got up and dragged the children out of bed ready for our big excursion to Machu Picchu. Once again we drove the one and half hours to Ollantaytambo. There we managed to get some breakfast in breakneck speed at a little cafe and then went to Ollanta station from where the Vistadome train leaves.

Urubamba River which is source of the Amazon

The train winds its way through a spectacular valley, the Urubamba River containing some lovely rapids and crossed by narrow bridges with the remains of Inca bases for the bridges still there.

Bridge over Urubamba River

It was fascinating watching the ecology change from the dry, sparse vegetation up near Cusco, to the more lush landscape as we descended towards Machu Picchu.
The train ride was very comfortable and after about one and a half hours we found ourselves in the nice little town of Machu Picchu, from which we caught the shuttle bus up a winding, steep, narrow dirt road to the Inca ruins. At each switchback the views became more breathtaking and after twenty minutes we got to the entrance.

Climbing up the stone stairs of Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu really IS as stunning as all the postcards make you think it is, except even more so. I can't believe I took quite so many photos, but at each turn we ooohed and aahhed and I felt compelled to take another! It was fun seeing alpacas and llamas grazing on the terraces as we climbed MORE steep stone steps up and up, pausing for breath every so often and pretending to just be admiring the view. 

People climbed to the top of these mountains!

There were some mountains right next to the ruins that you could climb - they allow the first 400 to go up and then that's it - but luckily we had the children as an excuse not to want to attempt it!

Rachel and the view

Michael got quite vertiginous enough just looking at the people on the top of them, and went absolutely hysterical every time the kids got within a metre of the edge of the steep cliffs the paths went past. 

Tom on the edge

We walked all through the ruins with Christoph explaining the key sites and function of various ancient buildings, temples and the like. Then we had a loo break and some refreshments before revisiting the site once more, wandering right up to the top and just sitting there on high quietly contemplating the true magnificence of the scene.

Wow - what a view to contemplate!

Finally we dragged ourselves away, caught the shuttle bus back down and had a late lunch at a nice restaurant, before catching our train back to Ollantaytambo and then the van all the way back to Cusco. Once again we watched the sun set, lighting up the distant mountains in a rosy glow, before the stars came out and the narrowest of a sickle new moon emerged.

Sunset lighting up the mountains

We looked happily at the Southern Cross from a different continent and eventually arrived in Cusco, ready for a light meal and bed, content with having spent a magical day in a wonderful part of the world.
 

Family photo looking out over the view

Mike:   Having been uninspired by our day in Lima, I was sooo delighted arriving in Cusco to be met by beautiful sunshine, a gorgeous backdrop of the Andes, and a really lovely man Alberto to take us to our hotel. We immediately felt soooo much better abour Peru.. and indeed we were not to be disappointed with what lay ahead. Alison and I both now agree that Peru has probably been theeee highlight of our trip so far, which is really saying something as we have adored every minute of the entire trip thus far!!
I had thought of Cusco as pretty much merely a hub to Machu Pichhu, but that is certainly not the case, as it is a gooorgeous little town of itself, not entirely unlike Siena in its narrow cobbled streets, central square, architecture and more generally lovely meandering feeling about it.  Our hotel also had a lovely warm atmosphere about it and was in a lovely central location in a really nice part of the town
Alison has recounted the details of our adventures so I will not revisit the details, except to focus on my standout memories.   Both Ollantaytambo and Machu Pichhu share an amazing element of surprise, in that even when you are right there on location, it is not until you actually enter throuuugh to the site itself that you then see the place in alllll its magnificence at once, so like unwrapping a sweet the discovery is well worth the wait.  Both times suffice to say our breath (what little we had left at altitude!) was toooootally taken away by the sheer amazement of being greeted by these most truly magniiiiificent ruins, the first glimpse in  both cases feeling almost surreal.  
Catching the bus up to Machu Pichhu was itself an experience to me, winding up along a narrow, twisting little road up the steep mountain face, every time the bus doubled back so I was on the roadedge side of the bus it was almost more than I could bear to look down at the sheer drop below..   oh my god woooooooow how scary!!
This though was only an appetiser for the real thing...    the ruins of Machu Pichhu are of themselves as I have said one of theee sights to behold in this world,  all beauuutifullty handcarved in massiiiiiive prices of stone using sophisticated architectural principles many hundreds of years ahead of their time, the genius, artistry and resourcefulness of the Inca people to create this city is just beyond belief.
Add to that though the backdrop, set high on a mountain nestled amongst the magnificent Andes range, on top of the world yet dwarfed by other surrounding mountains, with a beautiful valley and river flowing down sooo far below, this is a simply magical place.

All of us at the top

Suffice to say too that the vertiginously challenged like myself need to take a veeeeeery deep breath to enjoy this experience, which  interestingly I summised early on is definitely nooot helped by the vicious circle of the altitude itself, becuae I began to realise the shortage of enough oxygen to take a few really good long deep breaths in itself was undoubtedly exacerbating the vertigo which I can normally shake pretty quickly.. not here though!   To digress, but I vividly remember bursting out laughing when, upon cutting up Tom's chicken for him at lunch, I found myself puffing afterward from the exertion.. and I kid you not !!!  
Anyway, back to the story.....regardless of vertigo there was simply noooo way I was going to miss the best views of all which were to be had by climbing many series of steep steps, to then enjoy a panorama the particular like of which without doubt exists nowhere else on this planet.  Oh my goood if words could describe looking down on that ancient city on high...
As Alison mentioned I did find it extremely hard to let the kids anywhere near the edges, unfair given that they clearly weren't suffering my vertigo, but you get that!   A few times I literally screeeamed at them to get back from the edge, only to discover that in fact they only had a metre or two drop down to the next level, but all I could see from my minimum two metre back position was sheer edges!!!
Anyway I could go on about Machu Picchu (meaning old mountain by the way) but I won't, suffice to say Alison put it well in describing it to me as one of the highlights of her life to date...
Moving on, the other aspect we both adoooored getting out from Cusco was getting into the beautiful countryside, and getting a feel for how the people really live. In this we felt many similarities to our Vietnam trip, and have both realised that it these types of places and experiences that probably turn us on more than any other, sooo different to the cityslicker lives in protected comfort we all enjoy back home. 
The pure simplicity of the way they live, peoples' gooorgeous warm and gentle natures, their amazing self sufficiency and incredible resourcefulness and deep deep respect for the flora and fauna with which they cohabit this earth...  all in suuuch stark contrast to our and my ''money buys you anything, just turn on the tap'' lifestyle..   again though more of this to come in the rest of our Peru blogs to follow soon.. 

Tom giving Christoph a hug

I should mention too our guide Christophe who very much helped to make Cusco and surrounds such a memorable experience with his lovely warm manner, and by the end of these few days Tom was cuddling up to him and feeling very close (as is Tom's way which I so love), and Tom's tears flowed when we had to say goodbye to him.
Alison of course looooves the opportunity to pick the brains of the expert guides so she absorbed every aspect of the history, geography and environment in her way that astonishes me, while I continue in my own way with half an ear out to the bits that interest me while the rest passes me by blissfully unawares, content in knowing Al's steeltraplike brain for knowledge will have it all there if there is any aspect I later wish to revisit!!  Anyway, a truly fabulous few days, and as ever the deep contentment of knowing more of the same was to come!... 

Rachel: In Machu Picchu there were amazing views as it was at a very high altitiude. It was mind-blowing that the Incas had built it all by hand. When we were on the steps there were ledges and some of them looked like the edge of the earth when you were standing back a metre or so, so Dad kept shouting at us to get back, not realising it was only one metre down!

Llamas & alpacas grazing on the terraces

There were a lot of llamas and alpacas in Peru. On the way to Ollantaytambo we stopped at a farm and while we were watching one shot up his leg and started weeing right on top of us! They are the most adorable looking animals in the world. When you pat their fur they are so soft you just want to hug them and pick them up all the time. Their little heads and fluffy ears were so cute.
I got to ride on one of the adult ones and it was really freaky when it started walking but it was so soft. We also fed them and one of the little ones loved my vegetables so it just sat there and kept chewing and chewing. It was an amazing thing how they made all the wool from the alpaca and llama fur and then made beautiful clothes from it all at the same place.