Leaving a mark behind
Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote: “life is a JOURNEY, not a destination.”
A moment I was able to experience this was on my way to the Mighty ancient city of Machu Picchu. Getting there was quite an adventure and I will never forget it.
We were picked up by our tour guide who then drove us to Ollantaytambo. From there we checked out the city a bit then went to catch our train. We had no idea whatsoever what this train would be like. It ended up being a life experience.
We had only been to Cusco for about 2 days. Nevertheless, the Inca culture seemed so outstanding in its core beliefs and the architectural footprint it left behind. The trip already had surpassed our expectations. But there was more to see.
Before our Machu Picchu adventure we had a day in El Valle Sagrado. Our tour guide picked us up and we drove about an hour to visit the Sacred Ruins of Pisac also know as the Citadel.
As soon as you entered the Citadel you are struck by the astonishing architecture. What’s noticeable at first glance are the agricultural terraces.
We only had a an hour to check out the sacred ruins so we had to speed through in order to see it all. I was certainly perplexed by the scenery as the green grass contrasted with the white fog.
What I enjoyed the most about this magical place was the fact that you could walk forever and always find a new amazing spot. The ambiance provided this vibe of peace I can recall even now.
The place was so huge at one point I lost track of Manu. We managed to find each other on one of the many trails the archeological park has. I strongly recommend having confortable shoes as this park involves quite a bit of walking.
After much walking and checking out many ancient baths, altars, water fountains and ceremonial platforms we headed out to grab a bite. We were so lucky that as soon as we walked out the fog became stronger and made it really difficult to appreciate the majestic features of the archeological park. However, we had already seen it all.
So much walking motivated us to go straight for that Corn without much thinking. It was probably the biggest corn I have ever seen in my life. The lady gave it to us with a big slice of homemade cheese. Definitely recommend having a bite.
We still had a long day full of adventures ahead of us. As soon as we finished eating the corn we headed to a small Inca town to check out a market and see how they fabricate the famous Inca Jewelry made out of magical stones.
As soon as we finished the Jewelry tour we were intercepted by a group of kids and their alpacas. The deal was you get a photo taken with their pets as long as you give them a tip. It seemed like a good deal so we went ahead and had our alpaca picture taken.
Alpacas and Llamas are highly special as they’re characterized for being cute and friendly. I instantly fell in love with them.
For lunch we headed to a famous Inca restaurant. The food was beyond amazing, however my favorite thing about the place was the cutest alpaca I met on the entire trip.
One rule our tour guide pointed to us was that if we ever were late to the bus we would have to sing to the rest of the team. Since we’re adventurers, we decided to risk the timeframe for the sake of getting to know our alpaca friend. However, the consequence was I had to show the reason I’m not a singer. The tour guide quickly reminded my duty for being late to the vehicle.
During the Inca Empire, Ollantaytambo was the royal estate of Emperor Pachacuti. (See more on Wikipedia) What struck me the most were the impressive terraces built on top of the hill. It took us a while to get to the top as it was considerably high. As we walked around the archeological site, our guide explained how the rocks were put in place by hand. It showed clearly what team work can accomplish.
We continued walking towards the side of the mountain to check out the size of the structure. It seemed as if there were no limits to the architectural potential of the Inca Empire.
Walking around this site was a majestic adventure. It was mind blowing to think we had access to the same structure used by the Inca king and his empire.
Something hard to miss was a face profile visible on a side of the mountain across from the archeological site. Our tour guide said it was the face of the creator god, Wiracocha. Check out the following video until the end to see out what it looks like. Click here for more info.
We had seen so many things in just one day, however we still needed to check out one last spot before we headed back to Cusco.
The plan was to visit an Inca town to learn more about their culture and they way the do things.
Once you spend a couple of days in Cusco it becomes hard to remember the height at which you’re located. However, when I looked outside of the bus window and saw the snow on the mountain tops it hit me.
Upon arrival to Chincero, we were warmly received by a group of ladies who kindly started to explain to us the nitty gritty on the Inca Culture. We spent quite a bit of time there to get a grasp on this wonderful culture.
As soon as we got back to Cusco from our amazing adventure, we went out to get some food. As it was my birthday we wanted it to be something different. We ended up trying out Cui (guinea pig). It was absolutely delicious and I cannot wait to go back and try it again!
I was impressed by the amount of things we were able to do in a single day. This trip confirmed my belief that is not a matter of how much time we have but how we spend that time. Something I will keep in mind due to this trip is how durable a legacy can be as long as we strive to make the best out of our existence on earth.
Check out what we did in Cusco here
Before you get to travel to Machu picchu you have to get to Cusco, which is why it’s called the gateway to Machu Picchu.
We had only been to Peru for less than 48 hours and we had already seen alien created art, ruins in the middle of Lima, seals, penguins, an oasis, a desert and rode on a buggy. All of this but our adventure had just started.
(Check out Happy birthday from Peru if you haven’t and then continue reading 🙂
As we got back to Lima from Ica, we decided to go out and see the city at night. It’s been one of the most impressive night sceneries I’ve seen in my entire life. We took a moment to think about what was awaiting for us in Cusco as we gazed over the night sky, then headed back to our hostel to get ready for our morning flight the following morning.
As soon as we got to Cusco we headed to Plaza de Armas, which is the center of Cusco and where you can find guided tours around the city.
One thing you will always hear when heading to Cusco is the height sickness you might experience which can turn bad. Neither me and Manuel suffered from it at all but I would definitively recommend having medicine ready in case you suffer from it.
We hung out a bit at the Plaza de Armas as we waited for the tour guide who would guide us through and around the City. The first stop of our walking tour was the most important temple in the Inca Empire, Coricancha.
We were so lucky our tour guide was a university professor and knew every detail about the Inca culture and history. As you can see in the following video, he is super fluent on the Inca language.
Our second stop during our tour was a citadel on the northern outskirts of Cusco called Saqsaywaman. It was astonishing to see such a huge structure built by hand. According to our guide all the stones were dragged using ropes by hundreds of men.
Since we didn’t have too much time, we only spent about 45 minutes appreciating the perfect mix between the human stone structure and the nature surrounding it. Our next stop was a fountain of youth. Before we got there we intercepted my favorite animal (the llama) along the way.
The walk between the llamas and the youth fountain was quite challenging as we were currently at 4K meters of above the sea. Apparently the higher we go the hardest it is to do any physical motion (which includes hiking). Thankfully we survived the small trail without puking and were able to be delighted by what promised to keep us young forever.
It was too cold for us to drink the water so we decided to give a pass to the waters of youth… We probably wont live forever but we were excited and looking forward for our next destination on our trip. El Valle sagrado.
To be continued…
Check out our friends from Peruvian Wonders if you wish to have an awesome adventure as ours.