Better Late Than Never!: The Easy Way Out...

Since we want to share our trip to Peru - all the pictures and descriptions - we figured a blog would be the best way, rather than trying to tell family and friends individually. SO HERE GOES...

See this amazing place? It 's the one place I've always wanted to go since I was a little girl. Ancient ruins fascinate me, and this mountain setting is magical. David knew this little bit of trivia about me, and decided to arrange the trip. Uncle Cary and Aunt Evelyn were excited when we told them, so they came along for the first week. I was so grateful they were there! Along with the fact
they are fun to travel with ;)

DAY 1 5/19/14

We began with a bang. . .

Arrived at the airport early as directed (8:30 am), and waited. And waited. We found out the plane had hit a bird, so they had to bring in an inspector FROM FAR AWAY to not only check out the wing, but the whole plane. It was delayed for hours, so Cary and David got us on another flight. That one ended up with lavatory problems, so it was also delayed. We finally ended up going to dinner with Cary and Ev, and they brought us home so we could try again the next morning.

DAY 2 & 3 5/20-21/14

We finally made it to Cuzco - Where no one told us we should have winter coats :) David made me drink the coca tea immediately, knowing my problems with balance. Smart guy. Here's a bunch of pictures from the airport. We were met in Cuzco by our wonderful guide/new best friend, Juan Carlos Gavancho (or "Juanca," as he told us. Sort of like Willy "Juanca") :) I'd say he was pretty magical - we couldn't believe he got all our bags, plus the 2 duffle bags with education kits, musical instruments, and all the stuff we brought for the children at the orphanage and school into his trunk!

He then drove us around Cuzco (alt. 11,200 ft - The Inca capital). The Cathedral was built by the Spanish from stones they removed from Saksayhuaman (photos later), an Inca fortress on the outskirts of the city. The Spanish conquistadors, under Franciso Pizarro, came in 1533 and overtook the Incas, colonizing and Christianizing. There is an interesting mix of Quechua (the Peruvian indians) and Spanish in both the architecture and their Christian traditions.

Peru is absolutely rich in minerals. Gold is EVERYWHERE. It's amazing... They wouldn't ever let us take pictures inside their churches, so this is the best we got. Some had this kind of gold wall to wall.

You can see the cathedral and city square in this one if you look closely - center/right ↑

The rest of the gang finally got their coca tea :)

Juan Carlos then drove us out of Cuzco to the Sacred Valley (with a few stops along the way...)

A woman in traditional Quechua clothing. She was the first we saw in this dress, and we thought it was for tourists; but we were amazed to find that many of the people wear the traditional clothing as everyday dress. Pictures to follow... There was also a man playing pan pipes and wanting to sell us his CD :)

Of course the requisite statue on the mountain...

This is our first view of the Sacred Valley. We stayed here in Urubamba a few days and explored from one end of the valley to the other.

We stopped at the maket in Pisac where I found a beautiful pendant of turquoise, malachite, and serpentina. when I go on a trip, I try to find a unique pendant - easy to bring home, and the "shopping" is done. :) Well, not really. These days I look for something to bring back to children/grandchildren, so there was a bit of bargaining at the market. Check out the weaving - the craft in these textiles is incredible.

On the way to our hotel in Urubamba we passed lots of farming, mostly corn. The kernels are very large and white. The terraces on the mountains are ancient, predating the Inca. The purpose was to prevent erosion and slides. The people did plant on most of them, either for practical purposes, or for decorative gardens, typically depicting one of their animal gods: Llama, puma, snake or ________. Shoot, I can't remember. Bird? Condor - yeah, that's the other one.