Peru & the Inca Trail

Travelling through Peru you see a range of varying landscapes, from coastal beaches and resort towns, to expansive Plains of Desert, to the Heights of the snowcapped Andes mountain ranges and the jungle of central Peru.

We started our trip in Lima where we were given a orientation of the city. Then it was aboard the Kumuka Truck for the next 12 days We headed south along the Pan American Highway to Nazca where we had the opportunity to take a flight over that famous Nazca Lines, drawings of figures etched into the ground that date back over 1,500 years. There is no precise information on how/who made these figures but some have speculated that it may have been extraterrestrial beings using these figures as a Calendar! Many studies have been undertaken to try to discover where they actually came from but it remains a mystery to all.

From Nazca we headed further south and then inland too Arequipe, a city famous for its Cathedral, and surrounding mountains, some of which are over 6,000m above sea level One major discovery near Ariquepe back in 1995 was of a young girls body on the mountain ranges. She was named Juanita by an expedition team who discovered her on a hike. It is believed Juanita was buried at a Sacrificial Ceremony some 500 years ago and was only discovered after a small eruption of one of the Volcanoes nearby moved the earth to reveal the body. It was amazing to see a body that is over 500 year old and has been kept in such good condition. This was partly due to the climatic conditions after the Sacrifice. The mountain had frozen and this kept her body intact.

We arrive in Cuzco, our base for the next 5 days. Cuzco is a vibrant city with accommodation to suit all travellers. We stayed in a quaint Hotel located just a few minutes walk from the Plaza Del Arms (the Main Square) We had several outings to the some Inca ruins in the area but the main reason for the trip for many travellers is to see if they can conquer the Inca Trail! We took an early morning train from our base that night at Ollantaytambo. The Station was bustling with people getting ready for the Inca Trail The journey took approx. 1 hour to get to the staring point of our 1 day walk.

From KM104 to Macchu Pichu was approx. 15kms. At first we started out slowly, negotiating the many rocky steps that we we going to face over the next few hours. On the edge of the mountain ranges along the Inca Trail we went. I was by no means as fit as I should have been. It is important to be able to stop at will to take a break for some much needed water replenishments and keep up the sugar fix with some snacks, as people tend to dehydrate with the altitude and exercise. We went up, and up and down and up again for what seem like hours. We reached our lunch stop on the side of the mountain where a nicely prepared hot meal was waiting for us. After lunch the Heavens opened. Out came the rain ponchos and we kept moving, along the windy steps. The end was near. We trekked the final hundred metres up to the Sun Gate and there was Macchu Pichu in the distance. It looked small but we were still another 45min down to the site. Took a deep breath & stood in awe of the amazing view.

The following morning we had an early start with our English-speaking guide who explained the many different areas of Macchu Picchu, The Sacred Plaza, Sacred Rock and The Royal Palace. The site that was only discovered in the early 1910's but was all hand built over a thousand years before. How they lived and how they could bring these huge building blocks of stone up from the valley and build a city on the side of a mountain amazes everyone that visits the site. A place of spirituality and serenity, it made me think how lucky we were to be there.

Visiting Peru was a great experience. Having not travelled to South American before, I was open to everything new from being tempted with local delicacies of Alpaca steaks or Guinea Pig on a spit to there local Pisco Sour drink and Inca Cola, to seeing some of the most famous sites Archeological sites in the World.