Category: Machu Picchu, Peru

Machu Picchu in all its grandeur!

I’m not going to write much about this because you just have to see it for yourself to appreciate it. I put this on our schedule long after I booked the Costa Rica/Cruise trip. I did so much research to be fully informed. There is no way to describe it and seeing pictures does not do it justice. Yes, it is difficult because the steps are steep and uneven. It is huge too. But our guide was great in describing what life must have been like for the residents. They left no writings nor history. It is not known why they left except possibly in self defense. So go see it yourself. But do it soon. The Peru government has approved a large international airport in the Sacred Valley which will eliminate the transfers from Lima or even Cusco. It will be easier and cheaper to get there which means more people. They limit the number of visitors now so I’m not sure how they will handle it. The 2.5 hours transit in vehicle from Cusco is beautiful. Then the train is equally beautiful. You CANNOT DRIVE THERE! But you can do the overland trek which takes 4 days and you must have a guide.

Llamas greeting us
Our guide Johan
Proof we were there

The transit from Cusco to Machu Picchu is amazing

Village with Llama wool demonstration
The weaver with my purchase
Demonstration
Llamas

3/8 Our flight to Cusco from Lima was great with views of the Andes. We arrived on time and Johanna of Incas discovery  met us with our guide, Johan. We boarded our private van with Johan and the driver. We drove to Ollantaytambo town to catch the train to Agua Calientes (Machu Picchu town). 2.5 hr drive with stops along the way to see and learn about the culture of this area. First stop was at a little village where they spin Llama fur into yarn. I bought a lovely hand woven throw from a local girl (see picture). Next stop was for a view from the highest point on the drive at 12,800 ft. Beautiful scenery. At Ollantaytambo, Johan took us through the back walkways to see how the ancient city irrigated and provided water to the people. We went inside a typical (even today) home where guinea pigs are raised for eating. This is called “guy” and a very popular dish with the Inca people. We did not sample any. I had guinea pigs for pets and could not imagine eating one. From the photos you will see they get rather large. The home was dirt floor and rough stone walls. Open fire pit in the center for heat.

The next photos show the irrigation ditches which are centuries old.

Next we got on the train for the journey to Agua Calientes (Machu Picchu town). The 2 hour ride was very scenic and all along the river which was very high and at least class 5 rapids. I was told only extreme sports enthusiasts ever kayak it this time of year. We met a couple from Germany on the train who have relocated to South Africa. They said they were too tired of German government and taxes. They have a ranch in South Africa but are looking to relocate to another desolate area, hence the visit to Peru, Brazil and Argentina.

view from 12,800 ft summit
Our new friends from South Africa
river along the train route

Packed Yet? with Full Itinerary: Southern Hemisphere

Departure February 22, 2017

Very soon we will be packed and on the way.  We will be away for 64 days! No we are not packed yet. I get asked that question a lot just before a trip. I’ll probably start a couple days before departure. If I start too early I’ll take too much. Well, probably not too much because once that one suitcase is full  – IT IS FULL. My suitcase is a carry on size and goes in the overhead bin. A backpack on wheels goes under the seat in front of me.

It is not really fun to pack. I would much rather spend my time planning and researching all the fun sights to see and things to do in each of these fantastic locations.

The following is our schedule on the cruise:cruise-part-1cruise-part-2

 

The photo below is of the Crows Nest on the top deck of the ship. This is our favorite area to hang out especially in rough seas. You can really feel the ship riding the waves from up here. Photo courtesy of Holland America.

crows-nest
Crows Nest on top deck

This is a typical Outside Cabin. We save money by agreeing to a particular category when we reserve the cruise. It is possible to pick a particular cabin and get a preferred area, such as center-bottom deck, if you are prone to sea sickness. We don’t have that issue so have always been happy with the cabin as assigned. We were upgraded to a balcony cabin one time – keeping our fingers crossed it will happen again. The cabin is small but nicely arranged. Photo courtesy of Holland America.

oceanview-h
Typical Outside Cabin

Planning a Journey-Next up South America

I truly love planning trips. I’m a bit obsessed with it actually. Once the trip actually happens I think back to how much work (play) went into the planning and enjoy it all the more.

Picking the Location

We were invited to share a house with friends in Costa Rica. My goal is always to expand on whatever location and see more. So…. since we are so far south why not find a cruise that can bring us all the way home instead of flying? What started as a 10 day trip to Costa Rica is now 64 days exploring a bit of Peru and Argentina followed by a cruise for 36 days to get us back home. See cruise map below.

This is how I get so carried away, literally.

In 2003 we cruised from San Diego south to Valparaiso, Chile. Most of the passengers on that cruise stayed on the ship when we got off and sailed around the horn (tip of South America). We were so jealous of their wonderful adventure and have always wanted to go back. Also many passengers took that particular cruise to see Machu Picchu (from Lima) which is a rather expensive (about $3,500/pp) 3 day excursion if booked through the cruise line. Punta Arenas is the jumping off spot to Antarctica if you have that goal in mind. Antarctica it is a 6 hour flight, not really close at all.

cruise-route-south-america

Going South when the airline industry wants to go North

We have two weeks after Costa Rica before we get on the ship in Buenos Aires. Again, since we are so far south we should explore more of South America. As I looked for airfare south to Buenos Aires from Costa Rica I got frustrated because all the flights routed through Houston or Florida or other points north such as New Jersey. 26 hours later we would end up in Buenos Aires. I followed the advice of my favorite travel blog:   Nomadic Matt’s Travel Blog  Matt recommended looking at the final destination to see where flights might be coming from. Voila…. Lima was a better choice. We will fly from Costa Rica to Lima, Peru. Since we had to change planes anyway I decided we should stay in Lima for a few days. From Lima we will venture over to Machu Picchu. The challenges of planning that trip are in the post Machu Picchu Planning.

macchu-picchu

 

 

Machu Picchu Planning

central-south-america

In my last post I talked about the importance of planning well. I could call a travel agent but that just isn’t my style. I love to research, read other blogs, and spend lots of time looking at all the options. Trip Advisor has great forums where people exchange ideas and give suggestions based on their experiences.

Planning our side trip to Machu Picchu was far from easy. I loved every minute/hour/days of it. It is a very complex procedure to get there. Many websites are not current with the fact that one of the train lines no longer runs. Also, due to increased tourism they are beginning to limit the number of visitors per day. There are many tour operators who will put everything together for you from Lima flights, hotels, tours, meals and all else. I did a little on my own and used Incas Discovery to do the complicated parts. Their website is http://www.incasdiscovery.com and you will not find prices there. Which is a good thing. Most of the others put together packages and you pick the one you want. No flexibility.  Johanna at Incas Discovery worked with me to deliver what I needed. I did my own air from Lima and chose the hotels based on the train schedules and other set details. Instead of a packaged tour, she charged me for only what we needed. I compared prices of course because you can do the entire thing yourself as prices are available on line from the individual vendors.

Advance Planning does make it easier…If only I could slow down….

Our time in Lima, Peru was already set because I had purchased non refundable airfare. We are flying from Costa Rica and then to Buenos Aires after Lima. We had flexibility but I chose the dates that offered the best prices long before deciding we should go to Machu Picchu. Again, if I had taken more time to think about what we would do in Lima, we would have stayed longer. The packaged tour operators could not work with me because my flights were too tight.

As you can see from the map below part of the tour is by auto and part is by train. There are no other choices, except walking the whole way, which many people do, over many days.

machu-picchu-map-2014

Also, all the tour operators have you stay in Cuzco the first night to adjust to the altitude, which is 11,000 ft. Cuzco is where the airport is. The altitude at Aguas Calientes, the town at the base of Machu Picchu, is about 9,000 ft. We are going directly to our Aguas Calientes hotel from the airport. One more day would have been perfect as you can see from the summary. The entire excursion is about $800 each. Most tour operator’s prices started at 3 times that amount.

  • Here is the summary:
  • Day 1 – 10 AM Fly Lima to Cuzco,  2 hour bus to Ollantaytambo, 2 hour train to Aguas Calientes, Hotel
  • Day 2 – Hike Machu Picchu 9 AM to 4 PM, train to Ollantaytambo, bus to Cuzco, Hotel
  • Day 3 – 5 AM fly Cuzco to Lima, 11 AM fly Lima to Buenos Aires