USA Today Logo New York Times Logo Outside Magazine Logo Conde Nast Traveler Logo National Geographic Traveler
Create your Trip Journal [click here]

Young at Heart Adventuring

view full screen slideshow
by: Linda Pils
We journey into the beauty and history of the Inca Valley and Machu Picchu, learning about the peoples of Peru, their cultures and the way it shaped their land.

Read my Journal
Young at Heart Adventuring

Want to go? Machu Picchu by Train

I went to: Peru, Lima, Cusco, Sacred Valley, Ollantaytambo, Machu Picchu Ruins, El MaPi Inn
We made it! Influence of Incas on Catholic church architecture.One of the many architecturally beautiful churches in LimaThere are many cool dudes in Lima.The Peruvian flag is very distinctive.The Presidential Palace and government buildings.It's not hard to meet new friends in Peru.A sunny Sunday in Cusco.A celebration of school children for the saint's day.The flag of Cusco is a rainbow.The courtyard of the Marqueses Hotel. Goodies for dinner at the festival.Everyone enjoys the celebration.Flowers are abundant at the market.Marco explains the good luck factor of this little guy.The lady has every potion needed ready for purchase.She's not for sale, but she loves the market. There are every kind of fruit imaginable and more.Skirts, vests, sweaters. Be ready to negotiate.The Museo Inka Stones that hold secrets outside the museum.The Incas knew how to make a map of the heavens that lasts.Cusco, a city old and new.How did these pieces fit together? What did they mean?Dying wool using native plants.Weaving the wool into shawls.Woven goods for sale.I'm smiling because I am holding a large bag of goodies.Two bulls placed on the roof guarantees good luck!Travel in the Inca valley, there are remains everywhere.The terraces are everywhere.How do you say, "Having a great time" in Quechua?The impact of the Incas on the valley is huge.How was this plain used? No one knows for sure.The Moray archeological site, we hear music and watch.The trails lead down to the city.Picture a garden of Eden, water irrigated the crops.Everywhere you look there is evidence of structures. There is no one place, but many different kinds of places.Walking in Cusco at night, dancers dressed in their finest.The city square takes on a festive glow.Poor little cuy, guinea pig. Switchbacks up to Machu Picchu.It is more breathtaking than we can realize.With every angle we get a clearer picture of the whole..Marco explaining the Sacsayhuaman site.These boulders are huge, look how they fit together.Cusco is both a village and large city in the Andes.A metaphor for the cultural combining of church and Inca.The lovely hotel at Ollantaytambo.New friends sharing ideas in cool hats. The train to Machu Picchu, we can hardly wait to board. Traveling along the river, as we descend.How could the Incas have done so much in so little time?Are we happy or what?Welcome indeed!View from the top as departing the bus.We ooh and aah as we take our first look around.We imagine the wooden beams and thatched roofs.Llamas are the greatest lawnmowers.These are not steps, but markers for lunar movements.How did they do it, up here on the top of the mountain? It is the view from the postcards, but much, much better. Space is organized and utilized for maximum use.What must it have been like to live here, to work here?A view from a trapezoid window. A vignette. Marco explains more about the organization of the buildingsMiniature flowers making inroads into the stone.The torrent duck was here just a moment ago, promise!The mountains fade but the memories linger.One last view of the stamp of Inca on the landscape.The Inca trails still used by school childrenNew buildings built on the Inca foundations. This herd is easier to care of than cattle.A family invites us in to their home.Food preparation using grains and dried vegetablesDried fish and meat.Everyone uses the good luck guy.A living Inca village today.A street vendor Peruvian style.Skirts are cool in summer and warm leggings warm all year.The Inca valley is a combination of old and new. The valley is small compared to the peaks of the Andes.Glaciers at the top of the peaks.As the clouds move, more grandeur is exposed.How lucky are we to be here in this wondrous place?The elusive Cock of the Rock, the national bird.The Blue-gray tanager.Thick-billed EuphoniaWarbler, wish I knew which one!Chestnut-breasted Coronet

Share