June 17, 2008 - Memories of Peru

In November 2007, we traveled to the southern hemisphere to visit Machu Picchu, often referred to as "The Lost City of the Incas." Machu Picchu is (according to Wikipedia) “a well-preserved pre-Columbian Inca ruin located on a mountain ridge 7,970 ft above the Urubamba Valley in Peru,” and was recently voted to be one of the new Seven Wonders of the World.

This was a trip that El and I were planning for months. We did extensive research on the area and read numerous books to help them prepare for the climb and the climate. Our trip began in the city of Cusco, which is 11,500 feet above sea level. We stayed there two days, to adjust to the altitude (to avoid altitude sickness).

THE TREK

We had been hiking for two days. The high altitude was rough on our lungs at first, reaching nearly 14,000 feet on our second day on the trail. Our porters flew past us with all of our camping equipment and food on their backs, one of them carrying dozens of eggs, strapped on with pieces of string. The local record for the entire trail (26 miles) was achieved by a 12 year-old boy in about three hours; we were hoping to finish in four days. As we waded back down the other side of Dead Woman's Pass into the wet fog, we heaved a sigh of relief and shouted with surprise when we noticed a welcoming party of wild llamas coming up the trail. They were all colors, and tame, letting the trekkers pet them. This was certainly not New York. This was Peru and we were in the middle of the Andes with total strangers, searching for something that few have the chance to find, Machu Picchu.

The luxuries of our hotel in Cusco long behind us, it would be two more days before we would again see any real civilization. Down the trail and into the jungle we went, not exactly at full-speed, but with a renewed energy.

The fog slowly lifted and the sun finally greeted us like a gentle pat on the back. “Come on Champions! We're almost there,” our guide, Casiano, motivated our every step with encouraging words and the songs from his flute. We came to realize that if we could hear his flute playing in the distance, we were getting close to a bit of respite and maybe even a chance to sit down. Our third day was a leisurely stroll of only five hours; a nice break after the twelve we had hiked the day before. We were tired and dirty and sick of those car-sized Inca stairs. What was left of our knees had turned to mush. We arrived at camp by lunchtime, and our spirits rose quickly as we realized how close we were to Machu Picchu. It was also encouraging that this campsite was close enough to town to have hot showers and a bar - we spent the afternoon rediscovering soap and rubbing Tiger Balm into our aching joints.

Later, Casiano led us down a side trail to see something extra-special before it got dark. We had seen many Incan ruins over the last couple of days, all with their own history and purposes, but this site, Wiñay Wayna, or “Forever Young,” was different. It was named after an orchid that grows only in this region. The trail opened up into the site, which was carved into the side of the mountain. One very long set of stairs connected the highest agricultural terrace to the lowest with the village smack in the middle. We spent a few minutes taking in the view of the vast mountain range and the winding Urubamba River below us.

Casiano then showed us a couple of irrigational fountains, built hundreds of years ago to collect runoff from the glaciers, and water still flows from them. He ran his finger swiftly through the water and the flow stopped, like magic. He did it again and the flow began, strong as ever. I'm still not sure how it works, but we each took our turns and were able to do it ourselves. It was unreal!

It was getting dark, yet we decided to wander for a little while before heading back to camp. There were no streetlights to guide us around the old town; our headlamps were the only light we had to keep us from falling off the side of the mountain. We could have explored the ancient ruins all night, but dinner was waiting for us back at camp, and we had a 3:00AM wake-up time planned; in less than twelve hours we would arrive at Machu Picchu.

We found Machu Picchu to be overrun with tourists - beautiful, but packed, with a gift shop, hotel and restaurant. Despite this, we were still stunned at the size of it, once the fog cleared. Many of the people who visit the site are Peruvians, busloads of school groups and families, all making the pilgrimage to gain energy from the stones. We explored the ruins for several hours, but exhaustion got the best of us and we hopped a train back to Cusco to continue our trip into the Amazon jungle.

WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE

Within seconds of getting off the plane in Puerto Maldonado we were sweating. At 95 degrees and 98%
humidity it was pretty much as sticky as it gets. We took a short boat ride up the river, and were soon exploring the jungle in rubber boots to protect our feet from biting creatures. Our accommodations here consisted of a bungalow with just three walls; the fourth side was open to the rainforest. A mosquito net over our bed was the only protection from everything that crept, crawled, buzzed or shrieked under the jungle canopy...and did we hear shrieking! Our guide knocked at 4:30 AM to wake us for our day's adventures, and soon after we heard them... It sounded like a giant robot eating its way through the jungle, headed straight for our vulnerable little hut - who knew that howler monkeys could make so much noise!

Our day started with piranha fishing. We scanned the trees for colorful macaws and parrots, and watched leaf-cutter ants march past us, carrying leaves twice their size. A visit to the local shaman included touring his medicinal garden and learning about plants that are used for everything from dyeing wool to anesthesia. The best moment was when our guide stuck her finger into a termite nest and pulled some out, telling us to eat them, alive. Up to this point we had eaten some new and somewhat bizarre “meats” including guinea pig, known as “cuy” (coo-wee), alpaca, “anticuchos” - beef hearts on a stick, but now insects? Live insects?? Why not? If you're wondering, they tasted like carrots.

LAST STOP - LAKE TITICACA

The floating man-made Uros Islands in Lake Titicaca are almost as touristy as Machu Picchu. It's hard to believe that with the altitude, the remote location, and boat ride to reach the islands that there would be so many visitors, but it is surprisingly busy. During the day, we visited the island of Balsero, one of roughly 30 islands in this floating community, and made entirely of totora reeds found in the lake - as is almost everything else on the islands, from boats to houses to baskets - residents even eat the reeds (so did we!). We took another boat three hours to spend the night on the natural island of Amantani, where our host mother was Angela; families on this island often take in tourists for extra income. Before dinner, we hiked to the top of the island to watch the sunset and snack on some Picarones (pumpkin donuts). Dinner was wonderful, but it was the kitchen itself that was truly unique - a little hut with earth floors, an old and crude gas stove, and a stone fire pit in the back, where most of the cooking was done. The people on Amantani speak only Quechua (ketch wa) and Spanish, but no English, yet we managed to overcome the language barrier using my limited Spanish vocabulary and some hand gestures.

After dinner the family left the kitchen, except for our host's grandmother, who stayed to tend the fire. Elliot and I took this opportunity to discuss with her the vast differences in life on the island of Amantani and the island of Manhattan. Later, we followed Angela up a dark hill, where hundreds of people, tourists and locals, were dancing around a bonfire to the music of a local band. We danced until we couldn't move, which wasn't for very long - we were dead-tired from all the hiking, and the altitude limited any quickpaced activity. We finally found our way back to the house and fell into bed.

HOME AGAIN

After 12 days of traveling throughout Peru, we made a final stop in Lima for half a day before taking a red-eye back to New York. Hardly a relaxing vacation, but once-in-a-lifetime to be sure. The best part of returning home was seeing our dog - or maybe it was potable water, or indoor plumbing?? The drive home from the airport gave us time to reflect on what an amazing experience this had been, prompting us to start planning our next trip....where to? Our flight for Bangkok, Thailand leaves on Oct. 31st!