Thursday, July 31, 2008

Machu Pichu, July 2008

Karen and I headed to Peru from Galapagos. We spent one night in Lima and then flew to Cuzco, which is the little touristy city near Machu Pichu. We spent a night there before we headed out on the trail. We didn't hike the Inca Trail because when we made our reservations it was already full. They limit the number of people that can hike that trail. So we did a different hike on the Lares Trek. We hiked for 3 days and 2 nights through the Sacred Valley. We spent the nights in tents and did a lot of hiking through Inca villages and mountains during the day. It was so amazingly beautiful and, by far, the most difficult thing I have ever done. We were hiking (uphill all the time, or at least it felt that way) at 14,000 feet elevation. WOW! That hurt! We had a guide and horses to carry our stuff. There was 10 of us in our group. Everyone got sick at some point. I will spare you the gory details, but let me just say that altitude sickness is no fun! It was truly a trek and an adventure. The mountains and countryside were so peaceful and gorgeous. The people were amazing. I thought I was going to die at times, but now that it is over, it was all worth it. So if anyone wants to do the Inca Trail, let me know and I will meet you there!
On our last day we went to Machu Pichu. We watched the sunrise over the peaks and spent several hours exploring this city that is 600 years old and surrounded by so much mystery. How did they build it? Why was it deserted? So many theories, very interesting. Read more here:



Lima, Peru



Cuzco, Peru




The Lares Trek







Machu Pichu