Peru Trip! (Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu) (!!!!)

We made it to Machu Picchu! It was completely amazing. I had no concept of the scope of it from pictures (a whole city! on a mountain!) so seeing it in person was really just awe-inducing.

Okay so that was Day 6. First, to get there, we took a crazy scenic trip by road and rail through all the most beautiful parts of beautiful Peru. I mean every place was more gorgeous than the last. Seriously, Peru, with the scenery. Seriously.

DAY 5: SACRED VALLEY OF THE INCAS

Outside of Cusco, we stopped to see several different Incan ruin sites. One of them was called Sacsayhuamán which totally sounds like "sexy woman" (just trust me, it does) (and if you don't find that funny, then you're exactly like my coworkers and nothing like me) and there were tons of steep steps, but from the top the view of Cusco was breathtaking.

Y'all. The climbing. At 11,000+ feet elevation. With a still-recovering foot. It was haaaaard. Like harder than I want to admit.

We also climbed around in some caves and learned about Incan tradition (we know surprisingly little, which is intriguing to me).

Also there were more alpacas. You could guess that, right?

We saw several ruins sites, road tripping over and through the Andes, and then we stopped for lunch in a little mountain town that's basically totally sustained by its silver mine. I bought a mother earth necklace. Yes I haggled. Yes I love it.

At one point we stopped to walk around and see the scenery of the Sacred Valley, and oh man we could barely breathe deep enough just for normal walking. I think our driver said we were like 12,500 feet or so. It's funny how we were all mostly fine in Cusco at 11k, but that extra 1500 feet did us in. Like dizzy and headachy just for those moments up high, until we came back over the other side of the mountain.

It sure was gorgeous though.

We made it to a darling town called Ollantaytambo (so pleasing to say out loud! do it. yes you. do it!) and caught the train to the village below Machu Picchu.

Let me tell y'all, catching a train in Peru is not the same thing as catching a train in, say, Germany. Or even catching Amtrak here in the states. The boarding cars and lining up process are quite a Thing. Like a big ol' mess that somehow works anyway. I was both horrified and impressed.

The train ride was (you guessed it) SUPER SCENIC. They played pan flute music the whole time, and served juice cocktails (fresh juice with milk in it is a very big thing in Peru) and snacks and it was all very charming.

NIGHT 5: AGUAS CALIENTES

The town at the base of Machu Picchu is called Aguas Calientes, and I have... never seen a town quite like it. It's small, it only exists becuase of Machu Picchu (which was only discovered a hundred-ish years ago), and it is basically just a crop of shopping stalls and guest houses and restaurants and chapels. There are no real roads, and no vehicle traffic, except the buses that take people up the mountain. It felt more like a base camp than a town. It was crawling with backpackers and tourists and people excited to go hike the ruins. There's an air of fun and anticipation, and packed bars and pubs.

dinner on a rooftop terrace! 

Other people in our group were wearying of lack of hot showers (our hotel in Cusco was only intermittently warm, so people had been banking on great showers in Aguas Calientes, but it turns out not only was there no hot water but no water at all, because of some kind of main break? or something? people were still hosing off the sidewalks outside so I don't believe one word of whatever explanation was handed out, ha) but while they were craving hot water, I was craving quiet. It was maybe about Night 5 that the noise of South America started to exhaust me. This is a culture of people who enjoy background noise, and loud music, and blaring tv's that no one is watching. People embrace it as the feeling of living happening, and while I get that, it's also exhausting for me. I'm not an "unneccessary noise" kind of gal, and it can shoot my nerves real quick. The town was fun but even louder than Cusco, which was even louder than Lima, so by bedtime in Aguas Calientes I just wanted all the nightclub thumping to be... less. Or none. I had earplugs, but no earplugs are truly good enough for Peru. Trust.

DAY 6: MACHU PICCHU

We woke up super early (super! early!) (like, every hotel started breakfast at 5am. What? Why? Why do people love Machu Picchu so early in the day? What, it's not going to still be there at noon? I'm sure there's a reason this is a trend but I never did suss it out) and caught a bus up the mountain to Machu Picchu. Let me tell you, that drive was terrifying. I would not have taken my Honda Accord around those curves that fast, and they did it while passing other buses. People kept looking out the bus windows and pointing out all the memorials on the side of the mountain and I was like Y'ALL. CAN YOU NOT.

But we made it to the top, and oh man. So stunning.

Just... all the exclamation points.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I had never fully grasped how big it is until I saw it in real life. I mean you can't tell scale in pictures.but each of those little squares is a non-small building, like an entire house or temple or whatever. This was a whole thriving city. People were born and died here and probably never had any reason to leave the mountain. It's huge.

Look at those tiny people and stairs, for scale. 

We spent half a day hiking and climbing around, and we only saw part of it. It would take multiple days to actually see every section, maybe more.

It kept striking me just how far-flung it was. This whole city, up on a mountain. A mountain that's pretttty inaccessible even for modern-day tourists. I mean we took a flight from an international gateway to the closest airport, then a long bus ride over mountains just to catch a train, which is basically the only way into the base camp town, and then a scary ride for miles up the mountain itself, before we even had a glimpse of it. HOW DID THEY EVEN FIND IT?? It was only discovered a hundred years ago, and I can see why! And why/how would they have built a city up on such a high mountain anyway? For safety? Defense? Amazing scenery? It's totally fascinating to me.

Before we hiked down, there were (of course!) (obviously!) more alpacas. Everyone, behold: the most Peru thing that has ever Peru'd:

After a long hard hike (my foot was angry at me but it was so so worth it) we had lunch in town before catching the train out. Look at this delightful lunch view!

We were ravenous, and Peru just kept consistently handing us amazing avocados. Every single one we had (and there were many) were perfectly ripe. I am not even a particularly avocado-y person, but daaaaaang these were incredible.

Also they have giant corn. Look at those huge kernels! They toast them and serve them like pretzels. Fun!

Also this was on the menu at lunch, so I will leave you with this final Machu Picchu thought: trout to the male thing. That is all.

Trout to the male thing. TROUT. TO. THE. MALE. THING.

Peru Trip! (Cusco)

DAY 3: TO CUSCO

We flew from Lima (sea level) south into the Andes to Cusco (11k feet or something bananas), and it was a really stunning flight.

I can see why doing this journey by bus would take 24 hours, even though it was such a short flight. There are so. many. mountains. And not that many roads, and definitely not great roads. It was beautiful to see though.

When we landed there was a bowl of coca leaves (not coco, not cocoa -- but coca: a whole 'nother thing) which we were welcome to chew on to help with elevation sickness? Apparently? I don't know it looks pretty legit to me?

ONLY THREE FREE THOUGH, DO NOT GO CRAZY NOW.

I mean, if you're not getting off the plane in a new place and putting random plants in your mouth immediately, then why even travel, right? (They were not tasty. But, yknow, when in Rome or whatever.)

Basically when we landed it was suddenly winter (because, it was winter) (and in the mountains) but we got checked into our hotel/ guesthouse and I climbed to the roof to look at the hillside. The building is an inteesting mix of indoor/outdoor space (chilly!) but it makes for fun exploring.

We all went out for a great dinner together. Steaks (more alpaca!) came on sizzling hot rocks and finished cooking right at the table. This is also a trend America should embrace, soon and very soon.

It was cold at night. Like, cold! No heater! Winter! Mountains! But they had these giant wool blankets (heavy rugs, basically) and oh man can I say again how amazing alpaca wool is? That stuff is no joke.

Unrelated, I met a baby goat. So there's that.

DAY 4: CUSCO

We started our day with Peruvian Starbucks (judge away, it delighted me and I'm  not sorry) and we used a room there to drink our coffee and have some team meetings, which, well. {Insert unbloggagble frustrations here, and feel free to ask me any time about the intersection of faith and workplace, when you're not in a specific faith-related call. It gets... complicated.}

But the historical city square is just gorgeous.

I really liked this door. It was my favorite door I saw in Peru. I called it early, on day 3.

Also, there's a random courtyard with random alpacas. I don't know why. I wasn't with any spanish speakers at the time so I couldn't ask. I just waved.

Always with the alpacas.

We adventured on a city bus (they don't look official, BUT THEY ARE) to the home of one of my colleagues who lives there. He is heading up a nonprofit with some local teachers, to aid and support kids who are aging out of orphanages and group homes. Foster care isn't really a Thing in Peru, so for most of these kids they don't have much of an idea about what living alone or cooking or getting around a city even looks like. I mean it would be a lot for any 18-year-old, but particularly when you've never even seen the life you're trying to live. It's very cool work they are doing, and it was fun to meet his friends and other people involved in his organization, and some of the kids he is working with.

Also the view from his house is not shabby.

We had Pervuian pizza for dinner. Peruvian pizza is a lot like American pizza except you have to walk to the carry-out place to order it, and then it takes several hours (!) because Peru.

While we waited, we went to a Peruvian grocery store, because grocery shopping in new places is one of my MOST FAVORITE THINGS to do when traveling in a new place. I bought all manner of fun snacks and treats to bring home.

Why are these juice boxes this shape, besides simply to delight me?

purple maize!

it's super dry and cold. my lips needed help. this seems legit yes?

Also, we had Inca Kola! I don't know why this delights me so much, it's basically just a super sweet tropical Sun Drop, and yet. Delightful.

I bought Mark an Inca Kola shirt to bring home. Oh yes I did. WHAT. HE LIKES SHIRTS.

I actually did some other fun shopping and wandering in our downtime in Cusco, with one of my colleagues who is also prone to such things. Places stay open late, and shopping in the dark in crowds of people was totally fun! (I'm not being sarcastic in the least.)

There were some really nice stores with beautiful clothes and hats, and I splurged on some amazing alpaca-cashmere scarves in bright colors that I could not walk away from, and a tunic sweater for Charlotte.

I also got to haggle in some little stalls for cute kitch, like coin purses and alpaca ornaments and these tiny Peruvian style hats that I cannot wait for my children to adorn their winter coats with. They're so charming. I'm charmed! SO CHARMED.

Less charming: since most bathrooms don't provide toilet paper, there is TP for sale everywhere, by the roll. Everyone just keeps a roll in their purse. It both makes all the sense in the world and yet none at all. By the end of the trip it made me smile to see it everywhere on every street corner and even roadside farm stands. Ha.

And thus ends this post, with toilet paper.

Peru Trip! (Lima)

{Backdated trip post} Hey so right on the heels of a busy and sad August with the beach and saying bye to Bowden and the frenzy of back to school (and we also replaced the minivan, which was its own particular sh!tshow, but that's a story for another day) I went to Peru!

And Peru is beautiful! Like whoa.

It was a work trip and there were Work Things and some Work Stresses (including Work Stresses About Faith, which I will totally tell anyone reading this if you text me, just not in this here bloggity corner of the internet, where I am mostly hidden but not secret enough, but I HAVE FEELINGS and will gladly vent them in a private forum) but for here and for now, I shall tell all the non-work-related Peru things.

This was part mission trip, part company annual meeting, part sightseeing. Are you ready? Let's go to Peru!

DAY 1: TO LIMA

Another Nathan gave me this delightful Scout passport cover and it made me happy the whole journey south. Like no joke.

Also I paid $75 for premium economy seating, so I wasn't fancy in business class but I had more legroom and better pillows/earplugs/etc, and let me tell you it was worth every penny. Do it. Recommend.

My friend and coworker (Cary) and I both flew from Raleigh and we went a day early so we could see Lima, before the rest of our people got there and we flew to the mountains. So since we were on our own, we used an industry perk and stayed in a beautiful JW Marriott. We did not hate it.

DAY 2: LIMA

We met up with two other ladies who had flown in early, and we explored the city.

We took a lovely walk around Miraflores. Aren't these houses lovely?

We wandered through a fun mall built right into the cliffs over the Pacific.

We admired beautiful tile at a beautiful church (and peeked in on a wedding, like creepers) (also beautiful).

We had lunch overlooking an Incan ruin! We ate our first alpaca and guinea pig. (My mother in law just read that and fainted. Sorry, vegan grandma!)

We took a taxi to the historic center of town and I made them follow me around with my guidebook on a walking route, telling them fun! facts! along the way.

We also somehow creeped on another wedding in another cathedral. Oops?

Somehow we ended up in a huge market downtown which, it turns out later, we had no business being in (Lima isn't the safest city in the world, true story), but it was very cool to see.

Like a big warehouse selling all manner of animal carcass meat, and home stuff, and seafood, and clothing, and oh these little quail eggs everywhere!

People eat these as snacks, like carts at stoplights sell them directly to drivers in car windows. Interesting!

Eventually we were somehow in Chinatown (yes, Lima has a Chinatown) and finally hailed a cab back to our hotel. We shopped around and bought some fancy presents (you guys, baby alpaca wool is bananas soft. like a whole different kind of cashmere) - scarves and chocolates and artisan soap for Anneliese in a rainbow, because why not? - and had pisco sours, this very Peruvian cocktail everyone there loves. Pisco is like a grape liquor (not wine but fermented differently?) and egg white and sour fruity mixers of various sorts. So tasty!

Also, in Peru the bar snacks aren't chips and nuts, but banana chips. I would like for America to embrace this trend, soon and very soon.

We had an amaaaaazing seafood dinner right over the crashing waves. Like just spectacular food. Maybe the best seafood I have ever had.

And more pisco sours. This time with lucuma, which I had never heard of, but is a tangy South American fruit they call "the last gold of the Incas" which is everywhere there (like we eat apples) and seems very mango-ish but doesn't taste like a mango.

Look at you, reading through Day 1 and already learning some sh!t about Peru! Gold star, you! (And me!)

farewell breakfast in Lima, overlooking the cliffs