September 20, 2018 – September 24, 2018
We drove through some beautiful, rugged, rural landscapes towards the border with Bolivia and Lago Titicaca, the highest navigable lake in the world. Lago Titicaca was extremely sacred to the Inca, and today remains sacred waters for many of the indigenous people of South America, as well, it would seem, for foreigners seeking alternatives to Western spirituality.
September 8, 2018
We debated about whether to visit Machu Picchu or not. Dogs definitely are not allowed, either on the Inca trail or at the site, so that meant we needed to get back to the truck within the day and thus take the train to the site, which would be an expensive ride. They have now also changed the entrance rules: you buy a ticket for either the morning or the afternoon, and you are limited to 4 hours for your visit. We had read that the site would be crowded, and we were worried about getting there and being disappointed. In the end, we decided that we would likely never have a better opportunity to visit Machu Picchu, and that we would regret it if we didn’t go.
September 6, 2018 – September 9, 2018
Further down the Sacred Valley, in the direction of the famous Machu Picchu, lies the town of Ollantaytambo. We were going to use the town as our base for our train and bus journey to Machu Picchu, but the small village itself became one of our (many) favourite places in Peru.
August 29, 2018 – September 4, 2018
Legend has it that the sun god, Inti, looked down on the world in the 12th century and decided that the people needed a leader. He created the first Inca (king), Manco Capac and his sister-wife Mama Occlo. The pair emerged from Isla del Sol in Lake Titicaca. Inti gave Manco Capac a golden rod and told the pair to settle where Manco Capac was able to plunge the rod completely into the earth. This spot would become the navel of the earth (qosq’o in the Quechua language). And that is how Cusco got it’s name. The city has been inhabited ever since, making it the oldest continuously inhabited city in South America. It was the centre of the vast Inca empire and it was, and still is, the centre of Inca culture.
August 12, 2018 – August 15, 2018
The Chachapoyas (Cloud People) began building the fortified city of Kuelap in the 6th century AD, 600 to 900 years before Machu Picchu. The walls surround an area of 584 metres by 110 metres, and reach heights of up to 20 metres. Inside are the ruins of circular homesteads and temples. The setting for this is the top of a remote mountain, 3,100 metres above sea level (about 700 metres higher than Machu Picchu), in northern Peru, providing incredible views of the surrounding valleys. So why have you maybe never heard of Kuelap? Well, until recently it was very difficult to get to, but a recent investment in a cable car has opened up the site, which some claim to be as important as the more famous Machu Picchu.