July 14th - 15th Lima, Peru

We arrive in Lima @ 4:45 a.m. after a 17 hour journey (Denver City, Lubbock, Dallas, Miami, Lima). There is no quick way to get from there to here. When we come out of customs at the airport, the driver from the B&B is there with my name on a card. The traffic, even at this time of day, is crazy with cars honking at everything and the casinos are brightly lit and busy. We spent the day walking along the bluffs of Miraflores watching hang gliders jump from the cliffs and soar over the coastline.

July 15th - Lima

Casa Bella Miraflores is our home for the night.

The bluffs of Miraflores (Lima ) Peru

Love Park.

One of the nicer residences

Lima - a city of nearly 9,000,000 people

Insane traffic

Huaca Pucllana ruins

Ruins at night

Restaurant at Huaca Pucllana

For dinner we went to the restaurant at Huaca Pucllana (the site of an ancient ceremonial structure built by priests in the 5th century). Ceviche is one of their specialities so we started our meal with shrimp, lime, & chili ceviche. It was fabulous and followed by a delicious dinner. The setting was spectacular overlooking the ruins which are beautifully lit at night. It was cold outside but they had fires built in little pots that they strategically placed around the dining area, which is open.

When we left the restaurant we planned to catch a taxi back to the B&B since we were unsure of the exact location. The ones right outside the restaurant wanted S/20 (soles) to take us about a mile and a half. We decided to walk. We had only gone one block when another taxi driver offered to take us for S/8 (~$3).

July 16th - Our 40th Anniversary

Today we took Peruvian Airlines to Cusco, Peru, the start of our Andes trek. We found out very quickly what it means when someone says Peruvian time (5 minutes becomes 30). The flight went well and was very roomy (compared to American Airlines) and they also gave us a snack and drinks even though it was a short flight. Upon arrival in Cusco we gathered our bags and headed out of the terminal but didn't see a driver holding up our name, not a good sign. After waiting outside for quite awhile and being hounded by the taxi drivers, one of them offered to call our hotel and check on our driver. He told us he was on the way (10 min.). 30 minutes later we still had no driver so Kim went into the airport to call again. Finally, over an hour later, we had a driver and headed to Hotel Marqueses, our home for the next 2 nights. I can't get over the difference in temperature here compared to Lima. It was so cold in Lima on the coast and it is so warm here in Cusco (11,000' above sea level). I expected the opposite.

The hotel was located just one block from the Plaza De Armas (Cusco`s Main Square in this famous capital of The Inca Empire), close to all of the tourist attractions: museums, churches and convents such as the La Merced, Santa Teresa and San Francisco . We spent the day wandering through the streets of Cusco and perusing the markets.

View from our hotel window

Church in the Plaza De Armas

And yes, they do drive cars and buses up and down these tiny streets

 Coming up the stairs at the hotel

Hotel courtyard

The owner of the Lima B&B told us his brother had just opened a new restaurant in Cusco. He gave us his card so we decided to try it for our anniversary dinner. We were welcomed with a Pisco Sour followed by a delicious Peruvian dinner. We even indulged in dessert. YUM!

July 17th - Pisac

Today we took a taxi to the market at Pisac. The journey took us through the Sacred Valley and into the tiny village of Pisac where they were celebrating the Festival of Carmen. You may think PARE means stop in Spanish. It doesn't. It means honk so everyone knows you're coming through the intersection. The only problem is everyone else is honking (and going through the stop signs) too. It was a harrying trip.

City of Cusco



Market at Pisac

Festival of Carmen dancers



You take their picture and then pay them. It's so sad to use the children in this way.

Dancers coming out of the cemetary.

After a day at the market we seek out a taxi to head back to Cusco. As we are walking along the main street in the village, we hear someone yell out Cusco. There is a 10 passenger blue van parked in the alley waiting on a couple more passengers so it can head out. It looked a bit shady but after a few minutes checking out the other passengers, we decide to hop in. I was sandwiched in the back seat between two students from New Jersey. Kim was in the jump seat one row up. It was very hot and crowded and made for an interesting trip back.

Tonight we had our orientation for the trek. They gave us each a duffel bag to pack our things in that will be carried by the horses (mules). We met our guide and the other 9 trekkers. I suspected we would be the oldest in the group but I didn't really think we would be a generation apart from everyone else. We spent the evening packing our bags and trying to ensure we had everything we would need for 5 days hiking in the Andes. The group consists of one married couple (us), two brothers from New York (Sam & Ian), an 18 year old from New York (Nika), a law student from Wisconsin (Amanda), two friends from California (Jim from LA and Hudson from SF), a medical student from Chicago (Theresa), and a couple from Norway (Karine & Jim). Should be interesting...



July 18th - Day 1 of the Trek

Today we are up early. We have to be downstairs in the lobby at 5:40 ready to board the bus. Of course, that's Peruvian time so they showed up about 6:15. It was really cold (below freezing) and I felt sorry for the ones who were waiting outside. We took the bus to Mollepata, a 3 hour drive with a stop along the way so the cook could pick up some fresh bread for the trip. We went to the market which was enough to make me not want to eat anything that came from there.

Fresh meat???

The market. We walked inside and they were slaughtering chickens. UGH!

Our bus in front of the market

We stopped again for a photo opportunity and our first glimpse of the Mountain of Salkantay. This is where we are headed and we will hike through the pass to the left of the mountain.

The snow covered peak in the background is Salkantay

A closer view

Our next stop and final destination for the bus is Mollepata. We are offered a banana and "sandwich" for breakfast. The sandwich is mostly bread with a thin slice of some kind of meat and cheese. I opted for a protein bar. There is a toilet (of sorts) that will be better than anything else we experience once we leave here. After we have all taken advantage of this opportunity, we load up in the back of a truck to continue our journey to the trail head.

Loading up. I feel like a worker headed to the fields.

The guide wants all the "girls" to sit down but we can't see the scenery sitting so we all stand up again.

This was quite an adventure. The guide compared it to class 5 white water rafting. We ducked tree branches and avoided prickly shrubs.

Off we go

The views are breathtaking

I'm not sure this truck is going to fit on this road

Never fear, we made it.

No more bus, no more truck. From now on it's all by foot.

The pictures just don't do it justice. We can see spectacular views of the snow capped Vilcabamba.

This was our lunch stop the first day. It is a huge tent that is there for trekkers. They have tour groups coming through every day, which is how they make their living.

This is where we meet our Arrieros (horsemen) and trekking staff (cook and assistants). The horses take a break too.

After a short rest we are on the trail again and getting closer to the mountain.

We've climbed from 11,000' to over 14,000' today and will camp at over 15,000'.

Taking a breather. What a climb!

Finally, after several hours and almost 10 miles we arrive at camp.

Taking pictures of where we'll be tomorrow.

It's so cold dinner is eaten in full gear.

Room (tent) with a view.

The sky is clear and the stars seem close enough to touch. The constellations are clearly identifiable and I am reminded of the Psalm: "He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names." It is very cold with a strong wind. We are all so tired that we expect to sleep like the dead but only one or two of the group gets any sleep. The tents are not on level ground and the wind blows so hard it sounds like sheets popping in the wind. We were warned not to leave our water outside because it would be frozen solid in the morning. My sleeping bag is rated to 20 deg. and I sleep in my clothes as well. It's the first time I've ever slept in a wool cap.