Peru 2009 Trip

Well here's a summation of my trip this year with Poppa down to Peru. Poppa had an even better time this year than last. One thing that was very noticeable was the increase in his energy level. Some may say it was just being on a real vacation, but honestly I believe it to be the clean environment, eating natural food and just the native energy that this area has. Yes I do mean energy, you can feel it.
Anyway here's the photo's and if you'd like I've got all the photo's uploaded online Peru 2009

Here's the drive from Cuzco to the Valley, this is only a taste

Here's Poppa with Victor (driver I always have when I'm there) and his Sister Flora

Well after spending 24 hours flying to the other side of the Globe we were a bit tired, so we crashed the rest of the day and evening. The next day we went out for an easy day to the local area. Very important about high altitude its

1. Relax and take it easy for a minimum of 2 - 3 days
2. Drink lots of water, I mean consistently be drinking water
3. Drink Coca Matte (tea) in the mornings
4. Chew on Coca Leaf
5. And again relax, take it easy for the first few days, I cannot stress this enough

Now with that said here is our first day, we went to Victor's house and picked up Carmen his wife along with his two daughters. This is what I love about going down there, I don't take tour's, I loath tourist tour's, you don't experience any of the culture or people. Since I've been going down there it's visiting friends and I love the relationships I've built there.
Anyway here's Carmen at the front door of their home in Urubamba

Here's the start of the road we went on our first day's excursion

Here's Victor and Carmen's oldest, Katy, she's a little jewel.

Here's Kiera, their youngest. I remember my first trip down there Carmen was still nursing here, she's another kick in the ass!

On our walk we passed a local woman doing the laundry

Here's a shot with Poppa and Katy

Now a real treat was seeing an Andean Deer. Look close you can barely see it, but the Deer is almost extinct and seeing one was a huge deal. For the next few days Victor would tell people which would generate a lot of excitement with the locals.

Now here's the kids being kids, they had a real thing for "stick's"

After spending a relaxing day out in the farm land then dropping off the family Victor had to introduce us to his "Momma". She lives with the rest of the family in town, little spot with a small garden with a spot for Cuy (Guinea Pig's and a couple of Hog's). It's a really simple place, the kitchen is outside with a fire pit for cooking, etc. Momma's a real kick in the ass, really wonderful lady.
 
Here's a shot of Victor with his Momma and a Nephew

Here's his Momma's Back Yard.

Here's a few pictures of the Valley over the next couple of days

Local Market in Pissac

Now here's a trip we made up above Ollantaytambo, beautiful valley here going towards a Quechua Village

An Inca irrigation stream which is still used today

Some of the many Inca Terraces that cover the region

Here we reach the Quechua Village, it's around the 10-11,000 foot level. I don't know the spelling for the name of the Village, but the pronunciation is "We`ya". All I can say is the experience was amazing. The people still live pretty much the way they lived 600 years ago. They don't understand Spanish and only speak Quechua. Victor speaks Quechua so he took care of everything. We did stop by a shop earlier in Ollantaytambo to pick up a big bag of bread, you will see us below handing it out. This created a small mob scene, I just have to ask how many people here in the States would get this excited about bread?

Now that was an experience, the people are amazing. I still cannot get out of my head the excitement we created just handing out BREAD!. So excuse me when I don't get excited when people here in the states talk about the "Poor" in the States. These people live in stone homes with dirt floors, get the water from open streams where they also bath and do their laundry in. They get excited when someone brings them a treat of freshly baked Bread! Anyway that is a rant for another time.

Now after visiting the Village Victor took us to meet some more of his family and friends. From the main road we had to hike up a trail for a couple of miles along the river, so here we are hanging out with the locals and drinking Chicha.

Now here's the trip we made up to Cuzco, north of Cuzco and the journey back into the Valley

Outside of Cuzco we went to the "Sistine Chapel of the Americas". They don't allow photo's inside but trust me when I say it was amazing. The paintings everywhere and the Gold was awesome! So here's some shots of the area just South of Cuzco.

The journey back to the Valley

Now here was something that really hit to the heart. Victor took us to a very special place in his life. He's devoutly Catholic and took us to a Church that meant a lot to him in his life, so much that he kept an image of it along side of the Virgin Mary on the dash of his car. He brought us in, said a prayer and lighted a candle for us. Then took us into the Church and had us beside him kneeling and praying before the alter. Which when he was done he wiped the tears from his eyes. Now I'm not religious and for those of you who know me know my feelings towards religion. But I tell you what, this was one of the most special moments I've ever experienced in my life. Victor doesn't speak English and my Spanish is pretty much none existent, but in the three times I've been down there we get by. But having him open his heart and family up to us, I am simply over whelmed. In all my travels I have not met people that are so beautiful and Victor especially is one of those rare souls you meet in life.

Here's a couple shots from inside the Church and just outside of it's doors

Here's a few shots of the house, it's such a beautiful place. Peaceful and quiet other than the sounds of the surrounding area. It's cheaper than most Motel 6's here in the States!

Now for the fishing trip, Poppa does love his fishing. Last year he caught a couple of trout, but this year he wasn't so lucky. There was a storm the night before up in Cuzco which muddied up the water and the fish weren't biting. But what the hell, the scenery and spending the day along the river was alright. As always I just kicked back and watched the "Old Fart" enjoy himself. Fishing really isn't my bag but Poppa loves it and as with last year my focus was to give him a vacation so he could just relax. Hell I never realized it before last year, he's never had a vacation before I took him last year
So spending the time with him these last two trips I will treasure for the rest of my life. He's worked so damn hard all of his life and life just seems to continue to throw crap at him and he just gets back up and continues. Everyone needs a hero in their life, I'm just fortunate to have my father as mine.

Now this day we took a trip up a narrow little valley towards Huocondo. It was a stunning journey, one cannot explain nor will pictures capture the magnificence of the place. As with most of the places we went to on this trip there we never saw any tourists, only locals. Hell we ran into an old half blind old man who was well into his 90's, possibly a 100 carrying firewood on his back. We asked him if he would like a ride but he kindly declined and only asked if we had some Coca Leaf which I gladly offered. I offered him the whole bag but like a good gentleman he declined and only took enough to fill his cheek. Like I said I simply love the people here, they may be living in extreme poverty as classified by Western standards but they consider themselves having what they need.

After lunch at Huocondo we continued through a simply stunningly beautiful little valley to finish up the day

So here we are at Aguas Caliente which is the town at the base of the Mountain of Machu Picchu. The Hotel is over looking the river and like so much there is stunningly beautiful. What really makes it nice is the sound of the river puts you to sleep!

Now most people just take the Back Packer or the obscenely expensive "Hyram Bingham" train and spend a 1/2 day at Machu Picchu. Most don't spend much if at all in the town. While it's small I really do like spending the day there. The only vehicles in the town are a couple of service trucks and the Bus's that take you up to Machu Picchu. This makes for a very nice place to bum around a bit, granted I wouldn't stay a week there but for a day before going up to the Sanctuary it's worth it.

There is also a great Bistro there that I very highly recommend. It's "Bistro Felice". It's run by a Frenchman and his wife, the food is simply outstanding and the place is an ongoing work of art. The Bar, Wall's, Ceiling, Stair's, etc. are all covered with his work. I wish I could have gotten a shot of the Fireplace but there were people sitting in front of it. That's OK I'll get a shot of it next year

Now after spending a day there and simply the best nights sleep (love that river!) we took one of the first Bus's up to the Sanctuary. Now you won't get to experience the morning sunrise without staying the night there. The clouds start parting and I profess that the experience is nothing short of magical. You understand why the Inca built their Sanctuary there, even if it wasn't for the ruins just being there is something you'll never forget nor duplicate!

Now after enjoying a simple "breakfast" we brought with us watching the clouds dissipate over the ruins ...... All I can say is the experience is something you cannot explain, it's a time where one can just contemplate things like the meaning of life, existence and what really matters ya know. Anyway we start up the Inca Trail to the Sun Gate. It's a nice hike about 2 miles or so. Now I wasn't expecting to make it up there but the "Old Fart" is like a train, once he get's going

We made a number of stops and I was a nag making sure he rested and drank water, people ask if I have any Kids and I say "yeah, and 80 year old kid".

Now here we are up at the Sun Gate, the hike is Sooooooooooo worth it!

Now here's a Brazilian couple we met. They could not believe Poppa was 80 and made it all the way up there so they had to have a picture taken with him.

Now here is one of the highlights of our trip. When we got back from Machu Picchu we had one day of rest before flying out to Lima. Victor invited us into his home and got his Momma over to cook us a "Real" Peruvian" meal. She cooked us Cuy (Guinea Pig) the traditional way along with Yucca Root, and other goodies like stuffed pepper. They then took us to the Bull Fights with the family, damn! That just topped everything off to make it one of the most special trips one could ever have.

Now for the journey home and after the sad goodbye's I decided to spend the night in Lima. The last flight out of Cuzco arrives at Lima at 5 pm and the flight back to the States isn't until after 1 am. Last year we hung out at the Airport, just too damn hard on Poppa. So I thought a night at the home of Victor Delfin over looking the Ocean would be a nice rest.

Needless to say the room and the home was beautiful. Victor's Daughter runs the home as a Bed and Breakfast, it's a 100 year old Tudor Mansion that the grounds and ground floor serves also as Victor's Gallery. If you're not familiar with Art world Victor is a well known Artist and rather famous in Peru. The stay and the are of Lima Barranco is very nice and so worth the stay. Now some people don't like Lima, it's a kick. Yes like any other large city there are areas that are to be avoided, but the what I love about it is it's so "vibrant" and alive. The square's are full of lovers, families, kids, old, young enjoying the day and socializing. The food is good, the people are fun and like I said it's so "Alive"!

Bumming around Lima

Well that concludes my Blog of this trip and thanks for taking the time to check it out. In closing all I have to say is I've been around the Globe a bit in my life and I've completely fallen in love with this country. The people, the land, the culture is just simply beautiful. It's hard to believe that only 10 years ago the country was being ripped apart but now things have been stable. I honestly am looking for ways to move down there and become a "Peruvian", that is my goal and I'm working towards that goal. Next year I plan on spending only a week in the Sacred Valley then spend another week going up to Puno and into Bolivia. My first trip to Peru I spent a few days in Puno and that was amazing. I've heard the people in Bolivia are also wonderful and I just need to check it out. Next year will either be a week there or go to Eastern Peru and to the Amazon Jungle. We shall see how it goes, I'll decide here in a few months.

I highly recommend taking a trip there, do it now before it's spoiled by the tourist Industry. You see things changing now and one really needs to go soon. The cost is really damn cheap, the biggest cost is the flight there. But once you get into the country and stay away from packaged tours the cost is minimal. I "loath" packaged tours, they're expensive, rushed and you are isolated from the real culture. I travel, I don't "tourist".