Peru, Day 7: Lima

Since international flights tend to leave Lima very late at night, we had a day to enjoy Lima after departing Cusco.  We bid farewell to our Cusco team from Kuoda and were met at the airport by our Lima driver and guide.  First, we were driven to the beautiful Miraflores neighborhood on the coast, to enjoy lunch and the view.

Then, we were driven to downtown/historic Lima to view some of the architecture and main sights.  It was a Good Friday, so the city was jam-packed with people celebrating and walking between churches.  We were able to see the main plaza with their large cathedral and Presidential palace, both built on former Incan sites of importance by the colonial powers.

We also visited a very special old house, Casa de Aliaga.  Reputed to be the oldest Colonial mansion in Lima and possibly South America, it is a stone's throw from the Presidential palace with an unassuming entrance.  Definitely a hidden gem you wouldn't even know about unless you read or heard about it!  It has a beautiful interior and has been continuously occupied by the same family since it was built.

After the house, we visited another church, the Iglesia y Convento de San Francisco. We did not go inside due to the crowds, but I loved the color and architecture.

We then set off on a driving tour through Lima, back towards Miraflores.  We saw an old archaeological site that is still being excavated, and finished at a seaside park, El Parque del Amor, a romantic spot that signaled the end of our Peru adventures.

Peru, Day 6: Cooking Class

One of the highlights of our trip was our afternoon spent at Marcelo Batata Cooking Class with Chef Ebelin.  I looooooove food, and when I saw a cooking class on my friend's old Peru itinerary I had to add it to ours too.

The class begins with an introduction to Peruvian food.  Ebelin introduced us to the native ingredients and techniques of the area, described what Peruvians eat, and more.  I was surprised by how much I didn't know that I didn't know... about food in general!  (Did you know the quinoa trend started in Peru?  Or that the country doesn't permit GMOs?  Superfood!)

The special room for learning about Peruvian ingredients!

Throughout the class, the restaurant brought us little bites of hors d'oeuvres, including delicious ceviche, a popular offering in Peru.

Ceviche

Next, we had a fruit tasting, focused on native fruits that Americans don't see every day.  We tried aguaymanto, tumbo, and passion fruits, and more.  The weirdest one to me was lucuma, which tasted kind of caramel-y!  Not like a fruit at all, which means it's a great healthy sweetener that can be used in ice cream and other things.

The first dish we actually prepared ourselves was a mahi mahi ceviche.  I'm not into seafood, but this was really tasty!  Chef Ebelin walked us through everything step-by-step, including reminding us not to touch our faces after de-seeding hot peppers.  I totally would have forgotten that!  (You let them know your dietary restrictions before class starts, by the way!)

Chef Ebelin

Dan's plated appetizer: ceviche!

After enjoying our appetizer, we then went into a history of pisco, a brandy famous in the region.  We tasted three varieties of pisco (woo!  It's like sipping vodka or something, a clear liquor around 40% ABV) and then learned to make two cocktails: pisco sour, and chilcano.  I really liked that Ebelin incorporated some creatively-infused piscos; it made me want to infuse alcohol back home!

After getting sufficiently tipsy on pisco, I got to play with fire.  Kidding!  But there were flames and smoke, as we kicked off our main event: alpaca saltado.  We'd been eating lomo saltado during our trip, and this stir-fry version replaced the beef with alpaca.  Alpaca is very lean, and low-fat...  it's kind of the perfect red meat without the unhealthy stuff.  Ebelin demonstrated the technique for us first.

Then, it was our turn!  Ebelin gave us each step, and we made our own stir-fry.  The climactic moment was when we tossed some pisco into the pan, creating big flames for effect.

Notice my face is red from the pisco tasting... LOLZ

Overall, I had a lot of fun with the wok.  I wasn't as good at flipping stuff in it as Dan, but I had a good time nonetheless.  We plated up the alpaca saltado with the requisite fries and rice, then headed to the dining room to eat it.

Our dessert was prepared for us, a death by chocolate platter with truffle, mousse, and molten cake.  Incredible.  I ate soooo much throughout this class.  You don't really need to eat anything beforehand, because you basically never stop eating.  (I didn't even include photos of everything we ate, because I was too busy stuffing my face to take photos.)  It was such a cool experience!  I really enjoyed getting to know Peru's gastronomy via the class, and I'm glad we were able to spend the afternoon learning from Ebelin.

Peru, Day 6: Cusco Walking Tour

We were only in Cusco briefly at the beginning of our trip, so after two days at Machu Picchu we were excited to explore more of the city.  Cusco is actually at a higher elevation than Machu Picchu, so it was strategic to spend time there towards the end of our journey.

After waking up at our adorable boutique hotel Casa San Blas Boutique, we walked up the hill with our guide to the Plazoleta de San Blas where we had our very first lunch in-country.  It was Holy Thursday at the time, so the churches were packed with people as schools and officers were closed.

Iglesia de San Blas

We toured the Iglesia de San Blas, a Catholic church circa the 1500s.  Like many churches from the time, it was built on top of a former Incan religious site.  While the church is small, it has intricate woodworking, beautiful paintings, a one-of-a-kind pulpit, and other decorative features that are truly beautiful.  Our guide explained to us that the Spaniards had art "schools" (perhaps more like sweatshops, depending on the situation) where Peruvian/Andean artists were trained in European styles.  These artists were responsible for the art in the churches, though the pieces are largely uncredited.

After the church, we walked down to the main Plaza de Armas, to see the beautiful square and its churches and university.

Iglesia de la Compania de Jesus, the Jesuit Church

Catedral

University

We walked from there to the busy Mercado Central de San Pedro, a bustling market where you can get fresh foods and other eats.  It was as packed with locals more than tourists, doing their daily market shopping.  It was awesome to see the piles of caviar, meats, and special Easter pastries.

Walking towards the market

Iglesia de San Pedro, near the market

Mercado Central de San Pedro

I must mention how safe I felt in Cusco.  I did wear my camera around my neck and my bag slung in front of me in the crowded areas.  We saw lots of policemen around, and even a soccer "parade" of fans marching through with security to help them cross safely.  It was so culturally rich, and the restaurants were tasty to boot.  We really enjoyed the city, and I would have spent another day there if I could.

Catedral at Night

Peru, Day 5: Machu Picchu Intipunku Hike

On our second day at Machu Picchu, we decided to hike to Intipunku, the "Sun Gate" at the end of the Inca Trail.  The Sun Gate provides those doing the Inca Trail hike their first view of the Incan city.  We chose the Intipunku hike for two reasons: 1) I am afraid of heights and did not want to deal with the crowds on Huayna Picchu, and 2) Dan wanted to see where the Inca Trail ends.

The hike was steep, but we took our time with photo and water breaks on the way up.  I think we took 90 minutes to get to the top, with those generous stops.  Definitely bring water though, as it is a stairmaster climb.

View from Intipunku

The way back down was much faster, and we did not stop for any breaks.  I was admittedly tired with the altitudes in the country and all of the walking/uphill climbs, so we didn't spend too much longer exploring the city afterwards before heading back to Aguas Calientes for lunch.

After a lunch, we boarded our train back to Ollantaytambo.  This voyage featured a fashion show (to convince us to buy fancy alpaca clothing) as well as a scary-looking traditional dancer taking over our car for a bit.  Machu Picchu was everything we'd imagined it would be, and we loved every minute that we were there!

Peru, Day 4: Aguas Calientes & Machu Picchu

This is probably the post a few of you have been waiting for... MACHU PICCHU.  It was definitely the #1 reason we went to Peru in the first place, our big "bucket list" item.  Ever since I can remember, I've been fascinated by history and old cultures.  My Dad is a history buff, so maybe I got it from him, as well as my history professors in college.

Our driver took us in the morning to Ollantaytambo, where we boarded one of the trains to Aguas Calientes.  We were on one of the nicer trains (though not the most high-end, the Hiram Bingham) and received a beverage service and plated snack along the way.  The ride was along the river, with awesome vistas that showed some of the different microclimates in the area.  After nearly two hours, we arrived in Aguas Calientes, the tourist town at the base of Machu Picchu, which is the mountain on which the Incan site was built.

Aguas Calientes

Aguas Calientes is a tourist town filled with hotels, hostels, stores, restaurants, and shanties that house the people who work there.  You need tickets for the bus up and down the mountain, as well as tickets (and your passport) to enter Machu Picchu and to hike Huayna Picchu, the adjacent steep peak.  Our guide accompanied us on the train ride, then went with us to the site.  (If you don't have a guide, there are plenty for hire standing outside the gates!)  From there, he introduced us to this "new" wonder of the world.

First look at Machu Picchu, in the rain and fog

According to Wikipedia, "The Incas built the estate around 1450, but abandoned it a century later at the time of the Spanish Conquest. Although known locally, it was not known to the Spanish during the colonial period and remained unknown to the outside world before being brought to international attention in 1911 by the American historian Hiram Bingham. Since then, Machu Picchu has become the largest tourist attraction in South America."

Our guide gave us an extensive tour of the property, explaining some of what historians and archaeologists have guessed about the structures over the years.  What's interesting is how little we truly know about the place, as much of it has been exaggerated, assumed, and distorted over the years.  For example, at first it was supposed that the majority of residents were women, as the skeletons were smaller than American and European archaeologists were used to; as it turns out, it was a pretty even split when you factor in the relative smaller size of the Inca people at the time!  Having a guide help explain the history of the place was fascinating, but you definitely have to step back and just accept a lot of it as unknown, and appreciate it for its sheer magnitude of size and effort on behalf of whoever built it hundreds of years ago.

After our tour, we ate lunch at a restaurant just outside the gate, then said goodbye to our guide until the following evening.  We went back into the site (your entry is good all day), to enjoy it at our leisure.  Note: The only bathrooms are outside the gates of Machu Picchu, and they cost 1 "sol" to use... so go before you enter!

Groundskeeper Llama

It wasn't just Machu Picchu that was dizzying and impressive... the entire environment and views seem surreal!  It was kind of like watching the movie Avatar or something, you felt like it was another planet or some kind of dream world.

Our favorite spot in the complex was up past the guard hut, on the terraces that overlook.  As you can see from the photos, we had some rain and fog, but that just added to the mystique of the place!

This was my happy place.

Finally reaching Machu Picchu was the climax of our trip, hands down.  It was just invigorating and moving beyond description.  We sat, relaxed, and soaked it in.  We took our time.  We savored it.  And then we decided to head back to our hotel for the night, knowing we would have the opportunity to come back in the morning to pursue one of the hikes.

Tip: Near the gate exit, on the right you can stamp your passport... we both decided to do it, to commemorate our visit.  It felt so gratifying to do so!  We were finally there, and we couldn't have been more happy.  It was worth every penny, every mile, and every effort to see it in the end.

Passport Stamp! You can get this upon entering/leaving the park, off to the side near the Passport check.