The road to Macchu Picchu

South America » Peru » Cusco » Machu Picchu
October 4th 2016

Published: October 5th 2016

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ChristieC

Llama and alpaca farm

Feeding the alpacas

From Cusco we departed for Ollantaytambo which is where the train for Macchu Picchu departs from. We spent a full day driving there, exploring the ruins of Pisac and Ollantaytambo on the way to our hotel.

Both sets of ruins had hundreds of steep, uneven stairs so it was quite a hike but worth it for the views!

After the ruins at Pisac we had lunch in the town. 6 of us had pre-ordered coy, or guinea pig, to give it a try (it's roasted for several hours). None of us were very impressed - not much meat, you can't eat the skin even though it looks like pork crackle and the flavour wasn't to my liking.

We also stopped at an alpaca and llama farm to feed the animals and learn about the products made from their wool.

Ollantaytambo is another stunning and quaint little town. After checking into the hotel we hit the markets. One of the girls on my tour likes to shop as much as me so we shopped til the markets closed. Group dinner and I had alpaca ravioli and my first pisco sour. For those that don't know, the main ingredient

Llama and alpaca farm

Alpaca wool

pisco originated from Pisco Peru. It tasted a lot like a margarita mmmm.

The next day we set out for Macchu Picchu, which has been on my bucket list since watching 80s cartoon The Mysterious Cities of Gold. The train took us to Aguas Calientes, the town below the mountain. The train was very comfortable and the scenery is stunning. After a short bus trip we were there and it didn't disappoint! We had a guided tour plus free time. I think I took several hundred photos! Have attached some highlights.

Additional photos below

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