A Day of Adventure

---

Hola from Aguas Calientes.

Today we went from one adventure to another:

1. Went to an animal sanctuary and saw condors close up. A little too close for me!

2. We then learnEd about llamas and alpacas, and how to tell the difference. The llama's tail sticks up and the alpacas' does not. I am now an expert on Peruvian cameloids😊. Feeding them grass was an adventure!

3. The bus drive into the Sacred Valley is not for the faint of heart. The horn got more use than any other part of the bus.

4. Sampling guinea pig, a favorite in Peru, was next. We came on a roadside bar-b-que with several roasting over a fire. The tour guide dubbed the head of one of them and we divided the others among us. I would not say it tasted like chicken but it was pretty tasty.

5. A stop at a hacienda for a delicious buffet of Peruvian foods. We enjoyed the live music and beautiful surroundings.

6. Ollantaytambo was our next stop. This was a remarkable Inca ruin that was really the highlight of the day. The only drawback was the 200 plus Steps to the top. The mountains across the valley served the Inca as a calendar with prominent points marking the winter and summer solstice. A carving on the mt. of the bearded white God who promised to return was os special interest.

7. The day was topped off with a beautiful train ride through the Andes to Agua Calentes, the starting point for Machu Picchu. Tomorrow will be a busy day as we plan to watch the sun rise at Machu Picchu.

Goodby for now-Patty

---

Photos

Condors
These birds have a 10 ft wing span!

Beautiful children!
Many mothers with their kids and baby llamas, are in the markets. You pay a few soles and you can take their picture.

Vista Dome Train
The scenery was spectacular! It was nice to sit and relax for a while.

Guinea Pig treat
We went into together and bought two guinea pigs and then all had a taste. The meat was pretty salty and as long as I didn't think about it they tasted good.

Comments

[Caryn]

quite the adventure
A little brain confusion going on here. Andrew served part of his mission in Aguas Calientes--Mexico. I was wondering how you were going to start off for Machu Picchu from there! Happy climbing. Mind the drop-offs.