Ollantaytambo and... MACHU PICCHU!!!

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Buenas Tardes mis amigos!

Ok, whew... wow wow wow... Where to begin with this one..

Well, right now we are sitting in a tiny internet cafe in the tiny town of Ollantaytambo.. Google it, seriously. This place is tiny but enormous all at the same time, you´ll see why. We are supposed to be back in Cusco, but thanks to a farmer´s strike over privatization of water rights, here we sit. And no better place can I think of to be stranded for a few days. It is peaceful, and just stunningly gorgeous.

This afternoon we gave our sore limbs a break by lounging on the terrace of our hostel and lingering over a looooong 3 hour lunch. And was it wonderful... The guy running the restaurant seemed to be the server, the chef, the busboy, the dishwasher and the host, all in one. So slow service, but where else did we have to be, right? It took a few days for me to stop looking at my watch every 10 minutes but I am really enjoying the pace of things.

Machu Picchu, was... well, it is beyond words really. Unlike anything I could have ever imagined in my wildest dreams, and completely and utterly not capturable on film.. I tried my best though, and I hope they tempt those of you who haven´t been, to GO!! It was so good, that have you noticed I have hardly even mentioned food?? Thats how freaking good it was..

Off to... well to do nothing actually, and happily 😊

Paz,

S&S

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Photos

Ollantaytambo
View from the terrace of our Hostal, Chaska Wasi.. Great place to stay, affordable, the owner is wonderful, and.. well, just look at the picture!

Ollantaytambo 2
This is most of the village, with the ruins beyond.

Mach Pich
S&I, at sunrise

Caretaker´s hut
At sunrise

Unreal
This looks photoshopped, I know.. But I love this one of SM sketching

Me on the hike of a lifetime
Up Wayanapicchu.. They only let 400 people on the mountian per day, I was number 385, Sm was number 386.

We made it!
This was truly the experience of a lifetime.. scary and wild and wonderful.. And scary! As in, you can´t do this in the US, scary..

Baby lovey
Llamas wander freely among the ruins.. They aren´t scared of people at all.

Comments

[Lindsay and Lori]

wowzers
It sounds like everything is going well thus far! I love all the details, stories, and pics..makes me feel like I'm almost there, almost. I'm excited that you guys got to experience Machu Picchu firsthand. Closest that we'll ever get is flipping through an old Natural Geographic mag or maybe watching the Travel Channel. (Is there a travel channel?) Anyway, thanks for keeping us posted! We miss you big!

[anonymous]

Machu Picchu
Wow! This is all so great! If you manage to get to a city called OLLANTAYTAMBO, you problally have seen everything!!!!Read comment from Sergio at Gooda's picture site. MOM

[Nate]

Hope you enjoyed for me Steve (and Sandra too of course) I'll probably never get there myself and always wanted too... ah well, living vicariously is what family is for eh?

[Patfar]

Machu & ship
Dude, I Google-Earthed Machu Pichu and Ollantaytambo. Machu is like on the face of a mountain. Why would you build a city there? You'd like have to go up the hill just to go to church or whatever. Hella nice anyway. What did Critter mean by a food bazaar? Which was more minerally, the alpaca steak or the purple corn drink? Será que eles servem a cerveja estupidamente gelada em Ollantaytambo?

[Miller]

WOW!
Hey Guys, Awesome pics! Keep 'em coming. Your pics of Machu Picchu are truly inspiring. Especially the one of Mott sketching. It so reminds me of the time when Mott and I wrapped ourselves in a blanket, overlooking the grand canyon at dawn, sharing a cup of hot coco, and later that night....well, that was a long time ago. I love that you guys are doing this blog. I'll check in with you soon. Love BAM

[Sandra and Stephen]

dude, its MUCH more than a hill dad! Its a freaking MOUNTIAN.. But yeah, I bet the people who lived there were in great ass shape anyway. Re. the alpaca... not so much minerally as iron-y and gamey :)

[crittR]

good thing your getting use to hiking cause i almost sold SM's baby (the truck, not the neen) for big buck O's. Next time, if i see the same man passing by and he asks me again if im willing to sell the truck i'll say YES! i'll make BANK! tchau tchau for now

[criitttterrrrr]

its funny cause the only picture you'll ever really see of spitback when traveling is a picture of him making his own picture. ha f***** awesome! (gouds had a long nice walk today)

[Peggy]

Thank you
Thank you so much for my birthday greeting and song! Michael and I are enjoying all your great pictures. Machu Picchu seems dreamy, surreal. You must be on top of the world!

[MonCon]

bring me a live llama
Awesome. The caretaker's hut photo is going to make you famous. Loved the wandering baby llama and can't make to see more photos of MP. Your hiking butts must be strong!

[Preet]

hey!
SO SO SO amazing. This is making me want to go to South America more and more. I'm going to Belize next week and can't wait! Looks like y'all are having a fabulous time!