Blogs from Ollantaytambo, Cusco, Peru, South America - page 3

We stayed the night in Ollantaytambo and decided to contact Javier for another day of exploration. I felt like we had pretty much had enough of condor/puma/snake, so I suggested we spend a day trying to understand Peru 2014. Fortunately, Javier was available. Javier suggested we visit the salt mines just outside Maras. We just enjoyed the drive thru the valley. As we approached the salt mine he asked if we were up for a hike...we were. Rather than going to the entrance of the salt mines were buses drop off tourists from Cusco, we hiked in cross-country. This gave us the opportunity to walk thru some typical residential areas. It also provided some great vantage points to view the salt mines. "Salt mines" really is not a good terminology, more like evaporative salt pools. Families ... read more

Day 49 Today was another gorgeous drive setting out of Cuzco with nervous excitement as we headed to the Sacred Valley & the Inca trail for what we expect to be the high point of the tour. Heading out of Cusco we pass the public school (known as the jungle) & informed they have 7000 students spread over 3 shifts - not sure if it's efficient or crazy. While a short day in distance it's a full day of activities along the way. We are heading down in altitude by 650 mtrs to 2800 mtrs stopping firstly at the entrance to the valley at the picturesque town of Pisac where the important Urubamba River flows through the whole valley & has supported whole communities at least since Incan times & probably a lot longer. The evidence ... read more

At the end of the Sacred Valley of the Incas, lies Ollantaytambo, a travelers' dream. Small and peaceful, with only 2000 people, it lies along two rivers and is tucked between mountains covered with Incan ruins. The old town is unique--the best preserved, still-inhabited Incan city with its original layout, stone walls and houses, and cobbled streets with their water canals. Truly a walk back in time. There were also indigenous communities nearby whose people, dressed in traditional clothes, came to barter, sell, shop and hang out in the plaza. While there were tourist services, this town had the most indigenous look and feel of any in the valley. And in June, there was a wealth of festivals. I stayed in the old Incan part of town where streets were too narrow for cars, and I ... read more

I had scheduled a homestay with the Awamaki organization in Ollantayambo before the trip. I went to their office and met with their helpful staff who introduced us to our homestay mother Tina. Awamaki is similar to Sacred Hearts in mission, but they also provide local weaving classes and homestays where all the money goes to the local families, thus creating a meaningful cultural bridge and also a source of income. I am ceaselessly inspired by all the people we have met who have given up their comfortable lives with all the modern conveniences for a life of charity and hard work in Peru. After huge hugs and kisses welcoming us, Tina walked us to her home, which was only a few blocks from the center of the city. She did not speak a single word ... read more

Another early start today as we are ready to hit the Machu Picchu express vista dome train at Ollantaytambo Station at 0630. This is sort of a one-car passenger train with big leather seats and holds about 50 people – very nice. We think we had groused about being on the “wrong side of the bus” for photos and sights earlier somewhere in this blog, so we are here to say “THERE IS KARMA!!”The Perurail vista dome is sort of that, as it has long narrow windows along the top of the one-car train as well as side windows, but not like the vista domes we are used to in the U.S. and Canada. Steve and Carol were assigned seats one and two randomly when the tickets were spit out by the Perurail Company ... read more