Pre-Planning: Heading out on an international trip covering multiple locations trip and to a country that speaks a different language can be daunting. But fortunately, there are plenty of sites out there that are available to help you with putting together an itinerary. For our trip to Peru, we chose the 8 day option by Mysterious Peru on Viator. It was a leap of faith, as we had not done such a tour or used Viator before, but thankfully everything turned out spectacular.
Day 1 LIMA: Flight reached Lima early in the morning. The customs and immigration process was painless. Our driver was waiting for us as we stepped out from Immigration. He dropped us off at the hotel. It was a clean hotel, good for a day’s stay. Had a quick nap, and were ready in time for our breakfast. Since we had the day available to us, we walked around the beautiful Miraflores area. Went to the cliffs by the pacific. Had dinner at a really nice sandwich place called La Lucha. Since we had an early morning flight the next day, we called it a day early.
Day 2: Travel to Cusco: Driver came punctually at 3:50AM, and dropped us at the airport. We flew into Cusco on LATAM airlines. There was a coordinator waiting for us once we stepped out of the airport. She set us up on a cab, which brought us to our hotel. This is a beautiful location. Cobbled stone streets. Lots of stores and restaurants. After having breakfast at the hotel, we stepped out to explore.
At 2PM our coordinator came, and we walked with her to the museum which was a couple of blocks from the hotel. We met our tour guide, and started our tour at Coricancha, a convent built upon an Inca temple.
After the temple tour we stepped into a bus and went to our next stop: Sacsayhuaman. We spent over an hour walking around the complex. I got really dizzy due to the altitude, midway thru the tour, and sit down for a few minutes. BTW, Sacsayhuaman is the place you might have seen in the pictures, with the really large blocks that fit perfectly.
As we started to the next stop, we had a downpour. Its December, the rainy season in Peru, but the good news is, these downpours are short. We then went to two other locations, a really pretty handicraft store, and then also indulged in some lama/alpaca feeding.
We came back from the tour, freshened up and headed out to dinner. Pretty close to our hotel was a place called Don Pablos. We were already hooked on to the corn dishes. The kernels were so big 🙂
Switched on the heating and then went to bed. We were tired!!!
DAY 3: Sacred Valley: Feeling better today. Looks like we are getting acclimatized to the altitude. The weather is also looking much better. After breakfast at the hotel we walked with our rep to the tour bus stop and boarded a 15 seater bus.
Our first stop was P’isaqa. Here you get to experience the stepped terraces as well as the temple.
Our second stop was Ollantaytambo.
Had a really nice buffet lunch at Urubamba at a restaurant called Puka Punku. There was a local artist playing traditional music. Being a sucker for encouraging local talent, I bought a couple of his cd’s.
Lastly visited another ruins and textile store in Chinchero. Family had dinner at the hotel. I went back to Don Pablos to have boiled corn and toasted corn
Day 4: Travel to Aguas Calientes: Driver came punctually at 8:55AM. We are now headed to Ollantaytambo to take the train to Aguas Calientes. We had to take another route, as there was a landslide on the original route. Weather has been holding up well. Reached Ollantaytambo on time. Train started on the dot. 11.52AM. The train ride to MP was pleasant. Rolling in they mountains on both sides. The views were amazing. We did get our daily quota of rain while on the train. Good!
As we stepped out of the station our host was waiting for us. We walked to the hotel, got a room on the 6th floor. The room was spacious with a king and two twin beds. Spent the day walking around town and shopping for self as well as for colleagues and friends. Dinner was Passion fruit Pisco sour and pasta.
DAY 5: Visit Machupicchu: The next few days are going to be busy with activities starting early every morning! Today we have to wake up at 3:30, have breakfast from 5-5:30 and be at the bus stop by 5:45 for the 6:20 bus. This will get us to the entrance by 6:45-7. Edgar will be there. Black and red flag. Tour will start at 7AM.
The weather was spectacular. Machupichu was glistening in the morning light. Our tour guide was excellent too. We started on the tour with the guide, who patiently explained the history. Afterwards, we wandered around for another hour or so, and then grudgingly made our way back, by bus to Agua Calientes.
Train ride back to Ollantaytambo, and then a 15 seater van drive from Ollantaytambo back to Cusco. Bit of a stress added into our drive back… there were a few land slides on the way. Some boulders as big as our van.
Day 6: Bus ride from Cusco to Puno: Woke up at 4, ready by 5 rearranged suite cases. Had breakfast at 5:30. All done by 6:15 moving luggage down. Cabbie came punctually at 6:30 to pick us up and take us to the bus station. At the bus station by 6:50. It is a 50 seater luxury bus. Looks like there will be 10 of us on this bus today. We are going to have 6 stops of varying elevations before we reach Puno. We are going to stop at: Andahuaylillas (3122m), Raqchi (3450m), La Raya (4335m), Pucara (3900m) and Puno (3800m).
Stopped at a few locations on the way. Took pictures and did some shopping. Lunch was a buffet and a pretty food one. Lots of vegetarian choices. We pet a couple of lamas and alpacas. Stopped at one of the highest points to take some pictures. 4300meters. Some more shopping.
Last stop is a museum which has artifacts from the Incas and the civilizations before. Went up a coffee shop and looked at the ruins.
Driving thru Juliaca. Juliaca is a huge industrial city. A lot of the handicrafts being sold at other locations are made here. Arrived at hotel in Puno. It is a really nice hotel. Had dinner at the hotel itself. Guide came and gave an overview of the plan for tomorrow. Transport to the port, boat to the island, lunch on the island and then on to the rafts.
Day 7: Lake Titikaka, Uros, Taquile Island: Up at 4:30 ready by 6:30 waiting in the lobby for the ride to the port. The 15 seater van arrived at 7:07. We picked up a few other passengers and went to the port. Met the guide for the day. Got on the boat. Our first stop Uros, the floating islands.
This place is colorful. The local chief gave us a rundown of the activities and life of the island and how they build and maintain the place. We bought a few things, and then took a boat ride from Joel’s island to the main island. That was a really fun ride. We got our passports stamped and got back on the boat.
Next stop Taquile island. Elevation 3900m. It’s a 1 hour ride from Urus to Taquile island. The island has pre Inca ruins and terrace farms.
Two gates up, we are at a home of a pair of weavers. They are going to give us a handicraft demonstration. After the demonstration, we have lunch. Bread piquante , quinoa soup, trout or veg omelette. The lunch was really good.
Day 8: BACK TO LIMA: Woke up at 5 breakfast at 6 downstairs by 7. The usual haa haa. Cab not here till 7:10, bit of a panic as the flight leaves at 9:30 and the airport is an hour away. Cab arrives at 7:15… driving gingerly, picking up additional people along the way. Guess they have to fill up the vehicle. WTH!!! Panic setting in, Im mentally preparing myself that we will miss the flight. Finally reach the airport with less than an hour to spare. Luckily the airport is a small one, and it took us less than 5 minutes from entry to the waiting area. All good now 🙂
As we had most of the day available to us, we spent the day seeing the sights of Lima. We visited the Plaza de Armas, Convento de San Francisco, had lunch at Rustica de la Costa Verde (Miraflores), and a few other locations before making our way back to the airport. It has been a truly excellent trip.
Miscellaneous Thoughts
- WIFI: Hotels and busses have good WiFi connections.
- WATER: We bought bottled water, but we also did drink the fruit juices…
- LANGUAGE: a bit of Spanish will go a long way. We used google translate and some words I knew. Some people understand English but overall it is predominantly Spanish.
- WEATHER: In December expect a shower every day. Good thing is the showers last an hour and the the rest of the time it is nice and sunny
- ALTITUDE EFFECT: Altitude sickness can be severe the first day. Drink water, coca tea or take medication. After the first day, other days are much better, once the body is acclimatized.
- TRAVELING: The scenery while traveling thru the Andes is breathtaking.
- TIPPING: while we did rip our cab drivers, tour guy and restaurant servers, we noticed most of the other tourists were not. So not sure about this one. I would suggest be prepared with small change (2-5 sols).
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