Cusco-Cuzco-Qosko

Regardless of how you spell it, we arrived!  Cusco, the way that I spell it, is the most incredible place I've ever visited.  Cusco is fascinating as it is full of rich ancient Inca and Spanish history, which fuse together to form the Cusco we know today.  This is one of the few places in the world, if not the only, that you can find a traditional dressed Inca woman walking an Alpaca while talking on a cell phone.

Scott embracing the culture

We arrived only yesterday, and I feel like we have already seen and experienced so much of the culture.  Upon arrival our amazing Airbnb host and our apartment kitty, that we’ve named Chuck, greeted us.  We aren't exactly sure if Chuck is a boy, but what we do know is that he loves to cuddle with Keith.  Keith wasn't feeling so well for Day 1 of Cusco, so we had Chuck "Keith sit" while we were out.  Ari, Scott and I wandered the streets, popped in and out of some little shops, took a walk down to the Plaza de Armas and had a wonderful lunch at Yunsa where we enjoyed Pizza, bread, aqua con gas and views.

We hired Keith a sitter, literally! ha

Plaza de Armas - Cusco

Yunsa for lunch

Today started off with an early trip to Starbucks. I know, I know, but honestly it was the ONLY coffee place open before 10am.  Plus, if we hadn’t have gone Ari would have never been able to experience the feeling of having her name spelled correctly on a cup.  Myself on the other hand, I was given an entirely new name. ha.

Ariana and Jane

After Starbucks we headed back to the Airbnb.  Keith and I went on a short little walk around our area San Blas.  I showed him the few things he missed from the day before and we snapped a few pictures before meeting back up with Ari and Scott. We all walked down to the Plaza de Armas and enjoyed a tour at the Templo de la Compania .  We learned about the influence the Inca culture had on the way traditional catholicism is practiced in Cusco.  It is very different than what we see in the United States as it blends both the Inca and Spanish beliefs into one.  This concept was depicted perfectly in the artwork on the walls.  The most powerful was that of a painting that hung high of an intercultural marriage between a Spanish conquistador and an Inca princess.

Taking a picture with an Alpaca in San Blas Plaza

Stopped to take a picture against an Inca wall on our way down to the Plaza de Armas

The Templo de la Compania from across the Plaza.  We couldn't take pictures inside.  I'll have to buy a postcard! 

The day was still young, so we decided to go on a free walking tour.  This was no 15-minute spiel and walk around the Plaza de Armas.  This was a full-blown 3-hour, best tour ever, hike around Cusco.  Our guide, Diego, was funny and fit!  He sped up the long city blocks comprised of cobble steps, leaving all of us sea level folks gasping for breath.  He showed us the most amazing views and opened up an entire new Cusco to us.  We were able to see some sights that we likely wouldn’t have seen otherwise.  We stopped at the San Cristobal church that looks over Cusco, and took a bus up to the Statue of Christ.  We then walked along the countryside roads looking at crops of potatoes, corn and quinoa before stopping at Saksaywaman.  We enjoyed a presentation on how inca clothing is made from baby Alpaca wool and natural colors while sipping Coca tea.  We spent some time in a musicians home learning about historical instruments.  The tour ended at Limbus where we were given a Pisco sour.  It wouldn’t have been a proper Peruvian tour otherwise! We spent some extra time there eating, drinking and enjoying the views before heading back to our Airbnb.

The View at San Cristobal church

We found a rainbow!

Bus ride to Statue of Christ

Statue of Christ

My sexy man with Saksaywaman in the background

Alpaca wool and natural colors presentation

Home of the Musician and his instruments

My travel mates enjoying the view at Limbus

Pasta dinner at Limbus

We were home all of maybe 15 minutes before Keith decided he was hungry.  Since I am a good wife I accompanied him back out to the town to get some dinner at Nonna Trattoria.  He ordered the most amazing calzone.  Since I am such a wonderful wife, he shared with me. 

Calzone from Nonna Trarroria

I am so excited to be spending so much time in Cusco.  I’ll do my best to get another blog post up before we leave for the Inca Trail.  This is Peru blog #4, so if you haven’t read Peru Part 1 - The Planning, We Arrived-Lima Peru, or Tour de pisco, you’ll have to go back and check them out!

I am off to bed!

Thanks for reading,

JenniferMarie

Tour de Pisco

Today started out with an above average complimentary breakfast buffet at our hotel.  I enjoyed sipping multiple cups of coffee while chatting with Ari and Keith, and helped myself to some amazing eggs and fruit & yogurt.

After breakfast we jetted off to El Centro to hit up a few must sees on our itinerary, all of which turned out to exceed expectations.  The taxi dropped us off at the Plaza de Armas right in front of the Catedral.  We peaked in the Catedral to see the impressive baroque that fill the room, but a mass was in progress so we didn't end up taking a tour.  The Plazas signature bronze fountain was undergoing restoration, so we were unable to see that as well.  However, it didn't take away from the fact that the immense amount of pride and patriotism could be felt throughout the Plaza.  The Plaza de Armas is not only the location where Jose de San Martin declared Peru's independence from Spain, but is also adjacent to the Palacio de Gobierno which is the official residence of the president.  We were lucky enough to witness the changing of the guard ceremony at noon.

Lima - El Centro View

The Crew at the Plaza de Armas

Getting Ready for the changing of the guard

We shopped around town for a while, almost buying everything Alpaca from hats to pillows and even cat beds! In the end we decided not to purchase anything since our cats don't sleep in cat beds, and Scott had already lost an Alpaca ball while trying on his hat. ha.  

Scott trying to hold his Alpaca ball on!

The Convento de San Francisco is one of the most visited sites in Lima, and we found out why.  Although the tour felt a little rushed, we were able to see the beautiful architecture, fascinating private library, quaint courtyard and even go underground to see the earthy remains of 75,000 people.

Getting Ready for the Tour!

I had to get a postcard since no photos were allowed

The catacombs site made us hungry, so we headed to Tanta for some authentic peruvian cuisine.  I seriously don't think it is possible to get bad food here.  We had the most amazing lunch, and some strong Pisco sours.  This is actually what started our Pisco tour for the day.

Holy Moly that is lunch! 

More yummies

Cheers!

We tried to take 10 selfies, but Scott rescued us..... Keith forgot his selfie stick.

We ate so much food that we needed to walk it off a bit.  We headed to the other side of town to see the to the Plaza San Martin.  While walking through town we stumbled upon one of Lima's volunteer fire departments, and was fortunate enough to befriend a retired fire captain that gave as a full tour.  We later made it to the Plaza and decided to pop on in the Gran Hotel Bolivar to take a peak at the lobby and grab another Pisco sour! 

Walking the streets

Scott doesn't like to take a day off

Plaza San Martin

More Piscos and Keith hiding behind the green screen 

We grabbed the first cab we saw and headed back to Miraflores.  We were on a Pisco binge, and were convinced that none of the Pisco's in El Centro topped the ones we had the night before at Brujas de Cachiche.  The only option was to have the cab drop us off there, where we enjoyed our 3rd Pisco of the day.  We determined that it is the blended ice in the drink and the cup that make their Pisco better than the rest.

3-4 who is counting?

We headed back to the hotel to shower up for dinner.  We had made reservations on the terrance of Huaca Pucllana. It turned out none of us were hungry after all the eating and drinking we had done for the day, so we opted out of dinner and went on a tour of the only half uncovered 1500 year old pre inca ruins.  

The Crew at the ruins

Ari, Scott and Keith at the Inca Ruins

Inca Ruins

The next stop was to be Barbarian Brewery, but Keith wasn't feeling so hot, and I had enough to blog about, so we headed back to our hotel.  I look forward to hearing about the Brewery from Ari and Scott.  By the looks of Facebook, I'd say they are having a great time!

Salute from Ari and Scott!

Well folks, I need to get to bed.  Tomorrow we head to Cusco!

Thanks for reading,


JenniferMarie

We Arrived - Lima Peru!

The adventure started at SFO.  We made it through the bag check and security lines without an issue.  This meant I had plenty of time to get Equator Coffee and a yogurt parfait. Yum.

SFO Flight Selfie

Bye Bye SFO

We landed at LAX around 8pm, headed to baggage claim and walked to the Tom Bradley international terminal.  We once again made it through the bag check and security lines without issue.  We had some time to spare so we decided to get a bite to eat at the terminals III Forks Steakhouse.  The freshly baked complimentary sourdough bread with salted butter is reason enough to eat there! Ironically the 4 of us got salads, not steak. ha.  We knew it would be a couple of weeks before we had the opportunity to eat safe raw veggies again!

We said Goodbye to LAX at 12:15am Pacific Time

Flight LATAM 2605 would be our bed for the night

We woke to the smell of non edible Breakfast Ham & Cheese sandwiches

Despite the 15 hours of travel, less than perfect sleep and the forgettable breakfast, we were in great spirits. We made it through customs, even though I forgot to fill out the bottom half of my sheet (oops), and got our first stamps in our current passports!  We made it out of the airport to meet our driver.  He was easy to spot with the "Jennifer Hillier" sign.  The travel books all advise NOT to drive if possible.  We found out why today.  There is no rhyme or reason to the driving or pedestrian traffic.  It is really just a free for all.

Peru Passport Stamp!

After a flight time of 9 hours and periodic sleep, we made it to LIMA!

Hotel Vanpool Selfie! 

We made it to our hotel in Miraflores despite the insanity on the road.  The blend of modern necessities and historical charm make the accommodations everything we hoped for.  After check in we headed out to a recommended lunch spot, (I'll have to ask Scott the name of it), which did not disappoint.  Ok, well, the only part that was disappointing was the fact that somewhere in translation it was lost that we only get 1 pisco sour with lunch instead of two. hah. I suppose I'll have another chance to get a pisco sour.... and a picture of it!  Following lunch we headed out for a much needed walk around town, stopping to enjoy Parque del Amor and the ocean. 

Ari and I taking advantage of a Miraflores photo-op

Keith's lunch buffet,  minus the pisco sour that was served in an awesome cup!

Lovers Park Sign

Us in the Heart in Lovers Park

Why not copy the statue in Lovers Park?!

I love vacationing with these two

It's alive!

Listening to the waves on this side of the hemisphere

We ended our Miraflores outing with a much needed shower and a wonderful dinner at the hotel restaurant, KG RESTAURANT. 

Sirloin

Sea Bass

It is now time to say goodnight to Lima.  We are all tired! Thanks for the awesome first day!

Keith says Goodnight

I Say Goodnight 

Thanks for reading, 

JenniferMarie

Peru Part 1 - Planning

Departure day has almost arrived.  Flights are booked, itinerary is set and bags are packed.  Ok, well my bags are packed.  Keith has packed one item, a selfie stick.  Yep, you heard that right.  I was puzzled when I came home last night to see it sitting lonely on his side of the duffle bag.  He was quite proud of his contribution to the packing.  I softly mentioned, well lets not forget a toothbrush and referred him to this article. I can't complain though, his passport is finally current!  Enough making fun of the husband, why Peru and where?

I had been chatting with long time friend Ari about really wanting to go on a big vacation.  Keith and I had thought a little about Europe, New Zealand and Australia, but hadn’t actually put any serious thought into any of those options.  Ari suggested the idea of doing a double date vacation to Peru for a Machu Picchu Trek.  I hadn’t heard much about Peru before, but it took little convincing after a brief Google search of Machu Picchu.  I also loved the idea of an active vacation. 

In preparation for the trip, I hit the books!

Where to go?

I first read Lonely Planet - Discover Peru.  The suggested itineraries, top Peruvian experiences, chapters of key areas to visit and multiple pictures made this book a fun and easy way to start to the planning.  The internet can be incredibly overwhelming! We ultimately decided Lima, Cusco, Machu Picchu, Aguas Calientes, Puno and Lake Titicaca. The next planning book was Fodor's Peru: with Machu Picchu & the Inca Trail.  This one was my favorite, and i'll be taking it with me on the trip!  Many of the places that are a must see for me, were *Fodor's Must Sees.*

Lima

Lima is the modern capital city of Peru. It didn’t exactly get the best of reviews in the tour books, but was suggested as a “stay a day or two” kind of place.  According to what I've read, many parts of Lima have a high amount of crime, so we will be staying in the tourist part of town, Miraflores, for 3 days and 2 nights.  While we are there we plan on walking, bike touring and shopping around Miraflores, and seeing Huaca Pucllana, Plaza de Armas in El Centro and Convento de San Francisco.

Plaza - Lima

Coast - Lima

Cusco - Inca Trail - Machu Picchu - Aguas Calientes

Cusco and Machu Picchu were a must as the 4 day/3 night Inca Trail trek was the center of our entire vacation.  It is highly recommended to spend at least 3 days acclimating at 10,000 feet in Cusco prior to embarking on the trek, so we will be hanging out in the beautiful historical city for a few days.  We will be staying at an Airbnb near the Plaza de Armas.  Hotels in Cusco are $$$$, so Airbnb was the best bet for 4 people.  While in Cusco we plan on relaxing, acclimating, touring, and well ya also hiking rainbow mountain.  I would recommend reading up on a little Inca and Spanish history before you go so that you can fully appreciate all that influence Cusco as we see it today. Most of the tourist books go into some detail.  I found Frommer's Easy Guide to Lima, Cusco and Machu Picchu to have the best introduction to the history.  The rest of the book is pretty bland when it comes to site seeing as it has no pictures! The documentary Lost Cities of the Inca National Geographic was also informative.  

Cusco

Machu Picchu- Day 4 of the Inca Trail!

Aguas Calientes - Hot Springs for after the trek!

Aguas Calientes- The train we will take back to Cusco!

Rainbow Mountain - Because the Inca Trail wasn't enough!

Puno - Lake Titicaca 

We didn’t want to end the trip after only 1 week, so we tossed around the option of either the Amazon or Lake Titicaca.  Lake Titicaca eventually won out.  The Amazon sounded cool, but the thought of being eaten by mosquitoes and some extra vaccines wasn’t appealing.  We found a great 4 day / 3 night Lake Titicaca Adventure tour that offered us the opportunity to visit manmade floating islands and to stay a night with a local.

Puno / Lake Titicaca - Floating Islands

There you have it!  Stay tuned to hear about all the things we will do in each of these places. In the meantime you can check out The Booze Traveler and Anthony Bourdain for some fun Peru watching on Netflix.

Thanks for Reading!

JenniferMarie

Next up – Peru Planning Part 2 – The Packing List

We all know Keith packed a selfie stick, but what else are we taking?