A sisterly adventure in Peru
Amna Karim, Client.
My sister and I just came back from a wonderful two week holiday in Peru. We explored the Sacred Valley - visiting the near mystical agricultural concentric inca terraces in Maray, the vast salt pans of Maras, the sun temple and Sunday market at Pisac ,and the Inca settlement of Ollantaytambo where we wandered into a one room house, home to a family, their guinea pigs, skulls, offerings and woven handicrafts.
Our highlight was an off the beaten track trek, through the Lares Valley. Far from civilisation, wandering through a mountainous wilderness, across high altitude lagoons, passing tiny one or two house settlements, where time seems to have stood still. We were well looked after by our guide, Willow, our porter, Deonichu, his 11 year old son, Augusto, and our cook, Gusto. Our 40km hike was challenging, filled with adventure, great hilarity, with a terrifying thunderstorm in the middle of the night thrown in for good measure (not courtesy of cazenove+loyd). Part of our trek fell on Christmas Day - in the evening we were treated with a satisfying festive meal, with a quasi firework show, using sparklers put on by Willow and Augusto - both of whom were in their element.
After the Lares Valley, we headed towards Machu Picchu by train, getting down at ‘Km 104' before hiking for four hours towards the famous Inca citadel. The trail cut through deep vegetation, and comprised a rugged path of several hundred steep, rocky steps, winding up the mountain side, with the odd rickety wooden bridge strewn across beautiful waterfalls. Reaching Machu Picchu, sighted from the vantage point of the sun gate, was like stumbling upon a treasure trove. We arrived there at 2.30pm, the afternoon sun's rays lit up the ruins, giving them a sense of majesty. The next day couldn't have been more different: arriving back at Machu Picchu early in the morning, the ruins were shrouded in sweeps of white cloud, idly hanging, eventually giving way to reveal the architecture - an eerie sight.
From Machu Picchu we headed to Cuzco, a colonial town, with Spanish inspired architecture and a vast network of steep, narrow cobbled streets to explore.
All in all we had a fantastic time; a truly memorable trip.
