So my trip to Peru was a pretty spontaneous decision. However, it ended up being one of the most amazing experiences of my life. It was an incredibly jam packed two weeks, where we did so much each day, but it was so worth it. The tour that I did was through G Adventures. It was called Peru on a Shoestring. What an amazing company. Everything was so well organised and I loved that I didn’t have to think while on the trip. Our CEO (Chief Experience Officer) Guadalupe (Lu) was one of the most lovely women I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. She really made us all feel incredibly welcome, and she really encouraged us to really connect with one another. This isn’t hard though, since you pretty much spend every waking hour with the group.

The tour began in Lima. I flew from Miami to Lima and I was really freaking out about being in my first foreign country where I didn’t speak the language. It’s a pretty scary thought, I am not gonna lie. But Lima is a big city and tourist hub, so english is definitely around. Having Lu around was a HUGE help as she translated for us a lot of the time. For the first two days however, I thought I would be on my own. Although it turned out my hotel was the meeting point for two G Adventure tours, and so there were a lot of people in the same situation. I was able to make fast friends and then had some people to explore the city with.

Lima was a very big city and is set against the coast line, so the ocean is always close. Ohe first day, we spent our time exploring Mia Flores which is a smaller part of the city by the beach. We caught the bus from our hotel which took only around 15 minutes. It was very cute and picturesque with a lot going on all the time. This was where I experienced my first ceviche and my first (two) pisco sours! Delicious on both accounts.One of the highlights was finding a cat park, where there were literally hundreds of cats lazing and roaming around. Apparently all the cats are available for adoption and were very clean and well looked after. I was definitely in cat lady heaven. The other was a very interesting sculpture which seemed to depict a couple in the act. It seemed to go by many names, on of which being the love statue. All jokes aside, it was very beautiful set against the backdrop of the ocean and the blue sky. It seemed to be a popular attraction for tourists.

The second day we headed into downtown Lima. This was a very regal looking city with a lot of grand old buildings and character. We just happened to go into the city on the 17th of January which happened to be the celebration day for their independence day. What a sight. There were many performances of traditional Peruvian dances going on all over and there were so many people dressed up in the most beautiful traditional costumes. There were concerts happening around the city as well as parades happening all around us. I feel very lucky that I got to see the city in such a state. That night we all met as a group for the briefing and then got to know each other over dinner and drinks. The group was a great mix of people and we would all become fast friends.

The next day was our first real day which we would spend traveling to our first destination, Nazca. It was in Nazca where we were able to experience the Nazca Lines with a short 30 minute flight. The flight was in a tiny and terrifying plane, but the pilot seemed very calm and we all put our brave faces on. Turns out I don’t do amazingly well on tiny planes and I got very sick! But at least I can say that I did it! It was an incredible thing to see. The ancient civilisation of the Nazcas had created water irrigation systems in the shapes of their gods or special religious symbols. It was amazing that they had formed these huge images from the ground, when the only place they are visible is the from the sky. It’s definitely a must see attraction. This was a jam packed day, after the flight we headed back to the hotel to experience a traditional Peruvian lunch, called Pachamanca. This is a ceremonial feast where meats, tamales and vegetables all seasoned with amazing spices are wrapped in banana leaves and buried in the ground with hot stones. This is then slow cooked for several hours. This was one of my favourite parts of the whole trip! It was so great to experience the real culture that the Peruvian people are so proud of. With this feast we had a popular local drink, which was purple corn juice. It tasted a little bit like Ribena cordial in my opinion. My Aussie friends on the trip all agreed with this comparison.

After we were all stuffed, we headed out for a sand boarding adventure. We were in these huge open 4W drives and it was ALOT of fun. On the way to the sand dunes we were taken to some amazing Nazca ruins including a pre Inca cemetery, ancient aqueducts and a relic of an Nazca village. It took a lot of getting used to that the Peruvian people have all this ancient history still present in their country. After visiting these amazing sites, we headed to the dunes. We did some crazy driving over the dunes and then stopped on a huge sand hill to sand board! It was so much fun! We had no accidents which was great and we all had a ball. Safe to say we were wrecked by the end of the day and we all crashed hard into our beds!

The next destination was Arequipa, also known as the white city. This was one of the prettier towns we visited and was home to an amazing local market. Here we tried some local fruits and got to see a proper Peruvian market where there were lots of weird and bizarre things. The buildings in this lovely city were also a sight to behold, being made of volcanic stones in most areas. This was also the highest elevation of the trip at around 5,000m.

 

After our short stay in Arequipa, we headed to Chivay and to the famous Colca Canyon where spent two days exploring different parts of the canyon. We were lucky enough to see the amazing birds of prey, Condors in the morning. Apparently we were very lucky to see the amount that we did. They were a very majestic creature. After we got our photos, we then spent the rest of the day touring the canyon, seeing the local villages and the wildlife. Also, of course there was the most amazing views of the canyon all day. On the second evening, we rested our weary bones in some beautiful local hot springs which were a lovely 38 to 42 degrees.

From Chivay, we then headed to the very well known city of Cusco. Here we spent two nights and one full day where we went horseback riding through the spectacular rolling hills which was also home to some local Inca ruins. This was definitely one of my favourite parts of the trip! My horse was a black beauty named coco cola. His nature was so sweet and calm. Which was good for a beginner such as myself. We also had a little time to explore the city, which is graced with beautiful squares and cobble stone streets and many stalls with Peruvian souvenirs and gifts.

The next day we headed to our homestay at a local village called Urubamba. G Adventures supports this town and their local weaving project. They also helped to rebuild the village after a terrible earthquake. This was a great addition to the trip as part of the money we pay for the whole tour goes to this village for hosting us as guests in their homes. It was a truly unexpected highlight and the whole experience was very humbling. We slept in the villagers homes, ate their food and got to know them as much as we could without speaking Spanish. They showed us around their village and the crops that they grew there. We were also shown their weaving techniques and were able to visit their small local market where they sold all of their woven wares. We were also fed by the families and the food was to die for! So delicious and so comforting to have home cooked meals. My particular family was so beautiful and the mother looked after us so well. She had tea waiting for us at all times and the bedrooms were so lovely. They took so much pride in hosting us! Her children were beautiful, and her son made it his life mission to tell his whole life story in sign language as he spoke no English, and us no Spanish. He also showed us around and introduced us to all his friends, including a baby horse and a bull. We also had great fun watching the kids play soccer. I loved the whole experience and it was something truly different that I haven’t done before. I definitely won’t forget it!

It was from the homestay that we headed to the town of Ollantaytambo where we would begin our journey on the Inca trail. It was here that we got any last minute things for the trek and enjoyed our last showers and slept in a bed for the last time. This was definitely the most physically testing part of the trip, but it was also some of the most amazingly beautiful scenery I had ever seen. Every day had its own highlights. One only had to glance up from the ground every once in a while to be taken aback by where we were and the stunning views that surrounded us at all times. Day one was 12km, this was an introduction day. It was some uphill and downhill and flat terrains and a good preparation for Day 2. This was the kicker, 12 km, 5 hours uphill, and I mean seriously soul crushingly up hill. I may have teared up a little at the top of Dead Womans Pass. (The famous landmark where the crazy up hill ends) My legs felt like jelly that night, thats for sure. It was then two hours downhill for the rest of the way. But when I say down hill I mean you set one foot wrong on the rediciously huge stairs made from boulders, you will fall to your death. Day 3 was the longest. We hiked 16km, but to me this was the best day, as the terrain was varied and the scenery was so lovely. Not that it wasn’t breath takingly beautiful the other days, but I felt I could appreciate it more on the third day.

The other important aspect of the trip was the introduction of porters into our trip. When undertaking the inca trail, it is compulsory that your group has porters. They were local men ranging in age from about 18 to 58. They were the fittest people I have ever seen. They are responsible for carrying EVERYTHING that the group with need over the four day journey. They are super humans in my humble opinion. They carry over 25kg every day and do the trek in half the time that we did. Every day we set out around 5.30 am. We would wake to warm water to wash our faces and cocao tea to help with the altitude. We would then go to breakfast which was all beautifully set and prepared. Water would be boiled for us to fill our bottles. We would head out and they would then pack and clear everything away and then speed ahead of us, even though we left well before them. They would then get to the lunch spot to prepare lunch for us well before we arrived. The food on the trip was insanely delicious and nutritious. I was in heaven. They also set up our tents, blew up our mattresses and laid out our sleeping bags. So I guess I’m trying to say that it was the most unbelievable camping/glamping experience ever. To top it all off, on the last day of hiking, they prepared a cake for us, complete with frosting and piped decorations. The pastry chef in me couldn’t help but be astounded by this.

On the fourth and final day, it was a short 5km to the Sun Gate of Machu Picchu. Depending on weather, this can be either a very satisfying or a very disappointing end to the hike. Luckily, the weather was on our side! We were so fortunate to arrive at the sun gate when there was a crystal clear view of the ancient ruin. Had we arrived 10 minutes later, a huge thick cloud rolled in which blocked the view for a good hour or so! We all thanked our lucky stars that we arrived when we did. I was in awe when I saw the ruins before me. The fact that they had been there for over 1000 years just took my imagination to its limits. Its hard to fathom that people lived, loved, and experienced life there. As we walked through the ruins, I couldn’t help but imagine what it would be like to go back to that time when the Incas prospered. Needless to say I now know first hand why it is one of the seven wonders of the world. It is a once in a life time experience that I will never forget.

Theres one thing I haven’t mentioned. This trek was made extra ordinary by the people that I did it with. I feel that when you spend 4 days together, eating, sleeping, hiking and smelling really bad together, you are bound to form great bonds. I would never had had half as much fun if not for my tour buddies. There were so many laughs and good times that I will never forget. Not just on the trail, but on the whole tour as well. So if any of you amazing people are reading this, I need to say thanks for being part of my adventure and I will never forget my Peru experience.

So this almost brings me to the end of my Peru trip. When we got back from the trek, we partied hard that night. Crazy, I know. But it was an amazing way to finish up the trip on a high note. The next day we went white water rafting, which was to be the last activity on the tour. Even though we were all exhausted, it was so much fun! It was also a lot of hard work, which I didn’t really expect haha. I was dead afterwards. That night, being the real last night before every one headed off home or to other destinations, we treated ourselves to an insane steak dinner! I am going to call it as the best steak I have ever had. It wasn’t even a beef steak, it was Alpaca! I was in a pleasant food coma by the end of the night, thats for sure.

It was a very sad moment when we all realised it was over. But I am sure that I will see many of their faces again in my future travels! I had such a jam packed and insane two weeks and writing about it now really shows me how much we did! G Adventures was an amazing tour company and I would recommend it to anyone in a heart beat! I am already hoping to do another one some time in the future.

Right now I am in Boissucanga, Brazil on my workaway at an English Language school. It’s a beautiful place. I won’t go into detail now, but keep an eye out for my next blog. I am off to the beach for now though!

Peace xx