Peru
Stage 5 of 6: Monday 14th to Thursday 17 April 2025
Are you a crier?
I certainly am, crying often when I’m happy; always when I’m sad; and sometimes for no reason at all!
I most certainly cried with happiness in Patagonia (Chile) when Will and Emma told me they were engaged. I cried back in October last year when Victoria and Justin shared the same news. I cried today too, remembering my Mum who we lost 13 years ago on this day.
Crying for me is simply an outward expression of emotion, regardless of what that emotion might be. Being overwhelmed by the beauty of nature is one such emotion.
But lets not get ahead of ourselves…
As I said in my last post, we finished off our time in Rio by attending a Football (Soccer) match between the local team (Fluminense) and Santos at the famous Maracanã Stadium. At its peak during a previous World Cup, the stadium held over 150,000 people but now only holds around 73,000 since they changed standing to seating in 2014. Attendance on Sunday night was about 50,000, not bad for a regular early season game!
I have honestly never experienced anything like it. Dave, who doesn’t particularly like crowds (or football!) and definitely doesn’t like lots of noise would have hated it! He decided not to come, instead having a quiet night at the lovely Airbnb, including a large bowl of Frosties for dinner 😉
We met up with a small group about an hour before kick-off time at a bar close to the ground. The group had been organised through an agency and included two guides, the three of us, four from Canada, a young fellow from the UK, and a girl from the US. After a couple of beers (or in my case water) we walked to the ground, easily passing through security at the gates, where they used the facial ID we had lodged via our mobile phones a couple of days beforehand. It was extremely smooth, even though all 50,000 people were basically arriving at the same time!
The whole time the entire crowd was on their feet, chanting, beating their drums and screaming. My words can’t do the noise justice – but maybe the photos and videos can:
The local team (Fluminense) won, getting the only goal in extra time! All the locals were very happy with that!
MONDAY 14th April
We didn’t get home from the football till midnight, so getting up at 4am to head to the airport was not much fun. As I mentioned in my last post, the Uber drivers here drive very quickly. I had assumed that’s because they wanted to get to the destination and find another fare, but the Uber driver who took us to the airport had another story.
The app said it would take us 40 minutes to get to the airport. The first red light he drove through raised all our eyebrows… but it wasn’t long before we realised it was on purpose, after he drove through each and every red light we came across. He barely even slowed down. Once we were on the highway, he sped up, reaching at least 130km/hr in an 80 zone (that’s when I closed my eyes).
“I am sorry for going fast” he said “but otherwise the men come onto the road and stop our car and take all your things”… ahh the risk of carjacking was the actual reason for the high-speed!
The check in, boarding and flight all went smoothly, and we arrived in Lima, the capital of Peru after a 5.5hr flight during which we all slept most of the way.
Although the plane was a bit late, we still had around six hours before our connecting flight to Cusco. Rather than hang about the airport, we decided to catch an Uber to a market we spotted on the map which was a 20-minute drive away.
Mistake.
I have to admit the market choice was mine. The kids had other suggestions, but I do like a market!
Turns out this one was in a pretty dodgy part of town. We have travelled with only two pieces of checked luggage, using hand luggage for the rest… so you can imagine how we looked to all the locals, four ‘Gringos’ wandering the streets, bags in tow, in a pretty unsafe neighbourhood. Whoops 😉
I was happy that after walking through the market for about 15 minutes, someone picked up the Uber request and we were soon heading back to the airport. I doubt I will ever get back to Lima, so that wasn’t much of a way to get a feel for it!
I wasn’t game to get my phone out much, but did manage two quick snaps 📸
The domestic flight from Lima to Cusco is quite short, just under an hour and the scenery as you follow the Andes is quite spectacular.
The plane took off right on time and seemed to steadily climb the whole 60 minutes, which I guess is not surprising considering we went from sea level in Lima, to 3360 metres above sea level in Cusco. Also unsurprisingly, as we left the aircraft we immediately struggled to breath normally.
Another Uber ride, this time taking nearly an hour to travel 10km from the Airport to the Airbnb that we had booked close to the city centre for three nights. By the time we got there we were exhausted, a combination of an early start, a busy day and the high altitude. Both kids’ colds had progressed, so they had a pre-made meal for dinner that we picked up from the supermarket right next door to the accommodation and we got a few other essentials at the same time. Dave and I wandered across the road for Chinese, surprisingly good and very cheap. We over-ordered… a serve of fried rice, another of stir-fried vegetables with noodles and a very delicious garlic sauteed beef being enough for at least four people!
Our accommodation was good, this time in a secure apartment building with two bathrooms and two bedrooms, and the most comfortable beds and pillows so far on this holiday. I really must start ranking mattress and pillow comfort. Its own blog perhaps 😉
TUESDAY 15th APRIL
What better way to start the day then with a cup of tea, this time of the coca variety which was left in our apartment for us. Yes, coca is made from the same plant as cocaine, but it’s used here to help altitude sickness, so we all downed a cup in the hope it would set us up for our big day travelling to Machu Picchu.
Some people get up super early (or stay up all night) to visit the very famous location at day break, but we opted to see it at the other end of the day, which meant getting to the pickup point at 8am rather than 2am!
The journey itself was definitely part of the adventure for all of us – winding through the Sacred Valley by bus to Ollantaytambo, then hopping on the Incarail Panoramic Train that follows the river for an hour and a half to Aguas Calientes was simply magical. The scenery along the way was stunning, with snow-capped mountains, green crops, lush valleys, and traditional Andean villages dotting the landscape.
After arriving in Aguas Calientes, we met our private guide, Freddy, who took us to a restaurant he recommended for lunch before we made our way up the final stretch to Machu Picchu by electric bus, climbing a series of tight turns until we reached the entrance of the ancient citadel.
We had tickets for Circuit 1, which offers some of the most iconic views of the site. As we walked through the main entrance and up the many steps to the first lookout point, the view took our breath away — the classic postcard shot of Machu Picchu, with Huayna Picchu rising dramatically behind the ruins.
According to the website Circuit 1 is ideal for getting a good sense of the site’s scale and layout. Freddy shared fascinating insights into Incan engineering and spiritual beliefs, even teaching us how to use their calculator.
Visiting Machu Picchu is one of those experiences that in my opinion truly lives up to the hype. In our original planning I had thought Dave and I might skip Peru, concerned we wouldn’t manage the altitude and long walks. I am so glad we came!
Without doubt this is in my top three experiences so far in South America and might possibly be the first. The walk-up a steep hill to get to the top was VERY hard going, but when I saw the view, the mountains, the sacred ruins and the anticipation finally came to fruition it not only took our breath away (quite literally) but I cried. Quite a bit actually. We really are just grains of sand on a beach, and the world we live in is magical and amazing.
Standing in Machu Picchu, surrounded by mountains and mystery, was unforgettable. If you’re planning the trip my recommendation is to book a package well in advance, take your time, and soak it all in. It’s every bit as amazing as I had hoped.
A selection of photos, that I’m not sure do justice to this place. Wow!
The trip back was uneventful, although three hours to explore Aguas Calientes and have dinner was way more than we needed, especially since it meant we didn’t get home till 1am!
WEDNESDAY 16th APRIL
Will and Emma were up at 5:30am and picked up at 6 for a day trip to Rainbow Mountain. I have no idea how they managed that when they aren’t well, but they are both very determined to not miss any opportunities, and I totally get that (the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree).
Dave chose a day of rest (which ended up being a day of washing!), and I choose a Peruvian Food tour, with the starting point a 20-minutre walk from our apartment. I really should have chosen to take an Uber, not realising the walk was all uphill!
To cut a long story short, due to my late booking the tour company didn’t receive my booking and no one turned up. I was pretty annoyed but decided to do a bit of a food tour of my own, walking all over old part of the inner city of Cusco. I ended up walking 15,000 steps, not bad for an old girl at altitude!
I stopped in at the food markets, saw heaps of historic sights and had lunch at a swish restaurant… something I actually quite like to do on my own (you can over order, and no one cares).
Will and Emma got back around 6:30pm, and we met them in the middle of town for dinner. This time we took an Uber (nearly as slow as walking but way less exhausting) and really enjoyed our meal (pics of mains below), then a walk around the sights, including a haircut (A$6) for Dave at a barber in a street that had about 30 barber shops.
WEDNESDAY 16th APRIL
As I mentioned way back in part one of the blog on our trip to South America, we hadn’t planned the last stage of the trip.
I keep record of countries I have visited via an app called ‘SKRATCH’ and it had a gaping hole in the middle of South America, so the decision was made… time to visit Bolivia. But more of that in the next instalment!
