The Countdown to Peru!!!

Hey everyone...it is around a month before we leave for Peru, and in anticipation we are writing the first of many entries into our travel blog. This will be our second time blogging while travelling. We also did this back in October 2008 when we backpacked Jordan and Egypt.


Our itinerary is action packed...we arrive in Lima on May 19, and take an internal flight to Cuzco, the heart of the mighty Inca empire. It is the undisputed archaeological capital of the Americas. It is also the continents oldest continuously inhabited city. It lies on the Andes at an altitude of 11,600 feet, which is one reason why we are staying in the town for 5 days. Try to acclimatize and avoid altitude sickness. The other reason is for the amount of stuff one can see and do in the Cuzco area, from day trips to the Sacred Valley, horseback riding on the high ledges of the Andes, checking out the many artist shops, river rafting the ice cold rivers of the mountains, exploring the many Inca ruins and of coarse drinking some coca tea or chewing some coca leaves, you know to help you with the altitude sickness. ;) Don't worry, the possession of coca leaves is legal in Peru!!


We are staying at the Hostal Rumi Punku, which has a monumental Inca stone doorway.


After 4 nights we will be taking an early train through the Andes Mountains to the town of Aquas Calientes, which is the starting point for the lost Inca city of Machu Picchu. We are giving ourselves 2 full days at Machu Picchu, just in case one day there are many clouds and/or fog. We are staying at Wiracocha Inn, right beside the mountain river.


After 1 night and 2 full days at Machu Picchu, we return to Cuzco for one night before taking another flight to Puerto Maldonado to head into the Amazon, where we will be staying for 3 days. We take a 2 hour boat ride up the Rio Tambopata to Posada Amazonas, which is a jungle lodge. We won't be able to blog from here, since there is no electricity, never mind computers. In the Amazon, we will mainly be hiking, boating and searching for animals. We are also visiting a Shaman. The land we will be staying on is part of the Ese'eje native community.


After the Amazon, we take another flight back to Lima, where we travel about 1 hour south of Lima to the town of San Bartolo for 3 full days of surfing on the Pacific Ocean. We will be staying at Penascal Surf Hotel.


Then we will call it a trip, and head back to Lima, for our flight back to Toronto...

So stay tuned, as we may blog a couple more time before we leave...

Follow our blog and follow our adventures through Peru!!


Check out our pics at

http://www.flickr.com/photos/anetamark/