Peru: Part 1

5/30/2019

Petting a baby alpaca our first day in Cusco

Machu Picchu has been on my travel to-do list for many years. Last August I knew I needed to go by June, 2019. Matt and I then began planning a ten-day trip, from which we returned yesterday.

This first of three posts chronicles the days we spent in Cusco acclimating to the high elevation. Matt’s reaction to being almost 12,000 feet above sea level is to not breathe while sleeping. Thus he stayed awake for three nights. I had a headache the first day and experienced heart palpitations during physical exertion, like slowly walking up the hotel stairs. Unlike Matt's symptoms, mine lasted the entire trip.

We spent five nights at the Palacio del Inka next to the Temple of the Sun. Our room truly was palatial, and the staff were amazing. A street artist named Valentine seemed to live outside our hotel and showed us his wares every time we left sanctuary. Matt wound up buying several canvases to go in his new office, and honestly, they're pretty good.

A writing desk fit for an Incan king

Every bedroom needs angelic artwork to guard the sleeper's dreams

Matt and Valentine in serious discussion

On our third day in Cusco, we traveled next door to Coricancha—the Temple of the Sun. We then toured each of the four sacred sites in Cusco. My favorite was Saqsaywaman. I love stonework and fondly remembered my eighth-grade fantasy of growing up to be an archaeologist.