Saturday, August 22, 2009

It's Not Just All About Machu Picchu

At the ruins in Pisac, with Ruben, one of my "adopted" orphans -- who sometimes slept in the streets of Cuzco, when he didn't have the money to pay his way into the local orphanage of Cuzcomaqui.
Ruben, another "adopted" orphan, who really liked the matching jacket and backpack. His favorite color was red, of course. He was my tour guide and bodyguard in this outing. He spoke Quechua with this indigenous woman. It was not even close to the Spanish i heard from most Peruvians.
Boys will be boys! No jungle gyms like they have at McDonald's...but these pillars were just as much fun and challenge to his adventurous young nature.
The market repair shop -- where the men socialized and caught up with what's new, and with what's old...and to defrost in the warm sunshine.
My nose led me to this baker's oven. He gave me a just-baked baker's dozen for my money. It was easy chatting with him, as every local i met in Cuzco were indeed friendly and helpful.
The lawful limit for these porters were 30kg, but most carried almost twice that. They were powerful and certainly fit...much like the Sherpas for those attempting Mount Everest treks.
Machu Picchu in the foreground and Huayna Picchu in the background. It was our lot that our first sight of our prized destination was shrouded in clouds. But it was a wonderful, once-in-a-lifetime experience...no complaints from any of us. We were grateful that we made it through the grueling three-day hike, safe and injury free.
Machu Picchu in the background, and atop Huayna Picchu, with some trekker's stuffed "security blanket" toy in the foreground...i wasn't fearless enough to sit at the edge...better that green smiley caterpillar than me!

For an even better viewpoint, here's another trekker's vantage point:
And here's a great blog entry about the whole 4-day hike from Steve, Joe, and David's Travels:

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