Machu Pichu and the Sacred Valley with Grandpa Dan

 

In early October, Grandpa Dan came to visit us and we embarked on a tour of Cusco and the Sacred Valley. The day after arriving and adjusting to the altitude, we were whisked off to see the sites of Moras (a terraced Incan agricultural lab), Moray (an Incan salt factory that is still in operation), and the massive fortress of Ollantaytambo which served as a crucial place of resistance against the Spanish conquest. That evening we caught the train to Aguas Calientes, the staging area of Machu Picchu. 

Early the next morning, we met our guide at the entrance to Machu Picchu and began our ascent. As we climbed the stairs, we could see glimpses of the ruins between trees. When we arrived at the top of the overlook, there was one of the 7 Wonders, swathed in clouds and looking both completely organic and otherworldly. Machu Picchu is magical because its incredible architecture is enhanced by its location, hidden between mist-shrouded mountains.

It began to rain as we descended from the overlook into the ruins themselves, driving away the crowds. We spent the next two hours in a cloud wandering through the old city practically alone. Eloise, Zinnia and August splashed around and watched the water drain away in 500 year old aqueducts. We toured the Temple of the Sun, the Temple of the Three Windows, and the site of an ancient Incan school. The sheer genius of the place combined with its ethereal setting left us all with core memories. 

We returned to Cusco and spent the rest of the week with our dear friends Olintho and Anghy and their wonderful daughter Sofi. They brought us to Sacsayhuamán, the Incan fortress consisting of stones the size of a small house that fit so perfectly together a knife cannot be placed between them 500 years after construction. We saw Tipon, where Dan contemplated the water still flowing through ancient canals. They showed us to a bustling city market and introduced August to the kind lady selling hard-boiled quail eggs. After his 15th quail egg, he finally came up for air. Zinnia met a lamb that she really, really wanted to bring back to Minnesota. Eloise and Sofi had a sleepover. Chris and Jo had a wild night out on the town with Olintho and Anghy that started at a brewery and ended at a rooftop bar at 4 in the morning.

After an unforgettable week, we returned to Lima and said goodbye to Grandpa Dan and hello to the last chapter of our “normal” life in Peru.