Peru- Day 4- Cuzco is cool

This was the first morning of the trip we got to sleep in. We all needed it!! Our awesome tour guide Betho was back to pick us up at 9:30. Our first stop were the Quechua (Incan) ruins of Sasxywaman (it is nicknamed Sexy Woman- but there is nothing sexy about it).  This was a former temple on the top of a mountain in Cuzco which the Spaniards  destroyed. The site was immense and the stone work amazing- a common theme with the Incans. Mind boggling to imagine how they got the stones to the site from the quarry 21 kilometers away.  

We next went to a view point above the city and took in all the brown colors of Cuzco in the valley below. After we visited another Incan site Q'opoa. This was a site dedicated to fertility and health. Betho told us lots of stories about how the site was used, including how couples were matched and lived together for 3 months but were told "no sexo". After living together for 3 months they could then decide if they wanted to be married. Our final stop was a former inca temple which the Spanish tore down and built on top of their walls. Today it is a working cathedral with monks and a museums with the original inca walls and rooms for temples. It is a big messed up religious hoe down. 

Betho then dropped us of for lunch and to explore the city on our own. We ate at a basic lunch counter with tables that was in a market. Was convenient to do some souvenir shopping after- so we did. Walking back through the streets of Cuzco made me wish we had more time in this town. 

Betho picked us up in the evening to take us to his ward's talent show. It was so cool to see his church and meet some members and missionaries. I don't think any of us will forget the talent show, especially Brent who was pulled up on stage by a little girl to dance with her. We left the talent show early because Betho had invited us to his home for dinner. Was very humbling to be in his home and meet his awesome family. His daughter played the guitar for us, and his son Alvaro played "More Than Words" for us while we sang along. It was a very unforgettable evening. 

Peru- Day 5- Going Down South to Lake Boobypoopoo (Ian came up with that one. In 6th grade)

Our time in Cuzco wasn't enough. Wished we could have stayed longer, but it was time to move on. We left for the airport at 9:30am and had to weave around town because a big festival with lots of costumed children was going on. As we neared the airport, our driver pulled over to the side of the road so Betho and his 6 year old granddaughter Zoe could kiss and hugs us goodbye. That was so sweet. We flew to the south of Peru so we could get closer to our next destination of Lake Titicaca. We landed in a city called Juliaca. I can't quite describe how it looked, but a war zone comes to mind. We were only passing through Juliaca- it is a transportation hub and not for tourists. 

Because it was Sunday we (Emily) searched online to find a sacrament meeting we could attend. We were surprised to see 2 chapels listed with multiple wards. We arrived just in time to meet 2 elders walking into the chapel. They let us know that the meeting time had changed and we were out of luck- sacrament had started at 10am. So we spent the next half hour touring the building and talking to the elders. Changed my perspective on missionaries- they are seriously some of the bravest humans in the world. 

We then drove for about an hour through the high country of southern Peru- 12,000 feet plus. Our next stop was the ancient burial site called Sillustani. Colla people- who were pre inca people- started building huge funeral towers to bury their "high class" dead. Still can't get over how much time they spent cutting and carrying stone. 

We next stopped at a local home and saw how these very humble locals lived. We played with their animals and then, of course, they tried to sell us stuff. Back in the van we settled in for the hour drive to Puno- the port city on Lake Titicaca. 

After checking into our hotel we took cabs into Puno town to eat dinner. We were dropped off near the Plaza de Armas in the middle of a huge celebration of some kind. There were large groups of traditionally dressed young men and women- the women were dancing while the men played wind flutes and beat on drums. Groups were coming from all different directions into the center plaza. It was seriously the coolest thing I have accidentally walked into. We walked all around just taking it in- until it started to rain. Then we took shelter in a yummy restaurant. 

Pictures don't do it justice, but we've got some pretty good video!!

Peru- Day 3- Maras, Moray, and Mountain Biking

We hopped back on the Inca Rail train to follow the tracks along the Urubamba River away from Aguas Calientes and the amazing experience we had at Machu Picchu. Everyone one of us had super sore legs from the stair climbing we had done the day before. Walking down stairs became a comedy routine as we held onto each other and grunted in pain. On the train, lush green jungle slowly changed to eucalyptus and ceader  forest as we bounced along. 

We were met by a new guide- Kennedy- at the Ollantaytambo train station. Kennedy would be our guide for the day on the mountain bike tour we had signed up for. We drove up out of the sacred valley to the plateau above where our bikes and another guide were waiting for us. We took off down a dirt road that led through a small farming town. If I didn't have to hold on to the bike with both hands, I would have been taking pictures and video constantly! It was beauty every where we looked. I couldn't resist stopping to take a photo of a traditionally dressed woman walking her cow on a leash. She saw me and asked for a "propina" - a tip. After I gave her a coin, she thanked me and said she was going to buy a beer with her money (at least that is what our guide translated).

We mainly followed dirt roads through farming villages. We saw shepherds, heards of sheep, colorfully dressed women with large packs on their backs, and every little kid we passed waved and said "Hola!"  Luckily there was eye candy all around to keep our minds off of how much our legs and butts hurt. Probably wasn't the best plan to do a 13 mile mountain bike ride after a hike to Wayna Picchu. Plus we were doing all this biking in the Andes above 10,000 feet! 

Our first stop on the ride was at the planting terraces of Moray Agricultural site. The Quechua people (Incans) were not lazy. They built these terraces so that they could plant in micro climates. There was a huge temperature change from the top to the bottom. Another site that pictures can't capture the enormity of it all. 

From Moray our bike were loaded onto the van for a quick shuttle so we wouldn't have to bike up hill again (we had already biked uphill enough!) we biked right though the colonial town of Moray, stopped at the central square for a quick pep talk because we were apparently heading into the technical part of the ride (technical = difficult and dangerous). It was now steep single track with a sheer canyon off to one side. Ian was wishing he has his bike so he could really take advantage of the terrain. Emily was wishing she was back in the car as this was her first time ever mountain biking. Oops- my mistake. I wrongly assumed she had experience. She did amazing and even when she and Rick were lost for 15 minutes- our 2nd guides fault- she didn't quit!  The big payoff at the end of the ride were the terraced Salt Mines. It made all the pain worth the gain!! 

Back in the van, it was starting to rain and the sun set as we drove to Cuzco. After a long hot shower we walked the 3 blocks into the main Plaza de Armas. This was our first time on the streets of Cuzco- it was such a cool city!! And it was cold! Nice relief after the heat of Machu Picchu. We ate the best meal of the trip at at restaurant Marcelo Batata. Everyone, but me, had alpaca. So the next time we saw an alpaca out in Cuzco Emily said "yummy!"

Peru- Day 2- Machu Picchu, Mosquitoes and Mastering Stairs

I don't know if I have it in me to try to recreate the post I just worked on for 30 min and lose it again!! Stinking technology! This definitely won't be as good as the first one. 

Machu Picchu was everything and more than you would expect it to be. More people, more lines, more mosquitoes, more stairs, more llamas..... It exceeded all expectations!

We woke up early at our hotel in Aguas Calientes so we could make it to our scheduled hike. We had tickets to start our hike to Wayna Picchu, the pointy mountain in the back of all the classic MP photos, between 7-8am. We knew there was going to be a line to catch the buses that head up the mountain to MP, but we didn't know there was going to be a LINE! It stretched almost the entire length of the main road in town. We thought we were going to be early, but now we were worried we might miss our hike.  After a 30 minute wait we found ourselves on the insane adventure bus ride. It was a 30 minute race to the top on a narrow dirt switchback road. We unloaded with 7 minutes to get through a ticket/passport check line and across all of MP to the gate for Wayna Picchu. It was the craziest thing to have our first experience at MP be running across this HUGE ancient city to get to the other side. I felt completely dwarfed by the size of this place. Pictures don't do it justice. In typical Carter fashion we arrived with our friends at the gate at 8:05am and were some of the last to be let in. 

Already hot and sweaty, the sky was blue and the sun intense, we could tell within minutes we were in for a workout. Over a thousand steps switchbacking up Wayna Picchu led to the ruins at the top. Hard to imagine ancient people living and farming on this very steep peak. 

Back off the top of Wayna Picchu we hurried back to the entrance gate to eat our packed lunch and meet our tour guide. Thankfully Hector was waiting for us to lead us on a 2.5 hour tour of the Incan city. He was so knowledgeable and  taught us so much about how they think the Incans lived. Because all records were destroyed, they really know the entire story of this civilization.  

After the tour, we started another stair climb to go and see the Inca Bridge. Although our feet were tired and quads aching, it was definitely worth the hike. 

10 hours after we started our Machu Picchu adventure, we were back in Aguas Calientes. After a shower and a nice dinner we did what all should do after a hike- get an Incan foot and leg massage. It was heaven!! 

No wonder our legs were tired- Emily's phone tracked our movement. It said we took 20,560 steps and walked 12.43 miles. Whew