Nothing can quite prepare you for the beauty and majesty of the mountains, or the ingenuity and precision of the structures that were part of this Incan place of worship and residence.

Rene really packed the day full of activities!  On our way back to  Ollantaytambo  we also stopped at a potter’s workshop where he explained how he creates his work, where the clay comes from, etc. and then we stopped at a Chichaeria – a local pub type place where they sell their home-brewed chicha – made from corn. Needless to say we got to sample it – it was OK, but nothing I’d want a lot of! In the courtyard was a table game where one tosses bronze discs in an attempt to get it through one of the small holes or, ultimately, into the frog’s mouth!! We had a friendly game between two teams – the Pumas and the Condors – and way to go, my team, Condors – who won mightily!!!

Rene, our guide told us the evening before our departure for the Sacred Valley that there was social unrest with strikers blocking the roads at the junction town of Juliaca. He was most distressed to tell us that we needed to get up at 2.30 a.m. And get on the road at 3.30 in convoy with some other buses to by-pass the town, and also before the strikers were up and about and able to stop us! What excitement.  The route we took to circumvent Juliaca was on farm roads, across bridges that I’m sure weren’t build to carry the weight of our bus, down narrow village streets, etc. what an adventure! all went well, but it ended up being a very long day on the road as we didn’t arrive at our hotel in Urubamba until late afternoon. We did, however, make a stop at Raqchi, a holy Incan site with remarkable ruins.

Another beautiful drive through the mountains and valleys to the Puno region. We made numerous small photo stops along the way before picking up our local guide. We then visited Sillustani – pre-Incan burial towers, and visited a typical rural Ayamari family compound.

A shockingly early morning call at 3 a.m. To be on e road by 4 so we can drive to the Colca Canyon and see condors!  The canyon at 13,000 feet depth, is much deeper than the Grand Canyon. However, after sunrise and seeing the stunning scenery of  terraced mountain sides, llamas and alpaca herds, wild vicunyas, desolate villages – the early morning start was long forgotten.  We passed the highest point of 16,000 feet without stopping on the way, but stopped on our way back to see the views of the surrounding snow-covered volcanoes and the hillside filled with stacked stone offerings to the Gods.

we were successful in seeing quite a few condors soaring overhead:)

our drive through the the canyon ended up at our hotel for the nIght (Colca Lodge and Spa) with hot spring fed spas right down next to the river. Delicious!