Incan ruins at the Valley of Urumba
Modern settlement, living in the ancient ways, at Urumba Valley
Terraces in Urumba Valley
The mountains that form Urumba Valley
Annie made the trek in Urumba Valley
Musician at our lunch stop
Ollantaytamba Annie at the Princess's Bath
The climb to the Incan religious site at Ollantaytamba
washing alpaca wool
dying alpaca wool with natural materials
spinning the wool into thread
weaving garments
Church that looked like gold
Our tour guide showing us an Incan wall
Streets of Chincera
Sunset in Chincera
Sacred Valley of the Incas
Saturday, November 8th, 2008
My tour group was fifteen people, most of whom were in their 20’s. I could not understand the tour guide’s English. I didn’t even catch his name!
First we went to a market way outside of the city. It must be just for tourist buses. I did manage to buy some jewelry and scarves.
We went to Urubamba Valley. Terraces abound. We walked down a trail with many steps and no railing. I do not have great depth perception and it was difficult. We saw the ruins of a village from about 1400 a.d. There were about 800 residents of this place, as the Incans lived eight to a room for each extended family.
My heart was pounding and my head was throbbing. I decided not to go up the mountain to see the religious site. The only other people my age, a couple from Switzerland, made the same decision, as did a young couple from Canada because the young woman was afraid of heights. It was quite a hike getting back. I’m so glad I bought hiking boots when I visited Linda in Massachusetts. I felt disappointed that I didn’t do the whole hike, but I know that the altitude was getting to me. I had met a man at breakfast at my hotel who said he almost died the day before because he pushed himself too hard.
We went to a buffet lunch in Culca. We were entertained by a trio of flute, guitar, and drum playing lively Peruvian melodies. The beets were terrific, as was the chocolate cake.
Next we went to the fortress of Ollantaytambo. There are 400 steps to get to the top to see the unfinished Temple of the Sun, again with no railings. I went up 91 and turned back as my heart and head were pounding like they were going to explode. I wasn’t really out of breath, just a bit scared of the physical sensations. I visited the ritual bath called the Princess’s Bath. The Incans were very clever at making aqueducts to get water. Again I did some shopping and bought a tee shirt and earrings.
My favorite part of the tour came next. It was Chinchero. Indigenous people live here in the traditional way. Llamas and alpacas roam the streets of the town. We had a demonstration of how the alpaca wool is cleaned, dyed with natural substances such as plants and insects, and how it is woven. The whole process reminded me of Navajo weaving, although the looms were not as sophisticated as the Navajos. During the presentation, we drank coca tea. I’m really not sure about these coca leaves. I know that’s where cocaine comes from but tea from its leaves is served everywhere. The sun was setting as we viewed the ruins and the Catholic Church built on top of the Incan religious site. The ceiling of the church was intricately carved wood.
On the tour bus I sat across from two scientists who were originally from Russia. They were quite interesting. Both are in genetics and need new jobs, so I’m going to send the information to my cousin Debby who runs an agency that places PhD scientists.
I ate at a chicken place that reminded me of El Pollo Loco. I’ve lost my journal, so I had to buy another one and rewrite the first few days of my adventure.
It was frustrating that since I was using an internet cafe, I couldn’t access my blog since the password is on my computer and I don’t remember it. I emailed the ASU help desk, but they wrote back that I had to call to get my password. That’s why I had to wait until I got back to Lima to log on to the blog. Tomorrow I go to Macchu Picchu on the 6 a.m. train.
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