Sheri makes friends with some Alpacas - or are they Llamas?
|
The group is enjoying the sunset, merging with some very
special stones at Chinchero.
|
In the midst of a ceremonial dance in Moray.
|
Going to get some chicha to drink at the festival at Moray.
It is an important ceremonial drink made from fermented
corn.
|
Local people enjoying the festivities at Moray.
|
Jorge is getting ready for a ceremony of water.
|
Sheri and Gary are taking in the view at the Gate of the
Sun at Machu Picchu.
|
Llamas mowing the lawn at Machu Picchu.
|
Every door opens to another beautiful vista.
|
The niches in the rooms were for ceremonial purposes.
|
A magical view at Machu Picchu!
|
Noureddine and Suze are keeping out of the rain.
|
The backstrap loom is a big part of local life and the fabrics
are beautiful and extremely time consuming to create - a large one can take up to a year to make.
|
The Peruvian highlands and the Apus that inhabit them are awe-inspiring.
|
Jorge is giving a lecture on the meaning of the stones and protuberances at Temple of Ten Niches in Ollantaytambo!
|
Another vista at Machu Picchu.
|
A lovely view of Chinchero. The main attraction in
Chinchero is the Sunday Market, which draws a large crowd. In the town's Plaza de Armas,
there is an adobe colonial church built on top of Inca foundations, and some Inca
terracing in the surrounding area. |
Dont' mess with me, I hiss and spit!
|
Sheri is always finding fun no matter where she goes.
|
Deborah and Noureddine taking a break from climbing Wayna
Picchu.
|
Mike, Suze and Jonathan are admiring the huge stones of
Sacsayhuaman.
|
Allison makes friends with a little goat and a little girl.
|
Jonathan with a view of the mountains surrounding Machu
Picchu.
|
Another view of Machu Picchu. Truely it is a city in the clouds.
|
How do the stones fit together so perfectly when they only
had stone tools? There is no mortar here as the stones fit together perfectly!
|
The circles at Moray. Sacred Spirals are found in many cultures and are deeply respected. This is a beautiful place for ceremony.
|
Nouredeen in a ceremony.
|
Machu Picchu.
|
The water at Tipon.
|
Barbara enjoying the Peruvian Highlands.
|
Gary is doing a blessing with coca leaves - a true Peruvian shaman in the making.
|
This door leads to the Gate of the Sun and the Inca trail.
|
People are not the only ones staying at our hotel in the
Sacred Valley.
|
The sacred Intihuatana, Quechua for "hitching post
of the sun" at Machu Picchu. It is believed that the
Incas built Intihuatana for ceremonies performed to ensure
the sun's permanence. The carved rock at the top of the
pyramid was used by Inca astronomers to predict the solstices
and the time of year. This is the only well preserved Intihuatana
in the Inca kingdom: the others were destroyed by Spanish
Conquistadors who considered the Inca sun worship to be
blasphemy.
|
They grew food on the terraces on the sides of Machu Picchu. They made clever use of all the available space and sunlight.
|
Two hundred steps lead up terraces to a double-jamb gateway and the Temple of Ten Niches, a long wall with odd protuberances in Ollantaytambo. Above this is the unfinished Temple of the Sun, considered one of the masterpieces of Inca stonework. Six giant monoliths of pink rhyolite are perfectly slotted together with thin slices of stone and oriented to glow with the rising sun. |
Interesting structures at Ollantaytambo.
|
Gary is holding up the stones at Sacsayhuaman.
The huge stones form a zig-zag pattern that form an inspiring fortress.
|
Tonya is sending blessings.
|
Amaru Machay and the cave of the serpent. Here we re-connect
with the Mother Earth.
|
Allison stands proudly before the ruins.
|
Those Alpacas and Llamas are cute until you get near them.
|
Allison and a couple of bulls.
|
Jorge talking about the snake, the underworld, and the ceremony to Pachamama.
|
Mike is doing his best to get used to the Inka Cola as it has a bit of a strange taste and the color is not quite what you would expect either!
|
Millie and Noureddine take in a hug over a view of the Sacred
Valley.
|
Local folks watching the dances at Moray.
|
Ginea Pig is a special dish in Peru, tasty, crispy, yummmm.
|
Our beautiful Hotel Pacaritampu in the Sacred Valley.
|
Why can't a person hitch a ride when they need one?
|
Around Chinchero.
|
The area around Chinchero.
|
The ruins at Ollantaytambo.
|
Suze and Doug go into the freezing cold waterfall!
|
All of us at the Sun Gate by the end of the Inca Trail.
|
Sheri at the ruins.
|
Machu Picchu.
|
Climbing up to the ruins on the top of Wayna Picchu is no
small feat.
|
Millie, Mike and Allison are peeking through the windows
at Machu Picchu.
|
The cultural center has weekly demonstrations of traditional
dance.
|
Allison is deciding if she should go in the freezing waterfall.
|
Yet another view of Machu Picchu.
|
Doug is not moving another step! And why? Because he climbed Wayna Picchu and he is very tired!
|
Deborah and Doug are exhausted climbing Wayna Picchu. Deborah has to hold Doug up.
|
Beautiful stonework at the entrance to Tipon.
|
The main Zocolo in the grand city of Cusco. In Peruvian mythology this city is the navel of their universe, where their laylines begin.
|
A typical kitchen in Peru where they are preparing Ginea
Pigs for a special celebration. Yes - they are dead and
lined up on the floor covered with confetti and ready to be par-boiled so they can
have the fur removed before cooking.
|
|
