Sarah's Dad Comes to Visit!
Sarah´s dad came to visit us in Peru. His plan was to spend about a week visting and traveling with us and then flying onward to Brazil to attend to some business. Unfortunately, the second leg of his trip never came to fruition because of problems with a vaccination required to enter Brazil from Peru. Alas, we were glad to have spent some time with him here in Peru and he seemed to really enjoy the whole experience. We really packed it in while he was here.
La Punta in Lima
On Saturday, January 21st, the first full day that he was with us, we spent some time along the coast for both breakfast and dinner. For dinner, we headed to an area of Lima called "La Punta" where we had our first bite of "ceviche" in Peru. Ceviche is a raw, lemon-juice marinated seafood salad. Mmmmm!
Touring Cusco
After a full day in Lima, we quickly made way for Cusco where we gave Sarah's dad an informal tour of our favorite places and also took a formal guided tour of some of the historic sites around Cusco. We also chewed coca leaves to help us adjust to the high altitude there.
The Music Store in Cusco
Sarah's dad is a musician, so of course, a stop to a local music store was in order! Here, he tried hand-made guitars and charangos. He even ended up buying a charango!
Visiting the Ruins at Pisaq
Just outside Cusco, there is beautiful area called the Sacred Valley. Pisaq is one of the most famous cities in that area, especially for its Incan ruins and agricultural terraces. Because of the altitude, we often had to catch our breath as we walked through Pisaq's ruins, but it was worth it!
The Village of Calca in the Sacred Valley
From Pisaq, we headed to Calca, another village in the Sacred Valley. What a sweet town! As soon as we arrived, a friendly local man offered to walk us to our hostal. If school was in session and we didn't have other plans, Jeremy and I could have easily stayed there for awhile.
Villa Maria Hostal
In Calca, we stayed at the Villa Maria Hostal. There, Calca's reputation as a friendly town continued as the owner of the hostal offered to call the mayor to make our travel arrangements to Machu Picchu easier for us. We also ate breakfast in their beautiful orchard garden!
Andean Music Workshop
The main reason we were in Calca was to attend an all-day Andean Music Workshop. What fun! We learned a bit about the different genres of Peruvian music and tried out some Peruvian instruments with Valerio, a musician from Cusco. Dad also brought his charango to learn a bit more about how to use it. The family was absolutely wonderful there. We also joined them for a terrific lunch of stuffed avocado, chicken with pineapple, and potatoes.
Aquas Calientes
After the workshop, we headed to the city of Ollantaytambo for the night. The next morning, we took the train from Ollantaytambo to Aquas Calientes on our way to Machu Picchu.
Machu Picchu
Machu Picchu is incredible, no matter how you get there or if you've been there before (like Jeremy and I had). We had a different guide this time than before, so we learned about the historic location with a different perspective. We really enjoyed our time there.
Vistadome Train Ride from Machu Picchu
These are some photos of our train ride from Aquas Calientes (near Machu Picchu) to Ollantaytambo. Of course, photos don't do it justice, but it was an incredible view!
The El Carmen District of Chincha
After our jaunt to Machu Picchu, we headed back to Cusco for less than 12 hours before heading for Lima and eventually, to Chincha - the heart of Afro-Peruvian culture and music. We stayed right on this plaza in the El Carmen District where most of the music is experienced.
Ballumbrosio Family Show
When we had just arrived in Chincha and headed to El Carmen, we told our taxi driver of our interest in Afro-Peruvian music. Little did we know what was to happen next. He drove us straight to the house of the most famous family in Afro-Peruvian music - the Ballumbrosio's! There, we found out that the family was putting on a show in their home, so we went. We were incredibly lucky to stumble onto this event!
After Chincha, we headed back to Lima for Dad to catch his plane. He ended up having complications with his flight, so we had the privilege of spending a bit more time with him before heading to where we are now... Huancayo.
Here in Huancayo, Jeremy and I are volunteering in local orphanages, staying with a host family, and taking Spanish classes through an organization called Mosoq Ayllu (see links at right). We'll be here for the entire month of February. More on that very soon!
posted by Sarah and Jeremy @ 9:33 PM
1 comments
1 Comments:
Thanks for sharing Sarah's dad'd visit with us. Great pictures!
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