While elevation might not have venomous barbs or a stinger, it’s a danger to take seriously nonetheless. So our plan for the next few days is to fly into Cusco (elevation: 12,000+ feet) and then immediately get into a car and drive down to Ollantaytambo (elevation: 10,000 feet) as we acclimate to the elevation before going to Machu Picchu on Sunday.
We met our driver and set off. He made a remark about the heat, but when I told him we’d come from Puerto Maldonado, he acknowledged that Cusco heat is nothing in comparison. Still, the sun is stronger at this elevation, and temps in the low 70s are really quite hot.
As we drove along, I seemed to stroll down memory lane a bit. Thinking about the strength of the sun at such elevations made me think of the time we hiked Lomas Blancas in Argentina with the Kells and how Amanda and I got horribly sunburned on our exposed forearms and faces. The twisty, steep streets in Cusco also reminded me of the streets in Medellin, although in Cusco they were certainly wider.
On the planes here, I was digging deeper and deeper into New York Times articles about the region. Colombia is (and always has been) one of the centers of cocaine production. They have had more than their fair share of troubles, including violent gangs and rampant corruption. I didn’t know (but probably should have) that Peru is the second largest exporter of cocaine after Colombia. Comforting. But Peru’s troubles of late have been mostly political and much less gang violence. What was sad to read about is Ecuador (where we almost went instead of Peru).
Sandwiched between Colombia and Peru, Ecuador had a long history of being relatively stable and safe. After a series of politically-motivated events, a former president closed the US military base in 2009, leaving Ecuador with little anti-narco power. That president instituted austerity measures and cut back on domestic police and military to try to pay down the nation’s debt. Taken together, these actions provided a perfect opportunity for drug trafficking gangs to emerge. These gangs use Ecuador’s increasing prison population to recruit and train members, strengthening their power, and they now exert tremendous power across the country. The current president was going to be impeached, so there are new elections coming, and an outspoken candidate was just assassinated. I’ve read nothing that suggests it was anything other than gang retribution. All of this saddens me so much. I’ve really learned to love South America, and particularly Colombia. The people are lovely, the country is beautiful, and the narcos ruin it all for so many. While I have little reason to hope that Ecuador will find a way out of this morass anytime soon, I have to hope.
Ok, enough depressing political news. As we drove along from Cusco to Ollantaytambo, the kids slept. That’s too bad, because the drive was beautiful in parts (the cities were cities, full of noisy trucks, crazy motorcycles, and traffic). These towns and cities are nestled into every nook and cranny these mountains have to offer.
We finally arrived in Ollantaytambo, walking the last 3 blocks to our lodge because the roads are not fit for cars. The area we are staying in is built on the original Inca village, with their stone foundations and aqueducts in plain view.
Apu Lodge is adorable. It’s built on top of the old Inca stonework and has an aqueduct right outside that I can hear from the room. From our balcony, we look straight over the town to the ruins built into the hillside.
I did some (desperately needed) laundry while Luke and Anna-Sophia rested. Altitude seems to have hit them harder than it hit me, which surprised us all since I’m the one with vertigo and motion sickness issues. Very strange!
We decided to walk into town for an early dinner since we knew we would all be off to bed early. A blog I read strongly recommended a restaurant on the Plaza de Armas and we decided to give that a try. We are at the far end of town from the plaza, but it would not possibly have taken us more than 7 minutes to walk there. And we are all moving slowly today!
Dinner was AMAZING!! Anna-Sophia had quinoa-breaded chicken fingers (we had a very good time with the Spanish “deditos de pollo” and debated where chickens keep their fingers). Luke had a ceviche-type dish, and I had some kind of potato-wrapped avocado with veggies. It was all really delicious!
Tomorrow we have a very civilized 9am start to the day to go to 2 local sites – a ruin and a terraced salt pan. Then we will be back in town for lunch and some local sights. But now, it’s 8:21pm and that’s bedtime!!
Vacation Days 