… one country at a time!
While on our way to the North of Peru, we passed by two other cities that offered some really nice attractions: Lima and Trujillo. They were not the highlights of our time in Peru, but then, between Machu Picchu and passing our diving license, we set the bar quite high. In any case, it is nice to visit this region of Peru, especially if you are interested in the pre-incan civilisations.
Continue reading “Heading north: Lima and Trujillo”
The south of Peru has more to offer than just Cuzco and the Titicaca lake. Here are some other ideas on how to spend some time in this amazing region.
Continue reading “The south of Peru: Arequipa, Ica, Nazca”
It is said that the first Inca, Manco Capac, was created by Inti, the god of the sun and emerged from the depths of lake Titicaca. He created the Inca civilization, establishing it in Cuzco.
With such a story, no doubt we wanted to visit this famous lake and some of its more than 30 islands. At 3800 m, lake Titicaca is the highest navigable lake in the world and it is situated at the border between two countries: Peru and Bolivia.
Continue reading “Titicaca: one lake, two countries, three islands”
Cuzco was the capital and center of the Tawantisuyo, the Inca empire. From it, four main roads departed to reach the four regions of the empire.
Continue reading “Cuzco: the capital of the Incas”
When we think about Peru, usually the first thing that comes to mind is Machu Picchu and the many beautiful hikes that you can do in the Andes. Most of the time we do not think about the coast, but in the north of Peru is pretty nice. Moreover, since you are almost at the border with Ecuador, the climates tends to be quite warm.
After more than one month hiking the Andes, we wanted some warmth and decided to go to Mancora. The city is located at the meeting between the warm current from the north and the cold one from the south. Such conditions create the perfect environment for a very rich marine life.
Cuzco was the capital of the Inca empire. After falling in the hands of the Spanish, the last remaining fighters looked for a safe refuge in the Vilcabamba mountain range. Here they established another capital, however, the access to the mountain range was controlled from another city: Choquequirao, ‘the cradle of gold’.
Continue reading “Choquequirao: the last city of the Incas”
Centuries ago, the Incas built a huge empire, spanning from Ecuador to Chile. One of the reason they were able to maintain it, until the Spanish invasion, was an efficient communication system. This system relied on multiple messengers and a huge network of trails connecting the different cities.
Continue reading “The Salkantay trek to Machu Picchu”