Ted and Elizabeth’s Trip to Peru

On April 18, 2007, Elizabeth and I flew to Lima and then over the Andes to Pucallpa, to visit our daughter, Ansley, and our nephew, John. We spent 10 very happy days there. Pucallpa is a busy town on the Ucayali river, which joins with two other rivers at Iquitos to form the Amazon. After spending five days in Pucallpa, we flew to Cuzco, elevation about 10,000 feet, located in the south central highlands. Cuzco was once the capital of the Inca empire, and the Incan infrastructure still forms the basis of its streets and walls. From Cuzco we traveled by taxi to Ollantaytambo on the Urubamba river and then by train down the Urubamba gorge to Machu Picchu. Following, in reverse order, are some pictures from our trip.

Our day at Machu Picchu began with a climb to the shepherd's hut perched on the terraces above the city.

Huts for storing produce.

Ansley's view when the mist lifted.

Happy Times at M.P.

The main gate leading into the city.

The same doorway looking back at the shepherd's hut.

This doorway led to the royal apartments.

This aqueduct cut into one of the terrace walls carries water into the city of Machu Picchu.

There are 16 water fountains in Machu Picchu. How do you cut a square basin and waterway in stone with stone hand tools?

The next few pictures were taken in Cuzco. Here we are in a convent garden.

This is the street we climbed to get to our hostel in Cuzco.

Hand forged latch on the hostel door.

The community kitchen of our hostel in Cuzco.

The wall on the right was originally the foundation of an Inca temple

You can get anything you want at the Cuzco market,

flowers,

queso,

piggy heads,

or a fruit and vegetable smoothie. (She put beets in Ansley's without asking)

Sacsaywaman, a fortress on the Inca road that leads into Cuzco is built of huge stones.

These children were models for hire.

At Pucallpa, the Ucayali river is very wide yet the current was surprisingly swift. The little transport boats called Pekipekis (for the sound their outboard motors make) must take the current into account when crossing to the river dwellings off shore.