Peru Dreaming

Peru Dreaming

Works of a Peruvian artist
at Aguas Calientes, Peru

For years I had dreamed of visiting Peru, but never had the opportunity. Finally last year, I have created my own opportunity by squeezing it into a busy schedule and giving up some of my essential expenses.

You can find below my traveler profile at the time of this trip which should give you an idea if my experiences and tips would be applicable to your travel.

Traveler profile 

• Solo female traveler, 20 something years old.
• Sedentary life style.
• Likes interacting with locals.
• Student, on a budget.

Bolivia to Aguas Calientes

I entered Peru from Desaguedero, the Bolivian border. Skipping Puno, I arrived Cusco at 4 am in the morning. I was so impatient to visit the Lost City of the Incas (aka. Machu Picchu) for so long, I decided to save visiting Cusco for later and went directly to Aguas Calientes.

It is not possible to go from Cusco to Aguas Calientes via public transportation at 4am. So, I ended up taking a taxi from Cusco bus terminal to a train station in another small town - and I believe the taxi driver ripped me off, more on this on an upcoming post. The train station can be whole another story itself. There were too many people, and I had to wait in the line for a long time - like everybody else trying to go to Aguas Calientes, the closest town to Machu Picchu.

After the most beautiful train ride of my life I arrived in Aguas Calientes. Aguas Calientes, as you can guess from its name if you know a little bit Spanish, is a town famous for its thermal springs. I spent my late afternoon in these hot springs to relax my body after a 24 hours of non-break travel from Bolivia that includes a bus ride, a taxi ride, a train ride, and some walking and a lot of waiting.

To Machu Picchu

Next day I got up early in the morning, even before the sunrise, and was ready to go to Machu Picchu. I was thinking to myself, I am early, and there should be no lines at this time. Guess what? Another half a mile long line... I guess everybody thought the same. This line was for the minibuses from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu. The line was long, but the minibuses was pretty frequent, so I did not spend more than 15-20 mins to onboard the bus. In half an hour, I was at the magical place I have dreamed for so long: Machu Picchu.

Some people hike, some people take the train to go to Machu Picchu. Either way, it takes time and patience due to its remote location. But it is definitely worth it. I was able to take this incredible shot of Machu Picchu despite the fact that I did not own a professional camera nor a smart phone back then, and I am glad I was able to. Now, whenever I feel like I miss this magical place, I take a look at this photo and dream I am there again!

Machu Picchu, Peru

While exploring Machu Picchu, I met a Cusqueño guy named Eric (please pardon my possible wrong spelling). And, yes I wanted to say Cusqueño, because it is a cool word, it means someone from Cusco. Anyways, Eric promised to be my guide for the day, on the house, but then my Lonely Planet book became the guide for both of us. I guess at the end they complemented each other. We used the book for the maps and the basic history of the place. Eric told more stories sounded like legends, and shared more traditions, culture and beliefs of Inca people. He was also the one told me about the mountains that look like a face, which I cannot un-see anymore.

In and Around Cusco

After Machu Picchu, I spent some time in and around Cusco which probably deserves its own separate post. But I will mention the highlights here.

Around Cusco, what I amazed me the most is the abundant historical places to visit. You can easily take public transportation from Cusco to these sites and maybe even walk/hike to some of them.

Pisac

One of my favorite site was Pisac. You can take a bus from Cusco, they run frequently. The site is on a hill. A trail connects the town below to the site on the hill, in addition to the road. So you can choose to hike up there, or a take a cab. I first thought I would hike. Upon realizing I am in no shape to do so - please see my traveler profile above, I had a sedentary life style back then, and hiking was challenging for me - I decided to take a cab. The historic site consists of several tiny villages, so you still need to walk in between. I ended up hiking down from the sites to the town below. While hiking down, I realized I have made the right decision after running into some folks who were trying to hike up in that hot weather. I guess if I go there again, I would like to do the uphill hike after making sure I have water, hat and shades.

Pisac, Peru

Sacsayhuamán

Another historic site I enjoyed around Cusco was Sacsayhuamán. I admit I am biased when it comes to cute animals and I liked this place mostly because of the alpacas. It can be considered a little bit touristy as the reason locals bring alpacas here is solely for tourism. By the way, some people call this place sexy women since the pronunciation is similar. I am not sure I will do that. In general, I do not like to westernize the authentic names just because we do not understand or not able to pronounce the original one. But just keep it in mind, in case someone says they are going to the sexy women, they are talking about Sacsayhuamán.

Peruvian women in traditional dress with alpacas near Sacsayhuamán, Peru

Cusco

If you are into colonial architecture, Cusco is the place to be. Given that all historic sites around Cusco are from Inca civilization, Cusco makes it possible to spice things up with the colonial buildings. My favorites places to visit in Cusco are 1) Plaza de Armas, 2) Iglesia De La Compañia De Jesús, 3) Twelve Angled Stone, and 4) any cobbled stone street in Cusco.

Iglesia De La Compañia De Jesús, Cusco, Peru

Plaza de Armas is the downtown of Cusco. If you need to eat or drink in Cusco, you go to PdA. If you need to shop, you go to PdA. If you want to do people watching, you go to PdA. If you want to watch the city parade, you go to PdA. And at night, it is even prettier than the day. So, if you go to Cusco, you cannot avoid this square. While you are there, enjoy it.

Plaza de Armas, Cusco, Peru

The famous Stone of Twelve Angles, is an interesting example of Inca masonry. Apparently it used to belong to a stone wall in an Inca palace, and now is considered to be a national heritage item. You will hear from locals that this stone design is what made the old buildings survive the national disasters when the new ones collapsed.

Twelve Angled Stone, Cusco, Peru

My favorite of all in Cusco was walking on any cobbled stone streets. I grow up on a neighborhood with asphalt streets, so cobbled stone feels authentic to me. My mom's hometown in Turkey had cobbled stone streets, so in a way Cusco reminded me of my mom's hometown and it felt like going back in time.

I hope you enjoyed this post. I will add more Peru posts and link them here. Please share your comments if you are planning to go to Peru. If you have gone already, what were your highlights?

Cusco, Peru

[End notes: Traveled in 2010 and posted in 2011, updated the post in 2020.]