Peru day 5

We had our luggage out at 5:55am and headed down to breakfast shortly after.  We met all the families in our group . . . we are only 25 people so should be a great fun week.  Oh and remember how it never rains in Lima?  Yes, it is a bit drizzly today.  The buses arrived and we loaded up for an early flight from Lima to Cucso.  I thought it was interesting that our group would be flying commercial and that must be a logistical challenge but not so much.  As we drove we learned there are 30 million people in Peru and 10 million live in Lima.  Again we heard there are 43 districts in Lima and 12 regions in Peru.  We arrived at the Lima airport.  We were given our boarding passes for our LAN flight and told to meet at the gate.

One thing that is great about tour is not having to deal with luggage. The luggage fairy (named Inka Tinka and a cousin of Tinker Bell so we are told) picked it up and checked our bags in so we don't have to stand in line to do it.  They will magically appear in our room at our next hotel.  No dragging it to check in or claiming it on arrival at the carousel.  Talk about being spoiled.  Oddly enough Colin and I were not seated together on our flight to Cusco, but he was all thumbs up . . .

For the first time in years, I got the window seat and loved the view!

Also there was no one asking me to get this, or open this,  and do that.  Just me in seat 2A enjoying my flight.  The view over the Andes mountains was amazing.

I was in awe the entire 55 minute flight.  I was also surprised when the flight attendant came around and gave us this . . .

Who knew airlines still served a snack for free on such a short flight too?  It was not anything amazing but a cookie, crackers, and Inka Corn (think corn nuts).  It was fun.  The landing at Cusco airport was a bit tense . . . a hard turn to the left and down . . . probably not the best for me to be watching out the window but landed safely.  We arrived in Cusco and boarded our bus to the Sacred Valley.  At this point we have no idea of anyone's name in our group but we pose for a photo . . .

Peru Fun Fact: Peru has 2,200 varieties of potatoes . . . wonder how many they have in Idaho?

Our first official stop was to the Center for Traditional Textiles of Cusco.  We were met with a tray of mint lemonade  It was the BEST lemonade I have ever tasted.  Even Colin drank it and asked for seconds!

 We walked around and watched the local ladies weaving their masterpieces . . .

. . . so cool.  We had a very nice lunch . . .

I tried all the foods and each were so yummy!  I don't know which was my favorite but was surprised at how good the alpaca tasted.     

We finally introduce ourselves to the group and learn who we will be spending the next 8 days with on the tour.  Colin is so happy there are so many boys about his age.  We move to an area to learn about the making of the textiles.  Just watching them weave was amazing but we learned how they dye using natural local ingredients most which are plants . . .

It was nice to see the process of making the textiles.  It is a long process and explains why some items are pricey . . . but if you figure the time it takes to dye the wool and the days/weeks/months of weaving the prices are really cheap.

Even the Junior Adventurers get in on the dying fun . . .

. . . and then preform a fashion show of the beautiful textiles . . .

We were given a little time to shop (I needed more time!) and make purchases and back on the bus.  We made a short stop to get our first view of the Sacred Valley from above . . .

WOW . . . just amazing!  We arrived at Sol y Luna Lodge, our home away from home for the next four days . . .

. . . really beautiful and we love Casita 3.  It is nice to stay in the same place for so many days . . . I unpacked and then Colin hit a wall . . . he was really quiet so looked over at him.  He just fell asleep in broad daylight which never happens.  It is probably the altitude so I too layed on the bed and watched the hummingbirds outside the window.  We both needed some time to relax.  I have been worried about the altitude giving us trouble.  We are currently in the town of Urubamaba, Peru which has an altitude of about 9,500 feet.  I have been taking a prescription medication but our doctor did not recommend for kids so Colin is just dealing with it.  He hasn't complained yet.  We have also been drinking a lot of water every day which is suppose to help.  We both stopped drinking soda and caffeine too.  Colin did wake up with a headache and thankfully while hanging out in the Miami airport, I bought a bottle of children's ibuprofen . . . I have a feeling we will be using this a lot.  It was the one thing I forgot to pack . . . I packed just about any other type of medication we might need.  We both feel refreshed and head out to dinner.  Our group all arrived promptly which is nice and hopefully continues the rest of the trip too.  We had a quick toast to all the families on the trip and I had my first Pisco Sour.

Our group then gathered around a fire pit area and watched them prepare dinner called pachamanca . . . from Quechua . . . pacha means "earth" and manka means "pot" . . . it is a traditional Peruvian dish based on baking with hot stones.  It was really neat!  After the stones are heated they literally just throw all the food in there. We had alpaca, pork, lamb, chicken, several varieties of potatoes, corn, bananas, and big beans.  After the food is in the earth pot, they cover with alfalfa, marigolds,wet material bags, dirt, and pour a marinade on the top.

It was like a ritual with a toast at the end and flowers placed at the top like a grave . . .

While dinner was cooking, we watched a local theater group present a spectacular Andean Gods performance.

And after 45 minutes our dinner is ready and prepared for us to enjoy on a buffet.  It was so yummy and Colin even had seconds.  Even though it was in the low 40s, it was nice to eat under the clear sky full of stars and planets.  We were not that hungry since we had an outstanding lunch but enjoyed the food.  We headed back to our casita to rest.  When we arrived back at Casita 3, I was surprised to see this in my bed.

Our casita doesn't have central heat so this very hot water bottle is it plus a small plug in heater. Great first full day . . . I think we are going to have so much fun this week!