The Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu
Ponchos (and jungle spray) a necessity!
Can you believe it? After a 12.30am pick up from our trusty hostel, this time with no vomiting from anyone, the three flights to Peru went like a dream! No delays, kids behaving like little angels (most of the time!), and we even had time for a quick stop at McDonalds (which actually made us nearly miss a flight!) After surviving the adventures in The Amazon, everyone gladly used the flights to catch up on some Zzzs, relax, read, and binge-watch movies.
We hop into our taxi at Cusco airport and as we cruise through the streets of Cusco, it feels like we've been transported back to the favelas! Half-built buildings, street vendors galore selling all sorts of goodies, kids out living their best life, and stray dogs darting around like they own the place. It's a whirlwind of colourful chaos, and we're all sitting there in the back of the transfer, wondering if we're really prepared for this ride into a whole new culture!
After studying all the do's and don'ts of travelling this area, we had played it safe and booked an Airbnb in Urubamba in The Sacred Valley. Hoping this will help us get used to the high altitude, and dodge any altitude sickness. And, thank our lucky stars! After what felt like an eternity in the taxi, we finally stumble upon this tiny slice of paradise, our Airbnb. Tucked away in a secret corner of Urubamba, it's like finding a hidden treasure. With the majestic Andes as our backdrop and far away from the chaos of the city streets, I can tell this place is going to be our saving grace.
Dan and Phoebe head out to fetch the much-needed supplies while the rest of us unpack. They return in a tuk-tuk, loaded with goodies, marvelling at how mad and different it is out on the streets, and we all gather round for a movie night (Jungle Cruise, all still living off our own jungle adventure!). Of course, the usual battle over sleeping arrangements unfolds, but eventually, peace reigns and we all drift off to a much-needed sleep.
The next day was officially declared as a day of doing absolutely nothing, like zero, zilch, nada! It was in the calendar, circled, underlined twice, and even jazzed up with some stars. This was the real deal - a day for epic laziness! No one lifted a finger all morning, with some of us out of sorts unsure if we were feeling a bit of altitude sickness or if we were just exhausted from The Amazon and travel day, the Airbnb was the perfect place to be able to do just that. Eventually, we dragged ourselves out in the afternoon to explore the area, find somewhere nice to eat and stock up on some more supplies.
Urubamba is the town that's like a quirky painting come to life in Peru. It's busy but not chaotic, and wow, it's bursting with culture! Imagine every shop being like DIY Dave's - you know, that one shop in every town where you can find anything from a screwdriver to a disco ball. No supermarkets here, just these tiny corner stores packed to the brim with goodies, alongside massive fresh fruit and vegetable underground markets. And don't even get me started on the street food scene - chickens with their heads and feet still intact, no hygienic plastic packaging in sight! There are local native drinks, random jelly treats, cakes and whole meals all up for grabs from the vendors, who are all multitasking like pros - juggling sales while keeping an eye on their little ones just frolicking freely in the street, or if they're young enough, wrapped in a vibrant Peruvian cloth on their backs. There are local native drinks, random jelly treats, cakes and whole meals all up for grabs from the vendors, who are all multitasking like pros - juggling sales while keeping an eye on their little ones just frolicking freely in the street, or if they're young enough, wrapped in a vibrant Peruvian cloth on their backs. And let's not forget the elder generation, proudly carrying a variety of fresh produce on their backs, all wrapped up in the same vibrant Peruvian cloths, ready to brighten up the street corners. And all while there's a whole other bustling community of the most adorable stray dogs, seemingly living their best carefree lives with their friends, without a care in the world. Pops and Fin bagged themselves a new Peru kit for a massive 30 soles (around a fiver) and we all enjoyed walking the streets, dodging the tuk-tuks and taking it all in. Being Brits with four kids and our refined taste buds naturally gravitate towards the restaurant proudly displaying "hamburgeus" and "pizza" on its sign! After we have ensured everyone's bellies are happy and full, we grab another tuk-tuk back, tuck ourselves in early, and drift again happily to dreamland.
I forgot to tell you the most incredible part - every time you peek down a street, boom! There are The Andes, casually in the background. Seriously, they're everywhere around us, it's like living in a postcard.
On our last day in The Sacred Valley before we start our journey to Machu Picchu, our Airbnb superhost generously offered to hook us up with a tour of Ollytaytambo, the magical gateway to Machu Picchu and home to some of the coolest Inca ruins in Peru. It was like stepping into a time machine in this quaint traditional town, like an Inca-era grid of cobblestoned streets and organic mudbrick buildings. We all loved exploring the ruins, soaking up the history, and obviously, splurging on some traditional Peruvian souvenirs from the market stalls overflowing with goodies.
We decided at this point to ditch the hostel we had planned in Cusco after our Machu Picchu journey and requested to return back again to our cosy Airbnb hideaway instead. The host was a total legend and let us keep most of our luggage in the house which meant we could pack just a couple of backpacks with all of our belongings, ready for our journey to Machu Picchu in the morning.
We had to wake up with the roosters because we booked the last budget-friendly seats on the train. Our boarding passes said 6.30am sharp! We embarked on a stunningly beautiful two-hour ride through The Andes on Peru Rail, alongside the river Urubamba and serenaded by panpipes, inching our way towards the town of Aguas Calientes. The excitement and trepidation was building up in all of us, knowing that our epic adventure of seeing another Wonder of the World was just around the corner!
As we arrived into Aguas Calientes it hit us like a tourist tornado! We were expecting a cosy Peruvian village atmosphere, similar to Ollantaytambo, but instead I was transported back to Malia circa 2002. Touts lurking outside every joint, free pisco sours being offered at every turn, and neon signs lighting the streets like a disco ball. Definitely a big surprise and not the vibe we were expecting! We head on up the hill to our hostel to check in. Everyone is loving Super Tramp - graffiti all over the walls, a tattoo lounge downstairs and bar, a restaurant and hammocks and beanbags on the roof terrace. Everyone seemed happy to adjust and fit in with this vibe a lot better. We stay here for a while and unwind with a couple of coffees after our early morning start, with Poppy and Fin happily playing 'vets' with their cuddly toys and lovely fresh avocados growing on the trees next to them and the girls happily catching up with friends as there was Wifi access!
We head out to stroll the streets, getting in the zone for our big climb tomorrow. We soak it all in, whether it's touristy or not, that's what we're here for! We snagged a table at a riverside restaurant bar - and guess what? They didn't have guinea pig on the menu! I had heard that in Peru, guinea pig is a common dish and wow! Every place in this town seemed to serve it. The menu presentation was so vivid - one place even had a before and after photo just in case you had any doubts! Definitely not for us. As we’re ordering our usual pizzas, the kids decide to have a 'Sibling Day', something they invented in Fiscardo a couple of years ago, where three of them galivant off to the market stalls, picking out a surprise for the one left behind. They all ended up with these super thoughtful, sweet presents. Plus a crash course in negotiation being on a tight budget of 20 soles each! Sibling bonding and bargain hunting all in one swoop.
One thing that took us by surprise was the crazy amount of mosquitos here. It's like a hundred times more than in The Amazon! Nothing we’d read on our lead up to coming here had mentioned that? As we outside in the restaurant, we were quietly being eaten alive! Who would have ever imagined that? So unexpected - all of us came back covered in lots of nasty bites. A bit of advice if you ever do Machu Picchu - pack loads of jungle spray and bite cream! Its mad.
When we stumbled back to the hostel, via the pharmacy, our trusty guide we had booked for Machu Picchu popped in to ensure we were ready for the next day and our journey of a lifetime. We all headed to bed and believe it or not, we actually managed to break our personal record for sleeping in on this trip - not a single one of us stirred until a luxurious 8am! Who would've thought that a random hostel room would provide such a cosy nest for us all. As we all came to, we slowly realised that we had woken up to the most torrential rainstorm since we set off on this adventure! Classic! We couldn't help but laugh at the thought of being those unlucky souls who hike all the way to Machu Picchu, only to find it hidden beneath a blanket of clouds!
We had all made a pact at the market last night to rock Inca ponchos for the hike today. But as we strolled out from the hostel in the rain with our raincoats, it seemed like we were destined for full-on rain ponchos instead of the stylish Inca ones! Yet, we kept optimistic, stumbled upon a saintly stall owner who patiently tried her best to gear each of us up, and we all left happily kitted out.
By lunchtime thankfully the rain decided it had enough, just in time for us to join the bus stop party. Again, it was all so touristy, it felt like we were in a theme park rather than a magical place. We waited in line, snaking through the streets with hundreds of others, for about one hour before we were able to hop on board to zig-zag our way all the way up. At that moment we were filled with a touch of uncertainty about what awaited us, unsure of what experience we had actually booked! We had anticipated a two and a half hour trek after our bus ride to reach the entrance to the ruins, but we found ourselves stepping off the bus and meeting our guide right at the entrance. It seemed we had booked a shortcut to this amazing wonder, which I have to admit felt like we were cheating ourselves of the experience a bit!
It was probably for the best with the four kids in tow, and as we walked up the first set of stairs and caught a glimpse of the incredible Inca village for the first time, it was absolutely breathtaking. There are no words really to truly describe the feeling as we all took in the wonder. Being able to share this moment with our children was like winning the parent jackpot. Seeing their eyes take in the sheer awesomeness of the ancient ruins and the surrounding mountains and scenery was absolute pure bliss (right before Poppy became the unwitting star of a spontaneous game of tag with a tiny stray dog who had climbed up there as well, and decided her ankles were the perfect chew toy - not so blissful!) It's a family experience that we will never forget.
Booking our guide was the best decision ever! Throughout the two and a half hour tour Gregory was like a walking encyclopedia, but with a great sense of humour - luckily with the questions that came out of our four! He made the history of Machu Picchu really come to life, especially engaging with the kids. We might not have had the two and a half hour hike that we anticipated, but we had the best history lesson and a journey filled with laughs, insights, and a deep dive into the world of the Incas and his Andean ancestors. A history he is so clearly very proud of.
With the tour coming to an end, around the same time that Fin starts chirping up with a little moan of, “This isn’t funnnn” (several times), we thank Gregory and start heading back to the hostel for the night. We feel full of new knowledge and have all gained a newfound admiration for this ancient civilisation and its deep bond with nature. I mean, what an amazing location for a village! It's simply breathtaking - lush green landscapes and majestic mountains. Truly unforgettable! We definitely have plans for the future to come back for a return trip to tackle the four-day hike for an even more enlightening journey. Ditching the touristy Aguas Calientes vibes, and just experience pure spiritual bliss and that sweet sense of, “yeah, we did it!” that we feel we missed at the end of the trail.
The morning after, after another massive family lie in, we decided to ditch the usual tourist traps and went on a trek to discover a hidden gem, a charming little waterfall walk. We also buy a lock and secure our family name on the love-lock bridge in town, with promises that we’ll be back. As we hopped back on the Peru Rail later, chugging back through the majestic Andes once more, the vibe on the train was buzzing with a feeling of triumph from every passenger. We were feeling pretty proud of ourselves for conquering this adventure with our little ones, long trek or not. And, lets not forget the most epic family photo to frame when we get home!
Back in our Airbnb (thank goodness we changed from the hostel and city centre of Cusco!), we find ourselves in a bit of a pickle. Dan caught a bug on our way out of Aguas Calientes, while Floss and Poppy are feeling as lively as a sloth on a Monday morning. It feels like everyone is tired out from the altitude and excitement of the last two days, plus missing the simple things like supermarkets, the dogs and a few home comforts. With just two days to bounce back, we plan to lounge around, write this blog, tackle the Everest of laundry, play Tetris with our suitcases once again, and gear up for the next adventure...
Lake Titicaca awaits! Those ponchos we bought? I think they're about to become a new permanent fashion statement!