The Journey to Machu Picchu!

Our first hostel name set the tone for the rest of the trip, “The Red Psycho Llama” greeted us alongside a very un-ironic Tsunami Warning upon our first day in Lima, Peru. Flights were delayed and missed but we still all woke up to each other in the morning. After a scenic flight from Lima to Cusco, we got a not-so-brief briefing about our upcoming trek to Machu Picchu on our bus ride to our next destination, “The Llama Pack” hostel in Urubamba. Soon enough, we became just that. We had our first high altitude hike accompanied by Guapo the Llama and his fellow pack of alPACKas ;) We planted our goals for the trip with the tree we were leaving in memory of a Pacific Discovery Alumnis sister. We had lots of bonding time at “The Llama Pack”, with it’s very welcoming vibe. Who would’ve thought having a llama in the backyard would’ve made us all feel so at home? Each morning and night we were greeted with delicious home cooked meals by Alejandra, the owner of the hostel. Everything was picture perfect and we continued to get to really get to know each other. The weather was amazing and everyone we met along the way in Urubamba introduced us to real Peruvian hospitality.

On our last day in Urubamba, we were told to pack our bags for five days and say goodbye to our duffel bags. At that point, none of us could have guessed the ways that we were going to be tested mentally and physically for the next several days. That afternoon we started our overall grueling trek of the Incan Trail. The week started with a 2 hour bike ride down a mountain; starting in the clouds was scenic to say the least. The bike ride was fun… Briana only fell once. Then we arrived in a small town. We ate dinner as a ‘family’ and then celebrated Laurel’s birthday with cake and of course, Pisco Sour.

We began our hike the next day. It was the most difficult hike many of us had ever been on. However, the group kept everyone going. The person in front of you inspired you to not stop even if you were gasping for air. We pushed ourselves harder than we had thus far. The view made it all worth it. It was incredible. We stopped for lunch and many of us slept in hammocks. Then we continued on to the hot springs. The end seemed so far away but as we crossed a bridge at the end of the hike, we all felt extremely fulfilled. We celebrated with swimming in the hot springs and a few hundred bug bites. As the night rolled on, we got into vans to take us to our campsite. Jimmy, our tour guide, rocked the aux cable the whole way home. The good tunes and successful day of hiking kept us smiling all the way to the campsite.

The zip lines the next day were intense and the gnats were…. in our tents. The following day, we hiked to Aguascalientes, the town that houses Machu Picchu. All of us were overjoyed to finally sleep in beds again, but our rest time was short considering the next day we had to wake up around 3:45 to make the infamous climb up the stairs of Machu Picchu. We all took about an hour and a half to make it up to the top, and Jimmy and Angel gave us a tour of the grounds. The views were picturesque and breathtaking and although we were proud of our new accomplishments, we eventually were ready to return to the bottom of the mountain. After a quick lunch, we boarded a train that lead to a bus ride to the city of Cusco, where we arrived at a beautiful hostel named Wara Wara. There we were able to recuperate and prepare for our first homestays with our new Peruvian families. The next 5 days were mainly filled with Spanglish conversations with host families, Spanishclasses dominating our days until 1, and countless visits to The Meeting Place coffee shop. Tomorrow, October, 3, the gang will head off on a 7 hour bus ride to the grand Lake Titicaca!

Best,

Briana, Marielle, and Fallon