This isn’t just any blog about some type of cruise that oh-so-changed your life. Or some church missionary trip that has probably been repeated numerous times and just gets boring after a while. I’m not saying that helping third world countries spread the word of Christianity is a bad thing, but there are more important things that need to be done. Things like food, water, and shelter…..you know the essentials to help you survive.
Anyways back to what I was saying the trip that really changed my life was when I visited Cuzco, Peru and then one of the natural wonders of the world: Macchu Picchu. My mom sent me to Lima to spend time with my relatives and to improve my Spanish. During the last two and a half weeks of my visit, we visited Arequipa and Cuzco.
Cuzco was the capital of the Inca Empire and is now a city fit more for tourists. All the natives live in small beat up houses. One thing that I learned about Cuzco is that it is in the shape of a puma…the Inca’s most sacred animal. Most people think it’s a llama because Peru has such a high population of them. Cuzco is filled with pigeons and an overwhelmingly amount of historical buildings with gorgeous architecture. You can find these buildings in the plazas, my favorite being Plaza de Armas (which can’t exactly be translated).
We stayed at a family owned hostel. They would serve us breakfast, lunch, and dinner which was delicious every time. I do not remember the name of the hostel but I definitely recommend it to anyone traveling in larger size groups.
Now the most exciting part of going to Cuzco was going to Macchu Picchu. The only way to get there is to take a train and then take a bus up to the site. I have a mild phobia of heights, so I refused to have the window seat because the bus had to go on a narrow road to get to the site. If you looked straight out the window, you could see nothing but your doom. Because we were all at such high altitudes we had to chew on cocaine leaves in order to prevent from getting dizzy, which is something that the Incas did. They also used cocaine leaves as medicine and herbs for cooking.
While walking and observing the ways that the Incas lived, I couldn’t believe how perfect their lifestyle was. The stones that gave this place such structure were all in perfect unison. Not a stone out of place with any huge gaps. To this very day no one has any idea on how the Incas did this. They have definitely outsmarted us mere humans.
When it was finally time to go we looked around at the handmade crafts that the locals made as well as some traditional Inca crafts.
This trip was a once in a lifetime opportunity and that’s what makes it different from all the other travel blogs that you might have read. I know that from the bottom of my heart I will not regret this trip, it really was something to take advantage of and enjoy every moment that life has provided me with.
Dear Reader: This page may contain affiliate links which may earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase. Our independent journalism is not influenced by any advertiser or commercial initiative unless it is clearly marked as sponsored content. As travel products change, please be sure to reconfirm all details and stay up to date with current events to ensure a safe and successful trip.
