Some places leave a mark on your soul, Perú and Machu Picchu are two such places.
Fourteen years ago I served as a volunteer in Perú and it had been 11 long years since my last visit. This last week, I was fortunate enough to return to the country that left a lasting impression and benefited me and my family ever since.
Setting foot back in the land of the Incas was a professional trip in nature, presenting and attending the 2016 AASSA Educators’ Conference in Lima at Colegio Roosevelt.
That doesn’t mean it was all business, there was some pretty amazing amusement to be had as well. A few days prior to the start of our AASSA conference, our Cayman International School staff made a little ol’ side trip over the Andes to the cradle of the Inca civilization, Cusco and Machu Picchu. We had just enough time to complete a two-day hike on the Inca Trail (it really was just a one-day hike with a second day to run around Machu Picchu) with our great guide Casiano from Llama Path.
Below you will find some of my favorite photos (a location a bit more desirable to visit than New Mexico).
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Machu Picchu – Looks like the states of Nebraska, Colorado, and Kansas
And let’s finish off this entry with some wise lessons from the Incas presented by Casiano.
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8 comments
Wow, from KM 104. I’m totally overwhelmed by your exertion of walking one day. Definitely seems par for the course for a Texan.
Pepper, you gotta remember we have been living at sea level for many years and the exertion it takes on our poor little lungs is brutal.
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Great photos! What’s the distance of the hike and how long (in hours) did it take with the elevation?
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