Peru: Machu Picchu and Lake Titicaca

Pisac is a small town in the Sacred Valley, known for its markets held several days per week. Villagers from the area come here to barter and sell their wares, varying from foods to woven goods to ceramics. There are also many handicraft shops near the market. Bargaining is possible with the vendors and it is a great place to see an authentic market. The symbol of the market used to be a huge spreading pisonary tree in the main square, but it was struck by lightning in 2003 and destroyed.

Ollantaytambo was the royal estate of an Inca ruler in the 15th century and is still inhabited today. During the Spanish conquest, it was an Incan stronghold, partly defended by steep terraces below the main Temple Hill site. These terraces were also used to farm the steep hillside. Most of the ruins on the Temple Hill are incomplete, so it is believed that the site was still under construction by the Incas when it was abandoned, possibly due to a conflict among Incan groups. Ollantaytambo is the starting point for the Inca Trail hike.

This is a ceramics workshop and studio in the Urumbamba Valley opened by artist Pablo Seminario who has studied ancient Peruvian pottery techniques for almost 30 years. His current works are combinations of traditional and modern styles, and he has pieces displayed in the Field Museum in Chicago. He makes pieces that range from utilitarian, such as bowls and plates, to decorative, such as Peruvian masks and jewelry pieces.

This is an Inca ruin dating from the 15th century, located in the Andes in Peru above the Sacred Valley of the Incas. It was thought to have been built as an estate for an Inca ruler and was abandoned after only about 100 years when many inhabitants died from diseases such as smallpox brought by the Spaniards, and transmitted to the site by travelers. The site was discovered by Hiram Bingham, a lecturer at Yale, in 1911 and National Geographic Magazine devoted a whole edition to it in 1913. It is now Peru’s most visited tourist attraction, and numbers have to be carefully controlled to minimize negative impacts on the site by too many people.

The Uros are a group of people who were in the region before the Incas, and they live on the lake on 42 floating islands they make from totora reeds, which grow in the shallows of the lake. The islands allowed the Uros people to defend themselves by simply moving them out of danger. Their houses are made of reeds, and some islands also have reed watchtowers. The Uros live as fishermen, catch shorebirds and ducks for meat and eggs, and also sell woven goods. Tourism has become a large part of their economy.

A wonderfully unique way to immerse yourself into a culture. With a home-hosted lunch, you are welcomed into a local family’s home for an intimate eating experience feature local cuisine and interaction unlike any other!

This privately owned museum in Lima, Peru is in an 18th-century royal building constructed on top of a 7th-century pyramid. It features exhibits of pre-Columbian history and artifacts, including a gallery of pre-Columbian erotic pottery. Rafael Larco Herrera began the collection in 1925 and his son Larco Hoyle created the museum itself. The museum has displays of gold and silver jewelry, ceramics and galleries that depict the chronology of the native people and their conquerors.