While my dad and I unfortunately didn’t have the time or the energy to hike the famed 4-day Inca Trail to get to Machu Picchu, we chose an equally exciting way to get there; the Sacred Valley Tour. Instead going to Aguas Calientes (the town at the base of Machu Picchu) directly from Cuzco via train, we drove for several hours through the mountains to small town of Ollantaytambo where we boarded the train. Along the way, we stopped at three archaeological sites and drove by several more that were nestled away on the hillsides. It is a beautifully scenic and enjoyable way to start the journey to Machu Picchu, and I highly recommend it! . [Continue reading...]

As mentioned in the previous article, my dad and I had the pleasure of attending a weaving demonstration during one of our tours. Held at a local artisans shop, the demonstration covered the multitude of processes that an artisan goes through when creating a product. Having seen so many beautiful woven items throughout my time in Peru, it was amazing to be able to learn the intricate craftsmanship and processes behind them. [Continue reading...]

Extraordinary film footage narrated by movie star Gillian Anderson has launched Survival International’s new campaign to protect some of the world’s last uncontacted tribes. [Watch Footage...]

Can someone really understand climate change if it has no impact on his/her daily life? Our routines are all similar; head to the bathroom, brush our teeth, flush the toilet, take a shower, turn on our computers. We’ll head to the fridge and even keep the thing open for a good 5 minutes while we decide what we’ll have for breakfast. Those of us blessed to have a green patch of earth will water our lawns or watch the pool man do his job while we read the paper, all the while ignoring the really important articles on page 6. The stories that tell us that one day we’ll wake up, head to the bathroom and they’ll be no water for us to brush our teeth, no water to flush our excrement or to clean ourselves. Our computers lay idle because the hydro electric plant that produces our energy does not receive enough water to power its turbines. Of our picture perfect neighborhoods becoming dusty wastelands as desertification creeps in, claiming a generation of ignorance and leaving our children stranded in a mess we created. [Continue reading...]

Most of us have watched a documentary or two on the Nazca Lines, perhaps on the National Geographic channel or through one of those over-dramatized programs such as ‘Believe it or Not’. It’s not until you view the lines and geoglyphs in situ that you can start to really appreciate these curious and ancient wonders. [Continue reading...]