Day 0: The departure for Peru

On Monday, we left Ecuador for Peru. Our flight was at 5:15 pm, so we had all day to prepare and worry about last minute things. We spent a lot of time text messaging our friend Bill to try to arrange for him to get us tickets to the Ecuador/Argentina game this coming Saturday.

We arrived in Lima at 7:30 or 8, I don’t remember. We then had to stay in the airport until the next morning, when our flight for Cusco left at 6:00 am. It was rough. Just as I was getting the hang of falling asleep on a cold, hard floor, I had to wake up.

Our first impressions of Peru were formed on Day 0. The airport itself was much nicer than the five Ecuadorian airports we’ve been in. The people were just as nice, and if anything, their Spanish was clearer. When we disembarked in Lima, we were herded straight to a guy who offered to find us a hotel for the night. But since it would have cost $50 per person, we decided to pass.

We did, however, talk to him about Machu Picchu and Cusco. He warned us that high season is just starting and that we might want to book things right now. So we did.

He was with a travel agency called InkaWasi, and he gave us a quote for a whole package. It would include the following: a tour of the sacred valley of the Incas on day one, a hostal in Cusco for two nights, the train ticket to Aguas Calientes (the town closest to Machu Picchu), a hostal in Aguas Calientes, a guide and park entry fee for Machu Picchu, the train back to Cusco, a final hostal in Cusco, and a ride back to the airport.

We decided it might be a good idea to have some security for our plans, so we bought it, blowing most of the cash we brought with us.

More to come. . .