Prepared by Eric and Libby![]()
Day 4 Morning
So we finally managed to get some sleep last night and woke
up to the sound of crowing roosters and rain gently pattering on our windows.
After a short, hearty breakfast, we trooped over to the train station and took
the train back from Machu Picchu to Ollanta.
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There, we visited the Pisaq Market, town center of Ollantaytambo, in which visitors and locals alike pass through to get to Machu Picchu.
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Jorge then gave us some more information about the Incans, including how they stored food in massive storage rooms up in the mountains, where the high altitudes helped keep potatoes, corn, and other dried foods cool. Next to these storage rooms was a rock protrusion that closely resembled a European face overlooking the town, and we briefly reviewed the history of how the Spaniards easily conquered the Incans with guns, diseases, and the Incans’ own assumptions that these Europeans were the gods themselves. The beautiful town is at least 500 years old; the uneven roads, water channels, and houses were all made long ago by the 500 ancient Incans who resided there. Now, the local people gather at the town square every week to enjoy festivities as the women danced, bearing yellow flowers if they were too young to marry, white if they were married, and red if they were available for marriage. Before leaving the town, we also spent some time inside an ancient Incan house, now used as a small farm to raise cute guinea pigs that are later killed to eat.
There, we visited the Pisaq Market, town center of Ollantaytambo, in which visitors and locals alike pass through to get to Machu Picchu.
Jorge then gave us some more information about the Incans, including how they stored food in massive storage rooms up in the mountains, where the high altitudes helped keep potatoes, corn, and other dried foods cool. Next to these storage rooms was a rock protrusion that closely resembled a European face overlooking the town, and we briefly reviewed the history of how the Spaniards easily conquered the Incans with guns, diseases, and the Incans’ own assumptions that these Europeans were the gods themselves. The beautiful town is at least 500 years old; the uneven roads, water channels, and houses were all made long ago by the 500 ancient Incans who resided there. Now, the local people gather at the town square every week to enjoy festivities as the women danced, bearing yellow flowers if they were too young to marry, white if they were married, and red if they were available for marriage. Before leaving the town, we also spent some time inside an ancient Incan house, now used as a small farm to raise cute guinea pigs that are later killed to eat.
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Back on the bus, Jorge pointed out the Sky Lodge, basically
three small boat-like structures just hanging off the side of as mountain that
served as shelter for professional, daredevil rock climbers, and the white
color of the river locals used to pan out valuable salt for transport to
various places in Peru.
We then had the most amazing, craziest, all-you-can-eat lunch buffet at the restaurant Turunpa, where we dined on mouth-watering alpaca, fresh salad, and the most savory of desserts with slow, calming Peruvian music in the background.
They even had ceviche and sushi – food heaven? Oh yes. And after filling our stomachs with delicious food, we walked down to the Urubamba River to skip stones and listen to the gentle flow of water before trekking back to the bus for more adventures to come
We then had the most amazing, craziest, all-you-can-eat lunch buffet at the restaurant Turunpa, where we dined on mouth-watering alpaca, fresh salad, and the most savory of desserts with slow, calming Peruvian music in the background.
They even had ceviche and sushi – food heaven? Oh yes. And after filling our stomachs with delicious food, we walked down to the Urubamba River to skip stones and listen to the gentle flow of water before trekking back to the bus for more adventures to come
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