Friday 9 December 2011

Our best tip off to visit the JUNGLE in PERU

Pucallpa is a small town nearby the Amazon river in the middle of the jungle. Pucallpa is not visited by many tourist instead are missionaries and doctors who coming most to this town.
When you walk into the little river terminal, you will not be swarmed by touts. No tour guides, no reps from hotels. Even when you exit to the parking lot, the taxi drivers hang back. If you don't approach them, they'll happily sit around all day. They haven't even learned to charge tourists double the going rate.

However, Pucallpa's main attraction is the Laguna Yarinacocha, it was once a bend in the Ucayali River, but the river shifted, and the two are only connected during the rainy season. Today, the lake shelters some excellent jungle wildlife, as well as a few indigenous communities that maintain, to varying degrees, their traditions.

For the locals, Yarinacocha also serves as Pucallpa's best place to party. There are a number of nightclubs and restaurants along the lakeshore. During the day, though, they are a great place to watch the lake and sip a local San Juan beer.

There are more interesting things to see than the beer models shooting publicity photos down by the water. There are a number of boat guides along the water who will offer you a trip on Yarinacocha's tourist circuit. During your tour the guides will be willing to entratain you with unbelievable stories of encounters with jungle creatures. Ask around at the restaurants for a recommendation of a good guide, because the good ones will help you spot animals.
Along the lakeshore, you'll find plenty of cranes and other waterbirds, and in the trees, you will find sloths dangling from high branches. Monkeys can be spotted scurrying around as well. During the rainy season, at the point where the lake and river meet, you can frequently find river dolphins; a good guide will know how to coax them up from the depths.

The day-long tour also includes a visit to one of the indigenous Shipibo villages, usually San Francisco. San Francisco is a small little town that is trying really, really hard to commodify its culture. You'll find an outsized tourist market selling some interesting crafts and billboards advertising ayahuasca ceremonies. There are other, more traditional communities scattered around the area, but it will be harder to convince your tour guide to take you there. The lake towns are also accessible by the irregular ferries, which is how the locals travel. It’s cheaper, but it's not a good option for wildlife-spotting.

Pucallpa, twenty minutes from Yarinacocha by mototaxi, is a rough-and-tumble port city. This is about as far as the road from the coast goes, and it's a big shipment point for goods going to or coming from Iquitos. The streets above the port are filled with stores selling nets, anchors, hammocks and liquor- the basics for an Amazonian expedition.

When you board your plane, you’ll find plenty of tourists returning from Iquitos. They will have seen many of the same things you did, but you will have seen those things far off the tourist trail.
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A journey to the ancient world

Hiking the Inka Trail

IMG 4830 600x325 Hiking the Inca Trail: Machu Picchu – Part Three

Sunrise - Machu Picchu seen from Intipunku


I’m at Intipunku – the Sun Gate. Machu Picchu is still covered by the early morning shadows. As the sun rises, it starts casting its warm rays over the mountaintops, slowly getting closer and closer to the ruins – as if it is flirting with them. I see time pass by as the misty morning air clears and the shadows hide under the valley.

Then, the first rays hit the summit of Wayna Picchu Mountain and slowly slide down until they illuminates the most sacred space of Machu Picchu – Intihuatana Astronomical Observatory.

There is no way of describing the feeling of setting eyes on Machu Picchu for the first time as the sun rises over it – revealing all its power and glory.

Machu Picchu –Old Peak in Quechua– is both the most impressive and least understood of the Inca ruins. This self-contained city is though to have served as a secret ceremonial city. Its secrecy was well guarded by its location – protected by the surrounding mountains and invisible from below. It is not mentioned in any of the chronicles of the conquistadors and modern day archeologists can only speculate on its function. In fact, Machu Picchu obtained its world-class importance because it is one of the only ruins not destroyed by the Spanish conquistadors.

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One of my favorite shots of Machu Picchu

Local Quechua farmers knew about Machu Picchu for centuries, but they kept it secret with hopes of protecting this sacred place and the families living there. It wasn’t until July 24, 1911; when an 11-year-old boy led the Yale Archeologist Hiram Bingham (who was searching for Vilcabamba – the Inca’s last stand) to the hidden and forested site. Soon after that, Machu Picchu and its mysteries became a global icon.

The sun is now shining brightly over Machu Picchu. I have just witnessed a beautiful performance between the sun and Machu Picchu – a dance of time, lights, and shadows that have exceeded all the expectations I have been playing over and over in my head for the last 4 days.

I have one more kilometer to hike from Intipunku, 2,700m (8,858 ft) to the farming terraces of Machu Picchu, 2,450m (8,038 ft).

Once at the terraces, instead of running through the ruins like kids do during their long awaited school break, I sit down for an hour with my friends on one of the high terraces overlooking Machu Picchu, with Wayna Picchu on the background. We rest, we breathe, we absorb, we admire. No matter how many photos you’ve seen or how many stories you’ve read, nothing can prepare you to the surreal feeling of being there.

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Iconic Machu Picchu view

I’m here; surrounded by the grey granite walls, twig roofs, green lawn terraces, and tall Andean mountains. I open myself to all the possibilities this experience could be: spiritual, physical, educational… anything.

Now it’s time, Machu Picchu is calling me. Oddly, for Inca Trail hikers, in order to officially be in Machu Picchu, you have to go out of Machu Picchu first. Without knowing, I have been inside “Machu Picchu” for 4 days!

Once I get my passport stamped at the entrance (just for fun) I begin my guided exploration with Oscar, our Inka Magik guide, and the rest of my tour companions.

We cover places like the guardhouse, the main gate, the agricultural zones, the “qolqas” (storage), the Temple of the Sun, the Temple of the Condor, the Temple of Three Windows, the Sacred Square, the fountains and baths, among others.

I’m marveled by the ingenious architecture and state of the buildings, but Machu Picchu didn’t look like this when it was re-discovered by Bingham. “You see on that lower part” points Fernando to an area full of crumbled building foundations surrounded by grass and debris, “that’s the condition of how Machu Picchu was found, covered with a dense vegetation that made it almost impossible to see from above or far.”

IMG 4899 600x450 Hiking the Inca Trail: Machu Picchu – Part Three

Original status of Machu Picchu (at bottom) when re-discovered by Bingham

I am even more amazed by how the restoration took this complex from crumbled granite rocks foundations to the icon we all know. Still today, they are discovering more terraces hidden under the dense forest cover.

Finally, we reach Intihuatana Astronomical Observatory. This is the highest and most sacred space of Machu Picchu – the space first lit during the sunrise. In its center lies peacefully the Intihuatana stone (“hitching post of the sun”), the most sacred and powerful stone of the whole complex. It is a sun dial that marks precisely the equinoxes (March 21st/September 21st), solstices (June 21st/December 21st), and other significant celestial periods.

Today the Intihuatana stone can’t be touched (thank you Cuzqueña beer for breaking the stone on your commercial shooting). Some say the spirits that reside on the stone left after it was broken. Who knows… I get close to it and extend my hand until it almost touches the revered stone – as if some of its power will get magically transferred to me. Power or not, this stone is a piece of ancient art.

Losing track of time while exploring the ruins is easy; this place feels like another world that absorbs you with its powerful energy.

After finishing the guided tour through the sacred areas I roam the complex on my own, exploring the residential areas and imagining how life must have been in the 1400’s, when over 500 people lived here. I can see the terraces full of crops, the natural spring water flowing through its canals, the buildings with wooden roofs and textiles, the llamas eating the grass, the robed priests giving their sacred ceremonies and meditating, the citizens walking around the courtyards, and the workers performing their agricultural duties.

IMG 4891 600x381 Hiking the Inca Trail: Machu Picchu – Part Three

Urban area of Machu Picchu

Eight hours have passed since I arrived and I still can’t get enough of Machu Picchu. But now it’s time to leave to Aguas Calientes to catch 5:00pm the train back to Cuzco.

I don’t want to leave, but I say goodbye to Machu Picchu in a cheerful way. Hopefully we’ll see each other in the future.

Doing the Inca Trail and visiting Machu Picchu is a journey experienced on many levels. There is the physical challenge, the spiritual and metaphysic connection, the historical background, and the cultural absorption.

There is some sort of energy that emanates from this place. Is it the altitude? The pristine quality of the ruins? The coca leaves? The pure air? A spiritual connection? Or, a combination of the above? I don’t know, but the space truly feels special and unique in an unexplainable way.

Reflecting on my Inca Trail challenge still feels like a rush of blood to my head. It has been an amazing accomplishment that has pushed me over my limits and has rewarded me for all my achievements with its biggest jewel – Machu Picchu

Inka Magik Peru Developing trek adventures for you

Treks to Machu Picchu all the year around

Treks to Machu Picchu all the year around
Inka's Valleys

Sponsor a Charity of your choice and travel to Peru

Travelling to Peru and explore the Inca routes is not a dream, and it can be achieved by supporting a noble cause such as sponsoring a charity you feel you want to fund raise.

All you have to do is to contact the charity of your choice and explain to them you want to fundraise moneys for their organisation and set up a challenge.

We will give you our support to publish your story in our blog and webiste so you can join any of our treks and set your trek.

Unlike other fundraise events we do not charge you or ask you for a minimun payment to sponsor your charity. However, you should be able to cover your trip cost and for the trek. The rest of the moneys you fundraise will go directly to your charity. This is an excellent opportunity which you not be missed by you. More info go into our website and look for the fundraise trips

News-Iberia starts more flights to Peru

21/01/2010
Iberia announced that due to the great demand, it will increase the number of flights between Lima and Madrid, bringing to 11 the total of flights per week. This means that the company will now carry 1,500 more passengers per week, according to Silvia Cairo, Vice President of International Sales. "Europeans have a great demand of Peruvian destinations, not only for tourism, but also for corporative issues,” she added. Cairo told the press that the demand in the Peruvian aero commercial market is likely to grow between 8% and 10%. According to the last official figures from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, international flights to Peru transported more than 4.4 million passengers between January and November.

Courtesy: Livinginperu

Peru's Inca Trail among the Top 5 Adventure trips in the world

Peru's agency to promote exports and tourism reported today that a jury composed by prestigious UK explorers, writers and journalists has just chosen Machu Picchu's Inca Trail as one of the best adventure trips in the world. The Inca Trail ranked 5th in their final list, quoted by Peru.comThe jury, which has conspicuous members such as Tony Wheeler, founder of the famous Lonely Planet, studied during months the most intense adventures offered in several destinations around the world. “We are convinced that despite the crisis, British love for adventure remains intact,” said one of the jurors, Simon Calder. The Inca Trail is part of a network of more than 30,000km of roads that were built during the Inca Empire, and runs along important archaeological sites, offering an impressive panoramic view of the area.

Peru expects to receive 2.2 millions tourist in 2010

Despite the fact that 2009 did not register any increase in receptive tourism, Peru's Tourism Minister Martín Pérez estimated that during 2010 Peru will receive 2.2 million tourists, that is, 200,000 more than last year. According to Perez, 2.56 million tourists arrived in Peru during 2008, while only 2,30 million arrived in 2009; however, he estimated that receptive tourism will grow in Peru, since it is decreasing in another countries due to international financial crisis and AH1N1 influenza issues. He clarified that the increase of domestic tourism compensated the drop in the number of US and European travellers.