picinas de lares

Last weekend some friends of mine invited me over to visit the thermal baths of Lares. It is a small city about 5 hours away from Cusco and I had heard people talking about it but I did not know what to expect. The baths are famous for their healing powers. We left with a few people on Saturday afternoon and had lunch in Calca, a small rural town in the sacred valley and also known as the Inca capital of the Sacred Valley. The ride went great so far and the landscapes were really enjoyable. One of the things I liked most is that you see a glimpse of the real Peruvian life in the rural areas. From the way they built there houses to the typical costumes they have on. Unfortunately you also see the poverty and it becomes clear that the campesinos (that is how the farmers are called here) do not get much support from the government. After having passed the sacred valley we began, what ultimately seemed to me like endless, the climb towards Lares, one hairpin bend after another. We were beginning to enter the highlands and it became more and more dark and cloudier. It was great to see the alpacas in their natural surroundings though and out of nowhere shepherds would appear with their herd of sheep or alpacas. When we finally reached the thermal baths in Lares it was already dark. We put up our tents and we entered the waters.

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