This month there is a unique opportunity to visit an authentic Incan festival held high in the Andean mountains. If you are interested in witnessing first-hand Incan ceremonies & traditions in a small indigenous village under the stunning backdrop of one of the most striking peaks in the Vilcanota mountain range then please read on…

Among the many enchanting festivals that punctuate Peru´s annual calendar, the Qoyllority Festival stands out as one of the most intriguing of all.

Observing the ancient Incan belief in the intricate link between man and nature, each year thousands of pilgrims gather to celebrate Qoyllority, the Lord of the Snow Star. As legend has it the adulated snow star rests on the peak of the sacred mountain of ApuAusangate, located 180 kilometres South East of Cusco and towering at a dramatic 6362m.

Huacachina is a beautiful oasis located 5km southwest of Ica. It is a small and attractive lagoon that was traditionally revered for the believed medicinal properties of its waters. Nowadays it is famous for the more exhilarating activities of sand-boarding and dune buggying!

Sand-boarding excursions leave twice a day at either 10am or 4pm, the best option of which is undoubtedly the latter. Not only is the sand markedly cooler underfoot, but after two hours of adrenaline pumping activity you will find yourself soaring across the endless sand dunes with the most beautiful sunset you have ever seen as your backdrop.

The tour begins on the dunes next to the oasis where you climb aboard a ´Wacky Racer´ style buggy and prepare for a speedy ascent up into the dunes. After a rollercoaster ride of dips and turns your driver drops you at the summit of some of the perfectly shapen dunes and you are issued with your sand board, along with a piece of wax to rub on the base of your board for speed increasing purposes!

From here on you will spend two hours flying headfirst (or standing up if you have the skills!) down the dunes of the truly stunning landscape of the Peruvian coast. After reaching the base of one dune you will be met by your buggy and taken to the top of another dune, each time getting higher and higher as you become more confident in your sand-boarding ability.

Every year during the week running up to Easter, the streets of Cusco are filled with vibrant and energetic religious processions.  In 2011, Semana Santa will run from Sunday 17th until Sunday 24th of April.

Celebrations begin on Sunday 17th, Palm Sunday or ‘Domingo de Ramos’.  Today families go to church with palms and ask for blessings.   Following this on Monday, Cusco adds its own unique twist to Easter festivities and dedicates celebrations to ‘El Señor de los Temblores’ or ‘The Lord of the Earthquakes’, the patron saint of Cusco.   Around 2pm there is a procession with a beautifully decorated statue of the Saint through the streets of the old city of Cusco.  In the evening the procession reaches the Plaza de Armas, where thousands of people flood into the square to watch as the Saint is taken to the Cathedral and blessed. 

Throughout the week you will find people selling traditional sweets and cakes of Easter in the streets, or especially in the main markets of the city. Take a look in San Pedro market, 5 minute walk from the Plaza, to see a huge selection of traditional Easter treats!

Day 3: Jungle – Playa – Santa Teresa

Today is the third day of the Salkantay trek to Machu Picchu. This trek is known as the more alternative trek, another option for the famous Inca Trail. It is actually a very good alternative for people that want to do something different, or, for those who cannot get a spot on the Inca Trail. You will cross one of the most astonishing Andean landscapes and see the most beautiful panoramic views of mountain chains. Furthermore, you will pass through a big variety of habitats and environments, you will see snow peaked mountains and will be in the vicinity of the tropical rainforest.

On this third day, we walk along the river to a little village called La Playa. We visit the waterfalls of Pacche – there are 11 different waterfalls, each with a height of approximately 50 meters! We see lots of butterflies, banana trees, coffee plants, avocado trees, and so much more. We even spotted an eagle. It’s warm and as we descend it gets even hotter! The climate is warm in this area and a difference with other warm areas is that in this place the typical agricultural production consists of pomegranate trees.

In 2011 the ancient Inca ruins of Machu Picchu in Peru celebrate their 100th anniversary. Or at least; the ruins were discovered one hundred years ago. The village of Machu Picchu was accidentally discovered on July 24th,1911 by the American historian Hiram Bingham. A group of Quechuan people led the explorer up the mountains to the peak they called Machu Picchu (meaning old mountain). To his surprise there were still people living in the village. Machu Picchu was built in 1450 and abandoned a century later with the arrival of the Conquistadores.

The tiny little town Nazca, in southern Peru – famous for The Lineas de Nazca – has the highest sand dune of the world: “Cerro Blanc”  is around the 2080 meters and lies in the desert.  Sandboarding is one of the most popular things you can do here and it attracts a lot of people. The only part that you don´t expect is that you have to walk up the dune with your sand board because there are no elevators here. Therefore, tours leave really early in the morning,  to prevent the tourists from burning: Nazca is in the middle of the desert so temperatures can go up to 35 – 38 degrees. I left for my trip around 11 in the morning, which was quite late. However, even although I had to walk up the sand hill and it was terrible hot, it was definitely worth the effort! Up on the sand dune, the guide takes his time to explain you what do.

Day 2.

We start this second day of our river rafting tour in Peru, at 6.30am, getting up and packing away our tent before breakfast.  For breakfast we get bread, porridge, fresh fruit, cereal and yoghurt – and I make an effort to eat as much as I can to give me strength for the day ahead!  We get going at around 8am, running a few ‘friendly’ level III rapids before meeting our first level IV.  I feel a little nervous about running it, but the guide explains exactly what to expect and how we will maneuvre the raft through and after that I feel excited.  We stop for lunch around 12.30, the guides serve a buffet on a beach by the river.  After this we all take an hour to relax in the sunshine before continuing.  In the afternoon we run a level V rapid.  Peru is such a beautiful country, I am so happy to be here!

This rafting trip is one of the best experiences on offer in Peru. It is 3 days of rafting on rapids between levels II to V on the River Apurimac near Cusco. The Apurimac is one of the top 10 rivers for white water in the world, and the section we run flows through a huge canyon offering spectacular scenery. Each night we camp by the side of the river on beaches, these places within the canyon can only be accessed by the river – there are no signs of people anywhere.  It is a true wilderness, a rare thing in the world today.

Day 1.
We meet to leave Cusco at 8.30am. The journey to the ‘put in’ is around 4 hours, first by road then by dirt track, and we stop in the town of Izcuchaca on the way to pick up supplies. On the way we will also get some amazing views of the deep valley the river flows through, and the surrounding mountains.

The Inca Trail so far has been an incredible and wonderful experience (see other blog posts below).  On day 4, we woke up very early this morning!! After a quick breakfast and a quick stop at the washrooms, we were off on our last leg of the trek to Machu Picchu! During the hike up to the Intipunku archaeological site (also known as the Gateway of the Sun – Inti means “sun” in Quechua, the original Inca language) we were able to take a break and watch the sun rise over the mountains. The pinks, oranges and yellows were like nothing I’d seen before. Once we reached Intipunku, the weather was perfect to get tons of great photos of Machu Picchu from above. But our journey didn’t stop here: once we were done taking photos we began the last 30 minutes of the hike to Machu Picchu. The group decided we would like to see the Inca Bridge since we had opted out of climbing Huayna Picchu. The bridge was about a 10 minute walk through jungle-like landscapes on the very edge of the mountain. The bridge was built by the Incas and then later, one section destroyed to deter the conquistadors from following them. 

Today – the third day of the 4 day Inca Trail to the lost ruins of Machu Picchu in Peru – was supposed to be an easier day than yesterday. We started out early again this morning. Today we got to see a few more Inca archaeological sites than the last two days. In the morning we saw the Runkurakay site which is just below the Runkurakay pass. It is thought that this site was used as a resting point for the Inca messengers. Puma explained to us how the Inca messengers, called chasquis, would run through the Andes Mountains, forming a type of relay to send messages from one community to another. The chasquis would chew coca leaves to help give them the energy to run up the huge peaks. Puma taught us how to properly chew coca leaves too but most of us couldn’t keep them in our mouths more than a few minutes. As we continued our hike, we were able to pass through a couple Inca tunnels which were really neat to see! After climbing the pass we came to the second main archaeological site, Phuyupatamarca which has a series of intricate ceremonial baths.