Travel Study Trip to Peru
I would like to thank the travel, study, and research grant donor and committee for giving me the opportunity to have an amazing experience in Peru this past summer. I started my Peruvian trip with my cousin, who lives in Bogotà, Colombia, in the capital city, Lima. We stayed in the pretty area of Miraflores for a couple of days. As we made our final preparations for our flight to Cusco and hike to Machu Picchu, we met dozens of tourists mainly from the UK, Australia, and Israel. Everyone was excited to explore the amazing city of Cusco.
At an altitude of almost 4,000 meters, we eagerly set out for the tours around Cusco. My favorite experience of the whole trip was during the physically-draining five-hour mountain bike ride. We rode through the Sacred Valley and two small towns called Moros and Moray. In Moros, I met a young local boy whose curiosity made him approach me. I gave him my Snickers bar and played catch with him during a short break. His smile of gratitude is one that will stay with me forever. We also saw many Inca ruins that are not yet crowded with tourists, and the most interesting one was in Moray. It is a circular agricultural formation that the Inca used to cultivate crops and fruits. They say the reason for the abundance of different types of potatoes in Peru is because the Inca experimented with crops in this particular area. I have the most beautiful pictures from this mountain bike trip. Having been prepared to see beautiful views in Machu Picchu, I was not expecting to experience this breathtaking beauty in the lesser known mountains of Cusco. We also went whitewater rafting in the Urubamba River and luckily never fell off the raft!
After doing the tours in and around Cusco, we set off for Machu Picchu. The guides there are excellent and encourage everyone to keep their spirits high, especially when hiking at that altitude becomes exhausting. Machu Picchu was what I had expected it to be. You have to go there and experience it for yourself. It is the “Lost City of the Incas” and it appears to have been carved out of a mountain. The awe it evokes in people is a sight in itself. People just walk around the ruins of Machu Picchu with jaws dropped in amazement. As I sat on a cliff overlooking Machu Picchu, I was overwhelmed by the energy I felt and the pictures cannot capture that feeling.
The ten days I spent in Peru were peaceful, invigorating, and very spiritual. There were times I felt so close to nature that I almost felt a part of it. I am so grateful for this wonderful experience and I will remember it forever. I definitely came back from this trip rejuvenated and excited for another school year. Thank you!