We weren't sure where we wanted to go but knew it was going to be International. Cierra had seen my moms scrapbook from her time in Peru with Amazon/Andes Expedition Explores Natural Health & Healing and from there the Peru/Machu Picchu idea came to light.
I am not big on tours, be there, be here and follow along. More the wing it and see where we land kind of traveler. That being said I do like to feel a little grounded and have some idea of what & where plus I don't want to miss something that is a "must see". So a few months before our trip I started googling and reading blogs. Anything I could find on getting to and staying around Machu Picchu. Mom sent her info she had saved, pamphlets and maps.
Machu Picchu Peru is a truly majestic Inca ruins situated above the Sacred Valley and voted one of the New 7 Wonders of the World. When going be aware of the seasons ~ December, January, February, and March are the rainy seasons. We went March 12 - 18 and saw signs of rain but were lucky and had perfect weather! The currency is the Peruvian nuevo sol (PEN) and language is Spanish.
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We decided to have money exchanged prior and our local bank did it at no charge a week ahead. We exchanged $450.00, at the time of our travel that equaled 1,420 PEN and I carried 2 credit cards. Few things to note on our packing list...power converters - some blogs said it was the converter/adapter with pins and others said flat plug- I puchased 2 converters/adapters, one for each of us Insignia Travel adapter & converter & iConcepts World Wide travel adapter converter we used the Pins in Ollantaytambo and the flat in Cuzco so you may need both adapters. I purchased a cheap rain poncho at Walmart but never used it. Was thankful we had purchased a Small backpack, this brand folds into itself so makes it so easy to travel with! A North Face light jacket as the evenings were little chilly and early am in Machu Picchu was cool. Granola bars & snacks. Sunscreen (very important as even on cloudy days the elevation is higher and sunburning is fast & painful). A blog we had read said use regular shampoo as bug lotion so we had little travel samples for "bug lotion" and regular insect wipes. Our time wasn't bad for insects but I do believe it really depends on when you are there. Passport, credit cards and the bulk of our Sols I wanted to carry in a RFID protected money belt, I wasn't sure about this as never wore one but I had it on from Lima on and really forgot it was there as it is comfortable and didn't show. (After some thought and reading on the money belt I think next time I will use a "dummy" wallet instead as someone could grab your waist and feel the money belt). Comfortable hiking shoes and socks, extra camera batteries and extra sd cards.
We kept luggage to a min. one small roller each and 1 messenger bag.
Remember to tell your credit cards you are traveling and find out about your phone service, we have Verizon and could add International for the month.
* next blog post ~ Machu Picchu part 2 the adventure begins...
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