Touring the Sacred Valley

My tour of the sacred valley generally tested my theory that I have gone through the worst of my altitude sickness... But proved that my body just doesn't want to cooperate with me this trip. I don't think I have actually felt WELL since my plane landed in Lima. The other night, on my overnight bus, just as my food poisoning and altitude sickness had finally subsided, I got a tickle in my throat... And sure enough, I'm getting a cold. Yesterday I spent mostly in bed reading, although I did have a little walk around town in search of good coffee, and not only did the 3350m altitude not affect me too badly (it's still a bit of a huff & puff up some of the steeper hills), but I found an Aussie-run coffee place that knows how to make a cappuccino! 

So anyways, the sacred valley tour. First off, I was still sick and didn't really want to talk to anyone. Second off, I was the only English speaker on the whole bus so the English translation was ONLY for me.  Sounds awkward huh? It ended up being really nice, if touristy like every other tour I've been on. 

First we went to Pisac, a beautifully terraced fortress where I tested my ability to move around and climb stairs both sick and at altitude. I still had a hard time catching my breath, but it actually felt so much better to feel like I was hiking again! Back on the bus we headed to ollantaytambo, driving through the valley along the river. I could see why the indigenous people felt this place was sacred! Mountains on either side, deep valleys, terraces cut into the hillsides, tiny towns, the sun shining down on all of it... Es muy bonita!

Ollantaytambo was an even harder climb, but at the top was something like a Peruvian version of Stonehenge. 6 monolithic stones brought from the other side of the valley before the Incas perfectly fit together without mortar. 

The last stop was a church in Chinchero. Surprisingly there was a weaving demonstration (another tourist trap moment, but a cool one for this knitter!) with demonstration of vegetable dying as well. sadly their yarn was too threadlike for me to buy (noooo!!). I still am on a quest for Peruvian wool to knit with this winter. 

These tours involve a lot of bus time (and I'm writing this on my iPhone to pass the time, wanted you to know in case the grammar and typos are a bit awkward), which hopefully will help me recover a bit. Stupid me decided NOT to bring the sudafed, so I'm soon headed to a farmacia with my little phrasebook. I'm glad it has a lot of health phrases!