Lima came and went in a blur. Mainly because we were there for less than 24 hours. We arrived in style on a Cruz del Sur bus, which was decked out beyond belief. Huge leather seats that recline almost flat. Personal TV screens with WiFi. A STEWARDESS, and drink and snack service. All this for less than the cost of a Bolt Bus from New York to DC.

Since we spent the night of November 19th on said bus, we decided to actually celebrate our anniversary in Lima. We spent the day walking around Miraflores, a gorgeously landscaped neighborhood that skirts along a cliff’s edge. There’s a site for paragliding takeoffs, which make for great touristy photos–the city, the ocean, and the bright parachutes lighting up the sky.

Parque de Amor (Love Park) is a small collection of private nooks and benches all covered in mosaic, surrounding a huge statue of a man and woman kissing. The mosaic art is full of quotes from love poems, and the names of various couples. We took a lot of photos on our small camera, but unfortunately don’t have them to share.  (More on that later.) We finished our anniversary at a great seafood restaurant, and with our first Pisco Sours in Peru. Delicious!

After an early morning flight, we landed way up high in Cusco (11,152 ft) and checked into Mama Simona hostel, one of our favorites so far. The city splinters out from a plaza that’s crawling with tourists, surrounded by Inca-built walls, Spanish colonial churches, and the industry that brings it all together. You can’t walk a block without being offered a massage (good for all the hikers?) or a trip to Machu Picchu and other Sacred Valley sights.

We had five days to acclimate and see the sights before our five-day trek began, but Eric was met with our first (and hopefully last!) mean stomach illness. Unfortunately this sidelined us significantly and, other than a one-day walking tour (check out Free Walking Tours!), we didn’t do much. After days of defiling the hostel bathroom, it was on to the Salkantay Trek!

Here’s where we were:
(Lima, Peru)