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DAY 1 LIMA
Pick up upon arrival at Lima’s airport and transportation to the
hotel. Overnight (No meals)
DAY 2 LIMA - CHICLAYO
Early in the morning transfer to the airport where you will take the
flight to Chiclayo (airfare not included).
Upon arrival transfer to the hotel and after some rest time we set
off for the mud-brick pyramid that made world headlines in 1987 with
one of the most sensational finds of recent archaeology. Known as
the Huaca Rajada -- the "Cracked Pyramid", because of the deep
gulleys weathered into its flanks -- this eroded adobe platform
yielded fabulous ancient treasures from a series of deeply buried
tombs of the pre-Inca Moche culture, who lived in the valleys of
Peru's north coast 1,500 years ago. To get there we drive east up
the broad, flat Reque valley past fields of sugarcane studded with
varicolored pastel foothills of the great Andean chain, then
arriving at the modern village of Sipán. Here we see the tombs
themselves, with superb reconstructions of the burials of priests
and chieftains, together with their sacrificed guards and companions.
A highly informative site museum tells the story of this
extraordinary civilization, who created some of the finest pottery,
jewelry and goldworking of the Americas -- while also staging
macabre costumed rituals of combat, sacrifice and propitiation as
they sought to mediate a never-ending struggle between the forces of
Order and Chaos.
We return to Chiclayo for a delicious lunch of Peru's northern-style
cuisine, and then continue on to Lambayeque, where we visit the
Royal Tombs of Sipán Museum. This modern building, representing the
style of a Moche pyramid, was built to house the stunning and
priceless objects unearthed at Sipán. (A single looted object from
the tombs was intercepted at an auction in the U.S. -- carrying a
reserve price of $1.6 million!)
Here we see the incredible array of precious symbols and images,
stones and shell necklaces, ear-plugs and headdresses that were worn
and displayed at Moche ceremonies, and also learn what is known of
their meaning. This astonishing visit ends at an "animated waxworks"
exhibit of the lords and retinue of the Moche court, allowing us to
glimpse and imagine the world of an unfamiliar but dazzling
civilization that thrived here at a time when Europe was sliding
into the Dark Ages after the fall of the Roman Empire.
After these sensational experiences we drive to an oasis of calm at
Tucumé, today's final destination. Here we see the chronological
sequence that followed the fall of the Moche, at a site where their
descendants, the Sicán culture, continued to amass millions of adobe
bricks for the building of mighty pyramids -- including the longest
of its kind in the world, at more than 700m/2,300ft -- but were now
influenced by highland tribes, and began to abandon their old ways.
The history of this scenic site -- extensively investigated by the
famed Norwegian explorer Thor Heyerdahl -- leads us all the way to
the Incas, who conquered the region not long before they, in turn,
were conquered by the Spanish. We can climb to a viewing platform
with superb views of the surrounding pyramids and the dry woodland
habitat of the Leche valley. We can also visit the small, intimate
and low-tech site museum, to enjoy the excellent collection of
excavated objects, dioramas of daily life, and models of the
pyramids.
We return to Chiclayo for an overnight stay. (L)
DAY 3 CHICLAYO TO TRUJILLO: ACROSS THE NORTH PERUVIAN DESERT TO
TRUJILLO AND THE MOCHE PYRAMIDS OF THE SUN AND MOON.
In the morning, we'll travel with our guide by private car or bus to
Trujillo. This half-day journey south down the Pan-American highway
offers a shifting panorama of scenes from coastal Peru, alternating
irrigated river valleys such as the Jequetepeque and Chicama, with
stretches of arid dune and rocky desert. We make a stop at pacasmayo
to enjoy a delicious lunch.
Upon request optional visit the archaeological site of El Brujo:
This site featured in National Geographic magazine after the
sensational discovery here of the mummy of a tattooed priestess,
buried with a variety of ceremonial and military accoutrements. An
extraordinary array of multicolored murals dating from seven or more
phases of construction depicts both scenes from the daily lives of
the Moche, and gory rituals of sacrifice.
Additional: $76 per person based on single and $46 based on
double
We arrive in Trujillo in the early afternoon. This city, founded in
1534 on the orders of Francisco Pizarro, maintains a colonial
atmosphere, with its spacious main square, and marvelous
colonial-period adobe buildings in the coastal colonial style,
featuring huge barred windows and massive wooden doorways. We
continue onwards, driving a short way from Trujillo, to visit the
Huaca de la Luna, and the Huaca del Sol, two huge flat-topped
pyramids built by the Moche culture between 0 and 600A.D. The Huaca
de la Luna is an extraordinary demonstration of what patient
long-term archaeology can achieve. Here, at a site that has been
well known and frequently looted for centuries, excavations have
revealed layer upon layer of ancient construction, uncovering wall
after wall of colorful friezes that were intentionally buried by the
Moche, and had not seen the light of day for one-and-a-half thousand
years. Bloodthirsty fanged deities and exotic gods in the form of
spiders, snakes felines, octopi and other marine creatures rub
shoulders with lines of dancers, warriors and naked prisoners, and
scenes of ritual combat. One wall is covered with such a multitude
of mystifying symbols that it has been labeled simply "The
Complicated Theme" -- until some future archaeologist can offer a
plausible explanation of them. A site museum to display material
unearthed here is under construction, and when opened it will be
part of this visit.
We return to Trujillo to spend the night. Overnight. (B, L)
DAY 4 TRUJILLO TO LIMA: COLONIAL TRUJILLO, THE PICTURESQUE BEACH
RESORT OF HUANCHACO, AND THE PRE-INCA CITY OF CHAN CHAN.
In the morning we tour the historic center of Trujillo, a city whose
heart still pulses with colonial splendor. We visit the immense main
square and the spacious mansions built by Spanish and Creole gentry
during the 17th and 18th centuries. Then we make our way through
Trujillo towards the coast, arriving at the great Chimú center of
Chan Chan, the largest adobe city ever built. It was in fact an
elite settlement, a series of nine enormous palaces belonging to
successive rulers of the Chimú realm. At its height the population
here may have reached 50,000 people. Many of them were artists and
craftspeople, who made the sumptuous goldwork, textiles and pottery
for which the Chimú were famous. At the Tschudi palace enclosure we
enter a labyrinthine series of courtyards lined with clay friezes of
fish and ocean birds, and walled in places with an open meshwork
adobe building style believed to represent fishing nets. We visit
inner patios, residences, administrative buildings, temples,
platforms and storehouses, and a huge reservoir where "sunken
gardens" may have produced specialized crops for the Chimu nobility.
We continue on to the nearby beach resort of Huanchaco, where we
have a chance to try the superb seafood of Trujillo at a restaurant
overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Here fishermen still paddle out to
sea, kneeling on caballitos de totora -- little one-man reed rafts
which have been used for millennia to collect the abundant bounty of
the Pacific ocean.
In the afternoon we drive to the airport in time for our flight to
Lima (Airfare Not included) Upon arrival transfer to your
accommodation. Overnight (B,L)
DAY 5 PUERTO MALDONADO
Early breakfast and pick up to go to the airport for your flight to
Puerto Maldonado (airfare not included).
Transfer from Puerto Maldonado airport to the river port on the
Madre de Dios River. A 25 minutes journey down the Madre de Dios
River by motor canoe brings you to the riverside trailhead to
Sandoval Lake Lodge. From here the trail takes you on a 2-miles
(3,2-kilometers) walk through secondary forest, until we reach a
small canal where we board canoes and are paddled 220 yards (201
meters) through a flooded forest of 100-foot (30-meters) tall
Mauritia palms. As the canal opens onto the shimmering surface of
the lake, we transfer to a catamaran and are leisurely paddled
across half the lake to the lodge.
After lunch and a brief rest to avoid the early afternoon heat, we
will learn about the history of the lodge and the philosophy of its
founders. Then we once again board the catamaran and set off to
explore the entire west end of the lake. Here, in the flooded palm
forest we drift to the sounds of hundreds of Red-Bellied Macaws as
they return to the palm forest for the night. This macaw species is
found locally in parts of the Amazon, always living in flooded palm
forests such as the beautiful palm stand at Sandoval Lake. At
500-800 birds, this flock of macaws at Sandoval Lake is currently
the largest reported in the world for this highly-specialized macaw.
As night falls we will look for the large and extremely rare Black
Caimans. If it is a clear starlit night, we will also be able to
float in the middle of the lake to marvel at the brilliance of the
sky and listen to the sounds of the forest.
We return to the lodge for a short video or slide presentation and
dinner. At any point, you could step out from the bar to admire the
wide variety of nocturnal moths, beetles and praying mantis
attracted to our black light in the lodge clearing.
For those with lots of energy, our guide will take us on a short
night-walk into the forest behind the lodge. (B, L,D).
DAY 6 SANDOVAL LAKE
A pre-dawn wake-up call will enable us to be on the lake for sunrise
and a hopeful encounter with the family of Giant Otters who frequent
the lake and are most active at this time of day. Sandoval Lake
offers abundant wildlife including over 40 species of birds resident
to its lake margins, most of the fish-eating water birds around the
lake actively fish in the early morning as well, and this outing
should provide excellent views, of the prehistoric- looking Hoatzins,
These are easy to observe and also photograph from the paddled
canoes or catamarans.
After returning for a late breakfast we set off into the cool under
story of the tall virgin forest near the lake to see some towering
wild Brazil Nut trees and a demonstration of how our hosts collect,
open and commercialize this important natural product.
After lunch and an hour or so to relax we once again board the
catamaran to explore the eastern part of the lake, where we might
see one or more of the five species of monkeys who live in the
forest near the lake, such as the Brown Capuchin Monkey and Squirrel
Monkey.
Before dinner we will again enjoy an informative natural history
video or slide presentation. We will leave after dinner to try and
spot some Black Caimans on the lake, or to go on a short night walk
through the primary forest. (B,L,D)
DAY 7 RAINFOREST
After a dawn breakfast, we will cross the lake by catamaran and take
a short walk into the interior of the Mauritia palm forest to stand
beneath and closely view the impressive morning congregations, this
place has a very interesting concentration of parrots, parakeets and
large and small macaws that can be observed using dead Mauritia palm
trees, some of them are resident nesters (Yellow headed Parrot,
Mealy Parrot, Blue headed Parrot, Scarlet Macaw, blue and Yellow
Macaw, Red and Green Macaw, Chestnut fronted Macaw, Dusky headed
Parakeet, Red bellied Macaw, Cobalt winged Parakeet, Tui Parakeet).
Returning from the macaw show we will cross the lake to explore a
primary forest trail and admire the impressive ancient rainforest
trees and lianas with our knowledgeable resident naturalist guide.
As we walk, the forest will be brought to life as your guide
explains the ecology of the rainforest and its diverse flora and
fauna.
We return for lunch, and then there is an optional rest for those
who would like to escape the early afternoon heat. For those still
full of energy, there is an option to independently explore some of
the forest trails using our trail map. You might stroll through our
medicinal plant garden or watch hummingbirds visiting the nectar
feeders, or the tanagers visiting our fruit feeders.
In the cooler late afternoon we will once again board the catamaran
to explore the eastern end of the lake, and hopefully experience a
spectacular sunset over the lake before returning to the lodge for
dinner. For some people, an alternative afternoon activity would be
to relax on benches inside the forest perched above a clear running
stream in which a variety of bathing hummingbirds and forest birds
visit.
After dinner, there is a final chance to look for Black Caiman on
the lake, or to go on a short night hike through the forest. (B,L,D)
DAY 8 PUERTO MALDONADO - CUSCO
After early breakfast we leave near dawn and we take a final,
shorter paddle around the west end of the lake to try and glimpse
the Giant Otters before returning by motor canoe for the 35 minutes
return trip to the Puerto Maldonado Airport, taking advantage of
valuable early morning wildlife activity along the river. From here
you fly to Cusco (airfare not included). Upon arrival to Cusco
Airport. Reception and transportation to the Hotel where you will
receive an aromatic coca tea to stimulating for the height, will
have the morning to rest and also we suggest you have a light lunch
in either your hotel or in one of the surrounded; in the afternoon
we will depart on a City tour (entrance to the archaeological
centers and museums including) we will visit the Main square,
Cathedral, the Koricancha (temple of the sun) and in addition we
will make a route bordering archaeological centers like Sacsayhuaman
Fortress, Q'enko, Puka Pukara and Tambomachay, tour finishes 6:30pm
approximately at the main square in order you can take dinner in one
of the exquisite restaurants in the area, then overnight. (B)
DAY 9 FULL DAY SACRED VALLEY TOUR
Breakfast. You will be picked up at 8:15 am. Full day excursion to
the Urubamba Valley visiting: the colorful Indian market in Pisac
where a mixture of color and tradition will be able appreciated
besides will have a good opportunity to try our bargain skills on
the free time to interact with the local craftsmen to purchase their
hand-made souvenirs. The Valley has a distance of 31 km (19 miles)
of Cusco, and an altitude of 2,970 ms (9,700 p), Pisac is located to
the entrance of the Sacred Valley and followed by Ollantaytambo, the
older town continuously occupied of the American continent. The
narrow streets of Ollantaytambo, along with their channels that have
not varied from the time Inca, evoke their ancestral inheritance,
lunch in a typical restaurant and then the last visit will be to
Chinchero market.
Chinchero is believed to be the mythical birthplace of the rainbow.
Its major claim to tourism is its colorful Sunday market which is
much less tourist-orientated than the market at Pisac. At the end,
return to Cusco main square at 6:30pm approx.
The night is free for you to eat in a restaurant of your choice;
although we always have plenty of suggestions for you should you
require them. (B, L)
Note: Take this tour on market days: Tuesday, Thursday and
Sunday
Bilingual Guided tour on different days
DAY 10 MACHUPICCHU OVERNIGHT TOUR
Early breakfast and pickup to go the train station to depart to
Machu Picchu, the trip takes about 4 hours. During the trip we will
have an amazing view of the landscapes of the Sacred Valley of
Urubamba and the Amazon rainforest providing you a small hint of how
much Peru has to offer. Upon arrival to the little town of Aguas
Calientes you will have to approach the bus station towards the
“Ciudadela of Machu Picchu” (Only 20 minutes ride) to receive a
professional guided tour by this Huge Historical Sanctuary follow by
some free time to explore the zone on your own and then take your
buffet lunch at the Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge restaurant (included),
an according time, we will go down to the Aguas Calientes town to
relax at the hot springs or just overnight at the select hotel in
Aguas Calientes town. (B,L).
DAY 11 MACHU PICCHU / CUZCO
Breakfast and rest of day at leisure by your own (entrance and bus
fee to Machu Picchu not included on this day) in the afternoon
return to Cusco. Reception at the train station and transfer to the
Hotel where it passed the night (B).
Upon request: You can make a second visit to Machu Picchu and have
the chance to know hidden places, such as the Intipunku (Gate of the
Sun) or for more adventures can take a hike to the top of Huayna
Picchu (Young Mountain) to visit the Temple of the Moon and enjoy a
spectacular view of the city. Or if you have good physical
conditions can take a hike full of adrenaline to the Putukusi
mountain opposite position than Machu Picchu which allows us to have
other unforgettable views from this new wonder.
DAY 12: TRANSFER OUT
Breakfast and according time, transportation will be provided to go
the airport (B).
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click to enlarge
Nazca
Lines
Cathedral
Machu
Picchu
typical
native fishing boat
Sun Island
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