|
DAY 1 LIMA
Pick up upon arrival at Lima’s airport and transportation to the
hotel. Overnight (No meals)
DAY 2 LIMA, CARAL, CHAVÍN: A JOURNEY TO ANCIENT CITIES
We set off early by private vehicle from Lima, heading north up the
Pan-American Highway. After about 2 ½ hours, our first major stop is
Caral, once an important center of the ancient cultures of the Norte
Chico, the remains of whose rock-and-earth stepped-pyramids lie
scattered across this desert region. Caral is the perfect place to
begin a tour of early Peruvian civilizations, since archaeological
evidence suggests that this extremely old religious and residential
complex was the cradle of Andean civilization, perhaps the oldest
urban center of the Americas, establishing patterns of monumental
construction and religious worship that persisted for millennia.
Here around 2,600 BC, while the ancient Egyptians were beginning to
construct their pyramids, early Peruvians established a less
hierarchical society, one based on marine resources, that apparently
thrived peacefully on trade and a now forgotten religion.
We continue a short way north and then turn inland, climbing into
the Andes up a sinuous and dramatic paved highway that takes us
across a high pass and into the famous Callejón de Huaylas, the
valley of the Santa river, and home to Peru´s highest snow-capped
peaks.
Continuing east, we cross the next range, cresting the Continental
Divide, and descending into the Marañon/Amazon river drainage on our
way to Chavín de Huantar, the next stop on our journey through
Peru´s ancient past. We will spend the next two nights at the
selected accommodation. (B, Box lunch)
DAY 3 CHAVÍN DE HUANTAR TO HUARAZ: FROM HALLUCINOGENIC LABYRINTH
TO HIGH CORDILLERAS
This morning we explore the intriguing remains of a mysterious,
powerful and astonishing civilization. Chavín is known to
archaeologists as the wellspring of the "Early Horizon" period,
dating from around 800 BC. These were the first Andean people to
spread their cultural and religious influence far and wide, all the
way to the coast, and as distant as about 300Km/200 miles south of
where Lima stands today. Their center here at Chavín de Huantar
straddled trans-Andean trade routes, and drew pilgrims to a great
temple, where esoteric rituals were practiced under the influence of
powerful hallucinogens. Here we see the subterranean labyrinth which
once boomed with the sound of water rushing through hidden channels,
and where a great stela (the Lanzón) carved with ferocious mythical
creatures and mysterious symbols still stands in its central chamber.
After lunch we return to the Callejón de Huaylas and head north to
Huaráz, at the foot of the Cordillera Blanca, in the shadow of
mighty Huascarán, Peru´s highest mountain. We overnight in Huaraz.
(B, L)
DAY 4 HUARÁZ, SECHÍN, TRUJILLO: DESCENT TO SECHÍN ALTO AND THE
SOURCES OF CHAVÍN, AND ON TO A SPANISH COLONIAL CITY
We take another scenic plunge from Andes to Pacific coast, and reach
the site of Sechín Alto, the site of a coastal civilization which
pre-dated Chavín, and was probably its cultural ancestor. Here an
early Peruvian civilization built a vast enclosure ringed with great
monoliths carved with gruesome scenes of battle, mutilation and
death. Scholars argue about whether these were literal
representations, or symbolic depictions of these people´s ritual
lives, but most agree that the people of Sechín Alto were the
predecessors of the highland Chavín culture.
Sechín Bajo, an early part of this site dating from a previous
period -- perhaps as far back as 3,500 BC -- vies with Caral for the
title of "first urban settlement of the Americas".
After lunch we continue northward up the Pan-American highway to
Trujillo. 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. Tomorrow we will get a close-up look at its fine colonial
architecture.
We will spend the next two nights at the selected accommodation, a
majestic hotel in the heart of Trujillo´s historic center. (B, Box
lunch)
DAY 5 TRUJILLO: THE COLONIAL CITY, THE GREAT ADOBE PYRAMIDS OF
HUACA DE LA LUNA AND HUACA DEL SOL, THE PICTURESQUE BEACH RESORT OF
HUANCHACO, AND THE PRE-INCA CITY OF CHAN CHAN.
We begin a full day of touring and exploration around this
fascinating area. Touring 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.
After our city visit we drive 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 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.
After lunch we return to Trujillo, stopping 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 overnight in Trujillo. (B, L)
DAY 6 TRUJILLO TO CHICLAYO: THE MOCHE TEMPLE OF EL BRUJO,
PERUVIAN PASO HORSES, AND AN ELEGANT NORTH-COAST LUNCH.
We set off early, heading north by road up the Pan-American highway
and into the adjacent Chicama river valley, then making a short
detour to the Pacific shore to 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.
Continuing northward, we make a stop at a hacienda in Paiján to
enjoy a delicious lunch, along with a colorful display of the
skilled horsemanship of local Peruvian paso horses and their riders,
who combine their art with the dance and music of the northern
marinera. This is an optional activity (cost not included), which we
highly recommend.
We reach Chiclayo in the afternoon, with time to relax, and perhaps
enjoy the pool or soak up the atmosphere of this bustling tropical
city. (B, L)
DAY 7 CHICLAYO, THEN LIMA: THE “CRACKED PYRAMID”, TÚCUME, AND THE
ROYAL TOMBS OF SIPÁN.
In the morning 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 gulley’s 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 gold working 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 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 return to Chiclayo for a
delicious lunch of Peru's northern-style cuisine at a top local
restaurant. We then drive onward 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, at more than 700m -- 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 say farewell to the warm, dry valleys of Northern Peru and set
off for the airport in the late afternoon for our evening flight to
Lima (Airfare not included). Upon arrival transfer to the hotel.
Overnight (B, L)
DAY 8 CUSCO
You will be picked up from your hotel in the morning, transfer to
the airport to take the flight 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 free morning to rest and also we suggest you
have a light lunch in either your hotel or in one of the surrounded;
in the evening 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)
*Optional Buffet Dinner with Folkloric Show: Adding $24 per
person
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 CUSCO / MACHU PICCHU (*Overnight in Aguas Calientes)
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 selected 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 / CUSCO
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 transportation from the hotel to the airport for your
flight back to Lima (airfare not included) arriving in time to catch
your international connection (B)
END OF SERVICES |
