CuscoPeru.com

Lima

Peru’s capital and most populous city is underrated, so don’t make the common mistake of heading straight out of town. With an Inca Kola in hand, this is a great place to go shopping in handicraft markets, which offer goods from all over Peru at bargain prices. Take a guided tour of the city’s highlights, including the Larco Museum, an archaeological gem with colorful gardens and a full wing dedicated to ancient erotic art. Watch parasailers from the seaside view at the Parque del Amor and explore the San Francisco church and convent, which has underground catacombs filled with neatly organized bones and skulls as well as a painting of the Last Supper showing the apostles sitting down to a meal of guinea pig. Pass an evening in Parque Kennedy in the trendy neighborhood of Miraflores, admiring paintings displayed by local artists and grabbing dinner at one of the restaurants that make up Pizza Alley.

Cusco

This charming city located high in the Peruvian Andes was the Incas’ capital city before the Spanish conquered it in the 1500s. Now it’s the country’s capital city of tourism. Its landscape is so rich with history that the entire city is on the UNESCO World Heritage list. Spend as much time here as possible, as there is plenty to explore. But before you set off on a tour, rest on a bench in the Plaza De Armas and soak up its enchantment with a cup of coca tea, which is said to alleviate altitude sickness. Then visit the ruins of Sacsayhuamán, a temple to the sun that, with its zigzag formation of huge stones, is an awesome expression of Incan architecture and might.

Relax from your expeditions back in the Plaza De Armas, the heart of the city. Dine at one of the second-story restaurants and sip pisco sour from the wooden balcony while you enjoy the vista.

Make time for a daytime drive through the nearby Sacred Valley, where you’ll see snow-capped mountains and awe-inspiring countryside. With large indigenous populations, Cusco and the Sacred Valley provide some of the best people watching in the world.

Machu Picchu

No trip to Peru would be complete without visiting “The Lost City of the Incas.” This breathtaking New Wonder of the World consists of agricultural terraces, temples and main squares built of stone and without mortar by the Incas in the 1400s. Another massive display of manpower was constructed in harmony with the surrounding mountains and sits high in the clouds, offering magical views. It was practically forgotten for centuries until Yale professor Hiram Bingham came across it in 1911. Take a guided tour of the ruins in the morning, eat lunch at the Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge’s buffet restaurant, and then, once you’re satisfied that you’ve adequately explored the ruins, spend the afternoon sprawled out on one of the ancient grassy terraces, wondering how the Incas thought it up.

If your budget allows, stay at the Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel, consistently named among the best hotels in the world. You could pass hours, days even, strolling through its private nature reserve, which includes a rare orchid garden, photographing hummingbirds and eating delicious food. (Tip: Order the French toast. You’ll never taste better.)

The Amazon

Just a quick flight from Cusco, Puerto Maldonado makes for a convenient transfer point into the Amazon. From the airport, we were whisked off to the Inkaterra Butterfly House for check-in and a stroll through a netted paradise that’s home to hundreds of species of butterflies. After a dusty ride through the chaotic streets of this bustling town, we boarded the boat that would carry us through the Rio Madre de Dios and into the wild. But a weekend at the Inkaterra eco-lodge isn’t roughing it. The spectacular, yet rustic, complex has 35 palm-thatched cabanas. Ours had a sitting area with two hammocks, a private bathroom and hot shower; others also had a private plunge pool. The truly adventurous – and wealthy – can take it one step further and spend the night in a secluded tree house high above the ground.

English-speaking guides lead excursions through the forest floor, pointing out medicinal plants and exotic ones, like the walking palm tree, which is said to literally walk toward sunlight, putting new roots down in the direction of the sun. The guides share their secrets about finding wildlife, which is masked by the lush vegetation. They point out tarantulas, black caimans, piranhas and killer ants. From the resort’s Canopy Walkway, which provides a bird’s eye view from eight hanging bridges more than 60 feet up, guests can spot macaws and toucans in the treetops. And maybe the most memorable excursion of all is to Lake Sandoval, where a 1.5-mile hike will lead you to the mirrorlike lake. From a canoe we watched troops of squirrel monkeys spring from one branch to another. The sunset was miraculous, as beautiful as any I’d ever seen, and it gave way to the most spectacular sky, so bright it could have been mistaken for a child’s exaggerated painting of the constellations.

Nazca Lines

Come to Ica for the awesome archaeological mystery nearby that is the Nazca Lines, but stay and explore the barren desert region by dune buggy. If you’re gutsy, listen close as the guide gives a 20-second lesson in sand boarding and then head straight down the dune. (My fearless husband slid down first. Later, with the others down below yelling for me to hurry up, I finally let the guide push me off. I went screaming all the way.)

Turns out, this is good preparation for boarding one of the tiny planes that show visitors the Nazca Lines, a series of ancient geoglyphs of animals and geometric figures best viewed from the air. Professional pilots maneuver the planes from side to side rapidly so that each of the 4 to 6 passengers gets a view of the most recognizable figures: The hummingbird, the monkey, the spider and the astronaut. Back on land, ponder the theories of this phenomenon, which have stumped the experts since it was spotted by plane in the 1920s.

Exploring this area’s wonders kept us both exhilarated and fearing for our lives. But don’t let that stop you from going. I’d do it again in a heartbeat.

Splurge by overnighting at the beautifully modern Double Tree Guest Suites in Paracas. Take a cruise of the Ballestas Islands the next morning, where you will see tens of thousands of birds and likely spot sea lions, dolphins and penguins.

Source: ‘www.chron.com’