Finally- Our Peruvian Adventure

So, it may have been 3 months ago, but I have been a bit busy with a little one and it was hard to choose just a few pictures of our great Peruvian adventure to share with you.

I will note that this post is only going to share our travels and not even my brother's wedding, so there is still more to share.

There is something magical about seeing the clouds from above.

Sitting on daddy's lap to eat on the plane!

First, our 3-hour plane ride to Houston, followed by a 3-hour layover that was extended by 2 hours due to a delay, and then another 6-hour flight, was actually much better than we imagined. Mostly because I thought we were flying through LA first, and didn't even realize that was not the case until the day before we left. Emerson was excellent. The people in the row behind us on the plane said it was like we did not have a baby. He slept the majority of the long flight, and allowed for me and Kyle to watch movies ("Gravity") and feel like the old days when we traveled without a sleeping baby spread across our laps. My advice: splurge for the extra 6-inches of leg room (thank you US Airways) and get the row of 2 seats along the edge of the plane so you don't have to share the space. Totally worth the extra cost per person.

The boys sleeping in the terminal in Houston, as always...

Waiting patiently for our flight...

At least Emerson go some play time in with the extra waiting time in Houston

Then, we arrived in Lima EXTRA late, and were picked up by my future sister-in-law's mom and family. We only got about 4 hours of sleep before returning to the airport to leave for Cusco the next morning.

Cusco was GREAT. It is definitely a tourist town, and despite its 11,000 foot altitude, it was warm in the sun and full of culture and activity. A great town square is surrounded by hotels and restaurants. We stayed a bit of a ways from the city center, but our hotel was modern and clean. We had a free breakfast buffet and plenty of space there, but it was a bit cold at night with only a tiny space heater to keep the room warm.

We immediately left for a city tour after getting picked up at the Cusco airport by our guide for the stay, Pablo. Pablo was 74, but looked about 55. He did EVERYTHING for us. Thanks to my sister-in-law, Irina, we were hooked up with an all-inclusive stay and didn't even had to order a taxi. Pablo escorted us anywhere we wanted to go. Unfortunately, our luggage did not arrive with us, so we left for the city tour in inappropriate attire for the chill that fell over the city after the sun set. And I was wearing flats, not exactly the best shoes for walking on ANCIENT cobble-stone paths and climbing stairs that have existed since the time of the Incas. I also did not realize that the CITY tour was really a tour of the countryside ruins, and therefore would not be suitable for stroller. Needless to say, we had our own adventure of figuring out how to tour with a baby. Luckily, for most of our tours, Emerson slept while we drove on the buses and fed when we had pit stops. He was the perfect age to be adaptable.

Another odd thing on the city tour was that my uncle, who had hiked the Inca trail to Machu Picchu that week, was coincidentally on the same tour as us, so we had back up.

I could go on for pages about what we saw just on that 4-hour tour the first day, but here are a couple highlights in picture form. Our guide that tour, Marco Antonio, was one of the highlights, as at every stop he'd tell a story, and then hold us in suspense as we walked to the next landmark by posing a question, such as "Who was the most important god to the Incas?" and then saying "Let me show you..." So, where did we go on that first day? Let me show you....

Emerson outside our hotel, The Eco Inn, and the great street decor

Our first stop- the monastery that contains Incan temples inside of it.

A replica of the ancient structure of the Incan religion in gold

Monastery tour

Hanging out with the uncle Tom

Emerson slept through the tour, of course

This was pronounced "Sexy Woman"

The ruins were incredible- these stones were all set in place WITHOUT machines!

Family pic!

That is Cusco in the background

A shot of the entirety of the ruins

This pictures gives you a better perspective of how large those stones were- impressive!

Another family picture of the ancient village

Kyle and Emerson taking a "breather" at 12,000 feet

An ancient aqueduct

We took Emerson through a cave tunnel in the pitch black despite our guide's insistence that we didn't.

We finished the night off with Pisco sours, traditional Peruvian cuisine, and the best Peruvian beer- Cusquena Negra.

The following day was MACHU PICCHU!!! So exciting to see one of the wonders of the ancient world. We saw it in what many consider to be the "cheating" way- via train and bus- but we still hiked around the ruins plenty, with a baby strapped to us. Most of the tourists were shocked that we had a baby with us. We were one of the few tour groups that had children at all, much less an infant. Emerson had to eat midway on our tour, so I had a walking feeding for the first time (and last), and it was a bit rainy and cloudy, so we had to keep him dry at first, but overall it was still an amazing experience. We were sad to only be in the area for 1 day. The town was SO touristy, with mostly pizza joints, hostels, and bars, but would have been cool to explore a little more. And next time, we HIKE in as a family.

Boarding our train

Emerson doesn't even realize how excited his momma is

Riding my first train with dad!

Checking out the astounding scenery

The astounding scenery

This is the chaos that you arrive to when you debark in Machu Picchu Pueblo

Our first view of the ruins and the first family photo opportunity

With dad

It was just cool. That is all.

Some people complain about the clouds, but they just added a special element for us...

From the "postcard" spot

And most people have already seen this one...

That is right. We took our 6-month old to freakin' Machu Picchu

Indulge me one last time- as Emerson woke up for our final shot

Climbing down some scary stairs with a baby strapped to me

Emerson with the llamas/alpacas (I can't remember the difference)

The ever-present sun god

Enjoying the raging river in town

Town square statue

Kyle's favorite- the older natives added authenticity

So, I know you are already exhausted from looking at photos, but we had one more day of touring left. The following day we headed on another long day of riding in vehicles and toured the Sacred Valley, as it is referred to. This is a series of small towns that contain various ancient ruins and require a lot of climbing as well. We definitely earned our buffet lunch that day. I hope that somewhere I have an itinerary that states exactly where we went and how to spell them, but for the purpose of this blog, I think it is best to once more inundate you with pictures.

Emerson with more alpacas at a roadside market stop

These fields are even older than Machu Picchu

Playing in the ruins

Overlooking the Sacred Valley

The original Ergo Baby- Peruvian Edition

Hiking the ruins in the rain- it was no joke! Luckily Emerson had shelter

We went up and back down that fortress

Emerson was fascinated watching the demonstration of making alpaca yarn

He really liked their hats!

As you can see we were really overprotective of him with strangers...

And he now owns this hat...

Our last evening in Cusco after attending a dinner show. Emerson's eyes are closed!

But we returned the next morning to say goodbye to the Plaza de las Armas

After the adventure portion of our trip ended, we returned to Peru to meet up with the family and enjoy the wedding festivities of Irina and Brian!

We will continue the Peruvian Adventure on another post so we can focus on Lima and the wedding! But if you hung in here this long- THANK YOU! Or should I say Gracias?!