Blog Archives - And Off We Went

viva el peru

7/28/2013

Today was Peru's Independence Day. While there were no big parades happening in Plaza De Armas (much to our surprise), there were plenty of parades happening in the street next to our hostel.

Each time we heard the music, we ran out to see the dancers and the entertainers perform in their lively fashion - they as well as the onlookers were having a fun time (and again plenty of beer was being consumed by all!).

Emilia loved the colourful costumes, in particular the boots the girls wore (she did think the skirts on the outfits were a little short - thank goodness!).

Matthew hated the fire crackers and we had to cover his ears each time they went off but he is coming around to the fact that they go off on these special events.

in and around cusco

7/27/2013

We have been taking it easy to try to reserve some energy for our Sacred Valley/Machu Picchu trip in a couple of days and have just been hanging out and about in Cusco.

We went back and visited Parque Urpicha and this time we weren't the only foreigners there. We stumbled upon some fellow Australians and Emilia even made some friends with some of the local school girls and vanished for a bit as she headed to the slides with a gang of girls in school uniform. While she felt a bit awkward with the language barrier - she still had a great time and the girls were very nice to take her into their fold. After our other museum trips, were were keen to find one which featured more Incan history, so we decided to visit Museo Inka which we thought surpassed the other museums and galleries we had visited to date.

It was more interesting to see the remnants discovered in some of the places we had visited over the past couple of weeks and to read up on the history of the Incans and the Spanish conquests which took place.

Of special note were the mummies inside - we loved these but Emilia was so horrified and was in tears after the event as she thought they were just horrible. Matthew commented they were scary but he was just taking bits of information from his sister as he really had no idea what to make of them at all!

The tears however were not long-lived as we entered the Plaza De Armas for a rest and by the time we got home the event was long forgotten.

parks galore

7/25/2013

The kids were very keen to visit Parque Urpicha as we had passed it many times as we travelled around the city getting our bearings and finding various markets and landmarks. So today was the day - otherwise we would have never heard the end of it.

The park itself seemed to be an odd blend of colourful rides including giant slides, trampolines, dark caves and man-powered rides from the fair which passed through about 20 years ago.
The kids enjoyed themselves and it was a beautiful view seeing the clash of the rides contrasting against the backdrop of the mountains.

The entrance fees were cheap and a couple of the rides charged a minimal fee although we spent more on the icecream and drinks than anything else. And of course the popcorn vendor outside provided a good snack in the cab on the way home.

For the last two days we have been going to the local park near to our hostel on Recoleta and the kids have really enjoyed it. It is big enough to have fun in and keep themselves amused but not too big that they worry about what to do next.

For the first day Little Miss 8 was worried that she wouldn't make friends but after overcoming her shyness, by the second day she was Little Miss Popularity. The kids were all trying to speak to her in Spanish and ask her questions and while she couldn't answer them, that didn't stop them from having a bunch of fun making trains down the slide and having seesaw wars!

I was watching Master 3 and he was babbling away to the poor unsuspecting kids in English not caring whether they understood him or not. It was a funny sight to see!

My guess is that they will want to go back for a play tomorrow.

Lucky for us there are no shortages of parks for the kids to play in and I think it will take a while for the kids to get bored of them.

moras, moray and salinas

7/25/2013

Today we explored the Moras, Moray area and took a side trip to Salinas, the salt fields. Both trips were interesting in themselves.

Moray was a little town seemingly in the middle of nowhere - until we went to Moray which was just a few houses and some sheep scattered remotely in the mountains. Here we found the Incan agricultural terraces which were a sight to behold.

The roads to travel to these destinations were narrow and involved winding around some very tall mountains. The vehicles had to constantly honk and reverse so they had a safe place to overtake - but in my opinion none of the roads were very safe to overtake.

a couple of quiet days

7/23/2013

We spent a couple of quiet days just hanging around the city as I unfortunately hurt my back. Not wanting to lie down and do nothing, I forced myself to see some of the more local ruins, visit the markets and spend some quiet time at the local museums.

We visited Sacsayhuaman which was very interesting although because of my back, I was unable to climb to the top to admire the view. We also stopped at Quenqo, Puca Pucara and Tambo Machay and again I stayed on ground level to take it all in while the others did all the climbing on my behalf.

We visited the local markets and stocked up on some dvds for when the kids got bored. $2 for 3 dvds works well in my books.

awana kancha

7/20/2013

Well we did make it to Awana Kancha - at first we went to the wrong bus station because there are different ones depending on your end destination but we finally made it to Awana Kancha in one piece and much the wiser - and got to feed the llamas and alpacas.

The kids loved it - and were ever so excited to see the animals and be able to interact with them in a close environment.

Awana Kancha is set up really nicely for the tourists and doubled as a weaving centre in which they sold their handicrafts. We avoided the store but did take the time to enjoy a cup of coffee and some snacks in the idyllic and peaceful countryside.

plaza de armas

7/20/2013

Regardless of our plans for the day, at some point we find ourselves in the Plaza De Armas. It is a great place to sit and people watch and catch a few rays (if possible).

We may be lucky enough to hear some music, see some dancing or just relax and tell the people selling their fake Raybans, Peruvian jewellery, toy alpacas and those wanting to shine our shoes that we are just not interested.

And of course not far from the plaza there are many great stores to browse and wonderful places to grab a bite to eat and drink.

It really is the hub of the town with foreigners and locals taking time out of their day to sit and watch life go by - even if only for a brief moment.

virgin del carmen festival

7/20/2013

While we didn't spend a lot of time in Pisac for the festival, it was a nice introduction to a lovely little town and it gave us an insight into how the locals celebrate the Virgin Del Carmen Fiesta.

We were told the festivities kicked off around 10am but in actual fact it started just after midday but by 1pm the kids were tired and had seen enough so we headed home.

The dancers were drinking beer in preparation for their performances so I can imagine that as the day went on, the audience would be in for quite a treat.

Little Master 3 didn't like the firecrackers they let off during the dances so was happy to put some distance in between himself and those on stage. But all in all we were glad we went.

did someone say chocolate?

7/20/2013

It was only while Googling Cusco did I discover the Choco Museo and wonder why no one had told us about it. And as we had nothing better to do, off we went to sample it for ourselves.

Chocolate fondue, chocolate croissants, chocolate crepes...

They do have 2 hour chocolate making classes in which we could make our own but for us it was enough to sample a few treats (well more than a few) while enjoying some coffee and balcony views.

A nice way to spend an hour or so.

markets, markets and more markets

7/19/2013

We are having a blast shopping the markets. It is not so much that we are buying a heap of stuff, it is just fun having a look at the goodies which are available so we know what we can buy in future.

Of course saying that we have picked up a few things here and there as in reality, things are pretty cheap in the artisan markets both in and around Cusco. The kids got fancy new hats today and Little Miss 8 finally found the pair of feather earrings she had been waiting for "her whole life".

I got my lovely pink alpaca adorned bedsocks and Little Miss 8 got some leg warmers but other than that we have been keeping an eye on our money and only buying things as and when we need.