The Pleasure of Meeting Peru

"I am tormented with an everlasting itch for things remote."- Herman Melville.

An image had been replaying over and over in my head, someplace high in the mountains with trees standing atop rocky ruins while the sun and clouds play hide and seek across the sky.

Machu Picchu was the image and the rumor was M.P. was going to shut down within the next couple of years for restoration. So as the urge built up so did my reasoning to head down there.

It all manifested when I came across a yoga teacher program in the Sacred Valley of Peru.  Mystical Yoga, the yoga of spiritual practice, goes beyond the asana and emphasized a transformative journey into the spiritual 'self'. Unpeeling your layers, customs, and tendencies leading towards the realization of the underlying union of life and energy.

For me yoga was always more than a physical activity. It could make me feel at home anywhere I did it. Five years into my dedicated practice, I was a healthier and happier person mentally. It opens you open to being ok, to being content with what is in front of you.  

I usually purchase some sort of travel book to help me plan out the days on these excursions. But I realized how easily you could get lost in someone else's experience and perspective by limiting yourself to one book. So I chucked the book idea and just made a list. Here were some of the items:

• ·      Hike as much as possible
• ·      Kiss a Peruvian
• ·      Eat ceviche, Peruvians claim to have the World's best
• ·      Go to Huacachina and Huarez

...Crossed off one on the first night.

With not much research, I was surprised to see that Lima, the capital, was a coastal metropolitan in the desert. The air was hot and sticky but the ocean breeze didn't make things unbearable. The only ones seemingly bothered were the taxi drivers, they were more aggressive than any other country I have been to.

Dragonfly Hostel in the barrio Miraflores was by far the best hostel I stayed at in Peru. The fact they brewed their own beer definitely had something to do with it.

In the afternoon, I joined an Australian couple at the office of Bike Tours of Lima. Great idea- cruised by the most popular parks, art galleries, along the beach, across cool bridges, and stopped at a local bar for lunch. (30 USD)

Barranco and Miraflores are the nicest parts of the city.

The evening consisted of dinner at a sidewalk cafe and then drinks with Anna and her girlfriend and comrades Henry and Miguel at the pub.  That night it rained, I love it when it rains in the desert.

The next day I flew over to Cusco, the jumping off point for tourists going to M.P., to meet the other yogis before we headed to the Sacred Valley. Cusco is rich with culture and antiquity. It makes you feel like your living in the 16th century since many of the historical structures are still in tact.

When the Spanish came through the Andean region they were smart enough to use some the Inca foundations instead of destroying them. You could see this difference when you looked at the architecture and materials used on the sides of buildings. Inca's used massive blocks that had decreasing angle with height. The Spanish built their walls straight up and covered them to have smooth surfaces. The latter construction was no test to the power of Pachamama when she danced- earthquakes did a lot of damage.

Cusco is a mecca for Andean commodities; stores line the streets selling everything Alpaca. I succumbed to buying mittens when the temperature fell below 45 F.  

The city is spread across hills at an elevation of 10,000 feet. The first couple days you find yourself easily tired after a short walk. The thin air gets you.

I spent my time walking with Elvis, who offers free walking tours, and eating at great vegetarian restaurants. 

Green Point (top) & Shaman Raw (bottom)

Cusco was a memorable place in which I had an experience with crystals that I will never forget. Inside one of the restaurants sits a quarts crystal as big as a small llama. The energy I received was so overwhelming I had to leave the fellow yogis and walk this off. It felt like I was hit by a wave of power that left me edgy and fragile. I thought maybe this is a heart attack. But the more I walked the better I felt and finally after two hours I was back to my normal self.

Pic of crystal from TripAdvisor 

Resting in a hammock before bed I remember the crispness of the cool air being so welcomed by my lungs. Then a loud boom filled the sky and I turned around to a firework show- which my heart so welcomed. The vibration melted away all tension and I sat here in Peru like a child amazed by the colors of life and light.