Buenos Dias Amigos!
After a delicious breakfast buffet a la Marriott - complete with blood sausage, fresh pineapple mint juice, amazing breads and pastries, pancakes with condensed milk, and other scrumptious familiar foods we had our usual coco tea and then met Antonio who would be our driver and companion for the day. I think we learned more spanish in 1 day than we learned in a year of spanish class, as Antonio spoke and understood little english leaving us to reach into the back rooms of our brains clearing cob webs in search of long ago spanish lessons.
"Do we want to go see the condors?" he asks (we think). We don't think so but we aren't sure. We have a lot of ground to cover and little time for detours. He stops so we can see the condors. VERY COOL condor sanctuary, learned a lot about endangered and rescued animals, how alpaca gets its colors via natural plants, minerals, and squished beetles. We continue on.
"Do we want to see the llamas and alpacas?" Hmm...we think so. He takes us to a place where we can feed alpacas and llamas, learn about the different types and pet and feed them green alfalfa. There were locals in colorful dress weaving with small looms in their laps and baskets displaying so many types of potatoes it was flabbergasting! Who knew?
At the end of the day, on the way home and tired of a day of climbing and travelling, Antonio asks us, "Do you want to try chicha?" Of course we do! He takes us to a place on the side of the road and we enter a courtyard where a half a dozen older men and women are hanging out. He shows us the pub game of tossing gold coins into a wooden box that has a frog w/ a slotted mouth and other holes for the coins to go in. We take turns tossing and then head to a small, dark room where chicha is being fermented in barrels. We sit at an old wood table and are shown the process and ingredients, then taste two types of chica, regular and a fruity version. They are served to us with wooden ladles and we all get a taste of the inka beer. Not bad, a bit sour for our liking, but I could see how it could grow on you. A great way to end our day in the Sacred Valley, where we walked through the famous Pisac market and ruins with its amazing terracing and valley views, then a delicious lunch at Urubamba at Tres Keros, then to Ollantaytambo or "Ollanta" ruins, one of the few places the Spanish lost a major battle vs the Inkas. There were so many, many other sites along the way that we just didn't have time for. I would definitely recommend allowing more time to enjoy this beautiful valley and ruins with breathtaking vistas to anyone making the trip.
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