CUSCO / MACHU PICCHU EXTENSION

OF THE AMAZON RAINFOREST WORKSHOP FOR EDUCATORS

Land cost is $1,090,  plus approximately $300 air roundtrip Lima/Cusco/Lima.

Click here for a brief itinerary of what land cost includes.  Please email or call Deb Smucker at 1-800-626-8992 if you would like additional cancellation insurance coverage.

2011 Descriptive Itinerary

Day 1 - Friday - July 9 - IQUITOS / LIMA

After breakfast at Ceiba Tops and a chance to say our goodbyes, we board boats to Iquitos and are transferred to the airport. Our flight takes us to Lima where we are met on arrival and transferred to our Lima Hotel.  Dinner is on your own.

Day 2 - Saturday - July 10 - LIMA / CUSCO

After breakfast at the hotel, we leave the coastal city of Lima for Cusco, nestled in a valley more than 11,000 feet above sea level and surrounded by some of the most majestic peaks in the Andes. On arrival in Cusco, we transfer to our hotel near the central plaza.  We have open time to explore this quaint town on our own the balance of the day.  The tiny shops are open and there are lots of special places to browse and people watch while we acclimate to our destination in the Andes.  (B)

Day 3 - Sunday - July 11 - CUSCO / URUBAMBA VALLEY / MACHU PICCHU

Today we depart early for a full day tour to Machu Picchu.  We board the Vistadome train, the first class train with beautiful panoramic windows offering unsurpassed scenic views and photographic opportunities.  With glass surrounding us on all sides, we feel as if we are part of Peru's remarkable landscape.  The Vistadome is one of the most comfortable ways to visit Machu Picchu.  Snacks and hot and cold refreshments are available on the train. 

Day 4 - Monday - July 12 - MACHU PICCHU / CUSCO

We begin this day at dawn by boarding a bus for another extraordinary experience at Machu Picchu. We have an option either to go back directly to Machu Picchu or explore the region in search of the spectacular bright orange-red Cock-of-the-Rock.  The hotel is situated in an area of wet montane forest of giant tree ferns, birds-of-paradise, and other water loving plants that attract wildlife species such as Torrent Duck, Mitred Parakeet and Roadside Hawk. This area offers hours of rewarding observation for birders and plant lovers alike. You may choose to visit the extensive orchid garden nearby or walk to the thermal baths. A dramatic setting is created by the Urubamba River, whose torrents of water rush over huge boulders nearby.  In the early afternoon, we board the train for the return trip through the Urubamba Valley to the Poroy Train Station on the edge of Cusco.  We are met on arrival early evening and transfer to our hotel.  (B)

Day 5 - Tuesday - July 13 - CHINCHERO / SACSAHUAMAN / CUSCO

This morning wee travel by private bus into the historic Urubamba Valley (known as the "Sacred Valley"), stopping at Chinchero to learn about the Quechua and a cultural perspective of the Andes that is often overlooked. Dress and weaving design distinguish the Quechua of Chinchero. Many women still wear the multiple braids and handmade clothes. In addition, language, technology, folklore, and ritual life characterize the region. Over 3,000 people live clustered around the church, marketplace, and ruins in Chinchero. The majority of the 18,000 residents in the Chinchero political district, however, live dispersed in small villages in the surrounding hills. Here in Chinchero we’ll have lunch and visit the family of Nilda Callanaupa Alvarez.  Our walking tour of Chinchero will give us a chance to visit a local school and learn about life in the small community of Chinchero. 

The scenery in this province is spectacular. Precision contours spiral the hillsides. These large-scale terraces and walls of limestone built in tightly fitted polygonal style leave traces of the administrative and ritual functions of the area. The range in altitude of the area supports a variety of tuber agriculture to complement the economics of animal husbandry and textile production. During part of the day we visit a weaving project. Intricate designs of animals, mountains, and flowers are featured in brightly colored blankets and clothing. You will see some of the processes of the carding and spinning of the wool, use of the handlooms for weaving the textiles, and the application of natural dyes and the plant sources from which they are made.

As we continue on our journey, the fine Inca masonry is evident in well-engineered irrigation systems, fortified roads and stone terraces.  On our way back to Cusco, we’ll stop briefly to see one of the Inca’s most amazing fortresses. Sacsahuaman is a huge citadel of massive stones so well fitted that a knife-blade cannot be inserted between them. The zipzag shape of the stronghold is explained as representing the teeth of a gigantic Puma, of which Cusco is the body. Built around a natural spring, Tampu Machay was a royal bathing place of the Inca.  (B,L)

Day 5 - Wednesday - July 14 - CUSCO / LIMA

We return to the Cusco airport for our afternoon flight to Lima to connect with flights that will be departing near midnight for the United States. We once again fly over the majestic peaks of the Andes. This time we will be returning with a perspective of the wealth of Peru's natural resources and cultural diversity, our personal experiences, and memories to treasure from traveling through this sacred land.  (B)

Day 6 - Thursday - July 15 - LIMA / U.S.A.

Note that your international flights will land early morning in the U.S. and you will arrive home on Thursday, July 15.

(Breakfast – B, Lunch – L, Dinner – D)

For further information about the educational program or experience in Peru, call Dr. Frances Gatz at 1-800-669-6806 or email us!

© 2010 Environmental Expeditions