Machu Picchu and Galapagos March 2025

 

We embarked on another adventure to Peru and a new one to the Galapagos. We went back to Peru; this time with high hopes of making it to Machu Picchu! Five years ago Diane broke her ankle of day 4 of a 6 day hike. Abort! See details in a previous blog. This time we had plans to take the train to Machu Picchu and closely watch our steps. We left SLC on March 10, 2025 and flew to Atlanta. From there we flew to Lima. At the airport we met our guide Vivian, who went by Bibi,  and as well as fellow  travelers who were on the same flight we were on. We were bussed to our hotel, Miraflores Park and got to bed about midnight. Five AM came early the next day. We got our luggage outside the door and went down for breakfast where we me Frank and Pam. After breakfast we rode a bus back to the airport for our flight to Cusco. We had lunch at a local restaurant and then had a walking tour. Of course, we had to see the Cathedral. It was on the Main Square. It was a splendid Spanish colonial church shaped as a Latin cross and housed 400 colonial paintings from the Cusco art school. The construction last almost a century. We then went to our hotel, Palacio del Inka, where we met for dinner at 7PM. 

Wed: March 12. Breakfast was cut short as Bebi said we had to leave early due to a strike scheduled to begin that day. We loaded up quickly and took backroads out of Cusco to escape the central city and the strike. The strikers but boulders in the road to keep people from leaving but we made it out. After a pretty, long bus ride, we got to the train station and loaded onto the Hiram Bingham train. This was a luxury train with porters, waiters, and tables with white tablecloths. Diane and I sat with Dave (Blue Cross CEO, retired) and Susan (retired CFO for Nascar). They were part of an 8 person Florida group who were traveling together. Our breakfast companions the previous day, Frank and Pam, were also part of that group. We had lunch on the train and before long we arrived at Aguas Calientes. From there we got onto a bus for a wild ride to Machu Picchu and The Sanctuary Lodge, the only hotel located within the very grounds of Machu Picchu! We had an afternoon tour of this famous “Lost City of the Incas”. According to UNESCO, Machu Picchu, which means Old Mountain, is considered a World Heritage Site and on the New Seven Wonders of the modern world. We then walked back to the Sanctuary Lodge for afternoon tea. We had dinner later that night at the hotel. 

Thursday March 13. We woke up at the Sanctuary Lodge, had a quick bite and then left for an early start to second tour of M.P. With our guide, Freddy and Bibi we entered circuit 3 of M.P. for our tour. It was a partly cloudy but when the clouds broke we got a stunning view of the Sun Gate. We continued our tour seeing temples, terraces, Kings quarters and drainage systems. We stood all together for a group picture with M.P. in the background. It was then back to lodge for lunch. We checked out and took the bus back to Aguas Calientes where we boarded a train back to the Ollataytambo train station. We sat next to Freddy and an interesting lady from Japan. We then  transferred to a bus for a ride back to the Palacios Inka Hotel. 

Friday: March 14. Another early travel day. We woke up at 4 AM to leave for the Cusco airport. We said goodbye to Freddy but Bebi stayed with us. We flew from Cusco to Lima and with the help of Bebi, we navigated the Lima airport and got to our gate. When we arrived in Quito(Ecuador), we were met by a Silver Seas rep. who took us to a local restaurant for lunch. Quito sits in the Andean valley at 9,350 feet making it the world’s highest capital city. It is nestled at the foot of 15,696-foot Pichincha volcano.  We had a walking tour and got to see (you guessed it) another cathedral. The real hit of the afternoon was the chocolate demonstration and tasting! We stayed at the J. W. Marriott hotel that night and had dinner there. 

Saturday March 15. After eating  breakfast at the hotel and taking our luggage to the lobby we got on a bus to the Quito airport. Our first flight was to Guayaquil on the coast and then onto San Cristobal. While waiting to board the plane we met Cathy and Ben who were from Boston. Cathy is a radiologist. From the airport we took a bus to the dock where we loaded into a Zodiac for a ride to our ship, The Silver Origin. A little bit about the Galapagos. They are located in the Pacific Ocean west of the coast of Ecuador. There are 6 larger and several smaller islands lying on or near the equator. The islands were formed by volcanos, some of which are still active. The islands are known for the diversity of animals and plants. They are home to 11 species of giant tortoises and three species of large lizards. The islands were discovered in 1535 by the Spaniards. In 1835 Charles Darwin spent 6 weeks studying the variety of animals present in the Archipelago. 

Sunday March 16: We were fortunate to have some ready-made friends. All of the travelers from Machu Picchu were now with us (and others) on the Galapagos trip. I have previously mentioned Frank (Attorney)  and Pam OB-GYN)  and Dave and Susan. Also part of that Florida group were Steve Levine and wife Theresa. Steve is a general surgeon. Rounding out Florida are David and wife Mardi. Mardi is an oncology nurse. From Austin Texas were Christina (Attorney) and her daughter Katherine (High school student.)  Today we took zodiacs to North Seymour Island for a nature walk followed by our first of many snorkeling trips. We had an adventure walk in the afternoon. Each night before dinner we gathered for a lecture on what we saw and what we would see soon. Dinner followed at 7:30 PM in the restaurant or in the Grille. 

Monday March 17. Today we would be at North Seymour Island. After an early wake up we left in the Zodiac to the island at 7 AM. Despite the rain, mud, standing water, and lava rocks we were treated to the sights on many, and I mean many land iguanas. Here they were the species that displayed a yellow orange coloration. We saw Frigate birds with the bright red balloon like necks used to attract the females. We also spotted sea lions on our way back to the Zodiac. Our guide today was Ernesto who was knowledgeable with a keen sense oof humor. We got back to the ship and got our gear ready for a 10:30 AM deep water snorkeling trip. The Zodiac deposited us near the island and our guide, Katrina pointed out all the fishes including some sharks and rays. It was then back to the ship for lunch. We had lunch with Debra and Peter who were from Atlanta. Debra was a retired physical therapist and Peter was originally from Wales. I went on the afternoon hike over lava fields that Diane skipped as she was fighting a cold. The evening lecture was by David Padilla a photographer who gave us a lot of Iphone tips to use. 

Tuesday March 18. Diane woke up feeling worse. We called the ship doctor and she prescribed some meds for Diane’s cough and cold. Today the ship would take us through the Boliver Crossing which I witnessed in the Observation Lounge. Diane felt well enough to go to breakfast and after that I went on a Zodiac tour where we got to see lots of penguins . Later in the morning I went on a deep water snorkel and saw lots of penguins and marine iguanas. The marine iguanas are a lot smaller that the land species. At lunch we sat next to and had a nice talk with Alexandra and John from Chicago. We had a lecture by our naturalist friend, Ernesto who spoke about the birds of the Galapagos. The afternoon Zodiac tour took us along the coastline and inlets of Isabela Island. That evening Diane had room service while I went to the lecture on Charles Darwin. I went to dinner with the Florida group. We were joined by Esteban from Silver Seas. 

Wednesday March 19. Diane feeling better today. I went to breakfast and sat with Pam and had a nice conversation with her. Today we would be on Santa Crus Island. We visited the Manzanillo Tortoise Reserve the home of the iconic Giant Tortoises. Our guide was Ariana was a native Galapagos person with ancestors here. It was warm and humid but we saw many giant tortoises. We went back to the ship for lunch. In the afternoon, we went to Puerto Ayora to explore the galleries and shops in town. Later we went to the Tortoise Breeding Center to see the Giant Tortoise hatchlings. It was then back to the ship where we facetimed with Sam and the kids. The lecture tonight, again by Ernesto was Galapagos in the Timeline of Human History. Teresa invited us to join the Florida group for dinner. 

Thursday March 20.Today we had a free morning and a leisurely breakfast. At 10:15 we went on a deep water snorkel with our guide, Ariana. We had lunch with Frank and Pam and David and Mardi. At 3:45 PM we left in a Zodiac for an Adventure Walk. We were in Gardner Bay on Espanola Island. The adventure walk took us on rough rocky trail. We saw lots of sea lions, lots of marine iguanas, lots of boobies, blue footed and Nazca. We saw Galapagos hawks and racer snakes. It was a tough hike. It was hot, humid and had some steep sections. We were glad to get back to the ship for a shower and some rest. The lecture was about Conservation by the Naturalist and Expedition Leader Bernado. Diane and I dined alone at the restaurant. I had the swordfish and Diane had risotto. We were back in our suite by 8:45 PM. 

Friday March 21. This was our last full day. We were on Isla Lobos. We had our final deep water snorkel trip. In the afternoon we attended a ceviche cooking demonstration. That evening we played a game of Galapagos trivia and had a farewell toast by the Captain. David Padilla presented a highlight film of all the activities experienced during the week.

Saturday March 22. Departure Day. We said our good byes and left the ship for San Cristobal and the airport. We stopped in Guayaquil and then on to Quito. We had a 7 hour layover so we took a taxi to a nearby hotel and booked a room to rest up and wait for departing flight to Atlanta. From there is on to Salt Lake and home.