History

PE, Cusco: Discovering and exploring Cusco in our own way

| Christie

How to Peru in 2 weeks – Day #8: Getting to Cusco – Iglesia de San Blas – Plaza de Armas – The Cathedral – Templo del Triunfo – The Church of the Holy Family

Happy to get on the van, finally, I was all ready to relax and admire one more time the superb landscape of Sacred Valley where the main road would take us through, from Ollantaytambo (where we had our base for 4 nights) to Cusco.

The cheapest way to get from Ollantaytambo to Cusco was to get one of the many vans that run all day between these cities for a cheap rate of 10 soles. Our luck arrived before we even got to the main plaza; one van stopped and asked us “Cusco?” Before saying “yes” we jumped in the van right away, as a policeman was making signs already to the driver to keep moving.

Shortly after our first relaxing moments I noticed that the van had crossed Urubamba River and started ascending a hill that soon looked more like a mountain. Beautiful views, however both direction and landscape didn’t look right. Hmm, have we gotten on the right bus? Yes, we specifically asked a second time after settled in our seats. Where are they going to? Are they kidnapping us? What is going on?!..

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PE, Sacred Valley: Machu Picchu, the last frontier

| Christie

How to Peru in 2 weeks, Day#7: Machu Picchu – Aquas Calientes

I’ve always wondered why these names got stuck in my head since my elementary school. Like Machu Picchu, Titicaca, Popocatépetl, or Vesuvius. Maybe for the way my geography teacher pronounced them, or the way they resonated in my brain? They dwelt in my head for years, feeding my imagination and desire to see what is outside of my little box, making me dream of this beautiful world. And one day, the dream became true..

Machu Picchu - after the sun came out

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PE, Sacred Valley: Free things to do in Ollantaytambo

| Christie

How to Peru in 2 weeks, Day#6: Ollantaytambo – Inca Bridge – Punku Punku – Q’ello Raqay

 After a sleepless night, and more headaches in the morning, I realized that one can’t play with the nature, and with the human nature. I was still reticent, and careful not to exert myself too much, but hopeful I could continue the trip, especially that our schedule would continue to higher altitudes.

Many people use Ollantaytambo as a stopover for their Machu Picchu adventure. But this little city is underappreciated by many, in their excitement to head to the great fortress. There are so many free activities that you can do in this small and cozy town, if you just have an extra day.

Ollantaytambo

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PE, Sacred Valley: Ollantaytambo – Archaeological Park

| Christie

How to Peru in 2 weeks, Day#4: Ollantaytambo – Archaeological Park

After 3 busy days in Lima, we decided to have a lazy morning in Ollantaytambo. We could see the sun was already up through a narrow gap of the dark curtain, and as soon as we pushed it aside I had the joy to spot immediately a hummingbird feeding from a hibiscus tree in the inner court of our hotel. Such a sweet way to start a day!

Hummingbird

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PE, Lima: Lima district – Palm Sunday

| Christie

How to Peru in 2 weeks, Day #2 – Lima district – Palm Sunday

Second morning in Lima found us asking the street vendors for some change near the Ricardo Palma station in Miraflores, where we had to take the Metropolitan bus to Lima district. Taking another public transportation was out of discussion, as we couldn’t manage to deal with the chaotic system of private (mini)buses. Since this was The Palm Sunday, grabbing a cab was also out of discussion because Arequipa Ave is closed as every other Sunday, which left us to the only rapid and easy solution to take the Metro, a rapid bus that runs from Barranco district up to Lima district in North. Purchasing a card for a ride would double the cost of it, but the need of more change was more of an issue, since we had to have the exact amount of money for the vending machine located at the entrance of the platform. Since no street vendor was willing to spare their change, we decided to ask a local to swipe their prepaid card and let us enter one by one. Offering an extra sol, and using the international sign language, we kindly asked a lady with her son to help us enter the gate while showing her the 6 soles for both of us. Glad we could resolve so easy the issue of getting in, we headed to the front of the bus to have a full view of the route. In about half an hour we arrived in Lima district, not before acknowledging the fact that we would never dare to drive a car in Lima, after watching the drivers’ attitude and recklessness on the streets.

Lima - riding Metro bus

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PE – How to “Peru” in two weeks D#1 Lima – Miraflores district

| Christie

How to Peru in 2 weeks, Day#1: Lima – Miraflores district

Getting over the anxiety I managed to acquire a couple of days before our departure, due to some rumors about kidnappings and pick pocketing in Lima airport, I found myself in the same mentioned airport waiting in the line to obtain my tourist visa beside few other hundred tourists. The fact we landed a little bit more after midnight didn’t take away my excitement, and, while I was standing for a photo session by the airport officer, I remembered a similar situation when we were taken pictures entering to Cuba. Tourists from all over the world, backpackers, bikers, in groups or alone, there was such a variety of people in that enclosed space I haven’t really seen anywhere before. I suddenly felt at ease, one more crumb beside over 4 million tourists that visit Peru annually. Continue reading →

A visual history, Pembroke Heritage murals

| Christie

Eager for a getaway, I was very happy when my dear friend O. invited us over, in the city where she’s been living for a while: Pembroke. Five hours from Toronto didn’t seem too long when the landscape we passed by was amazing, especially after we got off the main Highway 401. Nestled on the shores of the highlands of Ottawa River, the little and cozy city of Pembroke was first settled in 1828, due to the developing logging industry, as the first settlers found a rich region of white and red pines.

Pembroke mural - POINTER BOATS
POINTER BOATS painted by Craig Campbell 1990 In 1858 John Cockburn, an immigrant from England, established a boat building business on Pembroke’s waterfront: it was family run for 100 years. The Pointer boat was designed with two high pointed ends, and ranged from 18 feet to 50 feet. A fifty foot Pointer weighed 1/2 ton and could float in one and a half inches of water: known as the ‘boat that could float on heavy dew’. It was stable, tough, easy to handle, had quick response yet graceful in appearance.

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AU, HU – Vienna vs Budapest – Two cities in five days, p1

| Christie

Once sisters of the one of the greatest powers of the world, Austro-Hungarian Empire, both Austria and Hungary have now been separated for the last 100 years. Years that took each of them on different paths, even though sometimes they were intertwined. Part of European Union and part of UNESCO Heritage, Vienna and Budapest are 2 centerpieces of Europe that justify their fame, no need for an introduction.

Cityscape

Vienna, known as a capital of music welcomed us in a waltz pace, as all the airport hallways resounded with Mozart tunes. A hot August morning was beckoning to us after we picked up our luggage and Vienna Pass, which made us wonder how hot a day can be in the middle of Europe, which we found out later on, after visiting Budapest as well, but this is another story.

A city with so many architectural styles, Vienna’s roots lie in early Celtic and Roman settlements. Now it is known as one of the most developed cities in Europe, being selected one of the most livable cities in the world. From the abundance of baroque style buildings in city centre (which was designed in 2001 UNESCO World Heritage Site) to some of the most interesting, colourful, or bizarre buildings, Vienna hasn’t faltered to offer us unique views.

In order to protect the cityscape, high-rise projects are totally excluded in certain zones. In Vienna there are about 100 buildings higher than 40 m, reason the city maintains the old historical charm, the panoramic viewpoints, and existing lookouts.

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CU, Havana: Best of Old Havana in pictures

| Christie

 

In my previous post I was telling you about various facets of Havana. Now, I will show you the Old Havana.

El Morro Castle
El Morro Castle – The guarding fortress standing out at the entrance of Havana bay. Built originally to guard the city from pirates, the castle is a witness of history in Havana

Stopping point for Spanish ships, La Habana Vieja has a history of about 500 years. With 2 fortresses to defend the city, one on each side of the Havana Bay, the city became a safe place since 16th century. Continue reading →