Valle Sagrado

We visited the Valle Sagrado for a day... A few notes: tour agencies never fill a bus, so they subcontract a bus and guide, who actually set the tour. You can get an idea of the tour from the agency, but never be too sure of details... Ideally, if possible, book it straight with the guide. We also found that you can get a single-language tour, with, possibly, more information than splitting the time into two languages. Costs a little, more, but still, off season, no more than 30 soles.

The tour is a mix of craft markets and ruins. The markets aren`t too different than in town, so it would be best to just spend time visiting the ruins. We only saw, really, Pisaq and Ollataytambo. The first is much larger than we could visit in such a short tour... The guide information is good, but it would be good too to return another day on our own to actually see the rest of the place. If one has got enough plata, you can spend a whole morning there, and a whole afternoon at Ollataytambo. Better that way...

With enough time, but not enough plata, bus your way to Pisaq for a day, try to find an improvised guide in town... They may or may not know much, but if you get a good improvised guide, twould be ideal. Same at Ollataytambo.

Lunch stops at either Urubamba or Calca. They said the former at the agency, but the tour actually went to the latter. Eliza and I packed sandwiches and granola, so instead of having a 20 soles lunch, we took a motor-shaw (a motorized rickshaw hehehe) around town and stopped out at their market. Unlike tourist markets, here they dont sell traditional trinkets and clothes, but clothes that say Adidas n such crap on it instead, cheap food and stuff the locals want. A very good experience to see the way people really live around here. Cheap fruit too, but don´t recommend any other food you can wash... There I bought some nice wool longjohns for 10 soles. A good deal too.

Tomorrow we leave for the Inca Trail. Excited. News from Machu Picchu next week.

Love.