Cusco, Machu Picchu and Pisac

19th-23rd November. Our goal is to visit the Inca Museum. There is a tourist pass that includes various attractions in one ticket. The museum is not included and, logically, the pass is not available there either. We find the official sales office, but then realize that almost none of the attractions in the city are included. It's more about temples and Inca ruins outside the city or around it. So we buy a ticket for the churches in the main square church. The splendor, the gold, the decoration of the Catedral de Cusco amaze us. No church we have seen so far in our lives is as elaborate and ornate! Unfortunately, photos are not allowed… After that, we go on a tour of the other churches that are not as heavily decorated. Along the way, we end up in a beer café with a great view of Cusco and good beer. Isaac, the Venezuelan refugee and waiter, tells us his story and his goal of going to Berlin. Once again, we realize how fantastic our lives are in Switzerland, despite the pandemic…

After Amelia visits the last church alone (I lost the ticket...), we want to visit the Saqsaywaman Inca fortress, but we are too late. So we console ourselves with gourmet Peruvian cuisine, which we actually do every evening. Foodies can't resist the price level and the quality...Here are some top addresses: Piedra y Sal, Organika, Kao-Thai, Hanz, or Rucula.

20th November. We have had a ticket for Machu Picchu for almost 2 years. Today is the day we visit Peru's most iconic landmark. We are only separated by a two-hour bus ride, a three-hour train ride, and another half-hour bus ride from the most impressive Inca ruin. The security measures are high: you can't go anywhere without wearing a double mask plus a plastic visor. Once we find our way through the numerous stalls of Machu Picchu Pueblo, we queue up to take the bus up to the Inca city. It could almost be a valley in Ticino, it's so narrow, rocky, and green here. When boarding the bus, an employee informs us that the bus ticket is not included and we have to buy one in the village. The price of 48 USD for two is exorbitant when considering that an 8-hour taxi ride costs 50 USD. All in all, we have now spent over 400 USD for the visit (bus, train, bus, entrance). What madness, but we know where the money is. Who wants to leave Peru without seeing Machu Picchu? The train monopoly (there is no road to Machu Picchu Pueblo) certainly contributes to this as well. For comparison, here are a few other numbers from Peru. Cheap three-course lunch: 5 USD. An 8-hour night bus ride with a sleeping bed: 18 USD. A hotel room with breakfast for two: 35 USD.

What can we say? All the money is worth it when you stand above the Inca city and look down on the houses. The fantastic location cannot be denied either. It takes us about 1.5 hours to walk through the city on the designated route. A great experience.

Back in the village, we have about 4 hours left before our train departs for Cusco. We stroll through the streets, take our time at the souvenir stands (even though we don't end up buying anything), and admire the relatively new village design with many stone sculptures that have adorned the streets since 2017. Once again, we indulge in Picarones, which remind us of Swiss Öpfuchüechli without apples, a treat!

We have mixed feelings about the long journey home, as we have had enough after 38 hours of boat and bus rides in the last 6 days.

21st November. Our destination for today is the fortifications of Pisac. We decide to take a shared taxi, the Peruvian way. We ask at the reception and after a 20-minute walk, we find the street where the minibusses to Pisac stop. I ask a young Peruvian how it works with the ticket and everything. Interestingly, he and his friend also want to go to the ruins and he quickly finds us a minibus that still has exactly 4 seats available. Once the bus is full, it departs, so we are also well on time. The 6 Soles (1.5 USD) are a bargain! What is new to us: the minibusses also serve as delivery services, handing over the ordered goods at the entrance of each village/town. In Pisac, we share a taxi with the two guys who take us up to the ruins above the village. Here we can also buy the tourist pass, which is valid for nine days and about 20 ruins. It is very affordable at around 18 USD, especially compared to the prices of Machu Picchu. Pisac is almost as impressive and we walk through the many ruins down to the village. We have heard that the craft market in Pisac is the best. So we take our time to look for souvenirs. Luckily, we can pay with USD, as we are running out of Peruvian currency. With two bags full of souvenirs, we head towards the minibus. We get off above Cusco to walk down to the city through the Saqsaywaman ruins. It's Sunday and families are enjoying themselves on the vast meadows around the fortress. Unfortunately, most of the Spanish buildings in Cusco were built with stones from Saqsaywaman, so only the largest and heaviest stones remain. Nevertheless, the site is still very impressive and worth seeing! Back in the city, we end up in a family-run business for a cheerful drink of liquor. The sweet schnapps is a family recipe and tastes excellent! Today, too, we sweeten our day with culinary delights at the top addresses in the city. A two-course meal that is estimated to have 13/14 Gaultmillau points costs about 40 francs for two, including wine.

22nd November. After the PCR test carried out by a company directly in our hotel, we take the time to visit the museums in Cusco. We visit the Inca Museum and the Museum of Contemporary Art. Both museums are not in the best condition anymore, but still very interesting and worth a visit. After that, we take all our souvenirs to the post office. Unlike in the States, here the shape and size of the package don't matter, and an older man helps us with what should be written on the address sheet and wraps our box in multiple layers of plastic film. After completing these tasks, we retreat to our room, write in our diary, and read.

In the evening, we visit the Rucula restaurant, which is run by the same people as Organika and is located right next door. The food and wine are excellent! Unfortunately, Roman's stomach doesn't agree with him. With thoughts of the upcoming plane journey, we both feel a bit uneasy and hope that the discomfort will soon fade away.

23rd November. Our last day in Cusco has arrived. Unfortunately, the stomach upset is still present, and Roman takes Immodium. After breakfast, we pack our backpacks and just manage to finish the check-out on time. Fortunately, we can leave our bulky luggage in the hotel storage room. We write a bit more and lounge in the hotel's sofa corner. Later, we visit the last museum on our list, the Historical Museum of Cusco, which is definitely worth a visit!

We sit in the park for a while and enjoy another view of Plaza de las Armas. We have one last meal at Piedra y Sal and then retrieve our bags from the hotel. We have planned enough time at the airport, as things never go perfectly according to plan. We actually forgot to fill out the Jurada de Salud for Bolivia. Not a big problem, says the airport staff, we can do it in Lima.

The first flight passes quickly. Upon arrival in Lima, we make 3 attempts to fill out the health form - it never works until we realize: it didn't work on our mobile phone in Mexico either! Probably a security measure. We dig out our iPad and voila, everything works perfectly now. Fortunately, we had 2 hours of transfer time...

The flight to La Paz also goes smoothly. A bit frustrated, we realize that we receive the Jurada in paper form on the plane and have to fill it out by hand. It's a shame they don't inform you about these things, it would have saved us a few hectic and stressful moments at the airport. But oh well, everything is done.