Machu Picchu, 50 Shades of Green — Kisses From The Clouds

Machu Picchu, the hidden city surrounded by mountains and nonchalant llamas, was a dream realized, a series of fortunate events that allowed us to breath Peruvian air and flirt with ceviche in all its different styles, flavors, indulgences. There were rolling hills that fall inside each other and invent new ribboning colors, invading your eyes with the kind of vision that artists salivate over.

I've been traveling to Europe on a regular basis for the past three years and I was in danger of losing that precious thrill of surprise that captivates you as you travel to a new city. I needed something new, something rich and authentic enough to give me that travel high I'd been missing.

I didn't expect it, but going to this ancient Incan city was a life changing sort of traveling experience, the kind that I thought wouldn't happen anymore in this modern world of overexposure to popular places, a world where there are hop on hop off buses with selfie stick connoisseurs inventing new hashtags to describe their #blessed lives as they struggle to stand in heels walking the cobblestone streets of Rome.

Machu Picchu, you certainly delivered.

Many people on many different blogs gave many different routes and paths to choose from in order to get to the raw terrain of Peru. This is just one path, but it was in my opinion, a very high quality path.

It begins in Cusco, the city you become acclimatized to the Peruvian altitude of above 10,000 feet, and completely jazzed about your upcoming hike.

Cusco is higher in elevation than Machu Picchu, so some people choose to fly to Cusco from Lima and then immediately take the train to Aguas Calientes. This is a solid path to take, allowing your lungs and heart to adjust to the lower altitude of Machu Picchu before exploring Cusco later on. We did not do this, only because Machu Picchu was the highlight and climax of the trip and we didn't want to ruin the anticipation. Also, we figured we would be tired from traveling and needed to reserve those two days in Cusco for "chilling, maxing, and relaxing all cool."

Our traveling group was, as usual, all flight attendants, enjoying bountiful flight benefits. However, this trip was a lesson in which things can go horribly awry. Even though we saw about 12 flights from LIM - CUZ and could fly on standby, the agents informed us that it would not be possible to get to CUZ anytime that night. We eventually bought a full fare ticket at around $200 each, just to have a confirmed seat and a peace of mind.

This life is very unpredictable sometimes; you must take care to plan but know that everything will probably change. So, we arrived into LIM at around 5:00am and our flight wasn't until 2:50pm.

Airport Appreciation Day is officially October 9th.

It was worth the wait, although I must say if I never visit LIM airport again I would die a happy woman.

Cusco, Where We Get Our Groove Back

Cusco gave us life, even though it felt like opposite forces were at work as the mountains took our breath away in the most literal sense. Walking half a mile into the town made us all out of breath, but luckily we had each other to lean on.

The friendly energy of Cusco infected us all; it was so easy to connect here, something I truly missed from living in an anonymous, impersonal city. We also will remember this town for giving us access to a true feast at our new favorite restaurant.

Greenpoint Restaurant in Cusco was so incredible and delectable that we came back the next morning for breakfast. Something about Peruvian food... the eclectic mix of cultures, the fusion innovations had us melting with tears of unadulterated joy.

Causa was just one of the dishes we ordered for our feast of the senses. Next up on the menu was of course, Ceviche.... and a round of Pisco Sours that were so light and refreshing that it lit up any heart in need of sunshine. Technically you're not supposed to drink alcohol the first few days in Peru because of altitude sickness. But listen. We needed those Pisco Sours. They were necessary. And nobody died.

Fresh, smooth, flavorful-- these Pisco Sours were by far the best cocktails I've had in a long, long time.

After dinner, walking down the streets aimlessly, we stopped suddenly. A chorus of excited and blinded high pitched scream-squeals filled the air. We had stumbled upon some baby llamas.

The llamas were so sweet, and I considered investigating their options as pets when I got back to the states.

Cusco is a town that is easy to walk around in; we walked everywhere the next day, perusing the markets, going into the various ruins and museums scattered around. The architecture is beautiful in the center. Qorikancha was the most respected temple in Incan society, the temple dedicated to the sun god and its walls lined with gold. It was destroyed by the Spanish conquistadors, but the ruins still stand to remember how advanced the civilization truly was.

After walking our feet to the bone and after our third coffee drink, we all noticed a spirit emerging in the air.

More and more people were wearing Peru football jerseys, selling them on the streets and the general atmosphere becoming gradually more festive, with air horns blaring and people randomly cheering. As the sun set, it became very clear that the entire city of Cusco was gathering to watch the football game on a giant projection screen stretched across the city square.

Nothing like team spirit to bring a community together. After the game, (Peru won), we retreated to our Airbnb and got ready for the train ride to Aguas Calientes (the town of Machu Picchu) in the morning.

Should you ride the train? I mean, yeah. It was a gorgeous ride and only about 3 hours, very safe and comfortable. If you want to hike, it's a 4 day trek from Cusco. Remember to get your hiking permit for the Incan Trail at least 6 month in advance. We had planned the trip a little more than four weeks before we left, so there was no time to get a permit. It's still a very enjoyable way to get to Aguas Calientes.

The view wasn't awful.

Once arriving to Aguas Calientes, we could immediately start walking up Machu Picchu, an hour and a half hike. It's not that hard, but if you are an asthma sufferer it might be better to take the 20 minute van ride. Either way, you're getting up to the top.

Leanna, Courtney and I decided to make the hike, and it was just lovely. We made friends with a lot of random dogs, and tourists along the way.

There are a lot of tour guides at the top of the mountain awaiting your arrival, and I suggest taking the tour, which lasts about 2 hours. It's interesting and extremely informative- I couldn't imagine walking around the ruins for 2 hours without a sense of context and history. For our group it was a total of $70, so just $10 per person.

Our lovely guide told us about the city, the purpose not known for sure but speculated to be a sort of university, a selection of the best and brightest in Incan society. They studied the stars, they perfected agricultural techniques, practiced impressive masonry styles that didn't use mortar.

There are two mountains you can hike, this one and the other-- Hyuana Picchu. If I did this trip over again I'd stay an extra day in Aguas Calientes and hike the second the following day, but we were on a time crunch.

On the way back to Cusco the next day, a good idea is to stop at another culturally relevant site like Ollantaytambo, and spend the entire day buying more sweaters and meeting exceptionally friendly people. There are two options here to explore ruins, and one of them was free. The free version was to hike up a mountain and have a nice view of the ruins that we would have spent a lot of money to explore up close.

Follow this sign to hike up Pinkuylluna!

The kids really loved Todd, armed with a camera and showing no mercy

Ollantaytambo was a perfect way to finish our exploration of Incan ruins, lucky for the sunshine and warm weather to make it even more memorable.

If you do plan to explore Lima, it might be a good idea to fly into LIM early, then spend the entire day in the city before your flight back to the states at 1:30am. We flew Delta, of course, and the only flight into ATL was at 1:30am.

Lima: Coffee Connoiseurs and Artists

Lima was still a third world city, and I was disheartened to see the run down infrastructure, the pollution and gray buildings were a very strong contrast from the natural beauty of the places we'd seen so far. But, there were certain neighborhoods that I had heard were worth the visit. We took a taxi into Barranco, an up and coming area with a bohemian vibe, and headed into a coffee shop called Tostadaria Bisetti.

The menu was innovative and the coffee shop had a separate room called the Laboratory, in which the staff spends time to create new brewing methods. We watched a very fun demonstration of the Japanese siphon method, which appeared to be a mad scientist experiment complete with neon lights and glowing water. The staff were extremely passionate about coffee, and the dedication to the craft and artistry involved in creating the perfect cup of coffee was incredibly charming.

We spent several hours here learning about coffee methods and trying out several different coffee drinks. My favorite? A staff creation of fruit infused coffee. It was sweet but not overpowering.

As we enjoyed our decorative drinks, we imagined what else our coffee knowledgable friend was passionate about...

The rest of our time in Lima, we caught a dance in the square and ran into another group of flight attendants at Delta that a few of us knew; one of those random coincidences that make the world so incredibly small, and a little less lonely.

Lima was a great end to a magical trip, and as we took the taxi back to the airport that night, I realized how lucky I was to be able to do these things just because. It was a trip that didn't feel manufactured in any way, even though Machu Picchu is admittedly very much a tourist destination. The people were sweet, the food fresh, the company the best I could have asked for. I cannot wait to come back

Travel Therapy Conclusion

Machu Picchu is a cure for those afflicted with Busy Bee Syndrome, a tendency to be always on the go, never having time for reflection or a chance to connect to nature. This trip is diagnosed for the trip for anyone in need of a reset button on their lives, a new perspective, and a sense of adventure.

Kiss Kiss!