I got up early today and took advantage of the Hot Tub. It was a stunningly beautiful morning.

This morning we had an Andean Priest perform a Pachamama Ceremony for us. Pachamama is a deity the represents Mother Earth and the ceremony gives you a chance to give back to Mother Earth and ask for blessings for your family.

Andean Priest performing the Pachamama Ceremony.
Hew gave us all 3 coca leaves to hold. We had to fan them out and exhale upon them as we stretched to the sky.

Then he placed the leaves and additional offerings unto a piece of paper, then bundled it up and burned it. The blessings we asked for were then taken to Mother Earth.

After the Pachamama ceremony, we caught a bus to Ollantaytambo located further down the Sacred Valley. Our Hotel is already in the valley. It is a big valley!
Sacred Valley is 8,860 feet above sea level. This change in elevation will help us acclimate to the higher elevation before we get to Machu Picchu.

Ollantaytambo was both a temple and a fortress, where the Incan emperor Pachacuti built his personal estate after conquering it in the mid-1400s. A century later, the site came under attack from Spanish conquistadors, and despite repelling the advance, Incan leader Manco Inca abandoned the site in 1536.

The masonry nary skills were incredible, look at he’s joints!

The doorway that was left after the Spanish destroyed the temple.

After touring Ollantaytambo, we headed to a local restaurant for lunch. Along the way our guide pointed out various sites. There was an area that looked like an ice field, but was a salt field called Mara. It is a natural salt field with iodized salt.

We also saw stange poles with a red plastic bag on the end. These bags indicates that the establishment sold Chicha, a fermented corn drink. I did. Not get a chance to try it yet.

Red bag on a pole indicating the establishment sells Chicha.

We stopped at a restaurant called Wayra for Lunch. They served us massive amounts and food and included a horse show with dancers. It was unexpected but very fun!

Dancing with the horsemen.

We continued on to the Quechua village of Chinchero on the road between Cuzco and Machu Picchu. Here residents live much as their ancestors did, weaving colorful textiles and keeping ancient Incan traditions alive.

We were able to pet and feed the alpacas and lamas.

Sandy feeding the animals

We watch a weaving demonstration that gives us an opportunity to see villagers plying their traditional craft. It was really cool seeing how they obtained the colors. Most were from local plants, but one was from a beetle found on the prickly pear cactus. They would smash the beetles to get a purple color. If lime juice was added it turned orange, if it was rubbed with a quarts rock pink.