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Peru - Machu Picchu
& Amazon Eco Adventure
11 Days
Day 1: Depart USA to Lima
Upon arrival, you will be transferred to your hotel.
Day 2: Free day
Free day to rest with lunch at the hotel. You will enjoy a welcome
dinner and folkloric show in the evening. (B, L, D)
Day 3: Lima
In the morning, you will have a city tour of Lima. You will visit
downtown Lima and see several examples of the Spanish architecture of
the colonial period including the Plaza de Armas, the Presidential
Palace, the Cathedral, and the Church of San Francisco and Catacombs.
After that, you will see Huaca Huallamarca, a restored adobe pyramid
dating from the pre-Inca period located in San Isidro. You will tour the
upscale residential and commercial district of Miraflores and see the
Parque del Amor, a seaside park with a huge statue of a kissing couple,
before returning to your hotel. Early morning transfer to the airport
for the flight to Cusco. After lunch, you will visit the Gold Museum.
Dinner at hotel. (B, L, D)
Day 4: Cusco
Early morning transfer to the airport for your flight to Cusco. Upon
arrival, you will be transferred to your hotel. Because of the high
altitude (10,660 feet above sea level), we recommend that you rest for a
short period. After lunch, you will have a city tour that includes a
walk through the Cathedral, the Koricancha ('site of gold'), typical
streets, and the four ruins that surround the city: the Sacsayhuaman
Fortress, Kenko, Puca Pucara, and Tampumachay. Dinner and folkloric
show. (B,L,D)
Day 5 (Feb 14): Full-day excursion to the Sacred Valley.
You will visit the Pisac ruins and the fortress of Ollantaytambo.
Transfer to your hotel in Sacred Valley. Dinner at hotel. (B, L, D)
Day 6: Machu Picchu
Early morning transfer to the train station for the ride to Machu Picchu,
'the Lost City of the Incas' (7,900 ft.). This mountaintop citadel,
which served as both a center of worship and an astronomic observatory,
is located in the middle of the cloud forest overlooking the Urubamba
River. There are both agricultural and urban areas constructed with the
precision stonework that the Incas are known for. The agricultural area
consists of terraces and food storehouses, and the urban area contains
temples, squares, and royal tombs. Guided tour followed by lunch. In the
afternoon, you will be transferred to your hotel. Dinner at hotel. (B,L,
D)
Day 7: Free Time
This morning, you will come back to Machu Picchu or you can visit the
hot springs of Aguas Calientes. After lunch, you will depart Machu
Picchu for the return train ride to Cusco. Dinner at hotel. (B, L, D)
Day 8: (Puerto Maldonado-Posada Amazonas)
Upon arrival from Cusco, reception and transfer to the Tambopata river
port in Puerto Maldonado. Puerto Maldonado is situated at the confluence
of the mighty Madre de Dios and Tambopata Rivers and is a bustling,
booming tropical frontier town. Its principal activities are gold
mining, Brazil nut collecting, timber extraction, agriculture, and
ecotourism. After a brief survey of the town we will depart on the two
hour boat trip by motorized canoe to Posada Amazonas. During our voyage
we may see bird species typical of the river or forest edge such as:
Black Skimmer, Pied Lapwing, Capped Heron, Jabiru Stork, Roadside Hawk,
and several species of kingfishers, swallows, and flycatchers. When we
arrive at Posada Amazonas we will receive a briefing on the lodge and
the Ecotourism Project before our afternoon activity - the canopy tower.
In this activity, we will visit a 115 foot high scaffolding tower that
is a 15 minute walk from the lodge. The scaffolding tower is built so
that you safely climb using the internal staircase with verandahs on
each side, and rest in platforms present every seven feet. From the top
you not only get spectacular views of the river and the surrounding
forest but also excellent opportunities to observe birds from the canopy
including parrots, toucans, and macaws. A video about the forest of
Tambopata will be displayed after dinner. (B,L,D)
Day 9: (Posada Amazonas)
We will be up at dawn for a visit to the Tres Chimbadas oxbow lake.
After an early breakfast we depart, 15 minutes from Posada Amazonas by
boat and a 30 minute walk to the lake shore. From here, we take a long,
easy canoe ride around it. We will look for giant river otters (a
resident family of nine), turtles, hoatzin, and wading birds. Then we
will return to the lodge for lunch before embarking on our afternoon
outing. In the afternoon we will visit the community's ethno botanical
center. From this little shop, the community has been registering the
uses of medicinal plants from elders, and planting, producing, and
distributing them for over ten years. We will walk the trails around the
center with one of the residents who will explain to us the everyday
uses of forest resources in medicine, construction, food, and fiber. We
will return to Posada Amazonas for dinner and overnight. This evening
you may choose an optional night walk to look for amphibians and
insects. (B,L,D)
Day 10: (Posada Amazonas)
After an early breakfast, we will visit a clay lick. This clay lick is a
ten minute walk from the lodge, next to the river. Amazingly, the
variety of parrots that visit this clay lick is considerably different
than the one inside the forest that we will visit later in the day. Some
of the large macaws, like the red and green macaw, and larger parrots,
like mealy and yellow crowned Amazons, visit this lick, as well as the
smaller parrots and parakeets. From the blind we have constructed next
to this lick, even the amateur photographer can take good pictures of
these wonderful birds. We will also have a great opportunity to spot
other spectacular wildlife, active at this time of the day, like scarlet
or blue and gold macaws, and a great deal of other birds. When the
activity dies down, we will visit a small parakeet clay lick that is a
45 minute walk away. Dozens and sometimes hundreds of Blue Headed
Parrots, Orange-Cheeked Parrots, Cobalt-Winged Parakeets, and sometimes
even the rare Rock Parakeet, congregate here on clear days to ingest
clay. This congregation creates a riotous and colorful wildlife
spectacle where the greens, oranges, reds and blues of the parrots dance
around the bank as each individual parrot competes for their choice
beakful of clay. After lunch, our naturalist guide will explain general
aspects of rain forest ecology and natural history, each with their own
contrasting viewpoint. We will return to Posada Amazonas, where you will
be able to reminisce on the happenings of the past three days, enjoying
with a beverage list of Amazonian concoctions. (B,L,D)
Day 11: Return Home
After an early breakfast, we depart by boat back to the city of Puerto
Maldonado, directly to the airport, in time for our flight back to Lima
and USA. (B)
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