Adventures of Living Abroad

Machu Picchu Day 1 I chose to take the bus instead of walking the 1 1/2 hours up the mountain to reach Machu Picchu. From what I read it wasn't worth the time to hike up and I wanted to save my energy for my hike up WaynaPicchu the next day. The bus system was very efficient. I hopped right on and began the scary 30 minute ride of the mountain. The road winds back and forth up the mountain. No guard rails except for in 1 or 2 spots. In most spots the road is only wide enough for one bus to fit, but the buses traveled both up and down the road sooo often times you had to stop and wait for a bus to pass before continuing. Machu Picchu was absolutely stunning and breathtaking. My pictures truly don't do it justice. It is something you must see in person. It is an unbelievable feeling to be standing in a city built in the 15th century on top of a mountain. The amount of time, effort, and intelligence required to build it is truly remarkable. I enjoyed taking my time as I wal...

This post is out of time order and that bothers me, but I just didn't get around to posting this earlier. I started it but never finished it until now so here goes... When moving to Brazil I had this silly notion that I would get to see "ALL" of Brazil and South America while I was there. Well, clearly that couldn't happen in 2 years. Brazil is massive! There is so much to see and do in Brazil as well as the rest of South America. So as the time came for me to leave Brazil and South America, I decided that Machu Picchu was a must see before I left. I had originally planned to do the Inca Trail 4-day trek, but it was all booked up and I didn't have a lot of time either. So on my last day of work at school, I flew to Cusco....After a short taxi ride to my hostel from the airport, I arrived in the middle of the town of Cusco and I felt an immediate sense of peace and tranquility. I was really tired after only having slept for 3 hours the night before, but I force...