During the summer of 2018, I had the privilege of doing two weeks of field work on the…
Times visited: 1 (1 month in 2018)
Cities visited: Cuzco, Lima
Villages visited: Pisac, Urubamba, Ollantaytambo, Aguas Calientes, Nazca, Ica, Huacachina, Paracas, Pisco
UNESCO sites visited: City of Cuzco, Historic Center of Lima, Lines and Geoglyphs of Nasca and Palpa, Historic Sanctuary of Machu Picchu
My travels had been focused primarily on Europe and Asia for many years when I found out that I’d been accepted to join an archaeological field school in Lima for the summer of 2018. A new country, a new continent and a new career opportunity awaited me!
My younger brother Brandon had always dreamt of visiting Peru, so I suggested he join me. Together, we travelled to the city of Cusco, the cultural heart of Peru. We spent some days there learning about the unique culture of the Cusqueños and getting used to the high altitude. Because like so many tourists before us, we were going to hike the four-day Inka Trail to Machu Picchu, one of the seven wonders of the world. But we weren’t doing it alone. We were going with a dream team of archaeologists as well as the best guides and porters who worked so hard to make our journey the biggest adventure. It was tough, but most of all fun, educational and incredibly beautiful.
The next week was spent in this region, high up in the Andes, where we based ourselves in Cusco and took day trips out from there.
Then we travelled onwards to Lima, Peru’s uncharming capital. I spent two weeks working at the field school, while Brandon was off travelling on his own for the first time. I dedicated the afternoons to exploring Lima, and during the weekend, we went on an amazing two-day trip. We flew over the Nazca Lines, went sand boarding in the desert of Huacachina, saw penguins, sea lions and seabirds on Islas Ballestas and toured the beautiful Reserva de Paracas!
