Do Not Desecrate Macchu Picchu! and other Machu Picchu, Peru Warning Or Danger Tips

There are “guards” in civilian clothing stationed throughout the Macchu Picchu ruins, to ensure that nothing is desecrated with graffiti or garbage. They have eyes in the backs of their heads!

Don’t even think to lift a tiny stone or anything else that might occur to you – they’ll be on you in a second, escorting you right out of the park - no refund!

Macchu Picchu is a UNESCO World Heritage site and also a national treasure of Peru, so it is guarded carefully.

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Thankfully, the airlines LOST our sleeping bags on the flight to Lima. We were staying in Cusco for about 3 or 4 days before taking off on our trek, so we were confident our lost items would appear by the time we left for Machu Picchu. WRONG! And for this, we had no idea how lucky we were!

What happened is, we "rented" two new sleeping bags from the local travel operator with whom we were trekking the Inca Trail; they provided us with the highest quality, THERMO sleeping bags (the kind that are for 32F degree weather - I think that's 0 degrees Celsius? Sorry - I'm bad at the metric system!!). I am telling you, we would NOT have survived those cold nights in the high Andean plateaus and mountains, if we had not had these wonderfully warm sleeping bags.

So make sure your sleeping bags are top quality THERMO - it is worth the investment!

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Quite simply, there aren't any.

You'll quickly lose your inhibitions about relieving yourself in the great outdoors, because you won't really have a choice when necessity calls. The trek group with whom we went, provided a small tent which we referred to as the "crapper" as much for its smell as for its so called utility. I refused to go anywhere NEAR that thing - believe me, the "natural" alternative will win you over too!

But beware - one of the members of our little group suddenly felt the urge to go, and we happened to be crossing a rather narrow path along the side of the mountain. He waited until we all passed him and indicated he'd catch up to us when he'd finished his business. Then, as he dropped his pants and squatted by the side of the trail, he heard the sound of running footsteps approaching. He was caught "en flagrante delicto" - nothing he could do but smile at the porters as they ran by him with our backpacks and the group tents!

Can you imagine how embarassing that must have been??!!!

So just be careful where you go - and when!

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If you want to eat fresh (raw) fruit or vegetables, you will have to peel off the skin first. The skin contains thousands of microbes that your stomach will not recognize - and against which your stomach will rebel. You don't want to be caught on the Inca Trail during a moment of crisis! Alternately, if the piece is cooked, it should be OK to eat.

Our porters some of whom doubled as the cooks for our group, were very hygienic and had been well trained in food preparation and even in menu selection. The food was specifically tailored to provide much needed energy for the daily hikes - and it was always simple, nutritious and usually really tasty.

I remember the first time I ate Quinoa grain - they prepared it as a side dish and, we also had it for breakfast. It was really good! I think I was most impressed with the food preparation during our hike - as a vegetarian, I expected limitations at meal time. The cooks were terrific about it - there was one other girl who was also a vegetarian, so the cooks made a point of preparing our meals separately, taking into account our non-meat-eating status. They humorously - and very respectfully - referred to us as the "anormales" (abnormals).

It was so funny to see them enter the small dining tent with the plates of food - followed by another person holding two plates and singling us out by announcing "Para las anormales!"

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If you want to experience the mysticism of Machu Picchu without distractions, then you better plan to rise bright and early in order to catch a few quiet moments of sanctity and solitude....the tour buses arrive fully loaded by 9:00 am, and the place is transformed.

Anyways, seeing Machu Picchu during a few reflective moments in the early morning mist can be quite beautiful. By 9 or 10, the sun has already risen high enough to begin burning off that mist which, only an hour or so earlier, had contributed to such an ethereal, wistful atmosphere.

Special.

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I know, I know...it sounds more like the name of your favorite pet chihuahua. But it's not!

Every country has its own kind of "moonshine"...Peru is no exception.

Chicha is a drink more closely associated with the lower socio-economic classes of Andean nations, although it dates back to pre-Inca times. I recall seeing some locals drinking chicha as we hiked along the trail. I was eager to taste their home-made chicha - only to find I didn't like it!

Chicha is usually made from fermented corn, and it has a yellowish, frothy, bubbly look to it. Very strong stuff.

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