The elevation of this mountain valley town is 9,100 feet (2790m) so while not quite as high as Cusco, the city we flew into last night, we could definitely sense the reduced oxygen content. Our guidance was to take everything a little bit slower and exert ourselves a little less until our bodies adjusted. This was the primary reason we chose to stay here an extra day prior to traveling to Machu Picchu on Thanksgiving.
Ollantaytambo is a very charming town which has a heavy reliance on tourism. There are 3,000 full-time friendly residents here and lots of hostels and small places to house visitors. The famous Inca Trail starts here and we saw many individuals who were carrying walking poles and sleeping bags. That is a 3-4 day hike to the Incan ruins of Machu Picchu. We are taking PeruRail tomorrow for our trip upriver the valley.
The Sacred Valley has towering mountains on each side but the Valley floor is wide enough in spots to farm corn and raise cattle. In fact, there is a horse “ranch” near our accommodations which are about a 15 minute walk from the main square.
Ollantaytambo is similar to some villages in Thailand in a few respects. They harvest all of their crops by hand, they have oxen led through the streets, and they use tuk-tuks to get around.
Actually, we saw tuk-tuks in the jungle town of Iquitos. These were open-air conveyance due to the heat and humidity. In Ollantaytambo the tuk-tuks are typically enclosed and the back seats have doors. The weather here is quite variable. We have 50°F temps at night and up to 70°F in the sunshine. Today, we had periods of rain too.
The 5 children were provided some pocket cash and they set off on their hunts for souvenirs. Brian bought a hat, Tiffany bought a coin purse, ToasterHam and CreeperPuppy bought stuffed animals, and Suaram bought a lovely crystal necklace which matched her hair nicely.
The adults in the group left the children at a pizza place by the square while they hunted for a more “upscale” dining experience.
The weather remained warm and an afternoon shower came through and dampened the ground but not our spirits. Three of the boys went hiking through some Inca ruins which can clearly be seen from the rooftop of our accommodations.
We are all getting excited for our trip to Machu Picchu where we expect to encounter many more Incan ruins. New adventures await!
5 Adventures Together 