Ain't No Mountain High Enough

The new year has been off to a busy start. Since Roundabout is especially busy during the end of the year, it came as no surprise that my work schedule would be a hectic one in December and January. But I did have a lovely December. Some of the highlights of my holiday season: performing a beautiful holiday concert with the Nassau Pops, celebrating the holidays with my family and Alex on Long Island, and spending a low-key New Year's Eve on the Upper West Side with a large group of friends. All of the busy activities going on in my life had me aching for a getaway...which was perfect because months earlier, Alex and I had planned a trip to Peru.

We began our adventure with a long flight from JFK to Lima with a transfer in Panama City. We arrived in Lima exhausted and excited for the rest of our trip. We spent the night at his family's hotel, Los Delfines, and stayed in a junior suite with a cute little dessert tray waiting for us. After a much needed rest, we met Alex's identical twin uncles for a quick breakfast before flying to Cusco for the first leg of our vacation.

After a quick trip up up and away (literally - we were heading to a city with an astoundingly high altitude), we were in the beautiful city of Cusco which sits almost 3 miles above sea level. The adjustment to the altitude was a bit of a challenge but it was so gorgeous there that I almost didn't notice. Our hotel was incredible - it used to be a monastery and the staff was incredibly hospitable. We entered and were given coca tea - a natural remedy altitude sickness (which neither Alex nor I suffered from, thank goodness). The leaves used for making this delicious, earthy tea are highly illegal in the US as they are also used to make cocaine. Nevertheless, the tea did the trick and was delicious.

Our first day in Cusco was spent exploring the city, relaxing, and going to an incredible dinner in the main square.

On our second day, we took a tour of the city and visited a fascinating church where Incans were Christianized when the Spanish invaded the Andes in the 1500's and wiped out the empire. Then we were off to 2 Incan temples, the ruins of Sacsayhuaman, and we even hiked part of the Incan trail!

We took a day trip to Machu Picchu - one of the most breathtaking places I have ever visited. Nestled on the steep top of a mountain in the Andes, Machu Picchu is a preserved ruin of an Incan town. Walking around the site was surreal. We learned about the Incan empire, the Andes, and the spirituality of ancient cultures. Check out our guide peeking out as we walked through the terraces used for farming.

We spent our last night in Cusco at a delicious, mainly organic, restaurant right off the main square called Greens and we ended our meal with a quinoa brulee which was out of this world! After a nice rest, we filled up on a large breakfast of native fruits such as lucuma and grenedia before we flew back to Lima to enjoy the rest of our vacation.

More to come soon!