“I didn’t know I didn’t know that.” – Jennifer Cline
And I burst into tears.
Twelve of us were on a van in the Sacred Valley of Peru, eagerly and maybe nervously poised to disembark into the local food market. The plan was to gather supplies which we would later haul on foot and small pack horses to over 12,500 feet elevation for families and elderly residents of a mountain village with very little access to the resources of town, or to plumbing, water and electricity.
We had journeyed to Peru not just to have a few pisco sours and check Machu Picchu off our bucket lists. The week-long retreat, led by Jennifer Cline of Journey and Serve , was to be focused on deeper interaction with the history and culture of this ancient and mysterious valley tucked among majestic Andean peaks. Our week included daily gentle yoga, a tour of a local working farm, class time with kids in a newly constructed preschool (which our trip helped to fund), a visit to a women’s weaving collective, and a traditional despacho ceremony with local shamans.
We stayed at the little tucked away eco-sanctuary paradise of Willka T’ika with its lovely rooms, yoga studios, sacred spaces and glorious gardens all designed and constructed by hand over the last 30+ years by owner Carol Cumes, her family and the warm Quechua staff, many of whom have been in residence since it was founded. Daily meals included delicious vegetarian feasts and herbal teas gleaned from the garden and curated for each guest by the resident wellness team. It would be time well spent to spend a day enjoying the ethereal seven chakra gardens, tracing the floral labyrinth and contemplating the stars as you soak in steaming outdoor stone baths strewn with flower petals.
Our private, small group tours to local sights were led by Valentin Baca Baño of Valentine’s Pachamama Journeys and his friendly expert team. Decades of guiding visitors through the Sacred Valley and beyond have not dulled his enthusiasm for sharing his deep knowledge of the area. As a local he literally knows every nook and cranny of the place, the people, the hidden histories, the archaeological discoveries, the most beautiful waterfalls and the coolest spot for a mid-hike picnic. Peppering us with tales of the Incas and modern-day Peruvians alike, he led us through Incan salt flats operated continuously by the same families since the 12th century, an experimental Incan farm terraced into a series of possible meteor craters, magnificent ruins of the Incan capital in Cusco, and of course Machu Picchu itself.
Truly a trip of a lifetime.
So why the emotional outburst?
In addition to all the hiking and sightseeing, a highlight for everyone was meeting the hospitable local families (friends of Jennifer!) who welcomed us into their homes, preparing their specialty foods and drinks, and proudly allowing us a glimpse into their lives. In the moment she was delivering her lecture on the van, Jennifer was prepping our group for a challenging day ahead and encouraging us to remain open to what we would see, who we might meet and the sometimes uncomfortable reality of encountering a culture new to us.
As travelers and citizens of the wired world we sometimes believe that whatever we don’t already know is fully accessible with a few quick taps into the search field of whatever device we’re hooked to. We live in an age of access, information, answers and exposure. I am fortunate to have traveled to many countries, not all first world, not all comfy or accommodating or predictable. Each time I visit a new place it stretches my cultural perspective, my flexibility, and my physical adaptability. I am sometimes tempted to believe I have already seen the world.
Jennifer’s words reminded me that it is too easy to become complacent and self-congratulatory about what we know of the world and our place in it. It is a constant and active choice to approach new experiences with an open mind and a willingness to set expectations aside. I think the challenge in this context is to put your “self” on pause altogether. Observe without judgment. Accept the uncomfortable, the unfamiliar, the new.
Something (everything?) about this goes to the heart of why I travel at all, why I even go about my day to be honest. It’s not just about thrill seeking or experience chasing or checking off a bucket list. It’s in part about resilience. Change and challenge are constant, predictably unpredictable. We’re programmed to respond to change with coping strategies, avoidance, personal bias or even fear.
“Wherever you go, there you are!” – Buckaroo Banzai
I love this saying, and it does speak to the futility of our natural escapism. Your baggage travels with you. Maybe try to set it down for a minute? “I didn’t know I didn’t know that.” Jennifer’s lovely simple message brought me to tears because it just sums it all up for me.
Thank you, Peru for reminding me to thoroughly embrace this mantra or at least to keep trying!
PLAN YOUR TRIP
TOUR/STAY:
- Journey and Serve – Passion driven annual trips to the Sacred Valley emphasize cultural interaction and benefit a local school.
- Valentin’s Pachamama Journeys – Expert-led journeys in the Sacred Valley and throughout Peru.
- Willka T’ika – Beautiful boutique hotel and wellness retreat center.
TO SEE:
These are just a few suggestions from our trip, but there are many additional ways to experience this area. Most of all I recommend taking time out from the mad dash to Machu Picchu, slowing down, and steeping yourself in the experience of this extremely beautiful place. It is easy to see how millennia of people dwelling here have felt close to the divine in this place whether it be Pachamama, mountain spirits, a Christian god or just the wonder of Earth.
- Urubamba – One of the largest towns in the region, and a great stepping off point for the region with many retreat centers, a sweet town with a serene central square, quiet side streets lined with boutique shops, a bustling daily food market with excellent fresh juice, and the large central regional market on Wednesday.
- Maras Salt Mines – A small mountain spring delivers pure salt water from deep within the Andes, providing a resource more valuable than gold to the Incas. Families from the area have tended over 4,200 small salt pools for over a thousand years, sun drying the water to distill a high mineral content pink salt.
- Moray – Three huge terraced circular depressions up to 600 feet wide were use by the Incas to experiment with crops at different altitudes and micro climates. It’s like a majestic ancient greenhouse.
- Pisac Archaeological Park – One of the most important and best preserved Incan archaeological sites in Peru includes well preserved royal, sacred and residential buildings, towers, astrological markers, agricultural terraces and incredible tombs carved into the cliffs.
- Pisac – The town below the ruins is home to a famous artisan market. Try to go on Sunday when indigenous craftspeople come from the surrounding mountains to sell their artwork.
- Ollantaytambo – Trains to Machu Picchu depart from this town, but make time to slow down and spend at least a few hours looking around before you board. Residents live in stone houses originally built by the Incas, making them some of the oldest continually occupied dwellings in South America. You can tour them for a look inside a typical home and to marvel at the ingenious puzzle-piece stone masonry. Of course do not miss a visit to the massive Inca fortress and granaries built into the hillside, with temples and working fountains throughout.
If you’re sporty there are numerous outfitters to help you plan guided treks through the mountains on the Inca, Lares or Salkantay Trails, white water rafting, rock climbing, cycling, horseback riding, yoga, spiritual retreats and more.
“A prophet once said ‘Don’t tell me what a man says, don’t tell me what a man knows. Tell me where he’s traveled?’ I wonder about that, do we get smarter, more enlightenment as we travel? Does travel bring wisdom? I think there is probably no better place to find out than Peru.” – Anthony Bourdain
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