I'd wanted to visit Peru ever since the sixth grade. Our teacher showed us photos from his trip to Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley. Ever since I was a kid, I'd wanted to see Machu Picchu with my own eyes.
Finally, I got to experience the wonders of Peru for myself. I traveled there on a whirlwind 7-day itinerary with the tour company trip to go. I was selected as the ambassador for their warm water on the- go program, an initiative providing solar panels to families living in rural communities without reliable access to hot water.
Being able to travel to Peru and give back made the experience even more special. I'm going to highlight everything I did on my trip so you can be inspired to plan your adventure even if you're short on vacation time. We started our trip in the capital city of Lima.
Welcome to Lima, Peru. We are exploring the city today. It's my very first time in Peru, my very first time in Lima.
This is so exciting and it's just so beautiful here. Starting in Mera Flores, we wandered around the Love Park. It's a public park set high on the edge of the cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
This park is dedicated to lovers and romance and it was named by National Geographic as one of the top 50 romantic destinations in the world. It's unfortunate that Justin wasn't with me to visit the Love Park, but I was traveling with the folks at Trip to Go and T Brand Studio, the creative agency for the New York Times advertising, who are creating a video about my trip to Peru. At the center of the love park is a huge statue called The Kiss, and the entire park is decorated with beautiful mosaics.
The mosaics feature poetry and phrases all about love. Next up, we went to the historic city center of Lima. Our first stop was the San Francisco Convent Museum and Catacombs, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
It's important to note that visitors are not usually allowed to take photos or video here, but I had special permission along with the film crew. This place is a wellpreserved example of colonial architecture built by the Franciscan Order in 1774 after a century of work. This attraction is most famous for its underground catacombs.
It was once used as a cemetery and there are thousands of human bones here. The bones are organized and even arranged into various designs and patterns. It's a little bit creepy, but mostly fascinating.
We walk to the main town square in Lima. It's the oldest square in the place where Lima was founded in 1535. There's a beautiful fountain in the middle, and it's surrounded by historic buildings with amazing architecture.
Of course, I couldn't resist stopping for a coffee. Peru has some of the best locally grown coffee beans, so I made sure to drink as much coffee as I could when I was here. We went for lunch at the LCO Museum Cafe.
It's such a gorgeous setting with colorful flowers growing everywhere. They serve both Peruvian and international cuisine. Did you know that there are over 4,000 different kinds of potatoes grown in Peru?
We had a chance to try some of them. Definitely visit the museum if you have time. It showcases 5,000 years of ancient pre-Colombian history.
Back in Mira Flores, I stayed at the comfortable and luxurious hotel Casa Andina Premium Mirror Flores. It's in a great neighborhood and the rooms are very spacious. Before my day was done in Lima, I dined at the nearby vegan restaurant, Satan Urban Beastro.
Then I hopped over to the local cat cafe to meet the friendly Main cats. I was already missing my cat, Tiny. So, it was nice to make some friends with these adorable kitties.
Then, I went back to the hotel for a good night's sleep. And it's a very early morning today. I woke up at 4:30 in the morning because we are flying from Lima to Cusco.
Welcome to Cusco, known as the historic capital of Peru. It's high up in the mountains at about 3,400 meters above sea level. We've just arrived in Cusco and headed off to our very first historic site, Sax Wan.
Sax Wan is a remarkable Inca fortress and temple at the top of a steep hill overlooking Cusco. Although I admittedly hadn't heard of this place before my trip to Cusco, it's one of the most impressive Inca sites in all of Peru. This is a very old temple.
It's actually over 700 years old. It is only about 20% of what it once was. Unfortunately, it was coreied and a lot of the stones here were used to build Catholic churches in Cusco.
The fortress consists of massive boulders perfectly carved to fit together without any mortar or anything holding them together. While the site is fascinating, I got really distracted by the alpacas roaming around the site. They are so cute.
There's also an incredible view of Cusco from the top of the hill. The altitude was definitely affecting me already. I found myself getting out of breath really easily, even just on a small hill climb.
Of course, the walk was well worth the effort. Making our way down to the city itself, I checked into my accommodation, the Hotel Aaron Cusco Boutique. This is one of the best bathrooms ever with a shower and a jetted tub.
Love it. I love simply walking around Cusco. The main town square is bustling and surrounded by amazing architecture with a fountain in the middle.
There are all kinds of little shops and if you're lucky, you might be able to soak up a gorgeous sunset like I did. It's day three of my trip to Peru and I had a very special start to the day. I've come today to a local community in Peru in rural Peru to participate in Trip to Go's warm water onthe-go campaign where we are giving solar water heaters to families of this community and it will benefit all of them greatly to have hot water.
I was honored to take part in a ceremony to present the solar water heaters. Having regular access to warm water means better hygiene, comfort, and health, especially for those living in remote colder climates like those in the Andes Mountains of Peru. I've traveled from Toronto, Canada to participate in this project and helping to give you the solar panels.
And I'm just so delighted that it can make a difference to your community and help everyone to have a better life. I had the opportunity to meet the community leader and local families, seeing firsthand the impact this program has on their daily lives. For every Peru trip booked with Trip to Go, they donate $10 to the warm water on the go program.
Later that day, we traveled to Oante Tambbo in the sacred valley. Welcome to Oante Tombbo, an Incan archaeological site. You can actually climb the stairs all the way to the top like the ancient Incans once did.
So, let's go check it out. Olante Tambbo is known as the living Inca city because it's the only Inca town that's still inhabited to this day. It was one of the most important towns in the sacred valley due to its close proximity to Machu Picchu.
The town is structured around the archaeological site which is a must visit. This complex was a military, religious, and agricultural center. Start by climbing up the stairs across the 17 terraces.
The more that you go up, the views get better and better. Even though it's a little bit challenging to climb the stairs here, just due to the altitude, I find myself really out of breath quite easily. So, I do have to stop, which is okay because you can admire the view.
At the top, the Temple of the Sun is one of the most famous sites. From here, it's possible to enjoy even more views of the surrounding farmland and mountains. Now, let's get settled at my favorite hotel from the entire trip.
I'm spending the night at the Aaron Sacred Valley Wellness and Hotel. And not only is this property massive, it is absolutely stunning. There's beautiful gardens everywhere.
I just have to take you on a tour. This property is a hotel and wellness center all-in-one. Located in the stunning Sacred Valley, where history and nature collide, the five-star Aaron Sacred Valley Hotel is an elegant property that was once a majestic 17th century colonial ranch.
This hotel is gorgeous with its swimming pool, lush gardens, restaurants, and bars. Plus, there's even a movie theater, a chapel, art gallery, and it's even home to their own alpacas. It's also home to the Uno Spa, the largest spa in South America.
It's 25,000 square ft and offers an expansive water circuit and specialized spa treatments that take inspiration from ancient Auroretic and Andian therapies. Resting and relaxing before the big day was a good idea because today we're off to Machu Picchu. We drove back to Oente Tombbo and from there boarded the train to Awa's Calientes.
We took Peru Rail's Vista Dome train which has the largest windows with the best views as you travel up the mountain. The scenery is quite spectacular as a train chugs alongside the river through lush valleys and around the imposing mountains. They even give you a little snack box and some tea in AOS Calientes.
Hop on a coach bus to reach the entry gates to Machu Picchu. These buses run regularly on a loop bringing tourists to and from Machu Picchu all day long. The day has finally arrived.
the day that I'm going to go and see Machu Picchu with my own eyes. And I'm so excited. We had to wake up bright and early to take a train.
Then we're going to hike up to Machu Picchu. There are 10 hiking circuits at Machu Picchu. We took the classic route circuit 2.
This is how you'll see the famous viewpoint and tour the majority of the ruins, including upper and lower sections. I've waited my entire life to see these views, and it's still absolutely breathtaking. It really doesn't compare to seeing it in person.
I feel like I've seen so many photos over and over again since I was a kid, and I can't believe I'm seeing it with my own eyes. Machu Picchu is a 15th century archaeological site located high on a mountain ridge. I was surrounded by lush green mountains right from the start.
Ancient citadel aside, the scenery is quite spectacular in its own right. It was quite the feat to construct this sanctuary so remote and high in the mountains. It was once a royal estate for the emperor to highlight the power of the Inca Empire.
But not only was it a natural fortress, it was an important administrative hub along the vast network of roads that was the Inca Trail. Machu Picchu Citadel is a symbol of the Inca civilization, their ingenuity, and their achievements. And it's not just about the views at the top.
It's about taking the time to walk around and explore the entire site. It's brilliant from all angles. Machu Picchu was so isolated and allowed the Incas to preserve their traditions and ways of life.
After the fall of the Inca Empire, it was not rediscovered for hundreds of years until 1911. It was recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1983. We just came down another set of stairs, and it's unbelievable how around every turn, there's another beautiful view.
And you just don't expect it, but it keeps getting better and better. Somehow, my trip to Machu Picchu became even more magical the longer I stayed there. Walking through old passageways and between rocky walls, I imagined what it was like for the Incas to visit this magical place centuries earlier.
After visiting Machu Picchu, we went back to Agos Calientes for a little while before making the journey all the way back to Cusco. It's day five of my Peru trip and we're enjoying more of the sacred valley, starting at the archaeological site, Marai. Marai ended up being one of my favorite places to visit in Peru.
It's a collection of circular terraces created by the Incas. They're breathtaking to observe with the Andes mountains in the distance. It might feel very satisfying to gaze upon these terraces of perfect circles.
However, it's even better once you learn about their purpose. This is actually an amazing feat of engineering. The Incas were so smart.
These are perfect circles. I don't even know how they form the perfect circles. And then every single terrace with a different elevation so they know which crops to grow.
It's an amazing science behind this place. This was an agricultural experiment site by the Incas. Each terrace had its own microclimate used to represent various places around the Inca Empire.
By growing various crops on different terraces, the Incas could observe and study the effects of altitude, amounts of light and temperature to determine which crops grew best and where. For lunch, we went to Mountain View Experience in their restaurant, Ancestral. It offers an elevated menu of traditional Andian dishes using locally grown crops.
It was one of the best meals I had in Peru. Mountain View Experience is also a boutique hotel with A-frame cabins, outdoor adventures, and the most adorable llamas. I didn't even know you could feed them.
I went outside to admire the scenery, and before long, I was surrounded by them. Someone in our group found some hats and ponchos and threw this outfit on me. I had such a blast.
I can't wait to return to Peru because I'd love to spend the night there. After an evening in Cusco, I flew back to Lima the following morning. and a couple more places that I want to see before leaving Peru.
First, I wanted to enjoy another yummy vegan meal. So, I went to Samsara. They are an entirely plant-based restaurant with Peruvian and international cuisine and delicious desserts.
Since I was staying again in Mira Flores, I wanted to end my trip with one of the best finds in the city, which is Kennedy Park. Not only is it a beautiful public green space with works of public art, it's home to some of the cutest inhabitants, dozens and dozens of cats. These cats are looked after by a group of volunteers.
There are cat houses all over the park as well as dishes of food. They're spayed and neutered and received visits to the vet when required. When I visited the Lima Cat Park, I admired the cats and allowed them to approach me.
Many cats are happily sneezing beneath the trees, and it's important to let them be. With that said, some cats are friendly and curious. They'll likely approach you looking for scratches and love.
They're really used to being around people. While this was a whirlwind trip to Peru, it shows that you can really cover a lot of ground with only a week away from home. I'd love to return to Peru in the future as I've just barely scraped the surface of what this magical country has to offer.
A special thanks to Trip togo for inviting me to be the ambassador for a warm water on the go. Thanks so much for watching. Don't forget to hit that subscribe button to stay in touch.
