Kemps Visit Santiago, Chile (April, 2016)

We redeemed 3,000 Avianca LifeMiles per person plus $4.39 in taxes (18,000 LifeMiles plus $26.34 total) for the one-way flights from Puerto Maldonado back to Lima, Peru and another 10,000 British Airways Avios miles plus $30.74 (60,000 Avios plus $184.44 total) to fly from Lima, Peru back home to Santiago, Chile. The Kemps would stay 4-5 more days and hang out with us in Santiago to finish off their vacation. While in Santiago, we drove up the canyon and took the Kemps to see the snow in the mountains (it was the first time some of their kids had seen snow), went rock climbing at Mall Sport, enjoyed the pool, and the end of the summer in Santiago, and were able to go to some good restaurants. We are grateful for our friendship with the Kemp family and so glad we got to be so close with them when we were living in Perth, Australia. They are our lifelong friends and our travel buddies.

Family picture as the sun is setting (Valle Nevado, Chile).

Kids playing in the snow at Valle Nevado, Chile.

Sawyer and Paige in the snow at Valle Nevado, Chile.

Sawyer and Ryder, bouldering at Mall Sport.

Nash, bouldering at Mall Sport.

Puerto Maldonado, Amazonas, Peru (April, 2016)

We redeemed 3,000 Avianca Lifemiles per person plus $4.25 in taxes (18,000 LifeMiles plus $25.50 total) for our flights from Cuzco to Puerto Maldonado and were picked up from the airport and taken to our hotel in the city of Puerto Maldonado. We enjoyed some time at the pool and picked up some snacks and supplies for our journey to the jungle the next morning.

We booked a 2 day, 1 night trip with the Corto Maltes lodge, and paid a bit extra to start very early (6am) and get a few more excursions in. All in all, we were able to get all of the excursions in that they normally schedule for a 3 day, 2 night trip and we still had some downtime in the lodge. 

We were taken from Puerto Maldonado by boat up the Madre de Dios river to the Corto Maltes lodge where we dropped our stuff and got some gum boots and headed, again by boat, further up the river for a trek to Sandoval Lake.

We walked 3km each way through slippery mud to get to Sandoval Lake where we were able to see turtles, bats, a black caiman, many different species of monkeys, and other wildlife. Zander got bit by fire ants while we were walking out and made some shrieking noises of his own to compete with the monkeys.

Had we known what we were getting into, we probably wouldn't have chosen to do this expedition. It was very hard, especially with the little kids...it was not for sissies. It was hot, humid, filthy (trudging through deep mud will do that to a person), and there were bugs and insects aplenty. 

Once we got to Sandoval Lake, we got into a large canoe where we paddled out onto the lake. It was blistering hot and there was no escape from the sun (everyone was so hot and sweaty that it was nearly impossible to apply additional sunscreen as it would just mix in with the sweat and not get absorbed at all). A few members of the group, led by Cody jumped into the lake despite the piranhas and the threats, warnings, and anger from the wives/mothers in the boat (Eliza and Alex). 

Those that did participate in the swimming were in much better moods because they were able to get a small reprieve from the heat and humidity.

A family of turtles as we enter Lake Sandoval on a long canoe.

Our crew at Lake Sandoval, Peru.

Bats, lined up orderly on a tree on the shore of Lake Sandoval, Peru.

Hiking through the mud on the way to Lake Sandoval, Peru...as can be seen from the picture, the gum boots came off for some as it was easier to walk barefoot in the mud than carry the sticky gumboots.

Despite the heat, humidity, mud, and bugs, there were some pretty amazing trees in this section of the Amazon rainforest.

Family picture at the end of our hike to Lake Sandoval, Peru.

Zander was exhausted after having hiked 6km+ through deep mud in heat and humidity to Lake Sandoval, Peru.

After the excursion to Lake Sandoval, we had some downtime at the pool and ate lunch in the lodge. We were able to wander through the grounds of the lodge and walk out to one of the lookout towers nearby in the jungle.

At night, we took an excursion out on the river with spotlights and looked for caiman. Luckily, we were able to spot 2 dwarf caiman and a white caiman to add to the black caiman that we had seen earlier in the day at Lake Sandoval.

When we got back to the lodge we went hunting for tarantula and were able to find a few hiding in the trees and bushes, eerily close to where we were sleeping.

Some of the group woke up early the next morning and hiked out to a spot in the middle of the jungle and waited for about 35 minutes until hundreds of parrots and parakeets gathered near a clay lick.

Dwarf caiman on the banks of the Madre de Dios river.

Tarantula hiding in one of the palm trees near our lodge.

Rick, trying to sneak off with some platanos for lunch.

Ryder, Levi, and Nash in the city of Puerto Maldonado...these chicken are probably being cooked in the sun it was so hot.

Cody and Nash, sweating to death on the canoe at Lake Sandoval.

Our crew, enjoying some shade on one of the tributary rivers to Lake Sandoval, Peru.

Black caiman on the banks of Lake Sandoval, Peru.

Our crew (Kemps and Whippermans) at the end of our hike to Lake Sandoval, Peru.

Animals at Corto Maltes lodge.

Cool animals wandering around the grounds of the Corto Maltes lodge.

Hundreds of parakeets at the salt lick that we hiked to from the Corto Maltes lodge.

Turtles on a log at Lake Sandoval, Peru.

Lake Sandoval, Peru...beautiful, but hot and difficult to get to.

Via Ferrata, SkyPods and Cusco, Valle Sagrado, Peru (April, 2016)

We arrived late afternoon at the Hilton Garden Inn, Cusco where we paid (rather than redeemed Hilton Hhonors points) for nights since the rates were so cheap (~$70/room per night). With our Hilton Diamond status, we were given suites, which were quite comfortable and more than adequate for our group. We had booked an exciting overnight excursion for just the adults to the Via Ferrata and SkyPods near Ollantaytambo and we had brought our nanny, Cristina, to Peru with us from Santiago, Chile (primarily to watch the kids while we went on this excursion), so this worked out perfectly. 

The adults were off around noon of our second day in Cuzco and we were taken to some cliffs just outside Ollantaytambo looking back towards Urubamba. We were given our gear and some safety and other instructions and then we began our journey (climb) up the Via Ferrata to the SkyPods where we would spend the night suspended 1,200 feet above the valley floor.

The SkyPods are glass capsules that are bolted into the cliffs 400m above the valley floor and they have an amazing view of the valley below. It took us a few hours to climb up to the SkyPods (stopping to take some pictures along the way), and then we settled into our suspended hotel for the night. Our guides brought us drinks and a 3 course dinner with soup/salad, mains, and desert. The beds were great (very comfortable) and the view of the stars in the sky and the lights in the valley below was amazing. This was a very unique experience and one of the highlights of the trip for sure.

We woke up early the next morning with the sun and had breakfast on top the SkyPod. Then we climbed up a bit more and had fun finding our way down to the bottom of the valley on a zipline course that they had set up. There were 7 ziplines that zigged and zagged their way down the cliffs and ultimately led to the bottom. It was a great way to end our adventure. 

Our guides drove us back up to Cuzco and we reunited with the kids after about 24 hours. They enjoyed their time in the hotel, but were anxious to see us.

Looking up towards the 3 SkyPods from the valley below.

Zooming in on the SkyPods.

Alex, Rick, Cody, and Eliza looking up on the SkyPods.

Eliza, beginning the climb up the Via Ferrata to the SkyPods.

Cody, climbing the Via Ferrata to the SkyPods.

Eliza, hanging off the cliff on the Via Ferrata.

Our group, climbing the Via Ferrata on our way to the SkyPods.

Alex, Rick, Eliza, and Cody, stopping for a break on the way up to the SkyPods.

By the time we were arriving at the SkyPods, it was beginning to get dark.

We were served a delicious dinner inside the SkyPods.

Close-up view of the SkyPod from below.

Cody and Eliza, waking up in the SkyPod in the Sacred Valley, Peru. The SkyPod we stayed in had a queen size bed and 2 single beds.

Our crew, enjoying breakfast on top of one of the SkyPods.

Breakfast on top of a SkyPod...we were all strapped in.

Close-up of breakfast after a great night sleep in the SkyPod.

Cody, climbing the Via Ferrata on the way to the SkyPods.

Eliza, practicing her yoga on top of the SkyPod.

After arriving back to Cuzco, we took the kids out to the "plaza" and wandered around for a bit to see some of the architecture and sights. We found a local market and wandered through there, looking at all the trinkets and alpaca items. We had some lunch and looked for some games for the kids and then headed back to the hotel.

Centro of Cuzco with our crew.

Cathedral in Cuzco at night.

View of Cuzco from the Hilton Garden Inn.

Those of us in the group that were not too tired or sick of seeing ancient ruins, headed out to the ruins at Sacsayhuaman, right in Cuzco. These ruins were obviously a gathering place where large groups of people could come together (potentially a marketplace). It was a rainy afternoon, but we enjoyed our time wandering around Sacsayhuaman.

Cody, Sawyer, Ryder, and Nash at Sacsayhuaman.

Amazing to see the giant rocks at Sacsayhuaman carved to fit together so tightly.

Sawyer, Nash, Eliza, and Ryder at Sacsayhuaman.

Machu Picchu and Aguas Calientes, Peru (April, 2016)

We woke up early in Aguas Calientes, after having arrived very late the night before, had a good breakfast in the hotel, and got ready for our big day at Machu Picchu. We were only a couple blocks from the bus station in Aguas Calientes, so we made our way up the hill and onto the buses that take you from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu.

It was a perfect day for Machu Picchu...not to hot, and not cold at all. The morning was full of mist and fog, which added to the beauty of the ruins, and by 10:00am the sun had burned off most of the fog and clouds.

We were able to walk all around the ruins and we were there early enough to avoid all the large tour groups (by the time we were leaving, there were thousands of people...pouring in by the bus load).

We headed down from Machu Picchu to Aguas Calientes in the afternoon and caught an afternoon bus back to Ollantaytambo and our shuttle back up the hill to Cuzco to the Hilton Garden Inn, where we would make our base for the next 3 nights.

Eliza and Zander in Aguas Calientes, Peru.

Our crew, making our way to the Machu Picchu bus, in Aguas, Calientes, Peru.

Zander, Eliza, and Cristina in Aguas Calientes, Peru.

Paige, Harvey, Ryder, Levi, Ady, Nash, Sawyer, and Zander at Machu Picchu.

Machu Picchu, in the fog.

Levi and Nash at Machu Picchu.

Machu Picchu as the sun began to come through the clouds.

Whipperman kids at Machu Picchu.

Zander, taking in the tranquility of Machu Picchu.

Machu Picchu.

Cody, sacrificing Sawyer to the gods at Machu Picchu.

Machu Picchu.

Whipperman and Kemp Kids at Machu Picchu.

Family picture at Machu Picchu.

Machu Picchu.

Machu Picchu.

Sawyer and Paige looking over the ruins at Machu Picchu.

Machu Picchu.

Cody and Eliza at Machu Picchu.

Machu Picchu.

Terraces at Machu Picchu.

Ryder, looking over the edge of Machu Picchu.

Cody and Eliza on the train back from Machu Picchu.

Levi, Ryder, and Nash at Machu Picchu.

Nash and Levi at Machu Picchu.

Sawyer, looking at the Machu Picchu ruins.

Sawyer and Paige at Machu Picchu.

Nash, Levi, and Ryder at Machu Picchu.