Walking with the Shaman
Machu Picchu & Peru
April 23 - May 6, 2011
Detailed Itinerary*
Day 1: Saturday, April 23, Arrive in Lima
Depart USA for Lima, Peru. Plan your flight to arrive in Lima, Peru by 2:00 p.m. or after. Upon arrival at Lima Airport, you will go across the street (literally) to the Hotel for overnight accommodation. Please contact our office before you finalize your flight arrangements.
Overnight in Lima
Lodging: Hotel Ramada Costa Del Sol
Day 2: Sunday, April 24, Cusco
After breakfast we will transfer to the Lima airport to catch a morning flight to Cusco. Situated at 11,000 feet above sea level, Cusco is the oldest inhabited city in the Western Hemisphere. Created in the shape of a puma, Cusco (population 350,000) was once the proud capital of the Inca Empire. Cusco is a beautiful city and its town center is filled with charming, old Spanish colonial buildings built upon the solid foundations of earlier Incan architecture. In a similar way, the hospitality, charm and beauty of Cusco's modern culture is built upon the foundations of the Quechua people, present-day ancestors of the Incas. In Quechua, the language of most of the people of the Andes, Cusco means "navel of the Universe" and today it retains much of its proud significance as the center of the Andean world.
From the airport we will transfer to our hotel. We will rest and begin adapting to the altitude. Drinking mate (tea made from coca leaves) helps this process and is offered in the reception area of our hotel.
In the afternoon, Jorge will lead us on a walking tour through this lovely and historically rich city. We will walk streets leading to temples and other sacred places in the city. You will be able to feel the energy of the ley lines that converge in Cusco. These vibrations have been compared to the ones in the streets of Jerusalem, Mecca, Assisi and in other holy cities.
Overnight in Cusco
Lodging: Taypikala Cusco Hotel
Breakfast and dinner included
Day 3: Monday, April 25, Cusco, Sacsayhuaman & Kenko
This will be an amazing morning. We will visit two different sacred sites in the Cusco area. As we move through these incredible places, you will be able to feel the energy that is specific to each place.
Sacsayhuaman is one of the most amazing of Inca constructions. The Quechua name means "satisfied falcon.” The rock formation is the falcon that guarded the capital of the Empire, since it was possible to overlook Cusco from the hill on which it was erected. Sacsayhuamán is usually described as a fortress because it is practically enclosed by three slopes. However, the fact that the Incas constructed a fortress in that place is considered unusual, since at the time of its construction, there were no major threats to the Empire. Anthropologists suggest the shape and location could have corresponded with other principles, such as the harmony between architecture and landscape. Current investigations are suggesting that it must have been a temple devoted to the worship of the Sun, for which both the construction and the surrounding landscape were important.
Kenko: This site is a series of limestone outcrops on which intricate mythical representations have been carved. This Quechua name means zigzag, probably due to the labyrinthine underground galleries or the small channels carved on rocks with that shape. Behind that stone is a rocky headland with a staircase carved on the bare rock that leads to the top. A zigzag channel that begins here, descends and splits into two branches. One follows the slope and a second one goes up to the underground chamber. Anthropologists theorize the second channel could have been used to transport the blood of llamas sacrificed in some rituals. At the very top there are carved remains of what could have been a condor, whose head was broken, and a puma. Our ceremony here will focus on awakening the altar of the Puma.
Amaru Machay: The Temple of Rebirth and connection with Mother Earth. It is believed to be the Incan place for worshiping of the land (earth) and the place of the serpent. In Andean cosmology, the serpent is a powerful symbol of transformation and rebirth. The snake sheds its skin each year and is reborn. Tonight we will have a wonderful dinner together on the square in Cusco, complete with Peruvian music.
Overnight in Cusco
Lodging: Taypikala Cusco Hotel
Breakfast and dinner included
Day 4: Tuesday, April 26, The Sacred Valley: Urco and Pisac
The Sacred Valley was undoubtedly a key area of settlement to the Incas. Its agreeable climate and fertile plains make a rare and fruitful combination for the high Andes. It was also the route to the jungle and therefore an area with access to the fruits and plants of the tropical lowlands. The Sacred Valley served as a buffer zone, protecting Cusco from incursions of the Antis, the fierce jungle tribes who from time to time raided the highlands. Today the Sacred Valley remains a lush agricultural region supplying the city of Cusco with much of its produce such as maize, fruit and vegetables.
Today, we will have a beautiful bus ride through the Sacred Valley to visit Pisac. This important Incan road once snaked its way up the canyon that enters the Urubamba Valley at Pisac. The citadel, at the entrance to this gorge, now in ruins, controlled a route, which connected the Inca Empire with Paucartambo, on the border of the eastern jungles. Set high above a valley floor, and surrounded by a patchwork patterned fields and extensive terracing, the stonework and panoramas at Pisac's Inca citadel are magnificent. Terraces, aqueducts and steps have been cut from solid rock in the upper sector of the ruins. In Urco, the place of the snake, we will participate in Chicha Ceremony. This is a place of power where Coca leaves are used to send love and thanks to the Apus, spirits of the mountains and to Pachamama (Mother Earth).
In the afternoon we will go to the village for lunch and shopping at the festive village market.
Overnight in Cusco
Lodging: Taypikala Cusco Hotel
Breakfast and dinner included
Day 5: Wednesday, April 27, Ollantaytambo:
The Sanctuary of the Wind
After breakfast, we will leave Cusco and once again head into the Sacred Valley. Today’s destination, where we will spend the entire day, is Ollantaytambo, the last stop along the Sacred Valley. Nestled at the foot of an ancient Inca site, this small town with a population of 2,000 is the most beautiful town in the Sacred Valley. The cobble stone streets and main plaza give the place an ancient feeling. The town is set higher up from the main highway, and built on uneven ground. Stone arches beautifully frame Stone stairways. It is here that Manco Inca retreated after his defeat at Saqsayhuaman. He was nearly successful in holding off the Spanish at Ollantaytambo, but after bringing in more troops, Pizarro eventually forced his retreat, successfully ending the native rebellion. Ollantaytambo is made of enormous, stepped terraces constructed of unbelievably huge stones. The rock quarry was across the river valley on the opposite hillside. Workers moved stones using sloping planes, ramps, and rollers. At the valley floor they actually diverted the river around the rocks, rather than transport them across the river.
When we reach Ollantaytambo in the morning, we will visit the Megalithic Temple, a place of power of the Llama and Puma; and the Pyramid of Pakarectampu. Later in the day, Jorge will lead us in a special ceremony to harmonize with the energies of nature, which offers all its beauty to us.
Overnight in Ollantaytambo
Lodging: Hotel Pakaritampu
Breakfast and dinner included
Day 6: Thursday, April 28, By Train - Machu Picchu
This is one of the days we have all been waiting for. After breakfast, we will transfer to the train station. Here we will board a train and travel a beautiful and scenic route to Aguas Calinete, the town which lies at the foot of the sacred city of Machu Picchu. We will take a short bus ride up the switch-back road to the site. Jorge will guide us through this sacred place and explain how the Incas lived and the purpose of the city. As a part of our tour, we will visit the seven points of power and later participate in a ceremony on the grounds. We visit the Temples of the Sun & Moon, the Temple of the Condor, the Temple of the Three Windows, and finally the world-famous spiritual center of the site, the Intihuatana, or the Hitching Post of the Sun. The intent of our work at this time will be to connect with the entities of Machu Picchu, the Puma, the Condor and the Light Spirits that reside here. There will be plenty of time for enjoying the site, taking in the vibrations, meditating and journaling.
Machu Picchu (Quechua: Old Peak; sometimes called the "Lost City of the Incas") is a well-preserved pre-Columbian Inca ruin located on a high mountain ridge. For centuries Machu Picchu was forgotten by the outside world, although not by locals. Machu Picchu was brought back to international attention by Yale archaeologist Hiram Bingham who rediscovered it in 1911. Bingham wrote a best-selling work about his discovery entitled Inca Land. Fantastic green peaks loom up and around the ancient city above the Urubamba river below. Around 200 houses, palaces and temples built from large and small perfectly fitted stone blocks surround the central court. The entire stone complex is considered a high voltage and magnetic focal point; every invocation made at Machu Picchu is amplified to incalculable proportions.
Overnight in Aguas Calientes
Lodging: Taypikala Machu Picchu
Breakfast and lunch included
Day 7: Friday, April 29, Machu Picchu
We will return to the Crystal City after breakfast. Again we will climb the hill by bus, traveling the switchbacks that will ultimately bring us to the sacred grounds. There will be time for meditation and connecting with the essence of cosmic force of this place. Another option will be to climb Huayna Picchu, or hike to the Temple of the Moon. This will be your day to enjoy the site on your own. You can return to town when you wish. There are Hot Springs in Aguas Calientes to bathe in and enjoy with the locals. Also, there is lots of interesting shopping. Tonight we will dine at one of our favorite restaurants, Indio Feliz, which is a French and Peruvian restaurant. The chef is French; came to Peru and met and married his wife – they are both friends of Jorge and the food is fantastic.
Overnight in Aguas Calientes
Lodging: Taypikala Machu Picchu
Breakfast and dinner included
Day 8: Saturday, April 30, Aguas Calientes,
Mandor & the Waterfalls, Cusco
After an early breakfast, we will take a two-hour walk along the Vilcanota River, following the railroad tracks into the Mandor Valley. Once there, we will enjoy the beautiful waterfall and participate in a ceremony to honor the element of water.
In the afternoon, we will take the train back to Ollantaytambo Station and then by bus, return to Cusco.
Overnight in Cusco
Lodging: Taypikala Cusco Hotel
Breakfast and dinner included
Day 9: Sunday, May 1, Travel from
Cusco to Lake Titicaca
After an early breakfast, we go to the airport and fly from Cusco to the Lake Titicaca Region of Peru, one of the most sacred places on earth.
Lake Titicaca is the world's highest lake navigable to large vessels, lying at 12,500 feet above sea level on the border between Peru to the west and Bolivia to the east. Titicaca is the second largest lake of South America and covers some 3,200 square miles and extends in a northwest-to-southeast direction for a distance of 120 miles. It is 50 miles across at its widest point. In other words, it’s huge. And beautiful.
The meaning of the name Titicaca is uncertain, but it has been variously translated as Rock of the Puma or Crag of Lead. There are Forty-one islands on the lake, with some of them densely populated. The largest, Titicaca Island (Spanish: Isla de Titicaca also called Isla del Sol), lies just off the tip of the Copacabana Peninsula in Bolivia. According to the tradition of the Incas (the Quechuan people of Peru who established an empire about 1100), the legendary founders of the Inca dynasty, Manco Capac and Mama Ocllo, were sent down to Earth by the Sun, entering through Lake Titcaca.
There is another legend that says at the time Lemuria was sinking, one of the seven Great Masters of Lemuria, Lord Aramu Muru, was given the mission to bring the sacred Golden Solar Disc from the Temple of Illumination to Lake Titicaca for safe keeping. During the time of the Incas, the Solar Disc was transferred to Cusco, and placed in the Qorikancha, the main Temple of the Sun, where it stayed until the coming of the Spanish. At that time, it was returned to Lake Titicaca and placed in the Eternal Etheric City inside the Lake. In the legend of their origin, this is the place from where the first Incas, Manco Capac and Mama Ocllo, entered the Earth. During our visit, we will participate in this legend through a ceremonial practice.
Our destination is Chucuito, which is about 20 minutes from Puno. We will be staying in Chucuito for the next few days.
Overnight Chucuito
Lodging: Taypikala Lago Hotel
Breakfast and dinner included
Day 10: Monday, May 2, Uros – Floating
Islands & the Island of Amantani
We will depart the hotel in Chucuito after breakfast and board our boat in Puno. We have a beautiful boat ride on the Lake, as we head to the island of Amantani.
Not far off shore from Puno live the remnants of an ancient people, the Uru. We will visit the village where the Uru have lived for hundreds of years. Their homes and schools and stores are built on floating mats of dried totora, a reed like papyrus that grows in the marshy shallows of the lake. From the totora, the Uru and other lake dwellers make their famed balsas, boats formed from bundles of dried reeds lashed together and resembling the crescent-shaped papyrus craft pictured on ancient Egyptian monuments. There is a market on the island and time to shop, purchasing handicrafts from the islanders. We will also do a beautiful meditation on the island, connecting with Mamacocha, the Spirit of the Lake.
When we arrive in Amantani you will be struck by the beauty and peacefulness of this place and its people. There is no electricity, no running water, no television, no room service. The people are some of the most open-hearted and contented people you will ever meet.
On Amantani, we will participate in two important ceremonies: one to the Cosmic Mother and another to the Cosmic Father, in one of the island's many temples. This temple is at the highest point on the Island and we will be able to see for many miles from this location. We will also have the rare opportunity to participate directly in a traditional healing plant ceremony. This magical experience is one of the most important reasons to come to Peru.
Dinner will be prepared by the Islanders, which will give us an opportunity to better experience and understand the Andean way of life. We will overnight on the Island of Amantani as guests of one of the island families. We will sleep on beds that have mattresses made of reeds from the lake. They are surprisingly comfortable. It is very rustic, but very beautiful, an experience of a lifetime.
Overnight on Amantini
Lodging: As guests in the homes of local families
Breakfast in Chucuito, lunch and dinner on Amantini included
Day 11: Tuesday, May 3, Return To Puno
We will rise before sunrise and participate in a ceremony to receive the first light into our hearts. Then, after breakfast we will say goodbye to our hosts and take the boat ride back to Puno. On our return, there will be free time to spend in Puno or to return to the hotel.
Overnight Chucuito
Lodging: Taypikala Lago Hotel
Breakfast and dinner included
Day 12: Wednesday, May 4, Aymara Altars:
Aramu Muru/Copamay/ Charcas
After breakfast we will travel south of Puno to visit the famous Interdimensional Gateway of Lord Aramu Muru, walking by the Snake and the Puma and then to the Condor. This will be one of the most important ceremonies we will do -- a special ceremony to connect with other dimensions and other worlds. This gateway was not known for many years until Jorge Luis Delgado, the Shaman traveling with us, saw it in a dream. He went to his elders who told him he had a sacred responsibility to find this place. You can read more about this in Jorge’s recently published book entitled Andean Awakening: An Inca Guide to Mystical Peru, published by Council Oak Books. Purchase it here on Amazon.com.
Next we take a bus ride through Copamaya, known for its weavers and agriculture. Here the view of the Lake is incredible. We will visit another altar in Copamaya and harmonize with nature. Then we travel on to Charcas and the beaches of the lake.
Overnight Chucuito
Lodging: Taypikala Lago Hotel
Breakfast and dinner included
Day 13: Thursday, May 5, Inka Tunuhuire
In the morning we will explore Inka Tunuhuire. Here we will find monoliths related to the Tiwanaku Culture, the forerunners of many of the Pre-Inca cultures.
We will return to the hotel midday and the afternoon will be free for personal time.
Overnight Chucuito
Lodging: Taypikala Lago Hotel
Breakfast and dinner included
Day 14: Friday, May 6, Sillustani and Return
This is our last day in Peru. After an early breakfast, we travel to the Cemetery Temple of Sillustani, a place of remarkable telluric force, located on a small plateau where it is possible to see Umayo Lake and the mountains. The Altiplano is our altar for practicing mantras, energizing chants and mandalas. In Sillustani we will work at the Temple of Fire, connecting with the Cosmic Spiral. There we will visit the Chullpas (Burial Towers) which hold the secret of reincarnation.
From Sillustani, we will continue to the airport for a flight to Lima and connection to our return flights home. We will not arrive back in Lima until after 6 pm, so be sure that your flight is not scheduled to depart Lima until later that evening. Please contact our office so that we can coordinate schedules with you.
*Please understand that this itinerary is subject to change without notice.
