A Shaman Shows the Way: Channeling the Pachamama in Machu Picchu

Elevation Gain in Peru

We needed two days to get to the peak. Three, if you counted travel. We spent the night in Huaraz, Peru, a small mountain town in the Andes, and before the sun rose the next day we were in a van built for eight but filled with twenty Peruvians. Our bags were strapped to the … Continued

Tambopata: Waltzing with Butterflies

Tambopata: Waltzing with Butterflies Bleary-eyed and lethargic, we chug downstream through muddy brown waters as the cool morning air gradually lifts our heavy, squinting eyelids. The breeze is a refreshing change from the cloying heat we are used to and as our spirits are lifted by its tonic touch the boat becomes a chattier place, … Continued

Losing time in Peru

Ibn Battuta once said, “Travel- it leaves you speechless and then turns you into a story teller.” When my feet first touched the ground in Peru, I instantly felt changed. Every single step was culturally enriching, from hiking Machu Picchu, to trekking through the Amazon Forest, to running through the markets of Cusco in the … Continued

Macaws of the Peruvian Amazon

The “Heath River Centre Lodge” is on the river Heath which marks the frontier between Peru and Bolivia; nothing to see except some local miners looking for gold. Soon after leaving, except the splendid crescent of the moon, the night was complete. The boat had no lights and followed the indications of someone lightening the … Continued

Peru: Feet of Strength

My leaden legs plod beneath me. They scream for rest but my mind is resolved to keep moving. I fear that if I stop I may collapse irrecoverably. It feels as though someone has placed a boulder inside my backpack and my body is strangely sluggish. I have only trudged this path for a few … Continued

Peru: The Man in the Panama Hat

I follow the long line of people towards the start of the trail. Soft sounds of strange languages circle in the breeze. People are hushed and I am grateful. The morning is just beginning to break, hesitant and gentle in its arrival. We are a convoy of quiet expectation, the pace eager but not rushed. … Continued

Why Female Solo Travel is Safe, and Awesome

Female solo travelers are constantly being asked that age old question about how possible it really is for a woman to travel alone. I have been on both sides of that conversation, asking the question before I had ever really traveled, and responding to it now, after four years of being on the road, three … Continued

Peru: Shamanic Awakening

Peru: Shamanic Awakening “Oh, winds of the South… breathe upon us…blow upon us…touch our hearts now. . .” The voice is soft. Musical. As feminine as its source. With outstretched arms, she turns first to the sky and then to me, her brown hair sailing in the jungle breeze. I am sitting deep in the … Continued

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