Our train ride back from Machu Picchu to Ollantaytambo was magical. I enjoyed the ride on the way in, but loved it on the way out. The train has ceiling-high windows and clear story windows on the curved roof section adjoining the side of the cars. Given the steepness of the mountains along with their height, this is a perfect arrangement.

At first we went through more of a jungled area with lush foliage overhanging the tracks and climbing up the embankments; very small settlements peaked out of the jungle as we rolled by. Later the valley became less narrow and afforded stunning vistas.

Along the riverside there were a number of agricultural plateaus that were created by the Inca’s. The beautiful and structurally sound retaining walls, many hundreds of years old, still stand and many are still in use by farmer in this narrow valley today,

We also passed a number of small homesteads with stone steps in the dirt bank from the river to the small plateaus where they grow crops and raise chickens and pigs. What a simple lifestyle compared to those of us visiting Costco and watching Netflix. Lance thought that the people of Peru seemed satisfied with their lives. I agree; the people we encountered were hard working, energetic, friendly and engaging. We loved Peru.

We said goodbye to Peru early. The alarm went off at 4 AM, bags in the hall outside our rooms by 4:30, departure for the airport at 5 AM. Oh yes, and breakfast at 4:30 (I ate). OAT, the tour operator, is wonderful at organizing details like schlepping our bags to the van and to our rooms when we arrive at a hotel. Cesar provided us with boarding passes for our flight to Lima and our connecting flight to Quito. He also gave us luggage bag checks making it easier for us to negotiate the airport. Cesar said “see you later”, not goodbye, at the security gate. The airport had a special line for those in need of extra help and seniors. The universal display image for a senior is someone bent over using a cane. Cesar assured us that we qualified for the nearly empty gheezer line. Sheepishly we made our way to the passport and boarding pass checker who ushered us through as though we were legitimate seniors. Shockingly, he didn’t ask me to prove my age.

Our group at the Lima airport with Cesar on the left.

After landing in Lima we had plenty of time to get to our Quito flight, but we all waited until the nine of us were together. This is the first and probably the only time on our trip that we were on our own to make a flight connection like this with no trip leader. Eventually we made our way to international departures and successfully found our gate.

Quito, Peru

The airport in Quito is modern (about 11 years old), it easily outshined the crowded, dingy Lima airport. It is built about 45 minutes from downtown. They also built a brand new 3 lane highway to replace the old one lane road. The drivers are far more orderly than those in Peru; the drivers actually stay in their lanes for the most part. It was a very comfortable ride into town.

So far Ecuador seems more affluent than Peru. There are well maintained parks with impressive arches and monuments.

There are modern buildings and still plenty of indigenous influence.

We took a short bus ride to the equator this afternoon. I hadn’t thought too much about the equator and all the effects that it might have. For starters, the earth is thickest at the equator making gravity a little less powerful since it is farther from the center of the earth. Our guide, Ana, was able to balance an egg on the head of a nail because the reduced gravity offers less pull to tip the egg.

I didn’t quite hit the target, but pretty close.

J Barlas has proof she was there.

We witnessed a number of interesting demonstrations including watching our globe spinning on its side. Because the earth bulges, the equator is much thicker than the poles, therefore the equator spins at a much faster rate than the poles and all places in between have graduated speeds. Because of this rotation, winds (and storms) and currents move in one direction in the north and move in the opposite directions down south. There are hurricanes in the north, typhoons in the south, but none of these occur at the equator.

Tomorrow we are up early for our 40 minute flight to Coca in the Ecuadorian Amazon. When we arrive we take an open boat up the Napo River for about an hour until we reach our lodge. We are there for 3 nights. I understand that the WiFi is less than optimum and there are the usual jungle dangers, so this may be the last you hear from me for a while.