Perú

Does it sound fun to travel with 3 small children to Machu Pichu? Perhaps the 2nd kind of fun, that’s only fun in the re-telling. Let me tell you, it is not for the faint of heart! Getting to Machu Pichu entailed a taxi ride, an overnight bus ride, a 2 hour taxi ride, 2 plane rides, a 2 hour taxi ride, a train ride, and a bus ride. We also had some very early mornings and some late nights. The kids got covered in bug bites while we were on the coast. Jade and Luz had travelers diarrhea for a few days. But it WAS fun, and totally worth it. (And kids under 8 don’t pay entrance fees to Machu Pichu). We decided to try it while my mom was visiting, so that we could have 1 to 1 ratio of adults to kids.

Our parenting philosophy is that raising small kids is hard, no matter where you are, sitting at home or not—so we try to do the things we love, and schlepp the kids along. (With help from loving grandmas, aunties, uncles, friends…)

In South America, travel by bus is quite affordable, but you have to have the time to go long distances by bus. Also, little kids are tough to entertain hour after hour on the bus (though they do show violent action movie after violent action movie). If you want to travel by plane in South America, it is surprisingly expensive. For example, for us to fly from Cuenca to Cusco, Perú, it would cost $600 per person round trip. Since we had to pay for 5 airline tickets, we decided to go the cheap route—take an overnight bus to the coast in Perú, then an 2 hour taxi ride to the airport in Tumbes, Peru. From there, 2 planes to get to Cusco—but for only $200 roundtrip per person. (A savings of $2000 total, though definitely more strenuous!)

Going through immigration at 3 am.

Waiting for the bus to pass through Máncora at 11 pm on our way home.

Instead of going with a tour operator, as many tourists do when visiting Machu Pichu, Riki and I did all the arrangements—reserving mostly Airbnbs to stay in, train tickets to Aguas Calientes, entrance tickets to Machu Pichu. It was a bit stressful—you buy your entry ticket to Machu Pichu for a specific hour, and you must arrive at the gate within that hour, or they don’t let you in. And it’s hard to plan in advance exactly what hour you will arrive at.

Some highlights of the trip for me were:

—Arriving in Máncora, Perú at 5:30 am, and while we were riding in the tuk tuk to the hotel, Jade said, “Mama, I see a star! Mama, there’s no doors on this Moto taxi!” I was surprised by her joy after a rough night of sleep.

–At 7 am the same day, while Riki and my mom tried to sleep, the 3 kids and I walked down a muddy lane to the beach. Tomu and Jade were instantly busy playing on the beach, building a “sandman”. Jade fell and got wet, and we just took her clothes off. She had a panda bear tattoo on her belly button, and was so intent running down to get wet sand, then running back to make her creation, oblivious to being naked.

–Having a rest day and exploring the gorgeous town of Ollantaytambo in the Sacred Valley. Narrow cobblestone streets, coffee in the main square, gorgeous mountains rising up tall all around. Riki went on an epic mountain bike ride this day: 5,000’ descent, falling over the handlebars 4 times, and crossing a river on bikes several times.

Ruins at Ollantaytambo

Jade was most excited about taking the train.

Thrilled to see the sign with my name on it when we arrived in Aguas Calientes (Machu Pichu town).

–While we were walking through the Machu Pichu ruins, Tomu and Jade were holding hands. They were chattering to each other in Spanish. Jade said, “Tomu, vamos a ser amigos para siempre, verdad? (We are going to be friends forever, right?) and I felt so happy, thinking to myself that I was so glad to be in this moment, to have made the decisions to get to this moment, where my kids speak to each other in Spanish spontaneously while in such an awe-inspiring place.

The second day at Machu Pichu it rained.

All socked in at the summit of Machu Pichu Mountain.

Po Po, Tomu and Jade walked towards the Sun Gate while we climbed the mountain.

Wet but happy kids.

–Eating breakfast in the San Blas market of Cusco—delicious chicken avocado egg cheese sandwich and pitcher of mango juice for $4 total.

Crazy in Cusco

–Enjoying the last two days in a gorgeous house right on the beach in Zorritos, Perú…nothing to do but play in the warm ocean or the kiddie pool. Tomu was a big fan of the boogie board, and wanted to spend all day in the waves.