Day 5 & 6 Lima-> Cusco-> ->Sacred Valley

I left Lima yesterday morning and flew to Cusco.  I was picked up at the airport in Cusco and we drove to the Sacred Valley--between Cusco and Machu Picchu.  I thought Cusco was high at 11,000 feet, but we went up to 12K on the road.  Driving through the Andes was spectacular.  These are glaciers (not snow) that are melting.  Very sad.

I saw my first llamas, but couldn't get a photo.  The sacred valley is the place they say is good to adjust to the altitude.  Where I'm staying is almost  9000 feet.  

I'm actually feeling fine--just a little tired.  The Sol y Luna hotel is a great place to acclimate.  It is a flower wonderland.  Here's my casita and bit of the grounds.

On the property is a horse stable for riding.

And at lunch they put on a little Peruvian Paso horse show.  It was actually pretty cool.

Here's a really short video.

One thing that I forgot to mention was last night they brought this to my room.  Of course I had to ask what it was.

It's a llama or Alpaca covered hot water bottle.  I have no idea if it's actually hot water inside or something else, but it kept my feet toasty all night.  How does that work?

Starting tomorrow I'll be heading out to sights in the sacred valley.  Having this rest day was really nice.  (Jerry and Chris--I even wrote for a couple of hours.)