The 2nd half of my journey to Peru was highlighted by an excursion to Machu Picchu, the most extraordinary archaeological site in the Western hemisphere and a 4 day/3 night package tour to the Amazon basin. Arriving at Machu Picchu shortly before sunrise, the renowned archaeological site was shrouded by an early morning fog and had an eerie otherworldly ambiance. After the official tour was over, I ran into two young Peruvian guys – Edward and Armando - who I met at the hot springs at Aguas Calientes the night before, and the three of us hiked to the top of Waynu Picchu, which looms high over the archaeological site. Upon reaching the very top, we proclaimed ourselves as “the Kings of the World”. This hike has to rank as the most memorable experience I have ever had as a traveler.

Leaving the Andean Highlands to the Amazon basin was quite a change a pace. During the next couple of days, a tour guide from the resort took us on daily excursions through the rainforest. Highlights include – climbing to the top of an observation platform in the middle of the rainforest where we were awestruck by tan endless sea of greenery and rewarded by a magnificent Amazon sunset, the Clay Lick - where numerous macaws and parrots gather to feed, the booming chorus of a howler monkey troop that greeted us every morning sometime before dusk , and the astounding Kapok tree, the giant of the rainforest.

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