Cusco and Machu Picchu

Not all travel is easy or goes according to plan. We left Iquitos early on Monday morning. We flew to Lima and were to connect to Cusco, where we were to be met by a driver and driven to a town a couple of hours away to catch a train to Aguas Calientes, where we would stay for the night. But when we got to Lima, we found we had randomly been bumped from our flight, which meant we wouldn't be able to make our other connections during the day. Jeff worked with the airline, trying to figure out our options, while I ran upstairs to the train ticket office to try to reschedule our train trip.

Eventually, we made it as far as Cusco, where by happy accident we had an apartment waiting for us, since we had booked it for the wrong night. We were worn out from a day of travel and stresses but walked over to one of the main plazas to buy our tickets for Machu Picchu, only to find that ticket office closed. Inquiries at a travel agency revealed there was another ticket office not far away that was likely still open. So, Jeff ran over there while the rest of us hung out in the plaza. Finally, with tickets in hand, Jeff returned, and we all breathed a sigh of relief as our last kink of the day worked out. Then we popped into a chocolate shop for some samples before eating dinner next door at Chicha. It was a nice restaurant with delicious food, and we got to try some popular local fare, including alpaca and guinea pig.

The streets of Cusco reminded us of Europe

A building in the plaza flying the Cusco flag

Double "Giddy-up Horsey"

The Choco Museo

Cuy (guinea pig) and blue corn crepes

Alpaca carpaccio

Alpaca curry

This morning, we caught a very early train at a station outside of Cusco and had a lovely ride up to Aguas Calientes, where we caught a bus that took us up to Machu Picchu. It was so surreal to be in a place that I have typically thought of only as a National Geographic photo. It was amazing and worth all the trouble, and we had a wonderful day making happy memories!

Train ride to Aguas Calientes
(Top left--There was no power in the train station when we arrived,
but there were several propane heaters set up throughout the station.)

Killing the Bucket List!

Machu Picchu

The rest of the cruise*

We got off our cruise boat this morning around 6:15, with sleepy and tearful kiddos. They made so many friends on board and had so much fun that they definitely weren't ready for it to be over.

After Juneau, our next port was Skagway. We disembarked but didn't spend a lot of time in the little town, because it was mostly just rows of souvenir shops. But getting back on the boat was perfectly fine with everyone because there was so much fun to be had.

Skagway Totem

A storefront completely
covered in driftwood

Ruth decided to get in on a statue pose

At port in Skagway

The day after Skagway was spent on the boat, cruising around Glacier Bay. This was definitely Jeff's and my favorite day. It was absolutely beautiful and possibly the most serene place I have ever been. The quiet was all encompassing and the fog made it seem otherworldly. We saw and heard the glaciers calving, which was such an incredible experience. We also saw sea lions, otters, and a couple of whales.  Since the whole bay is a National Park, we also had rangers on board all day to give talks, answer questions, and point out particular places and animals of interest. We could have easily been happy spending at least twice as much time there. That night, we had our second gala night aboard the ship, and everyone was excited to dress up again and dine in the dining room.

Glacier Bay

Icy sea shrouded in fog

Margerie Glacier

Captain Nice at the Lido Buffet

Gala Night, Round Two

The final day of the cruise was a sea day, and the ship had even more activities scheduled than normal, so we were definitely well fed and entertained. The kids spent almost every moment in their respective camps. Meanwhile, Jeff and I attended a tour of the kitchen, a couple of cooking classes, a couple of trivia games, afternoon tea. We also had a date night to the dining room, while the kids were tied up with their friends and activities.

Crab appetizers in the kitchen

A large quantity of whipped cream

This should be a scratch-and-sniff picture!
Everyone wanted to linger in the bread room.

America's Test Kitchen cooking class

This morning when we got off the boat, we boarded a scenic tour train to Anchorage. In addition to the beautiful scenery, we also saw a grizzly bear (spotted by yours truly), a moose, some eagles and artic terns, and a group of Dall sheep. 

From boat to train

View from the train window

The lighter brown spot just right
and down from center is a
gigantic grizzly bear.
Here are a few reasons it isn't the
 greatest picture I've ever taken:
1. It was taken with my phone.
2. It was quite a ways away from us.
3. We were on a moving train.
4. I was saying "BEAR! BEAR! BEAR!"
and wasn't able to fully focus.

I caught the back of the train
as we went around a bend

The foreground is all glacial silt,
which is left behind as the tide retreats
at low tide. The difference between
high and low tide is tremendous .

When we got off the train, we reconnected with Usha (our faithful and beloved little RV, who came to Alaska separately from us) and met up with Jeff's cousin, who lives in Anchorage, for a wonderful lunch. We haven't seen him in years, so it was delightful to have a chance to catch up. 

Our Alaskan cruise is definitely our favorite cruise we've ever done, and this state is such an amazing place. We are looking forward to exploring more of it in the coming week.

*For those of you thinking this seems to be picking up in the middle of a story, you're right! If you missed the posting about the first half of our cruise, check it out here.

Durango-Silverton, Four Corners, and Monument Valley

Yesterday, we rode the steam train from Durango to Silverton on the well-known narrow gauge railroad, has been operating since the 1800s. Our car was restored to match that time period and we had narrators in period costume telling us about life in that area in the late 1800s and about the spectacular scenery we were seeing from the windows. A one-way trip in the train usually takes about 3 1/2 hours, but our trip up the mountain took a bit longer (in the neighborhood of two hours longer) because our engine broke down and we had to be rescued by another. This actually turned out to be the younger boys' favorite part of the whole trip, since we were able to get off the train and play with all the coal that has fallen by the wayside. They were fascinated that they could break it fairly easily with other rocks, and they loved how shiny it appeared on the inside, even when it was dull on the outside. They were also interested in the fact that there were pieces of every size. They even found one chuck that probably weighed five pounds. You've never seen such dirty, happy boys! We did finally make it to Silverton in time for a late lunch and then reboarded the train and headed back to Durango, where we grabbed some dinner before finally making it back to our RV park. It was a long day but so much fun!

All aboard!

A big hunk of coal

Catching a glimpse of the engine and
other cars as we round a bend

One of many spectacular views

A beautiful​ rainbow over the gorge
on our way back to Durango

Today, we bid adieu to Colorado and checked some other states off our list. Our first stop was Four Corners. The kids had all been looking forward to being in four states at once, and they all posed for individual and group photos. From there, we headed over to Monument Valley, AZ, to see the rock formations made famous by pretty much every Western movie ever made. It was truly a beautiful and unique place, so we lingered a little longer with lunch at the onsite restaurant. After many more miles of amazing scenery, including Antelope Canyon and Lake Powell, we finally made it to our campground in Utah, just outside Zion National Park.

Four Corners

Monument Valley

A Navajo taco for lunch

Depot Days

As luck would have it, our time in Cheyenne coincided with the city's Depot Days, so we spent the day amongst a myriad of trains, big and small. We got to visit the museum and learn all about the building of railways by hand and the necessity to build to a rythm to keep things moving efficiently. We also got to tour the steam shop, where they work on the locomotives, and the round house, where we saw some massive engines. Additionally, we saw a ton of model trains and got to chat with train enthusiasts from all over. We had lunch at a fun little train-themed diner, and then before leaving the downtown area, we popped into a local brewery for some refreshments. When we got back to our campground in the late afternoon, the boys took to the onsite miniature golf course and played until after dark, while the rest of us read in the warmth of the RV. It was a lovely day, and we were glad we got to be a part of the Cheyenne Depot Days.

Cheyenne Depot Days

Train table fun

Max was particularly fascinated
with the model trains.

We loved learning about the snow blades!

One of the big engines

Luxury Diner

A special treat from Luxury Diner

Samples at Freedom's Edge Brewing Co.

Weekend Recap

We were so blessed to have Aunt Bekki and her girls here this weekend.
And, as an added bonus, Nana came over on Sunday to hang out for a while!

Clay insisted that we needed to take his cousin, Victoria, out to LLELA to see the little houses,
and Saturday was absolutely perfect for spending outdoors, so that's just what we did!

We worked up a thirst during our hike, so we headed over to Cobra Brewing Co. afterwards.

Ruth had her last regular season horse show on Sunday.
She and Nemo took care of business in the WTC class and brought home third.
She and Samson also had a great ride in the WT class and ended up with the fourth place ribbon.
Ruth scored enough individual points this season to advance to regionals in WTC, and we are so proud of her!

Sunday's horse show was by far the fastest show we have attended,
so we found ourselves with the afternoon unexpectedly free.
We took advantage of it and checked some more things off our DFW bucket list.
Our first stop was Las Colinas and the mustang statues at Williams Square.

Sticking with our livestock theme, we next visited Pioneer Plaza to see the cool cattle drive sculpture and old cemetery.

Then, we hopped on the M Line Trolley, which was a fun way to experience part of Dallas.
But our favorite part was probably the roundhouse that got us pointed in a different direction.
When we were ready to go again, the conductor selected Weston to blow the whistle.

Unable to drop the livestock theme, and working off a tip from Jeff's brother, our last stop of the day was Rodeo Goat,
where we enjoyed a "steaming pile" and some delicious burgers.