Relocating Isn’t Quite the Same as Vacationing No matter where I go, I always try to picture myself living in that place, like by Hemingway’s pool in Key West, Fla., or with a little apartment by the Blue Lagoon in Iceland, or owning an antiques shop in Hamilton, N.Y. When I take the Youthful Adventurer…
Author: BashfulAdventurer
Leading a Farm-to-Table Life in Peru: A Sustainability Conundrum
Is True Sustainability Sustainable? I equate striving for sustainability—the practice of not depleting the Earth’s resources—with achieving a certain harmony. On my way to Machu Picchu, I can’t help but observe how the indigenous people in Peru live. The distance from farm to table here sometimes is no more than a few yards. Textiles are…
In Praise of Pachamama
Experience the tranquility of a session with a shaman in Peru, in praise of pachamama, or Mother Earth
Taking the Machu Picchu Express
Short on vacation time, the Brawny Sherpa and I opt for a quick trip to Peru. Sure, we’d love to languish in the countryside for a couple of weeks, learn all there is to learn in Lima, gain clarity with the ayahuasca, canoe the Amazon. Right now, there isn’t time. Our goal is Machu Picchu;…
To Peru in a Whirlwind
Overthink, and You May Never See Machu Picchu Is Peru safe for tourists? While sipping some coca tea in a small shop in Pisac, I finally have a moment to rest—having taken two planes and a bus ride to get to where I am, on my way, generally, to Machu Picchu for a long weekend….
Long Weekend in Machu Picchu: Getting There
To Peru and Back in Less than Five Days We step out of the Cusco airport—not named anything with the word Cusco in it—and walk into a National Geographic story. The short, old women with the skirts, the knee-length stockings, the men’s black hats are right here. A strange fellow with gangly body movements gets…
Are You Too Scared to Take a Subway?
Travel like You Live There Subway systems can be intimidating, especially if you are navigating in a new city while using a different language—one in which you are not fluent. All sorts of fears surface—will I be robbed, pushed on the tracks, doomed to riding in circles because I don’t know where to get…
Practical Picchu
What You Need to Know before Heading to Peru The weather at Machu Picchu is temperamental: cloudy one minute, sunny the next. How to cope? Layer your clothing. Photo credit: M. Ciavardini Fresh from a long weekend spent ascending Machu Picchu, I offer these suggestions for bashful and other adventurers planning a visit: To prepare,…
Running across History
Taking in Nuggets of Information A monument to the soldiers of the Confederacy in Arlington National Cemetery. A visitor might marvel at its size given the cause for which the soldiers were fighting. Photo credit: L, Tripoli Traveling back in time: On Feb. 22, 1862, Jefferson Davis was inaugurated as president of the Confederate States…
Buy a Stamp, Write a Postcard, Send a Memory
Visiting Post Offices On Feb. 20, 1792, George Washington signed a bill establishing the U.S. Post Office. Still going strong after 223 years despite wind, sleet, snow, email, the U.S. Postal Service is worth a visit. We all love to complain about it—snail mail, no mail, slow service—but who doesn’t love receiving a Valentine or…