The Travel Club at Twin Mills OF LA
K E N O R M A N
Day 1 we arrive in Lima
Day 2
Take a walking tour of Lima to discover the magic of this present day city and its past history. You will visit the Old Quater, Plaza de Armas, the presidential Goverment Palace and an ornate Catherdral.
This evening you enjoy dinner and tour Lima's Larco Herra Museum.
Our home while in Lima Hilton Lima Miraflores
Day 3
We fly to Cusco and the Scared Valley. We will tour Awanakancha to meet llamas, alpacas, visunas and guanacos and learn their roles in the Peruvian culture. This evening we enjoy the Scared Valley and dine on Andean and Western dishes.
Our home while we're in the Sacred Valley
Aranwa Sacred Valley Hotel & Wellness
This will be the beginning of our exploration back into the mystery of the Incas life and legend.
We start by a guided tour of the Inca Fortress of Ollantaytambo.
Now it will be time to board our 360-degree train to Aguas Calientes and enjoy the views of the Urubamba Valley
We will then take a walking tour of the "Lost City of the Incas", Machu Picchu, as you climb to the top of the Andes.
We will enjoy dinner in our hotel at the foot of the mountain
Day 4
Our home while we're in Machu Picchu
Sumaq Machu Picchu Hotel
Day 5
We will start our day with a return trip back to the "Lost City of the Incas" to enjoy the Sunrise and spend time exploring the ruins and terraces. Then after lunch we will return to the Scared Valley by train to arrive in Cusco to continue our amazing discovery tour.
Today we will spend the day exporing Cusco
We will do a walking tour which will reveal the struggle between the Incas and the invading Spaniards. Our tour will include the Imposing Catherdral and the Santo Domingo Monastery as well as the semi-circular Kenko Amphithearter and then continue to the ancient site of Puca Purcara before we reach the Temple of Sacsayhuman. The question you will ask is how did they build that fortress with those 350 ton stones?
Day 6
Our home while we're in Cusco
Palacio del Inka
Day 7
We will fly to Quito, the capital of Ecuador, to begin our Ecuadorean portion of this trip.
Our home will be at the Swissotel
This day is all Quito. Our tour will include the Colonial city historic sites which include the Legislative Palace, 16th-century San Francisco Monastery and La Compana Church.
Then will be walk Calle Landa, one of Quito's oldest streets were you will find artist workshops and galleries. Of course this tour would not be complete without a visit to a chocolate shop to taste and enjoy world famous Ecuadorean chocolate.
We end our day with an excurion to Ciudad Mitad del Mundo -" the middle of the world". Stand on both the Northen and Southern Hemisphere at the same time at the exact location of the Earth's Equator.
Day 8
Our second day in this region continues to delight us with our first tour which will be at the Otavalo's Indian market. There you will fined colorful woven textiles, tradtional Ecuadorean apparel, produce and craftwork.
Then we will set off to visit the town of Peguchefamous for exquistely handcrafted weavings. We will be meeting the locals as we tour a few local homes as they create woven blankes and clothing that are so important for the life in the Andes highlands.
Day 9
Day 10
This is the day we leave Quito for our flight to San Cristobal Island, then we meet our new home for the our time in Galapagos.
Before we board the Galapagos Legend, we will be visiting the Interpreatation Center with your natualist and learn about the ongoing conservation of the archipelago, its history, ecosystem and flora. Then on our way to our new floating island, we visit Tijeretas Hill to view the Frigate bird nesting colony, as well as enjoy the view of the bay.
Now it time to board the Galapagos Legend for our exploration of this natures wonders
Day 10
Life on board the Galapagos Legend
You will experience this high end ships amenities with spacious cabins, a social area to meet and greet and many lectures to educate you as to what you will be experiencing during this voyage.
Life onboard the Galapagos Legend
Espanola Island
Our Naturalist will be taking us on an excursion to Gardner Bay and Paunta Suarez on Espanola Island. This is one of most stunning beaches of all of the Galapagos. This is home to sea loins and a great place to snorkel. Also, you will encounter Hood Mockingbirds and Darwin Finches. Our next stop will be Punta Suarez to find a slew of Iguanas and sea lions, finally we will find the Nazca and Blue Footed Boobies, endemic lizards, gulls and even a dramatic blow hole. Lastly this will be the only place that we will be encountering the Waved Albatross.
Day 11
Floreana Island
This morning we visit the Post Office Bay named for the wooded barrels that served as an informal post office for sailors passing through.
We will encounter Darwin Finches, Yellow Warblers and lava lizards, and another chance to snorkle.
This afternoon we will visit Cormorant Point to view one of the largest Flamingo populations in the Galapagos. Our trail continues to a beautful white sand beach which is the most important nesting site of Green Pacific sea turtles.
You can then end the day in Devil's Crown, an eroded volacanic cone, which is home to sea turtles, reef fish, spotted eagle rays, sealions and even a reef shark. Then we return to our ship for a delieghtful dinner with time to rest as we prepare for the next days exploration.
Day 12
Santa Cruz Island
Today we visit Dragon Hill were we should encounter shorebirds, ducks and flamingos. As we head up the trail, you will be able to view the archipelago as well as encounter land iguanas.
Now for a special treat, we will be among the first to visit and take in the beauty of Punta Bowditch. You will have the opportunity once again to snorkel the turquoise water islet and hike besides the salt pool and dried white corals. This area is also a common nesting site for marine turtles.
Day
13
Day 14
This is our last day in the Galapagos.
After we disembark our ship we drive to the highlands of Santa Cruz Island and visit the Turtle Reserve where giant tortoises are found in their natual habitat. We then leave for the airport to catch our flight back to Quito
Day 15
Today we fly to Coca and travel by boat down the Napo River.
Then we take a dug-out canoe to our Amzon lodge
Le Selva Lodge
Once we arrive and check in that afternoon, we will be taking a nature trail walk to learn about the flora and fauna of the rainforest.
When night falls, the fun begins. We board our canoe for a nightime ride with our expert natualist. Garza Cocha lagoon is a great place to search for caimans, bats, owls and night mamals.
This will also be a great time to stargaze in the night sky.
Our home while we're in the Amazon
La Selva Eco-Lodge
Day 16
After breakfast, we head to a tower which is 120' above the forest floor where our natualist will help us find birds and other native creatures. Then we will head to Mandi Cocha in search for the endangered giant otters.
This afternoon we'll sail on Garza Cocha Lake, where we will be on the lookout for several different species of monkeys and birds. If we are lucky, we might see and hear Howler monkeys. Also, we might see squirrel monkeys who join with capuchin monkeys. Finaly we will be on the lookout for the Hoatzin, a large unique bird only found in pristine Amazon environments.
After diner will be head back out for a night time hunt.
Day 17
Today we will take a cruise on the Napo River through the flooded forest. Our search this day is for indigenous squirrels, capuchin and howler monkeys and the 3-toed sloth.
Next, we will visit a clay lick where 100's of parrots and parakeets gather.
Our journey continues to the community of Pilchi where we will learn about the first nation of Amazon's who lived dating back thousands of years. This is the day that we learn to become a local.
The rest of the day and night will allow us more time to explore this mystical ecological wander land.
Day 18
Today we depart our Eco-Lodge by canoe in search for wildife, including monkeys, gaint otters and rare birds on our return to Coca to catch our flight back to Quito
Day 19
Today after breakfast we say goodbye to this amazing world of wonder, delight and mystery. All that is left to say is, it's been a trip and experience that we will remember forever.
We want to thank the Globus team for creating this incredible discovery experience.