A tailor made journey to the Andes awaits you
Why Cuzco? I first saw Cuzco in 1960 and fell hopelessly for this strange city. I have twice lived there for a while, and go back whenever I possibly can. Cuzco never forgets that it was the capital of the mighty Inca empire. This means a lot to me, as I have written a history of the Conquest of the Incas and another book on their greatest artistic achievement – architecture.
If you are seeking the perfect secluded break, you could do no better than to follow the route of famous pirates of old to the spectacular Pearl Islands, today an easy 90km reach from Panama City in the Gulf of Panama. Nestled within 14,400 acres of virgin rainforest on the second largest island of San Jose, the Hacienda del Mar, a small, luxury eco-resort is the only hotel on the island.
This month we are celebrating! The restoration of Casa Prado, a dilapidated 17th Century house of major historic, architectural and artistic importance in the centre of Lima, has been given a significant boost by being named, as part of the Lima entry, as one of the top 100 endangered sites 2008 by the World Monuments Fund, more commonly known as the “World Monuments Watch”.
The Great Wall, the Colosseum and Machu Picchu are among the leading contenders to be among the new Seven Wonders of the World as a massive poll enters final month. Also in the top 10 are Greece’s Acropolis, Mexico’s Chichen Itza pyramid, the Eiffel Tower, Easter Island, Brazil’s Statue of Christ Redeemer, the Taj Mahal and Jordan’s Petra, organizers said.
You may not have heard of Choquequirao, but that was intentional.
3,085m up in the Salkantay Mountain Range, the ‘lost city of the Incas’ and ‘sister’ city of Machu Picchu, was ignored completely by the chroniclers of the age, because as independent archaeologist Gary Ziegler said to the New York Times earlier this year, “the Spanish never found it.”