Our first trip together outside of Chile was to Peru. Elena had been postponing a visit to some friends of her from Belgium – Raf and Liene – who were living in the Sacred Valley near Cuzco.
When one of Elena’s close friends, Dries, hopped over from Belgium to Peru to visit these friends, we decided that it was the perfect moment to join them.
We decided that we would meet up in Paucartambo, a small city that was hosting one of the most interesting and colourful festivals of the country: la fiesta de la Virgen del Carmen. However, when we arrived in Paucartambo after a particularly long night of buses, we were presented with some kafkaesque obstacles to acquiring a working simcard. It turned out impossible to communicate with Dries.
We decided to go the good old fashoined way, and walk around in the centre in the hopes of finding Dries. Luck was on our side: after a few hundred meters we (almost literally) bumped into each other. This happy coincidence set the tone for a truly unique few days in Paucartambo, and for a fantastic trip in Peru.
The fiesta de la Virgen del Carmen is a truly spectacular event that lasts for three days. During the day, there are colorful processions with music and dancing, and the party continues long into the night throughout the city.
After the festival, we travelled to Arin, a tiny but charming village in the Sacred valley, to spend a week with our friends Raf and Liene.
The patio of our place in Arin 
The beautiful Peruvian Andes right on our doorstep 
Feeding very empty stomachs after a long day of hiking
When we arrived in Arin we had some time to relax and recover from the festival, but soon after we were also put to work. Raf and Liene had bought some land in Arin and had started to build their future home. On ‘work day’ we helped them to clear the land by taking down trees, which would later be used as construction material for the house.
Felipe is ready to chop some trees 
The result of a long day’s work 
Raf and Liene only take down invasive Eucalyptus trees, and replace the lost trees by indigenous species.
The rest of our trip we spent climbing some of the impressive Inca ruins and ancient salt mines in the Sacred Valley, hiking the Andean mountains, and visiting nearby towns – where we bumped into the occasional smaller version of the festival in Paucartambo.
Felipe and Elena 