SACRED SITES JOURNEYS
Since 1994 ...Spiritual Pilgrimages
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to enliven your Body, Mind and Spirit

                      

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El Condor Pasa - Andean folk music

Our August 2012 tour to Peru was awesome!
Our next Sacred Sites Journey to Peru will be in August 2013.
Check back with us soon for more details!

AND...if you're not already receiving our monthly enewsletter and would like to do so in order to receive
updated information on our August 2013 sacred journey to Peru (as well as our other destinations), you can Sign Up Here!

TOUR DESCRIPTION

In this pivotal year of 2012, journey with other spirit-centered travelers
to the majestic and awe-inspiring land of the ancient Incas
on a mystical journey to Machu Picchu and other sacred sites in the land of the Pachamama!



Several years ago, according to Andean Elders and the Dalai Lama,
the most powerful center of earth energies shifted from
the Himalayas (masculine energy) to the Andes (feminine energy).
Since that time, many serious spiritual seekers have been drawn to come home
to the powerful nurturing energies of the Andes, to connect with the Apus (sacred mountains)
and the Pachamama (the Mother Earth) for their own personal healing.

The ancient Inca legend of the Pachacuti ("Turning of the World") or the New Sunrise
says that when the Eagle from the North flies with the Condor from the South,
peace will return to the Americas and spread throughout our world.

     

Travel with us to meet your Condor brothers and sisters
and experience the peace of the Pachamama
as Her Children extend to you their heartfelt welcome to this spiritual wonderland.

Experience the magic and mystery of the rich legacy of traditional Andean rituals
and the esoteric information of the ancient Incas!



Connect with the energies of the Three Worlds of the Incan Cosmology
- the Lower (Ucu Pacha), Middle (Kay Pacha) & Upper (Hanan Pacha) World,
and their Totem Animals - the Serpent, Puma and Condor.

          

We will learn the lessons each of these has to offer and how to use them in our lives
to be in balance with ourselves, as we further open our hearts
...for personal, as well as planetary healing.

As we journey to enigmatic and mysterious Machu Picchu,
the City of Light and Crown Jewel of the Andes,
we will explore the ancient Sanctuary and tap into the transformational energies
that are still present in its various temples.

During our special Sunrise Ceremony we will greet Taytay Inti (Father Sun)
as He returns to give life for another day to His Children,
just as the ancient Incas did when they inhabited the Sanctuary.

PLUS, you will have plenty of time to explore on your own!

At the sacred sites in and around charming and picturesque Cusco,
we will cleanse and enliven our chakras by connecting with the water, earth, fire and air elements
and the ancient Eternal Flame of Light that still exists for those that open their hearts to it!

At the sacred sites of Pisac & Ollantaytambo in the Sacred Valley of the Incas
we will soar with the Condors and connect with the elements of water and air.

We'll also visit the weaver village of Willoc, in the mountains near Ollantaytambo


Extension to Lake Titicaca: Islands and Sacred Sites
August 19 - 23, 2012

At Lake Titicaca, the MamaCocha (Mother Lake), the heart of Peru's feminine energies, experience:

** Uros Floating Islands - Meet local families and visit their villages and homes made of the totora reeds

** Amantani Island - An overnight hosted by a local family
Meditation at the Temple of the Pachamama or Pachatata

** Taquile Island - Meet families of weavers and farmers

** Aramu Muru's Doorway - Meditation at this famous Interdimensional Stargate!

** Sillustani - Burial ground of the Aymara-speaking Colla people, who were conquered by the Inca in the 15th century.

PLUS...optional visit to a local fertility temple, walk a labyrinth, receive a Coca Leaf Reading from a local curendera
and enjoy the excellent spa facilities at our hotel!

Extension to Tiahuanaco, Bolivia
August 23 - 26, 2012

Explore and experience Tiahuanaco, one of the most mysterious and amazing sacred sites on our planet,
and considered by many archaeologists and historians to be the cradle of the American civilization,
and perhaps even the oldest ruins in the world!
Includes the area known as Puma Punku, believed by many archaeologists to have been  the port of Tiahuanaco;
it's an area filled with enormous stone blocks weighing between 100 and 150 tons scattered about like toothpicks!

Andrea Mikana-Pinkham is an Andean Shamanic Practitioner and Mesa Carrier in the Inca Spiritual Tradition, having received   shamanic training from Elders in Peru since 1994. Andrea has traveled to Peru over 30 times and led over 25 spiritual pilgrimages there since 1993. She has developed an extensive network of hotel and restaurant owners, as well as spiritual teachers, artisans and craftspeople who will help her to make your journey one that you will treasure for the rest of your life!

A Note About Fair Trade: Over the years I've been leading groups to Peru, I've taken people to visit the local artisan families, encouraging them to buy from these people, to cut out the corporate "middle man". This helps ensure that the Peruvian artisans receive a fair price for their products, that communities are healthy, and the environment is preserved. So enjoy your time with them, and do bargain. It's expected. Just pay a fair price!

I'd be honored to have you join me and our Sacred Sites Journeys group
in Peru in August, the month of the Pachamama.

This is a time when the Peruvian people make many heart-felt offerings to Her,
giving thanks for Her support in sustaining life in the Andes for all Her children.
During this transformative spiritual pilgrimage I've arranged for you to experience traditional Andean rituals
to connect with the Pachamama (Mother Earth) in all her forms....
the Serpent, Puma and Condor, the totem animals of the Three Worlds;
the elements of earth, wind, fire and water;
and the sacred apus, the famous mountain spirits of the Andes.

You'll be able to participate in the connection of the energies with your South American
"Condor" Brothers and Sisters....assisting in the fulfillment of the ancient prophecy of returning peace to our Earth!

I'll also be honored to introduce you to my family of the Pachamama - long time friends and my god-children
and their families. You'll experience the REAL Peru, not just the tourist version.
In the end you'll know you've been wrapped in the arms of the Pachamama,
and will always have a home in Peru.

For more information about Andrea and her work, visit Click Here

We have lowered the price for this awesome spiritual journey.
Please see the NEW LOWER PRICING in the Tour Pricing section below!

Day 1. Sunday, August 12. Flight Lima to Cusco, Introductory Meeting, Welcome Dinner (D)

Day 2. Monday, August 13. Cusco: Sacsayhuaman, Tambo Machay, Blessing from the Q'ero Elders; Coricancha (B/L)

Day 3. Tuesday, August 14. To Sacred Valley: Pisac; Pisac Market; to Ollantaytambo (B/L)

Day 4. Wednesday, August 15. Sacred Valley: Ollantaytambo & Willoc (B)

Day 5. Thursday, August 16. To Machu Picchu (B/L)

Day 6. Friday August 17. Machu Picchu - Sunrise Ceremony/Initiation; Free Time (B)

Day 6. Saturday,  August 18.  Return to Cusco, Free Time; Farewell Dinner (B/D)

Day 7. Sunday,  August 19. Return Flight to Lima (B)

Day 8. Sunday, August 19. First Class tourist bus to Lake Titicaca (B/L/D)

Day 9. Monday, August 20. Uros Islands; to Amantani Island: Overnight with local family (B/L/D)

Day 10. Tuesday, August 21. To Taquile Island; Return to hotel on mainland (B/L/D)

Day 11. Wednesday, August 22. Aramu Muru’s Doorway; Sillustani; Farewell Dinner (B/L/D)

Day 12. Thursday, August 23. Return Flight to Lima; Transfer to Lima: Museum of Archaeology, Museum of Natural History;
Transfer back to airport  (B/L)
(For a more detailed itinerary, scroll down)

EXTENSION TO TIAHUANACO, BOLIVIA - BRIEF ITINERARY
August 23 - 26, 2012
(B = Breakfast, L = Lunch, D = Dinner)

Day 12. Thursday, August 23. Depart to Tiahuanaco, Bolivia; short visit to the site (B/D)

Day 13. Friday, August 24. Visit to Tiahuanaco, including Puma Punku; return to Lake Titicaca/Chucuito (B/L/D)

Day 14. Saturday, August 25. Free Day at Lake Titicaca to rest, relax and integrate! (B/L/D)

Day 15 Sunday, August 26. Return Flight to Lima; Transfer to Lima: Museum of Archaeology, Museum of Natural History;
Transfer back to airport  (B)
(For a more detailed itinerary, scroll down)

This Sacred Sites Journey to PERU is open to the first 15 people who register.

The deadline to register is July 31, 2012 or sooner if the group fills before that date.

For 18 years this has been one of our all-time most popular Sacred Sites Journeys!
Our group is filling! We only have a few places left!

We encourage you to reserve your space now in order to avoid disappointment.
To access our Registration Form, please see the "Tour Registration" section below.

For a complete itinerary, continue reading.

Mystical Journey to Machu Picchu
TOUR ITINERARY:
August 12 - 19, 2012
(B = Breakfast, L = Lunch, D = Dinner)

Day 1. Sunday, August 12. Flight Lima to Cusco, Introductory Meeting, Welcome Dinner (D)
Your Sacred Journey to Peru begins today with the flight from Lima to Cusco. Please book your international flight to Lima to arrive by 6:00AM local time this morning, in order to connect with your later morning group flight to Cusco booked by Sacred Sites Journeys.
(NOTE: Once you register, Sacred Sites Journeys can refer you to the local family-owned airport hotel that we've used with our groups in Peru since 1994. You will be able to book pre-tour services with them directly in case you need to arrive in Lima before Sunday, August 12th. Services include: meeting at the airport by an English-speaking representative from the hotel, private transfer to the hotel for overnight (includes breakfast), and transfer back to the airport on the morning of August 12th, with assistance checking in for the flight to Cusco.)

Check in for your flight that has been booked for you to Cusco by Sacred Sites Journeys. Complete details to be provided in the final itinerary sent to group members before you depart to Peru.

Depart Lima on a spectacular 55 minute flight over the towering peaks of the Andes Mountains. As you fly into Cusco, colorful capital of the ancient Inca Empire, breathe and take in the welcome greetings from the snow-capped Apus (sacred mountains). Deplane, claim your luggage and exit the terminal. Meet SSJ's Tour Hostess/Speaker Andrea Mikana-Pinkham and our local transfer personnel for our transfer to our hotel in the heart of the city. After checking into your room, take time to rest this afternoon to adjust to the change in altitude from sea level in Lima to over 11,000 ft. here in Cusco.

According to one early Spanish chronicler, the Inca emperor Pachacuti made a pilgrimage to Tiahuanaco in Bolivia, a very ancient sacred site, and wanted to copy the perfection in the construction that he had seen there in the construction of Cusco's temples. Cusco was not built as a city as we know them today, but rather was an enormous sacred area, the dwelling place of the Inca nobility and the center of the Inca cosmos. It's name means "navel".

During our later afternoon Group Meeting Andrea will facilitate your introduction to Pachamama Land and will explain the Incan Cosmology of the Three Worlds and the Pachamama, including the Totem Animals - the Serpent, the Puma and the Condor. One of these power animals will reveal itself to you through drawing special cards. We'll then focus on our individual totems during a short meditation facilitated by Andrea to help you begin to connect with those sacred energies. Afterwards her long-time "family" who are some of Cusco's best silversmiths will bring a wide assortment of power animal amulets for you to choose from to wear for their support throughout our sacred journey. As well, they will soak up the powerful energies at each of the sacred sites you will visit.

We'll change our money into the Peruvian currency (sol or soles) and then walk to a nearby restaurant for our Welcome Dinner, a buffet of of traditional Peruvian cuisine. Entertainment for the evening will be folklore dancing.  Keep your cameras ready!  Afterwards we return walking to the hotel.
Overnight Cusco. Hotel Ruinas or similar.

Day 2. Monday, August 13. Cusco: Sacsayhuaman, Tambo Machay, Blessing from the Q'ero Elders; Coricancha (B/L)
After our delicious buffet breakfast we depart to visit the most important sacred sites in the Cusco area, with time for meditation. Our first stop is Sacsayhuaman (satisfied falcon), a UNESCO World Heritage site. During the Spanish Conquest in 1536CE, a fierce battle took place here between the conquistadors and natives. Many of the Andeans were killed; their bodies were left on the battlefield and became the food of the falcons, thus the name Sacsayhuaman.

Here we'll see some of the most amazing Inca architecture - walls made of giant megalithic stones, fitted together perfectly without any mortar! Cusco was originally laid out in the shape of a puma, the totem animal of the Kay Pacha, the middle world in the Incan cosmology. The belly of the puma was the main plaza, the river Tullumayo formed its spine, and the hill of Sacsayhuaman its head. The zigzag walls at this amazing site represent the teeth, as well as the path of the lightning,Illapa, a revered earth elemental for the Incas.

There are three parallel walls built in different levels. The limestone boulders used for the lower levels are the largest, with one about 28 ft. tall, weighing ) and weighing over 150 tons. They are megalithic architecture supreme! Many researchers believe they were built long before the Incas, during the time of a world-wide civilization that was highly-advanced technologically. In the Inca spiritual tradition, the three walls represent the three levels:   Uku Pacha (underground stage), the Kay Pacha (earth's surface stage) in the middle, and the Hanan Pacha (sky stage) on the top. These three levels are also symbolic of the Totem Animals: the Snake or Amaru, the Puma, and the Condor or Kuntur.

We will be blessed with a visit from Cusco resident and researcher Jesus Gamarra. He and Andrea's friend, Dutch researcher Jan Peter de Jong, who lived in Cusco for 13 years, are currently carrying on the work in Peru begun by Jesus' father Alfredo Gamarra, who passed away in 1999 after a long life dedicated to investigating the ancient mysteries of Peru. Over the course of six years they visited famous places considered by modern archeologists and scientist to have been built by the Inca, like Sacsayhuaman, Kenko, Pisac, Chinchero, Ollantaytambo and Machu Picchu, as well as many more places that are not very well known. Those visits helped them to confirm the conclusions of Alfredo and are one step further in explaining the ancient mysteries of Peru,  Egypt, Stonehenge, Atlantis, and other sacred sites. Conclusions of Alfredo Gamarra: Alfredo Gamarra's conclusions go way beyond and against the ruling paradigms. Here is a list prepared by Jan Peter de Jong of the most important and controversial conclusions:
- Earth was smaller in the past.
- Earth went through different periods corresponding to different orbits of earth around the sun, with, of course, different calendars.
- Life was bigger in the past thanks to less gravity.
- Humanity could live longer thanks to less gravity.
- Monolithic and Megalithic constructions were easier to construct thanks to less gravity.
- Construction of these monuments was done with moldable stones.
- The precision of the perfect fitting stones was thanks to the stones being moldable on the moment of construction.
- The vestiges of Cusco and surroundings are much older than 'Inca time'.
- Cusco was Babylon 'the Great'.
- Atlantis existed in an earlier orbit, so South America, especially Cusco and surroundings, were an important part of it.
For more information about this fascinating research, visit http://www.ancient-mysteries-explained.com/

Guardians of the Holy Grail Internet Radio Show with Host Mark Amaru Pinkham, Co-Founder of Sacred Sites Journeys - FREE Replay of the February 2, 2012 Interview with Jan Peter de Jong. Jan Peter  discusses the existence of 100,000 year old megalithic temples in PERU and other sacred sites around the globe, and Gamarra's revolutionary new theory of Earth's history that precipitated their discovery. To listen, http://www.gnostictemplars.org/guardians.html

The ancients believed this sacred temple was for enlivening the Mach'aqway, Kundalini, or spiritual energies. With our local guide we'll visit many of the out-of-the-way sacred areas of the site, with time for meditation to align with these dynamic energies that are still very palpable here. At the Eternal Flame of Light that has burned here for millennia we will connect with the Light within ourselves to enliven our Kundalini, or personal spiritual energy.

Time allowing we'll also visit the area at the top of the site known as Muyuq Marka ("round place") where in Inca times there were three strong towers disposed in a triangle. The main tower, Muyuq Marka was in the middle and had a circular shape. The second one was named as Paucar Marca, and the third Sallaq Marka. This mysterious area consists of three concentric, circular stone walls connected by a series of radial walls, with three channels constructed to bring water into what might have been a reservoir. A web-like pattern of 34 lines intersects at the center. This is a highly charged vortex area!

To read "Peru: Sacsayhuaman" by Daryl, one of Andrea's former tour group members, Click Here
Note: This is a pdf file. You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your computer to open it. You can download it FREE at http://www.Adobe.com

We then continue to Tambo Machay, used by the Incan nobles and priests as their private fountains and baths. The spring that supplies the water has flowed here for hundreds of years, from a source deep inside the Pachamama that has never been identified. Here we'll see more of the megalithic construction from very ancient times, as well as evidence of Inca occupation and use. We'll connect in sacredness with the water element Unu by using the water from both sides of the fountain, one with female energy and the other with male energy to cleanse our chakras and energy body, letting go of the old to make way for the new.

Afterwards we will receive a traditional Incan blessing from Q'ero Elder Don Mariano and his apprentices, ritual specialists who are among some of the last remaining descendents of the Incas. They will perform a despacho, a traditional ceremonial offering to the Pachamama, during which we will be invited to focus our intentions for our sacred pilgrimage. They will also pray to the Apus (sacred mountains) to bless each of us.

Return to Cusco for a later lunch with the group at a restaurant serving traditional Peruvian cuisine.

After lunch we walk from the Plaza de Armas down the Avenida del Sol (Avenue of the Sun) to visit the Inca Temple of the Sun, the Coricancha, "the corral of gold". Though it was primarily dedicated to the Inca Creator God Viracocha their Sun God Inti, the Coricancha also had other shrines to the Moon, Venus, the Pleiades, and various weather deities. The first Spanish who entered Cusco reported that ceremonies were conducted around the clock here, and that it was opulent with gold beyond belief! The carved granite walls were covered with sheets of pure gold; the large courtyard was filled with life-size pure gold sculptures of animals and a field of corn; the floors were covered in solid gold. This sacred temple was also used as an astronomical observatory and calendrical device to calculate precessional movement. Forty seques, or lines of energy ran from the temple for hundreds of miles to major celestial points on the horizon. Four of these represented the four quarters of Tawantinsuyu, the Inca Empire. Others pointed to the equinox and solstice points, and still others to the heliacal rise positions of different stars and constellations highly important to the Inca. 

Spanish historians recorded that the Golden Solar Disc was hanging in the Coricancha when they arrived. The Inca priests and priestesses immediately hid it and from there the story is one of which legends are made. One version says that the Incas took it deep into the jungle, past Machu Picchu, and hid it from the Conquistadors; that it was never found by the Spanish. To this day, expeditions have been mounted to search for Paititi, the lost city of the Incas where it is supposed to reside. None have found the sacred object. Other legends say that it was taken to Lake Titicaca and there it resides to this day, on an etheric dimension, sending out its rays of Unconditional Love to assist in the upliftment of humanity during this time of the Pachacuti - the Andean legend of “the turning of the world” - to a new state of elevated consciousness.
Still another legend says that when struck in a particular way and while chanting certain sacred sounds, that the Disc could be used to transport the priest kings between dimensions. It is said that Aramu Muru, known in traditional Peruvian history as Manco Capac, the first Inca, used the Disc to open the interdimensional portal at Aramu Muru's Doorway (See Day 11 of the Lake Titicaca extension below), near the shores of Lake Titicaca, stepped through, and was never seen or heard from again on the third dimension. For more information, visit this link: www.SacredSitesJourneys.com/Peru-Aug2012/TheBrotherhoodOfTheSolarDisc.pdf

We return walking to the hotel. Dinner on your own this evening. (Andrea will be available to escort the group to a local restaurant.)
Overnight Cusco. Hotel Ruinas or similar.

Day 3. Tuesday, August 14. To Sacred Valley: Pisac; To Ollantaytambo (B/L)
Wake up early this morning, pull your curtains, and welcome in the healing rays of Taytay Inti, Father Sun. After breakfast we check out of the hotel and depart to the Sacred Valley of the Incas, nestled between the majestic snow-covered Apus and fed by the waters of the sacred Urubamba River, the WillkaMayu (holy river.)  The Incas considered it to be the major artery for the movement of water collected from the smaller tributaries of the earth, to take it back to the cosmic sea, from where it is taken up into the sky within the Milky Way (Mayu) and recycled through the universe. The Milky Way was considered to be the celestial reflection of the Urubamba River. (Urubamba = Fields of Light).

Our first stop in the Valley is at the Awana Cancha Center, a weaving center with the goal to keep alive the traditional textile arts. We'll see members of the cameloid family - llama, alpacas, vicunas and guanacos. Alapacas have thick wool; they're the most commonly used for clothing, while the vicunas are small and delicate with fur considered the finest. You'll be able to meet the animals, feed them, as well as learn about the the harvesting of the different wools,   the natural dying techniques and have a chance to see native weavers showing their different weaving styles and dress.

We drive further into the valley to the village of Pisac and up into the hills to the ancient solar observatory, entering the sacred site through the ancient Temple of the Condor, where we'll experience a sacred ceremony to invoke within us the power of the Kuntur, or Condor, totem of the Hanan Pacha, the Upper World.

We then walk along the winding trail, full of magnificent vistas of the hills and valleys below, to the most sacred area of the site, the ancient Sun Temple, where we enjoy a knowledgeable tour of the site with our local guide and time for meditation at the main energy vortex of the site, the Intihuatana, the Hitching Post of the Sun.

Afterwards we walk down to our bus and drive to Doña Clorinda's Restaurant on the nearby banks of the Urubamba River for a nutritious and delicious lunch of traditional Peruvian dishes, lovingly prepared by the family.

Then it's Retail Therapy time at the Pisac marketplace! You can shop til you drop for locally-made colorful sweaters, ponchos, gloves, hats, jewelry, textiles, and other handicrafts. Andrea will take those who are interested to a shop that offers shamanic tools and power objects.

We depart to the other end of the Sacred Valley to Ollantaytambo, one of the oldest Inca towns in Peru. We check into our hotel, the House of Dawn.

Dinner on your own at the hotel. Overnight Ollantaytambo. Hotel Pakaritampu or similar.

Day 4. Wednesday, August 15. Sacred Valley: Ollantaytambo & Willoc (B)
After breakfast we walk to the nearby plaza to visit the sacred site of Ollantaytambo, with its megalithic pre-Inca stonework. Also known as the Sanctuary of the Wind the site was an Inca fortress/temple that is one of the most impressive in Peru, both for its powerful sacred energies, as well as its unique history as one of the only places where the Incas defeated the Spanish! Ollantaytambo ranks right up there with the great mysteries of megalithic construction!

Who Built Ollantaytambo? "How were such titanic blocks of stone brought to the top of the mountain from the quarries many miles away? How were they cut and fitted? How were they raised and put in place? Now one knows, no one can even guess. There are archaeologists, scientists, who would have us believe that the dense, hard andesite rock was cut, surfaced and faced by means of stone or bronze tools. Such an explanation is so utterly preposterous that it is not even worthy of serious consideration. No one ever has found anywhere any stone tool or implement that would cut or chip the andesite, and no bronze ever made will make any impression upon it."   A. Hyatt & Ruth Verrill ----America's Ancient Civilizations

Some researchers believe that the main altar of the temple was constructed with huge pink granite boulders from the stone quarry named Kachiqhata (Salt Slope) that is located about 2.5 miles away on the other side of the valley, by the upper side of the opposite south-western mountains. They believe that the boulders were carved partially in the quarries, and taken down to the valley's bottom across the river and then were transported to the top of the hill using the inclined plane and log rollers or rolling stones as wheels. The Inca did not have the wheel, so they used llamas, leather ropes, levers, pulleys, and the power of hundreds and even thousands of men. Perhaps this is indeed how this mind-bobbling site of megalithic stones was built. OR, is it possible that the site was already there when the Incas arrived, and like Sacsayhuaman, was built by an ancient world-wide civilization that was highly-advanced technologically. We'll explore this theory on-site.

Entering the site, as we gaze up at the surrounding mountains we see the profile of Tunupa, looking out over the valley. Considered by some researchers to have been the Incas to be the God of Wisdom, his identity is still debated today. On June 21, on the winter solstice, the sun rises just over the crest of his crown. Whoever built this ancient site could have been using it as a solar observatory. To the side of the mountain are the somewhat inaccessible remains of an area that the Incas used to store food.The storage area was up high, thus offering significantly lower temperatures for the proper storage of corn, potatoes, beans and other foods.

Our first stop at the site is at the area that the Incas used for fountains. At the royal fountain we'll see very fine details of construction that are not likely to have been made with stone or bronze tools. Note the stair-step design in the photo here denoting the Chacana, the Andean Cross, the symbol of the Three Worlds. The engineering used to design and complete this fountain is complex. The spout of water flows continually, fed by the nearby stream, though it can be stopped if you put your finger in the center of the flow! And then will resume when you do the same thing. Amazing!

Here Andrea will facilitate a shamanic energy cleansing ceremony, using Unu, the Water element revered by the Inca Spiritual Tradition.   Take in the energy of uñu kawsay, the living energy or spirit of water into your energy field and receive its blessings!

Afterwards we walk beside the gurgling stream to a peaceful out-of-the-way area of the site - the Temple of the Condor, where we have time for individual meditation to connect with the energies of this powerful Totem of the Hanan Pacha, the Upper World, symbolizing our Higher Self. Take time to receive the messages that will certainly be given to you!

At the main altar area of the temple we receive our blessings from Wayra, the Wind element that is the guardian of the site. Open yourself to the wayra kawsay, the living energy or spirit of wind. What is its message for you today?

Return to the hotel for lunch on your own, or eat at one of the local restaurants in the village.

This afternoon we have a very special treat: a visit to the mountain village of Willoq, a native rural Quechua community, located at 12,129 ft. and home to a group of families rich in cultural values. The farmers from Willoc wear cloths of intense red and are referred to as Huayruros, named after the red seed from the jungle that symbolizes balance and duality. The strong and resourceful women of the village are outstanding weavers known for producing the highest quality textiles in the Sacred Valley. A great effort is being made to keep this tradition alive; the women weave daily for their local cooperative. During our visit they'll be happy to demonstrate to us their excellent weaving skills, and you'll be able to purchase some beautiful pieces that are truly works of art.

Return to Ollantaytambo. Dinner on your own.

Overnight Ollantaytambo. Hotel Pakaritampu or similar.

Day 5. Thursday, August 16. Machu Picchu: Visit to Site; Free Time (B/L)
After an early breakfast, we check out of the hotel and walk around the corner to the train station, where we board the Vista Dome train to Machu Picchu (Old Peak). We travel alongside the wild Urubamba River deep into the mountain valleys of the high jungle surrounded by the snow-covered Apus on our approximately 1½ hour trip. We arrive at Aguas Calientes, the small village at the base of Machu Picchu. Porters from our hotel will meet us at the train station and take our bags to the hotel. We walk to the bus station and board a park bus to take us up to Machu Picchu, the ancient City of the Condor and recently voted one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World.

Most archaeologists adhere to the story that Machu Picchu was built by the Sapa Inca Pachacuti starting in about 1440 BCE and was inhabited until the Spanish conquest of Peru in 1532. Machu Picchu was not a conventional city, but was a country retreat town for Incan nobility. It is estimated that a maximum of only about 750 people resided in Machu Picchu at any one time, and probably only a small fraction of that number lived in the town during the rainy season and when no nobility were visiting. There are various theories as to what role the site played in Incan life, from the country retreat, to astronomical observatory, to a hidden spiritual center. And hidden place and well protected is was, located far up in the mountains, so that visitors had to travel up long valleys littered with Incan check points and watch towers to get there. Remarkably, the Spanish conquistadors missed the site, and the Inca city remained hidden until the 20th century.

Hiram Bingham (November 19, 1875 – June 6, 1956) a professor from Yale, explorer, treasure hunter and politician from the United States re-discovered the citadel of Machu Picchu in 1911 with the guidance of local indigenous farmers. Bingham was not a trained archaeologist. On July 24, 1911, Melchor Arteaga led Bingham to Machu Picchu, which had been largely forgotten by everybody except the small number of people living in the immediate valley (possibly including two local missionaries named Thomas Payne and Stuart McNairn whose descendants claim that they had already climbed to the ruins in 1906). Also the Cusco explorers Enrique Palma, Gabino Sanchez and Agustín Lizarraga are said to have arrived at the site in 1901. Soon after Bingham announced the existence of Machu Picchu others came forward claiming to have seen the city first, such as the British missionary Thomas Payne and a German engineer named J. M. von Hassel. Recent discoveries have put forth a new claimant, a German named Augusto Berns who bought land opposite the Machu Picchu mountain in the 1860's and then tried to raise money from investors to plunder nearby Incan ruins. At any rate, Bingham was the first to put forth the theory that the site is the place where the “Virgins of the Suns” lived and why for the Incas, it was considered to be holy ground.

But is there more to the story of who built Machu Picchu and when? Just as we've already discussed about the other sacred sites in Peru? Of course! The construction displayed at the ancient site spans many types of building, and definitely there is the megalithic construction, as well as what is recognized as the Inca construction. Since the site wasn't discovered by the Spanish Conquistadors, it remained as a time capsule. The stoneworks show astonishing differences in quality of craftsmanship. In many places there are walls in the lower levels of the fine quality that is the hallmark of ancient Andean stoneworks. Then as the walls rise, the quality of work diminishes. The lower layers are always finer and more precise than those above. One gets the feeling that these are remnants of old walls that were discovered and built upon by later hands. So, could it have been that the Incas didn't build Machu Picchu, as they might not have built Sacsayhuaman, Pisac or Ollantaytambo? Quite possibly all of these sites could have been built in antiquity by the technologically-advanced civilization that seems to have spanned the globe. We'll explore these theories as we visit the site.

This morning you've finally arrived at this ancient place of your dreams! At 8,000 ft. you're at one of the most mysterious and sacred places on earth! We'll visit the Temples of the Sun & Moon, the Temple of the Condor, the Temple of the Three Windows, the world-famous spiritual center of the site, the Intihuatana, or the Hitching Post of the Sun, and the Pachamama Rock.
For a full description of the areas of the site visit, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Machu_Picchu

Full of the sacred energies we take a break and enjoy a delicious buffet lunch at the on-site hotel, perhaps accompanied by the joyful music of local Andean musicians. You have free time to re-enter the Sanctuary to explore on your own. Find the spot that calls to you and take time to sit and meditate among the powerful energies. Still your mind and listen with your heart to what the Ancient Ones have to tell you! They have a unique gift for you if you are willing to receive it!

For more photos of Machu Picchu visit our website gallery: http://www.SacredSitesJourneys.com/Peru-PhotoGallery-1.htm

To visit our Peru album on Facebook, visit: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.118694647148.105155.634657148&type=1&l=a55df6c645

And here's a link to a YouTube Video about Machu Picchu: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kckqo7gZ9mI&playnext=1&list=PL28C5E19973366D70

Return on the bus to Aguas Calientes. Check in at the hotel. You have free time this evening. Maybe take a leisurely soak in the local hot springs, for which the little village is named. Or, sit out in the hotel garden and commune with Mama Quilla, the Mother Moon. Dinner on your own. (Andrea will be available to go with the group to one of the local restaurants.)
Overnight Machu Picchu/Aguas Calientes. La Cabana or similar.

Day 6. Friday, August 17. Machu Picchu: Sunrise Ceremony/Initiation into the Intic Churincuna; Free Time (B)
We return to Machu Picchu in the early morning to greet the sun in our special Sunrise Ceremony facilitated by Andrea, just as the Incas did each day in the ancient past. We gather in an area that is not visited by many tourists, where we will be able to see Taytay Inti (Father Sun) as He peeks over the surrounding Apus. Open your arms! Open your heart! Receive the healing energies into your body, mind, and spirit! Remember yourself as one of the Intic Churincuna, Children of the Sun!

Afterwards you have free time for the the rest of the day. Maybe climb the towering peak of Huayna Picchu (Young Peak) to look down on the City of the Condor from above.

If you hike half way up Huayna Picchu and then around to the side of the peak, you'll reach the Temple of the Moon, one of the most powerful feminine energy vortex areas on the planet! You can meditate in this small cave, the womb of the Pachamama.

Or return to Aguas Calientes and rest, relax and/or shop at the local market.

Lunch and dinner on your own. Overnight Machu Picchu/Aguas Calientes. La Cabana or similar.

Day 7. Saturday,  August 18.  Return to Cusco; Free Time; Farewell Dinner (B)
Today we check out of the hotel after breakfast. You have free time until we board the train for our return to Cusco. On arrival we transfer to our hotel and check in. Lunch on your own. And you have free time before our Farewell Dinner. It's time to say "Good-bye" to our Brothers and Sisters who will not be going to Lake Titicaca, and an opportunity to share some of our Sacred Sites Journeys' experiences with each other.
Overnight Cusco. Hotel Ruinas or similar.

Day 8. Sunday, August 19. To Lima (B)
After breakfast check out of the hotel and transfer to the airport. Check in for the return flight to Lima.
SSJ Service ends on arrival in Lima.

NOTE: Once you register, Sacred Sites Journeys can refer you to the local family-owned airport hotel that we've used with our groups in Peru since 1994. You will be able to book post-tour services with them directly in case you need to depart Lima later evening on Sunday, August 19th, or the next day, Monday, August 20th. Services include: meeting at the airport by an English-speaking representative from the hotel, private transfer to the hotel for overnight (includes breakfast), and transfer back to the airport for your international departure.

Please book your international return flight from Lima to depart after 6:00PM on August 19th.

Note: This itinerary is subject to change due to conditions beyond our control.

Extension to Lake Titicaca: Islands & Sacred Sites
TOUR ITINERARY:
August 19 - 23, 2012
(B = Breakfast, L = Lunch, D = Dinner)

Day 8. Sunday, August 19. To Lake Titicaca (B/L/D)
After breakfast we check out of the hotel and depart via First Class tourist bus south along the sacred Urubamba River, through the Altiplano, or high plains, the most extensive area of high plateau on Earth outside of Tibet. Lake Titicaca is its best known geographical feature. The Altiplano is dominated by massive active volcanoes. At various times during the Pleistocene epoch, both the southern and northern Altiplano were covered by the vast pluvial lakes. Lake Titicaca, straddling the Peru & Bolivia border, is a remnant of one of these. For more information, visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Altiplano

Lunch provided.


We then continue south through Puno, port city on Lake Titicaca, to the nearby quiet village of Chucuito, arriving early evening at our hotel overlooking the beautiful shores of Lake Titicaca. We are now in the heart of the Andean feminine energy, the powerful MamaCocha (Mother Lake).

Take a bit of time before dinner to rest. Perhaps you'd like to walk across the road from the hotel to the ancient Fertility Temple (photo at left) for a private meditation to focus on your creativity to birth a new idea, project, etc. Or, use the Spa Facilities: dry or wet sauna, Jacuzzi, massage.  Or enjoy a walking meditation using the labyrinth that is laid out in the hotel gardens. (Andrea available for instructions)

Time allowing this evening and during other free time here at the hotel you can book an optional traditional Andean Coca Leaf Reading with a local ritual specialist who reads the coca leaves to answer questions about health, career, relationship, etc.

Group dinner at the hotel. Overnight Chucuito/Lake Titicaca. Taypikala Lago Hotel or similar.

Day 9. Monday, August 20. Uros Islands and Amantani Island (B/L/D)
An early breakfast and check out from the hotel. Then we're off to the Uros Floating Islands, made entirely of the totora reed that grows in the Lake and named after the Uros people who inhabit them. Here we receive a warm welcome from these friendly island dwellers. After a short demonstration about how their islands are built and about their local economy and culture, we have an opportunity to visit their homes and get to know the people a bit. As well we can support their meager existence by purchasing their richly colored hand embroidered tapestries, pillow covers, and other handicrafts. And we'll take a short ride out on the Lake in one of the reed boats, a peaceful time to relax and take in the powerful energies of the MamaCocha.

Then we head further out across the Lake to Amantani Island, enjoying our box lunches as we motor across the deep blue waters, surrounded by the snow-capped mountains. The island, located on the Peruvian side of the Lake, is less than six square miles. It is inhabited by less than 4000 Aymara- speaking people; some of them also speak a little Spanish. No English speakers here.

Amantaní is known as the "Island of the Kantuta", after the national flower of Peru and Bolivia, which grows plentifully on the island. The terraced hillsides of the island are worked mostly by hand. The islanders grow wheat, quinoa, potatoes, and other vegetables. They also make beautiful textiles and sell them quite cheaply at the Artesania Cooperative.

We disembark on the island, and walk to the center of the village, where we'll meet our host families for our overnight stay. Currently, there are only eight village communities on the island, most of the people live in simple adobe dwellings. After our guide explains the mode of community organization, and the beliefs and ceremonies conducted in this place, we take a short walk to leave our overnight bags in the home where we'll stay tonight, a home that is a rustic but comfortable one.

Then we hike to the Temple of the Pachatata, Father Earth or the Temple of the Pachamama, Mother Earth. (Which one we visit is dependent on the time of our arrival.) These sacred temples have been dated to the Tiahuanaco Culture, a largely Bolivian culture that sprang up around the lake between 500 and 800CE. There are Inca and Tiahuanaco temples on top of both. It's here that sacred and ceremonial rituals are still practiced by the Yatiris, or Andean Elders. Both are powerful vortex area, with unusually strong electromagnetic fields. Here, in this sacred site, high above the waters, we enjoy a panoramic view on the Lake and  the island itself. Peace pervades during our meditation!

We return to the village, where we enjoy dinner with our host family. And, if we're fortunate, we'll also be invited to a native dance party in the evening!

Overnight Lake Titicaca. Amantani Island. Home of Host Family.

Day 10. Tuesday, August 21. Taquile Island; Return to Chucuito (B/L/D)
After breakfast with our host family, we say our fond Good-byes, with great thanks for their warm hospitality. We walk back to the dock and board our launch for the trip to nearby Taquile Island. About 2,200 people live on the island, which is 3 miles long by less than a mile wide, with an area of 3 square miles. The highest point of the island is over 13,000 ft. above sea level. The inhabitants, known as Taquileños, are southern Quechua speakers who are known for their fine hand-woven textiles and clothing, which are regarded as among the highest-quality handicrafts in Peru. In 2005, "Taquile and Its Textile Art" were honored by being proclaimed "Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity" by UNESCO. Knitting is exclusively performed by males, starting at age eight. The women exclusively make yarn and weave. Taquile residents still live in accordance with their ancestral traditions and dress in colorful and traditional costumes. The people wear different clothes according to their social status. Leaders wear black chullos (caps), married men red ones, singles red and white. The same applies to women.

Taquileños run their society based on community collectivism and on the Inca moral code ama sua, ama llulla, ama qhilla, (Quechua for "do not steal, do not lie, do not be lazy"). The island is divided into six sectors or suyus for crop rotation purposes. The economy is based on fishing, terraced farming of potatos, and tourist-generated income from the approximately 40,000 tourists who visit each year. To what point Taquileños live according to their traditional lifestyles can be depicted with one simple fact: there isn't electricity on the island. Nor are there cars.

Upon arrival on the nearby island, we disembark and climb the stairs that lead to the main village of the island. You'll have time to visit the local weaver cooperative, where you can support the local economy by purchasing some of their beautiful textiles and/or clothing. We'll enjoy lunch at the hilltop restaurant. Then we'll head back to our launch, board and motor back across the Lake to Puno. From there we make our way back to the hotel in Chucuito.

We arrive at the hotel and return to our rooms. You have free time before our group dinner at the hotel.
Overnight Chucuito/Lake Titicaca. Taypikala Lago Hotel or similar.

Day 11. Wednesday, August 22. Aramu Muru’s Doorway; Sillustani; Farewell Dinner (B/L/D)
After an early breakfast we depart to visit the interdimensional portal of Aramu Muru's Doorway, a doorway-shaped niche in a stone outcropping of reddish-brown sandstone, located about an hour from the hotel in a region known as the Valley of the Spirits.    Arriving near the area, we stop first for a short meditation at the Inca's Sun Seat located just off the Pan American highway, facing Lake Titicaca, to connect with its nurturing feminine energies.

We then drive to the Doorway, one of the most rarely-visited mysterious destinations in the World!
Ancient legend says that it was here that the Lemurian sage Aramu Muru, who brought the ancient teachings from the island homeland to the Andes, left the third dimension as he walked through the Doorway, never to return in physical body. His consort Arama Mara, carved in stone over the Doorway, lies forever guarding this sacred site and inviting seekers to come and experience the palpable energies.

Who Built the Doorway? This approximately 22 ft. "gate" is literally carved into the solid rock, cutting through peculiar diagonal lines. The sheer size of it is mind-boggling for most researchers, as is the origins of its construction. Who built it? And for what purpose? That's the mystery! The construction is older than what is found from the Inca civilization; it could have been constructed by a pre-Inca civilization which is very ancient and of uncertain origin. The Incas themselves were evidently aware of the carving, but they didn't claim that they built it.

The local Aymara descendants of Incas have stories and myths about this enigmatic portal. Many of them refuse to come close to it, claiming that it's a portal for the Ancient Ones. Some even say that they've seen people disappear and reappear through the solid rock! Others tell tales of strange, tall men accompanied by glowing balls of lights, walking through the doorway. They also claim that the gate only opens to certain people and only at some times, that one must possess a certain wisdom in order to be able to pass through it.

After preparing for our meditation using traditional Andean ritual, one by one we stand in the "tubes" on either side of the Doorway, energy vortexes with one spinning clockwise and the other counterclockwise, to balance our male and female energies. Then each person enters the main portal where there is a a small, round indentation resembling a key hole, where you can place your forehead / Third Eye for meditation. Perhaps this could have been the place where Aramu Muru placed the Solar Disc to “open” the door, allowing him to pass through? Is this the portal to energies of Unconditional Love?

A Few Words from Andrea: "The first time that I meditated here at the Doorway I easily "passed through it" into the state of Unconditional Love, an experience so intense that I didn't want to return to my normal waking world. After what seemed like hours of basking in these beautiful energies, I realized that Beings of Light were with me, lovingly encouraging me to return, reminding me that even though I was one of the original builders of this stargate, that it's my contract in this lifetime to bring others here so that they will to be able to experience these high frequencies, and thus uplift their consciousness. I very strongly felt the great honor in being able to do so. Which caused my consciousness to more easily come back into my physical body. I was so overcome with tremendous emotion that I could only sob quietly for several minutes afterward, still feeling the memory throughout all parts of myself of having been Home!" 

Who were Aramu Muru and Arama Mara? Some researchers, such as Mark Amaru Pinkham who writes about them in The Return of the Serpents of Wisdom, state that they were sages from ancient Lemuria who brought the teachings of civilization and spiritual development to the Andes over 12,000 years ago when their island homeland was sinking beneath the Pacific Ocean. They established the Monastery of the Seven Rays, located somewhere near the shores of Lake Titicaca. They formed the Brotherhood of the Seven Rays to foster unity, service and spiritual growth. For more information, please click on the link above to The Return of the Serpents of Wisdom.  In the historical records Aramu Muru and Arama Mara become known as Manco Kapac and Mama Ocllo, the founders of the Inca Empire. When the Spanish entered Cusco and the priests and priestess removed the great golden Solar Disc from the Coricancha in order to save it from being melted down by the conquistadors, one legend says that it was taken south to Lake Titicaca.

During our time here at this very sacred site, Andrea will offer you Initiation into the Brotherhood of the Solar Disc. For more information, visit this link: www.SacredSitesJourneys.com/Peru-Aug2012/TheBrotherhoodOfTheSolarDisc.pdf

We return to the hotel for a light lunch. Then we're off to visit Sillustani, at 13,500 ft. above sea level, near Puno on the shores of beautiful Lake Umayo, a burial ground of the Aymara-speaking Colla people, who were conquered by the Inca in the 15th century. The tombs were built above ground in chullpas, tower-like structures 40 ft. high, to house the remains of the nobility, their families and their riches. Thus many of them have been dynamited by grave robbers. Many are still well-preserved however. Two of the towers are unfinished; one still has an earth ramp in place to raise blocks; the other has cut stones which were ready to go to the top of the tower. These towers are not unique to Sillustani; they're found elsewhere across the Altiplano. But this site is considered to be the best and most preserved. The most prominent of the towers are the  "Torre de la Lagartija" (Tower of the lizard) and "Torre de la Serpiente" (Tower of the snake). The snake and lizard represent the Ucu Pacha, the lower world of the earth’s interior or of the sub-conscious. The Lizard Tower is the largest chullpa with a circumference of 28 ft.  Each tower has a small hole facing east, just large enough for a person to crawl through. Perhaps these were the entrances to the tomb that were closed after the burials. The locals believed that since the soul would experience a rebirth into the next world, the mummy was placed in a fetal position on a flat stone, and covered with a rounded pile of stones to represent the womb of Mother Earth. The tops of the towers were open to allow the Spirit to go to the higher world.

The amazing megalithic-type engineering involved in their construction is more complex than anything the Incas built. The edges of each stone fit snugly next to its neighbor. Also the bottom circumference of the tower is smaller than the top.

We'll also visit the Temple of the Sun where the shadow of a rock at the entrance lines up with the edge of another stone in the temple on solstices, and Temple of the Moon. We'll meditate in each to connect with the male energy of the sun and the female energy of the moon. In this sacred site the energy is very clear and the veils between the dimensions are easily lifted. Take the time to be still, tune into the peace, and receive any messages and blessings that Spirit gives you!

We return to the hotel in the late afternoon. On our last night in Peru we enjoy our Farewell to Lake Titicaca Dinner, a time for reminiscing and sharing our many experiences we've had here with the Mama Cocha.
Overnight Chucuito/Lake Titicaca. Taypikala Lago Hotel or similar.

Day 11. Thursday, August 23. Return to Lima; Museum of Archaeology, Museum of Natural History (B/L)
After an early breakfast we check out of the hotel and and depart to the airport in Juliaca, where we board our flight to Lima, arriving later morning. After gathering our luggage, we meet our local Lima tour representative and board our motorcoach for our drive through Lima to the Pueblo Libre, or Free Town area of the city. Here we'll enjoy lunch with the group at the Restaurante Bolivariano, near the museums in the area. After lunch you have the option to visit the museums in the area. (Entrance Fee not included in tour package pricing.)

1) The National Museum of the Archaeology, Anthropology, and History of Peru is the largest and oldest state museum in Peru, located on Plaza Bolívar in the Pueblo Libre district of Lima. The museum houses more than 100,000 artifacts spanning the entire history of human occupation in what is now Peru. Highlights include the Raimondi Stela and the Tello Obelisk from Chavín de Huantar, and an impressive scale model of the Inca citadel, Machu Picchu.

2) The Natural History Museum is Peru's most important museum of natural history. It was established in 1918 and belongs to the National University of San Marcos. The museum is repository of representative specimens of Peruvian fauna, flora and minerals, including exhibitions of mammals, primates, invertebrates, reptiles, amphibians, birds, plants, fossils, dinosaurs, fish and minerals.
Highlights of the collections include: Skeletons of a sperm whale; fossils of South American horses; fossils of giant ground sloths

After our museum visits, we transfer back to the airport. 
SSJ Service ends on return to the airport in Lima.

NOTE: Once you register, Sacred Sites Journeys can refer you to the local family-owned airport hotel that we've used with our groups in Peru since 1994. You will be able to book post-tour services with them directly in case you need to depart Lima later evening on Thursday, August 23rd, or the next day, Friday, August 24th. Services include: meeting at the airport by an English-speaking representative from the hotel, private transfer to the hotel for overnight (includes breakfast), and transfer back to the airport for your international departure.

Please book your international return flight from Lima to depart after 6:00PM on August 23rd.

Note: This itinerary is subject to change due to conditions beyond our control.

Extension to Tiahuanaco, Bolivia
Including Puma Punku


TOUR ITINERARY:
August 23 - 26, 2012
(B = Breakfast, L = Lunch, D = Dinner)

Day 11. Thursday, August 23. To Bolivia: Tiahuanaco (B/D)
After an early breakfast we check out of the hotel and and depart via private car or minivan with our local tour representative/driver to the Bolivian border. Obtain your Bolivia Tourist Visa and pass through Immigration. We then meet our Bolivian tour representative/driver and depart via private car or minivan to Tiahuanaco.
Lunch on your own.
We arrive Tiahuanaco in the afternoon. (Note: We lose an hour when we cross the border into Bolivia, as the time there is one hour ahead of Peru.) If there's time we'll   have a short visit to the site with a local guide.
Then we check in at the hotel next to the site.
Dinner at the hotel.
Overnight Tiahuanaco.

Day 2. Friday, August 24. Bolivia: Tiahuanaco, including Puma Punku; Return to Peru (B/L/D)
This morning we visit Tiahuanaco, the ancient site considered by many archaeologists and historians to be the cradle of the American civilization, and perhaps even the oldest ruins in the world! This city made of stone, found at an altitude of 12,500 ft. (over 2 miles above sea level!), was the seat of power for a vast pre-Incan empire. Modern archaeologists date the site to around 200CE. However, Arthur Posnansky, a German engineer, the first serious investigator of the site, and who dedicated fifty years to its study, dated its origins to 15,000BCE. As we explore the following areas of this ancient sacred site we take time for meditation to connect with the powerful ancient energies that still exist here today.

1) The Akapana Pyramid, the largest terraced pyramid of the city, which was once believed to be a modified hill, but has since proven to be a massive human construction. On the summit of the Akapana, reached by wide staircases, there was a sunken court with an area serviced by a subterranean drainage system, which also served to amplify the powerful energies that radiated from the central vortex of the area. Some people can still feel them!

2) The megalithic entrance to the Kalasasaya Temple is a stairway that is a well-worn megalith carved from a single block of sandstone. The statue in the center of the doorway is believed by many archaeologists and researchers to be a solstice and equinox marker.

3) The nearby Sunken Courtyard is walled by standing stones and masonry infill, and houses one of the mysteries of the site: sculptured heads are inset in the walls that represent various races and ethnic backgrounds from all over the world...and maybe even from beings not of this planet! How did people from so long ago in our past know of the various races that populated different parts of the world at that time?

Below are close-ups of some of the various heads that line this ancient enclosure.

4) The Ponce and Fraile anthropomorphic figures or monoliths, made from andesite stone that was transported from over 100 kilometers away, stand guard in the Kalasasaya, holding devices whose purpose has been much-debated. What do they look like to you? Use your intuition for psychic archaeology and see what they tell you about what they were and what they were used for.

Below are some close-ups of various parts of the statue on the right.

5) The Gateway of the Sun is the most famous part of the site. In this arched doorway the central figure represents the "Gateway God" and the others on both sides represent his numerous attendants. The figure with a feline face holding two staffs on the lintel of this massive arch represents the ruling god of the Tiahuanaco pantheon. Some researchers believe the carvings represent a Venusian calendar, which relates the culture to the sages that say they came first from Venus, then to Lemuria, and then to the Andes. What are the many mysteries associated with this ancient monument and site in general? What secrets does it have to share? Take your time to discover, by group exploration with Pepe, private exploration, as well as ceremony and ritual.

6) Puma Punku ("The Door of the Puma"), the port of Tiahuanaco is an area filled with enormous stone blocks weighing between 100 and 150 tons scattered about like toothpicks. We will explore the mystery of how the blocks were quarried, how the ancient builders seemingly handled them so easily when constructing the site, and what tremendous force could have scattered them about so easily. Some of the ancient piers are so large that hundreds of ships could have docked at them. Yet there is no ocean near them, other than the prehistoric coastline that is indicated by the remains of chalky fossils that have been found at the site. Today we can only still surmise what major geological upheaval occurred 12,000 years ago to tumble these gigantic stones and also raise the entire highlands from sea level to 2 miles into the sky. Lunch included.

Photo Credit: Martin Gray

After a late lunch at the restaurant at the site, we depart with local tour representative/driver via our private car or minivan back to Peruvian border, where we obtain our Peru Tourist Visa and pass through Immigration. We meet our driver and continue back to our hotel in Chucuito, arriving early evening. Dinner at the hotel.
Overnight Chucuito/Lake Titicaca. Taypikala Lago Hotel or similar.

Day 3. Saturday, August 25. Free Day! (B/L/D)
Today is yours to relax and integrate!

If you didn't have time during our Lake Titicaca extension, perhaps you'd like to walk across the road from the hotel to the ancient Fertility Temple (photo at left) for a private meditation to focus on your creativity to birth a new idea, project, etc.  Or, use the Spa Facilities: dry or wet sauna, Jacuzzi, massage.  Or enjoy a walking meditation using the labyrinth that is laid out in the hotel gardens.

Time allowing this evening and during other free time here at the hotel you can book an optional traditional Andean Coca Leaf Reading with a local ritual specialist who reads the coca leaves to answer questions about health, career, relationship, etc.

All meals included.
Overnight Chucuito/Lake Titicaca. Taypikala Lago Hotel or similar.

Day 4. Sunday, August 26. Return to Lima; Depart Peru (B)
After an early breakfast we check out of the hotel and and depart to the airport in Juliaca, where we board our flight to Lima, arriving later morning. After gathering our luggage, we meet our local Lima tour representative and board our motorcoach for our drive through Lima to the Pueblo Libre, or Free Town area of the city. Here we'll enjoy lunch on your own with the group at the Restaurante Bolivariano, near the museums in the area. After lunch you have the option to visit the museums in the area. (Entrance Fee not included in tour package pricing.)

1) The National Museum of the Archaeology, Anthropology, and History of Peru is the largest and oldest state museum in Peru, located on Plaza Bolívar in the Pueblo Libre district of Lima. The museum houses more than 100,000 artifacts spanning the entire history of human occupation in what is now Peru. Highlights include the Raimondi Stela and the Tello Obelisk from Chavín de Huantar, and an impressive scale model of the Inca citadel, Machu Picchu.

2) The Natural History Museum is Peru's most important museum of natural history. It was established in 1918 and belongs to the National University of San Marcos. The museum is repository of representative specimens of Peruvian fauna, flora and minerals, including exhibitions of mammals, primates, invertebrates, reptiles, amphibians, birds, plants, fossils, dinosaurs, fish and minerals.
Highlights of the collections include: Skeletons of a sperm whale; fossils of South American horses; fossils of giant ground sloths

After our museum visits, we transfer back to the airport. 
SSJ Service ends on return to the airport in Lima.

NOTE: Once you register, Sacred Sites Journeys can refer you to the local family-owned airport hotel that we've used with our groups in Peru since 1994. You will be able to book post-tour services with them directly in case you need to depart Lima later evening on Sunday, August 26th, or the next day, Monday, August 27th. Services include: meeting at the airport by an English-speaking representative from the hotel, private transfer to the hotel for overnight (includes breakfast), and transfer back to the airport for your international departure.

Please book your international return flight from Lima to depart after 6:00PM on August 26th.

Note: This itinerary is subject to change due to conditions beyond our control.

Sacred Sites Journeys Radio programs about PERU:

May 1, 2009 -  PERU (Part 1): The Inca Spiritual Tradition & Machu Picchu
Guest: Dr. Jose (Pepe) Altamirano, SSJ's former spiritual tour guide in Peru.
To listen to an Mp3 recording of this program, Click here

May 15, 2009  -   PERU (Part 2):The Sacred Valley of the Incas & Lake Titicaca,
including the Stargate of Aramu Muru's Doorway
Guest: Dr. Jose (Pepe) Altamirano, SSJ's former spiritual tour guide in Peru.
Pepe will be with us again to talk about more of Peru's powerful sacred sites!
To listen to an Mp3 recording of this program, Click here




For a Glossary of Terms for Inca / Quechua Words: http://www.incaglossary.org/a.html

A Few Words from Sacred Sites Journeys Pilgrimages to Peru

The Sacred Journey to Peru with Mark Amaru Pinkham was above and beyond what I expected. The re-connection with home and Mark's teachings were very beneficial & insightful. I came on this trip with the expectation of spiritual growth. I had no idea how my life would be changed by the profound beauty, history & energy of this place! The accommodations and the people associated with the tour were all wonderful. J. Noto - Seattle, WA

The shamanic pilgrimage to Peru was a success from all points of view. Our group leader & speaker Mark Amaru Pinkham was outstanding in his relationship to the individual members of the group and in his choice of shamen and healers. The sites we visited, the rites we participated in, and the results were extraordinary and personally tremendously meaningful. Mark has superb gifts as a spiritual adept and a communicator of essential truths. He is exceedingly generous with his care and attention for every member of the group.   H. Senn - CA

My experience in Peru with Mark and Andrea Pinkham was one of the most transformational experiences of my life! I could feel a connection with the ancient Andean Masters and their powerful energies in my very cellular memory as Mark shared his incredible stories and timeless information about them at all the sacred sites. Both Mark and Andrea helped set the stage for my heart-opening experience that helped me to connect during the tour with the wonderful woman that today is my wife!  J Kumle - NV

How do I condense such life-enhancing transformation as the journey to Peru with Mark Amaru Pinkham into a few sentences? I was led to wonderful experiences and cared for and supported at all times. I had the good fortune to encounter a shaman who helped me open my heart to myself. As a natural consequence, I have opened my heart to others.  My friends and business acquaintances have commented on my "aura" of peacefulness and joy. I am so happy that I overcame my fear of spending the money for these journeys because my experiences in Peru are priceless. I encourage everyone who is looking to deepen their spiritual connection to themselves, to the earth and /or to other people, to sign up for a Sacred Journey to Peru!  P. Caldwell - IL

Pepe and Andrea were a phenomenal team! They took excellent care of each group member, as well as the group in general. And they were most helpful at explaining the historical and sacred significance of the sites we visited. They helped us to connect with the powerful energies at each of them. D. Parker - AZ

The connection that I made to the Pachamama, the Mother Earth, was the most profound experience of my life! Everything in Peru is alive with energy! And offers it so willingly and lovingly to those who take the time to connect and honor it. I have never felt so loved or nurtured. During our journey Pepe and Andrea assisted us to make our connections with these palpable energies through the offering of Andean rituals and meditations at the sacred temples. And we had time to just sit and "tune in" and receive.
Anonymous by request

Everything about the Sacred Journey to Peru was wonderful. Pepe was so full of wisdom and charisma. Andrea was organized, thoughtful, and inspiring. It is true...Peru changed me forever...and for the better! C. Silard - AZ

Pepe was totally perfect as our Guide. Andrea's enthusiasm and understanding of the places we visited really made the trip.
C. Stephens - CA

Peru and her sacred sites are one of the places all serious spiritual seekers should experience in this lifetime! Machu Picchu called me home and I'm glad I heeded that call. The ancient energies of the site had much to share with me, on so many levels. I was able to get away from my everyday life and let go of all my concerns about it.. And therefore was able to open up to profound levels of healing. I'll never be the same, and am very thankful for that. And to Andrea and Pepe for facilitating my sacred journey so lovingly and competently. Anonymous by request

Our trip was amazing!. Thank you for all the planning, preparation and execution that went into it. We felt very taken care of - no details to worry about. It all went smoothly, or what changed on the fly worked out just the way it needed to. I found Peru to be a deeply loving, simple, yet powerful place. J. Elk - CA

Thank you so much for such an enriching experience.  Andrea and Pepe were fantastic guides. All hotels, transport and baggage were managed without a hitch. So smooth! B. Brown - MA

TOUR INCLUSIONS

Your Sacred Sites Journey to PERU Includes:
-Two flights in Peru for Main Tour: 1) Lima/Cusco and 2) Cusco/Lima OR for Lake Titicaca Extension: 1) Lima/Cusco and 2) Juliaca/Lima
- Other tour-related transportation in Peru, including bus and rail
- Roundtrip airport/hotel/airport transfers
- Luggage handling at hotels
- All site entrance fees
- First-class hotels, including taxes, service charges & daily buffet breakfast; MAIN TOUR: other meals, as per the itinerary; LAKE TITICACA: All meals included
- Pre-paid Gratuities
- Free Peruvian Tourist Visa upon your arrival in Lima
- Fully escorted from Cusco by Tour Host/Featured Speaker Andrea Mikana-Pinkham
- Excellent bilingual Tour Guides

Special Highlights: MAIN TOUR
- Travel with Andrea Mikana-Pinkham & other spirit-centered people
- Cusco Area: Sacsayhuaman, Coricancha & Tambo Machay
- Sacred Valley of the Incas: Pisac, Ollantaytambo and Willoc
- 2 days at Machu Picchu - with plenty of free time to explore on your own!
- Special Sunrise Ceremony & Initiation into the Intic Churincuna (Children of the Sun) at Machu Picchu
- Traditional Andean rituals & healing sessions with the Q'ero Elders, Andrea Mikana-Pinkham and others
- Special Welcome and Farewell Dinners in Cusco

Special Highlights: LAKE TITICACA
- Travel with Andrea Mikana-Pinkham & other spirit-centered people
- Uros Floating Islands
- Amantani Island, with overnight hosted by local family
- Taquile Island
- Interdimensional Stargate of Aramu Muru's Doorway, with private meditation time
- Optional: Traditional Coca Leaf Readings (Suggested donation $25 US)
- Optional: Fertility Temple
- Optional: Spa Facilities and Massage at Lake Titicaca (Pricing to be advised on arrival at the hotel)
- All meals included
- Special Farewell Dinner

Special Highlights: TIAHUANACO, BOLIVIA
- Bilingual driver/guide for portion of the trip to and from Bolivian border and to and from Tiahuanaco
- Visit to Tiahuanaco, including Puma Punku, with excellent local bilingual Tour Guide
- Breakfast daily, 3 dinners, 2 lunches
- Optional: Traditional Coca Leaf Readings (Suggested donation $25 US)
- Optional: Fertility Temple
- Optional: Spa Facilities and Massage at Lake Titicaca (Pricing to be advised on arrival at the hotel)
- All meals included
- Special Farewell Dinner

NOT INCLUDED:
- Roundtrip international air to Lima, Peru
- Pre and post tour services in Lima
- Airport departure taxes for the 2 flights in Peru. To be paid when you check in for the flights (approximately $10 - $12; price accurate at time of posting; subject to change without notice.)
- $31.00 US International departure tax to be paid when you check in for your international flight in Lima at the end of the tour (Price accurate at time of posting; subject to change without notice.)
- Lake Titicaca and/or Bolivia Extension: Entry fee for museums in Lima
- Bolivia Extension: Bolivia Tourist Visa (Note: Price at time of posting is $145.00. Valid for 5 years. Subject to change without notice.)
- Meals not included, as indicated in the itinerary
- Cost to obtain valid passport
- Any items of a personal nature such as laundry, drinks, internet service, telephone calls. Any item that is not specifically detailed on the SSJ website or final trip itinerary

TOUR PRICING

This tour is a LAND ONLY Sacred Travel Package. You are responsible to book your international flights to and from Lima, Peru.
ARRIVAL: Please arrive in Lima by 6:00AM on Sunday, August 12th in order to connect with the later morning group flight to Cusco booked by Sacred Sites Journeys.

DEPARTURES:
For all of the following departures, please book your air to depart from Lima AFTER 6:00PM.
MAIN TOUR - Monday, August 19th
EXTENSION TO LAKE TITICACA - Thursday, August 23rd  
EXTENSION TO TIAHUANACO, BOLIVIA - Sunday, August 26th

If you have questions about making your international flight arrangements, please contact Andrea Mikana-Pinkham at info@SacredSitesJourneys.com

DISCOUNT! Make all your payments via check or money order and you'll receive a 5% discount. The prices listed below for this form of payment INCLUDE this discount.

NOTE Regarding Payments Via Credit Cards: We can take credit card payments until 45 days before the date the tour begins. For this tour that date is June 28, 2012. After that date you can pay via personal check, credit card check, bank cashier's check, money order or bank wire.

MAIN TOUR: Mystical Journey to MACHU PICCHU
Per Person, double occupancy, land only:
$2,699.00 for payments via check or money order
$2,841.00 for payments via credit card

Single Room Supplement:
$399.00 for payments via check or money order
$420.00 for payments via credit card

Extension to LAKE TITICACA
Per Person, double occupancy, land only:
$1,089.00 for payments via check or money order
$1,146.00 for payments via credit card

Single Room Supplement:
$99.00 for payments via check or money order
$104.00 for payments via credit card

Extension to TIAHUANACO, BOLIVIA
PER PERSON, DOUBLE OCCUPANCY
2 people:
$1,159.00 for payments via check or money order
$1,220.00 for payments via credit card

3 people:
$999.00 for payments via check or money order
$1,052.00 for payments via credit card

4 people:
$919.00 for payments via check or money order
$967.00 for payments via credit card

5 people:
$879.00 for payments via check or money order
$925.00 for payments via credit card

PER PERSON, SINGLE OCCUPANCY
2 people:
$1,249.00 for payments via check or money order
$1,315.00 for payments via credit card

3 people:
$1,079.00 for payments via check or money order
$1,136.00 for payments via credit card

4 people:
$999.00 for payments via check or money order
$1,052.00 for payments via credit card

5 people:
$969.00 for payments via check or money order
$1,020.00 for payments via credit card
NOTE: For this extension, you will be billed for the least number in the group on your initial invoice. At 30 days out the pricing will be adjusted according to the final number in the group.

ROOMMATES: Would you like to meet and make a new friend on your journey? If you're not traveling on the journey with anyone you know, and would like for SSJ to try to match you up with a suitable roommate, we'll be happy to try to do so.
Per our Terms and Conditions, we will hold the registration for the trip open until 30 days before the departure date (or later if possible) in order to try to match you with someone. If by that date we have not been able to do so, you will be responsible to pay for the single supplement. If you would like to be matched with a roommate, please register early.

TOUR REGISTRATION

Registration is closed for this Sacred Sites Journey to PERU.
Tour departs August 12, 2012.

Questions? Email info@SacredSitesJourneys.com
Or, call our office at 888 501-3853 (Toll free in the US) or 928 284-2384

To read copies of our current and past E-Newsletters, Click Here!


NOTE: All photos and text on this webpage are the Copyright of Sacred Sites Journeys/ Heartlight Fellowship.

Sacred Sites Journeys is NOT affiliated with any other sacred travel company.
Other sacred travel companies offering spiritual pilgrimages similar to ours
are using our text and photos. We did not give them permission to do so.
We believe that karma is very efficient, and that those who are not in integrity
will swiftly reap the negative benefits of such actions.

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