Galapagos Islands & Machu Picchu

Arrival in Guayaquil, Ecuador – Ecuador’s largest city and business hub.

It would be futile to try to describe the experience of visiting the Galapagos Islands in a few sentences. The amazing wildlife, stunning scenery, and opportunities for once-in-a-lifetime adventures in this unspoilt nature reserve. For an overview please click on this link:     https://www.galapagosislands.com/info/ The actual itinerary for the 3 nights/4 days adventure can be seen on https://www.gogalapagos.com/itinerary-legend-a/ These few days are the experience of a lifetime! We will have our own kosher kitchen and dining room on the boat.

We check in for our flight to Guayaquil and, since we have a few hours before our connecting flight to Lima, Rabbi Tawil will show us Beit Chabad in Guayaquil, and give us a brief talk about the Jewish community there.

 

We will have lunch at the only kosher restaurant in Ecuador, opened by a local Israeli businessman, under the hashgacha of Rabbi Tawil.

We will return to the airport for our flight to Lima, where we will spend Shabbat.

Overnight & Shabbat at The Country Club Hotel, Lima

Our tour of Lima will provide us with a comprehensive historical oversight of Peru's capital city, while visiting all the must-see sites.

We will drive along Lima’s first freeway, built during the 1960s and 70s, arriving in downtown Lima, a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site. Here we will be able to appreciate the impressive monuments and imposing architecture from the colonial times.

We will visit the 16^th Century Convent of Santo Domingo, one of the best preserved monasteries in the whole of Lima, where we view the magnificent old Lima from its tower. We continue to the Larco Museum, featuring the finest gold and silver collection from Ancient Peru, and the famous “erotic” archaeological collection.

 

We will be spending Shabbat with the very friendly but small Jewish community of Lima. All meals will be at the Shul (shown here), and are under the strict supervision of the Rabbi of Lima, Rabbi Shlomo Cohen-Scali.

After davening we will join the community for their weekly gala Kiddush/lunch. After the Kiddush, Lima’s Rabbi will tell us about Jewish life in Peru….. past and present.

Shabbat afternoon rest and return to Shul for Mincha and Seuda Shlishit.

Motzei Shabbat will take us to the Peru Magic Water Circuit – one of the best in the world!

Transfer to the airport for our flight to Cusco. On arrival in Cusco we will transfer to our hotel, the famous and deluxe Aranwa Cusco Boutique Hotel. We will take a leisurely walk to acclimatize to the altitude, which is 3,400 meters (for a point of reference, Jerusalem’s altitude is 790 meters!!!). We will eat lunch at Chabad, a short walk from the hotel. All our meals will be at Chabad during our stay in Cusco. Our afternoon tour will take us to the Cathedral, the (Temple of the Sun) and the nearby ruins at Qenqo (Ceremonial and Ritual Center where sacrifices were made), Puca Pucara (which was used by Emperor Pachacutec as a tambo - an Incan lodge), Tambomachay and Sacsayhuaman Fortress. Overnight at Aranwa Cusco Boutique Hotel.

One of the mysteries of the ancient world, Machu Picchu is one of the few major Incan ruins discovered nearly intact, and it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1983.

We will travel to Machu Picchu by the Vistadome Train – an experience in and of itself – with an amazing, colorful, comic fashion show on the return train journey back to Cusco.

Our last full day on this tour will take us to Peru’s historic Sacred Valley or the UruBamba Valley. This valley is famous for its lush scenery, picturesque colonial towns and a magnificent Inca fortress.

Our first stop is the Andean village of Chinchero. Here we will take in magnificent mountain views, visit the main square and view and ancient church with unique floral designs. From there we will head off to the small town of Maras, which is well known as a former salt-producing center that dates back all the way to colonial times.

From here we continue to the fascinating display of terraces in Moray, located about 2 miles from Maras. Moray boasts three amphitheater-like terraces made by the Incas. These terraces, which are carved deep into the earth in a bowl shape, were thought to be used to determine the optimal conditions for growing crops.

We continue to Ollantaytambo, home to a magnificent Inca fortress that we will explore. This historic fortress was where the Spanish conquistadors lost a major battle against the Inca Empire. Before we head back to Cusco, we will have time to walk around the cobblestone streets of Ollantaytambo.

We will have some free time for shopping before our transfer to the airport for our flight back to Lima Airport, where we all head back to our respective countries and home.

Our wonderful tour has come to an end. A safe journey home to everyone.