view by: | gallery | slideshow

‹ previous entry | 4 of 45 | next entry ›

The night before our pilgrimage to Machu Picchu, my friends and I wandered the glowing streets of old Cuzco. While we where somewhat prepared for the glory of Machu Picchu and the hike up to the ancient city, I don't think we expected to enjoy our time in Cuzco as much as we did. The narrow cobblestone streets and the walls built first by Incans with giant stones and completed later by the Spaniards using much smaller stones (and hence the derisive nickname "Inca-pables"), glowed with soft yellow hues once darkness fell. We strolled around in anticipation of what lay ahead while drinking in the magic of the evening offered by this simple city in the mountains. And, best of all, the people were as warm as the nighttime light. You could see in their faces that they were like the walls that the city showed off—part Incan, part Spanish and totally magnificent!

see other users' ratings and comments for
this photo ›

NIGHT IN CUZCO
by Dave Schneider, Oakland, CA

Dave's Dream Trip
Yachting from Italy to Greece

My dream trip is an adventure of family and fulfillment across the Mediterranean. Family in that my grandparents were born in Sicily but I have not yet traveled to this ancestral island. I'd like to visit the homeland of Mangiapanes (literally "Bread Eaters") and Lombardos and see their stories of "the old country" spring vividly to life. My dream trip begins by sailing down Italy's boot, first stopping to enjoy Capri and the Amalfi Coast. Next, we'd continue to my grandfather's Palermo to visit sites such as the Palazzo dei Normanni. Heading west, we'd dock at my grandmother's trapani, home to lost relatives and great seafood. The trip continues around Sicily, stopping at Agrigento for valley temples, Siracusa for ancient ruins, and finally to Taormina to ascend Mt. Etna and conclude the family portion of my journey.

Fulfillment is next on the agenda as I look to complete a past trip cut short due to an accident. In 1995, I organized a Greek Isles trip with some friends. On the second day I was involved in a moped accident on Paros that left me with two less teeth, a broken nose and facial lacerations. After being patched up, I returned home to recover, leaving behind a trip that I desperately wanted to experience. While it's a great story to tell (a real Greek tragedy!), I long to finish what I started. From Sicily, we'd sail east to Crete to hike the Samaria Gorge carved into that island. Next stop is the white villas, black sands and majestic sunsets of Santorini, a destination I've waited years to see. The trip would wind down with possible stops at Mykonos and Paros (to find my long-lost teeth perhaps?) before finally finishing in Athens—a perfect place to fulfill a dream trip odyssey.

Dave's Travel Tips

• Rather than stay at hotels everywhere you go, look online for apartments to rent. They are usually less expensive, provide a lot more room (possibly individual bedrooms), allow you to cook your own meals or throw a dinner party and let you live more like a local than a tourist. It literally is a home away from home.

• Before leaving to a new destination, go to online discussion groups or blogs to find out what others are saying. You can usually find some cool, out of the ordinary spots to see or learn about tourist traps to avoid. I discovered the Dali Museum and the coastal city of Cadaques in this way—both just a few hours outside of Barcelona.

• Step out of your comfort zone once in a while. Traveling is as much about learning how others live as anything else, and more often than not, it's different from how you live. So try the odd, local delicacy (like roasted guinea pig in Peru) or go off the tourist route once in a while (it's how I ended up drinking pilsner beer in its hometown of Pils, Czechoslovakia). Oddly enough, these will be the stories you end up telling most.