Spring Break is travel time. This year's destination was another South-American country, Peru. Peru had not necessarily been on the top of our "to do" list, but my old friend Alex from Dresden had asked me to be the godfather for his daughter. Since most of his family lives in Lima, the ceremony took place in the lost empire of the Incas. Long and I used that opportunity not only to get a local's view of Lima, but we also made our way to the ancient city of Cusco with its famous Inca ruins.

American Airlines took us from Raleigh to Miami and from there to Lima. From Lima, we took Oneworld partner LAN Peru to Cusco, high up in the Andes. The flight to Cusco was very impressive. For one, I tasted my first drop of "Inca Cola", that brightly yellow softdrink that reminds one of good old-fashioned bubble gum. Secondly, the Andes below us showed their breathtaking face, which ranged smooth green hills to deep river vallyes and snow-capped mountains.

We had booked a room in the hostel "Piccola Locanda" in Cusco. A driver picked us up at the airport and drove us through the suprisingly large city. Unfortunately, my Spanish is very limited, and I had to use my rusty Italian to make sense of what he showed and explained us. It was only a few steps from the car to our room, but I was out of breath and my head was spinning. We were 3400 meters (11,000 feet) above sea level. Of course, the amazing view from our room contributed to further breathlessness.

After catching our breath, we walked up to the church of San Cristobal. We were rewarded with a beautiful view over the city as well as the amazing sight of locals in their traditional attire.

While many women in Cusco still wear traditional outfits, most men wear western clothes. A small festival in front of San Cristobal gave us an idea how the traditional male outfit might have looked like.

Peru is a poor country and many people make their living by selling food on the streets or shining shoes. A visitor to Peru can't avoid to be confronted with poverty and the discomfort it creates.

As we explored the city, we met a protest calling for more rights for women.

Most of the protesters were women in colorful dresses.

After we had consulted our guidebook (Lonely Planet rocks!), we visited the church of Santa Domingo that is built on the Coricancha Ruins. Before the Spaniards arrived, Coricancha was the Inka empire's richest temple with gold-covered walls. That quickly changed, and the grey Inca stone is now dominated by the innocent white of the catholic church.

Thievery is a timeless phenomenon, however. While we were adoring the view of Coricancha, we heard shouts and a group of people who apparently chased a pickpocket. A heavily armed police officer followed, but the thief probably outran them all.

There are many "servicios higienicos" in Peru. Typically, that means a toilet, but sometimes it also includes a shower facility for those who don't have a shower at home.

March is officially still in raining season, but we were very lucky with our weather. It was not too hot and mostly sunny. Except for a few hours when tropical rain flooded Cusco. That's the best time to sit in a cafe and enjoy a cafe con leche.

A long steep path lead from our hostel to the ruins of Sacsayhuaman. The old city of Cusco is shaped like a Puma, and the walls of Sacsayhuaman are the "teeth" of that puma.

Many houses outside of the city centre are build of mudbricks and only the foundation is made of stone to protect against the heavy waters of the rainy season. This door houses one of the many little shops that sell basic food items. Note also the locked public telephone.

Uniformed children leaving a school in Cusco at the end of the day.

View of the main square (Plaza de Armas) with its touristy restaurants. Our hostel was halfway up the hill, the church San Cristobal is on top of the first hill, and the ruins of Sacsayhuaman are on top of the second hill.

There are many Inca ruins in the larger Cusco area. One morning, we took a local bus to cross the mountain range separating Cusco from the "sacred valley".

We visited the town of Pisac. As soon as one leaves the Plaza de Armas with its many souvenir stands, the town reveals its rural face. That includes women doing their laundry in one of the local streams.

Pisac is famous not only for its market, but also for its ruins high above the town. The hike to the ruins takes several hours, but offers amazing views of the valley. Much of the way leads through terraces that were built in order to make the mountainous area suitable for agriculture. And suddenly, this woman sat on the path, waiting to sell her handicrafts - or to get a Sol for allowing us to take her picture.

The arrival at the top of the ruins had to be celebrated appropriately - with Inca Kola.

A supermodel in front of the ruins of Pisac.

We took a cab down into the city. We enjoyed a sunny afternoon in Pisac and discovered many interesting things such as this group of pigs...

...locals following a soccer game on the TV of a cheap restaurant

...and colorful streets.

On our way back, the bus had to stop for this herd of Llamas and/or Alpacas.

On Sunday, we went to mass in Cusco's big cathedral. At the same time, parading soldiers competed for attention on the Plaza de Armas.

We took another local bus into the sacred valley to the town of Ollantaytambo. This place features another ruin, which is very popular among tourists because almost no hiking is required. We enjoyed a nice dinner on the main square, watching the sun set over the ruins and mountains.

The road ends in Ollantaytambo and the only way to go further into the valley is by train. We were shocked when we saw the price tag on the train ticket, but we had soon forgotten the pain...

What a place to celebrate my birthday: the ruins of Machu Picchu.

I had been impressed by the other ruins we had seen, but Machu Picchu is truly unique. Many of the buildings were well-preserved, lacking only the roofs that were typically made of straw.

Who would not enjoy this view out of the bedroom window?

The morning mist quickly cleared up and we could overlook the whole site with its agricultural terraces.

We took the train back to Cusco - 4 hours along the Urubamba river and through the breathtaking Andes.

After 5 days in Cusco, we flew back to Lima to meet my friend Alexander. He picked us up at the airport and brought us to the apartment of another friend who had kindly offered to host us for a few days. To our great joy, we lived in "Miraflores", one of the best (i.e., safest and most lively) parts of Lima.

The pedestrian mall "Jiron de la Union" in central Lima, connecting the Plaza San Martin with the Plaza de Armas.

White skin is still a status symbol in Peru, even if it is painted on cardboard. Most TV actors we saw were white, even though very few Peruvians are actually white.

Everybody warned us about the dangers of Lima, in particular thiefs. The state responds by having countless police and security personnel in every corner of the city, including heavily armed troops on the Plaza de Armas.

The Plaza de Armas in Lima.

The San Francisco monastery is famous for its old library and underground catacombs that house over 20,000 skeletons.

Alex's father in law took us to the Cerro San Cristobal.

This hill offers an impressive view of the city. Despite being located at the pacific coast, Lima is surrounded by dessert and is a hot, dry and mostly grey city. Close to 8 million people live here.

Street scene.

The district of Callao used to be the area for workers of the nearby port. It then saw an influx of people from the mountains and is now a high-poverty and high-crime area.

White uniforms in front of decaying colonial buildings.