Magical Destinations

My non stop flight on Lan Airlines from NY to Lima was rather uneventful.  The amount of legroom in economy class was better then expected, and the airline served both dinner and breakfast! We arrived in Lima on time at 7:20 am. We passed quickly through immigration and then picked up our bags and went through customs.  Our Adventures by Disney reps were waiting for us right on the other side of customs.  They took our bags and we boarded a bus and they wisked us directly to our hotel.

                                        The Casa Andina Miraflores - Private Collection Hotel

On the way we got a mini tour of the city.  Did you know that Lima is made up of 40 districts?  It is also right on the Pacific Ocean and you can see the Andes mountains in the background.



Once we arrived at the Casa Andina in Miraflores, our Adventures by Disney guides, Chris and Ernesto welcomed us with a cool drink of fresh pineapple juice and a Disney surprise! They also gave each of us  pin lanyards and our first Disney Pin  - the Adventures By Disney logo.  Anyone who is familiar with trading and collecting pins at Disney will appreciate this awesome gift.  And we get a special pin each night commemorating the events of the day.  I can't wait!

A really nice touch was that after our night of traveling Disney also had all our room keys ready for us so that we could check in immediately, that is what is so fantastic about Adventures By Disney they anticipate your every need.



This afternoon was free and some of us opted for an optional Lima city tour.  It was supposed to last about 3 hours but we left at 11 am and got back to the hotel by 4:30pm, our city tour guide Diego is a native of Lima and showed us many lovely sights. 

                                               Huaca Pucllana - Incan Temple In the middle of Lima
If I had to pick three of my favorites they would be that we toured the private home of the Minister of Culture, Mr Luna  - he was home and greeted us and we looked at this beautiful collection of Andean art and Incan pottery and his lovely collection of nativity sets. 


We also went down into the catacombs of St. Francis Church and Monastery and there were the remains (mostly skulls and femurs) of 25,000 people!
  And the absolute highlight of my day was the Museo Larco.  This is a private collection of Incan, and other native peoples of Peru, pottery and gold and silver.  I can't tell you how beautiful the pottery was and the gold and silver work was outstanding.  The Peruvian peoples were the first to work with silver and they really perfected this art.  There were earrings, nose rings, ear disks, bowls, collars, bracelets, just beautiful.


We returned to the hotel just in time for a quick freshening up and then we had a dinner of chicken battered in oatmeal, a puree of potatoes and cauliflower and fried spinach.  There was a very light herbed cream sauce for dipping.  It was magnifico!

Ernesto and Chris told us to have our bags outside our rooms at 6am tomorrow morning, they will pick them up and the next time we see them will be in our rooms at the next hotel!   That is what I call Disney white glove service. Hope you will follow along with me tomorrow we will be given a weaving demonstration in the Sacred Valley.

Today is the day!  I am all packed and ready, well sort of  all packed, but totally ready.  My flight leaves tonight out of JFK at 11:20 pm and I will arrive in Lima tomorrow morning at around 7:15. Adventures by Disney will have transfer service already waiting to assist me and my fellow ABD travelers with our baggage and wisk us  to our hotel The Miraflores Casa Andina. The hotel looks lovely and it is in a beautiful part of the city. A few of us who are going on this trip have been corresponding over the past month and decided to take a Lima city tour, that Adventures by Disney helped set up for us. We then will meet for our first dinner at 5:30 pm.  I am so excited I could burst!

Temperature in Ronkonkoma is now 28 degrees and snowing.  Temperature in Lima is 78 degrees and sunny. Guess where I would rather be? 





Follow along with me all week as I blog and FB post about Adventures By Disney Sacred Valleys and Incan Cities tour to Peru. Check out what I will be seeing and doing this week http://www.adventuresbydisney.com/central-south-america/peru-vacations/

By, Angela Szemko
     What's on your bucket list? Everyone has one.  My list is probably in its 100th iteration by now.  Destinations are added then ultimately drop off either when visited or when my interests wanes.  I have been to many places in my shifting top 20.  I've thrown coins in the Trevi Fountain in hopes to return yet once again to the Eternal City, I've admired the view from the top of the Eiffel Tower, slept in castles and danced with Druids in Great Britain, tried (and failed) to make the aquaintance of Nessie in Scotland, kissed the Blarney Stone (to no avail),  been to Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany on a picture postcard perfect winter day, did a bad karaoke version of the Hills Are Alive on the Sound of Music tour in Austria, enjoyed the cafes in the Netherlands, had the smoothest chocolate ever in Belgium, and spent my spectacular honeymoon traipsing around Spain and Portugal with my dashing husband.  There are probably 25 or 30 more places and experiences I could name, and despite this, there are plenty of destinations that have eluded me.  And then there are those very special locations that have been in my top 10 forever. You know, those once in a lifetime type adventures.  Egypt, China, the Galapagos, Peru and Thailand round out my top 5. 

     I love destinations that are steeped in history, have a vibrant culture and are full of culinary delights. I am not a beach baby or thrill seeker (my family knows it and by now they have accepted it.) I cannot pass up a museum without stopping in. If there is an a ancient ruin within 100 miles from my hotel you can bet we will visit it.  Interesting architecture  - be it a gargoyle on the Cathedral of Notre Dame or Ghiberti's bronze Baptistry doors on the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore - I can say it would definitely be on my "to do" list. My personal bucket list reflects all this.  I don't always get to fulfill my own list though.  My husband Frank and 14 year old daughter Julianne love the beach, amusement parks, big beautiful resorts on tropical islands, they adore cruising, and generally like any type of fun in the sun. Their lists are the exact opposite of mine, but we are a family, a team,  and we always try to incorporate everyones interests into our vacations.  On a recent holiday to Greece we spent days touring every single ancient ruin and artifact laden museum in the country and then cruised around the islands and swam in the Aegean Sea.  We don't usually have the same enthusiasm for the destinations we visit, but we always have a great time together. 

     I was recently given the opportunity to fufill one of my personal dreams.  A once in a lifetime trip.  Something on my top 5 list.  It would just be me, no Frank and no Juli, but it is an  opportunity that may only come my way once and my family is thrilled for me.   In late January I will take part in an Adventures by Disney (ABD) guided tour of the Sacred Valleys and Incan cities of Peru.  The highlight being the Incan ruins at Macchu Picchu, one of the new 7 Wonders of the World.  What I love about being on an ABD trip you're a traveler and adventurer, not a tourist. You  become an active participant in amazing stories, experiences and cultures through incredible immersive activities. On this Peruvian adventure I will have a chance to travel to Cuzco and visit the Center for Traditional Textiles (12,500 ft. above sea level and I can still shop! How awesome is that!) I will raft down the Urubamba River (class I and II rapids - so no dramamine required), visit the quaint town of Ollantaytambo, get up close and personal with llamas and alpacas, wander through the ruins and tunnels of The Stones of Sacsayhuaman and tour Lima, the beautiful capital of Peru.   I am counting down the days!  Want to come along on my adventure? You can by vacationing with me virtually through this blog and the LBAC Travel facebook page.  Are you up for the Adventure? I surely am.