Balabanova All Over
#TakeYourTimeOff
About Nadya
Hi there! I am so glad you found me! My mission is to empower you to #TakeYourTimeOff and explore the world. I started this blog as a way to keep family and friends in the loop when I went on a 3-week trip to Asia in 2011. Although I’ve always enjoyed traveling, it wasn’t until a trip to Peru in 2012 that I started to think about ways to make travel a… Read More
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Top Posts
[Puno, Peru] At 3800 m (12500 ft) elevation, lake Titicaca is the highest navigable lake in the world. We were wondering what the term “navigable” referred to. According to Wikipedia, there are a few other lakes that are at higher elevations but they are much smaller and shallower, and so there are no commercial boats on them – hence they are not “navigable”. The native populations of this area belong to two… Read More
[Puno, Peru] Anther day, another early morning. I am going to need a vacation from this trip! To cover the 400 km (250 miles) from Cuzco to Puno, we opted for a bus with a guided tour of some of the most notable sights along the way. This was by far the longest option – it was going to take us 10 hours to cover the distance with all the stops –… Read More
[Machu Picchu, Peru] Coming to Machu Picchu felt like a pilgrimage of sorts. We’d been making our way towards it for 2 days now, and this morning, we still had a 20-minute bus ride separating us from these ancient ruins. We walked out of our hotel just after 7 am and were relieved to see the sun peeking out from behind the mountains around us. Our prayers had been answered and it… Read More
[Aguas Calientes, Peru] Our train ride from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Callientes was spectacular! This was not the luxurious Hiram Bingham, but it was still roomy and clean, and we got snacks. The views, though, were what made it so magical. The Urubamba river was right next to us the entire time, and just on the other side of it were mountains draped in fog and mist. It started raining for a little… Read More
[Ollantaytambo, Peru] After Pisac, we headed for Ollantaytambo. We had two sights in mind – the temple of Ollantaytambo and the Granaries. Since we didn’t have much time left before we had to board our train to Aguas Callientes, we decided to just visit the Temple. It promised great views of the city itself as well as the Granaries, which were on the mountain opposite the temple. We had to climb 260… Read More