The inside of the chapel is painted in the geometrical Mudejar (Andalusian Moorish) style.

The monastery contains an outstanding 17th century library with over 25,000 leather-bound volumes and 6,000 manuscripts dating from the 15th to 18th centuries. After touring the monastery, we take a short driving tour of the lovely Miraflores district of Lima, then return to our hotel. After a brief rest in our rooms, we gather again for dinner at a local restaurant.

The next day, we awake early and fly to Cuzco, one of the highest airports on earth with an elevation of 11,400 feet above sea level. We drive to Happiness Square, one of two main plazas of Cuzco. We stop at a local hotel for our first drink of coca tea and a brief look around. Here, Sylvia looks smart against an ancient door bordering on the plaza.

A view down a main street leading away from Happiness Square.

Full of coca tea to help protect us from mountain sickness, we board our small bus for a drive to our hotel. Like Cuzco, our hotel is located in the Sacred Valley, but at a slightly lower altitude (9,500 feet) to help us acclimatize to the thinner air. This hotel is our home for the next two nights. Along the way to the hotel we get our first look the Sacred Valley: a magnificent, verdant, fertile, agricultural paradise, nestled between steep Andean peaks.