One of the hardest things about being an artist is that sometimes, you just don’t want to have anything to do with your craft.
I’ve run into this multiple times when it comes with photography. One of the reasons I love to travel is because I become inspired with the surroundings. I feel the need to document. I find beauty everywhere. Unfortunately, I feel like my mind has been lacking in the creativity department lately. That was, until Peru.
I’ve been wanting to go to Peru since I was a wee kid. I had been pouring over any National Geographic I could get my hands on and would beg my mom for more when she would hit up the swap meet. Peru has been on the top of my bucket list of some time.
Cusco did not disappoint. I had absolutely no expectations. I did no planning or research before. I wanted to see it with a “clean” opinion, or an unbiased mind in the world of opinionated travel bloggers.
We went out on our photography walk and it happened without me even realizing it.
Inspiration.
I snapped about 300 photos in a matter of an hour walk. Everything was perfect. Everything was what I needed Cuzco to be. To hell with all the haters who don’t do the “tourist” thing. I was in heaven and that is exactly what I needed for the photographic soul.
I even got yelled at by an old man who was shining shoes for standing on the grass and giggled. The hustle and bustle was music to my ears. The bells of the church rang in my heart. The smiles of the indigenous women trying to get me to pay money to take pictures with their babies made me smile.
I was exactly where I needed to be.
This is when I knew that no matter how Machu Picchu turned out, it would be perfect to me.
And you know what? That is all that matters.
Gorgeous photos of a gorgeous city! I loved Cuzco too, but I was almost too sick to REALLY enjoy it. I definitely need to go back. You’re going to LOVE MP!!!!
Lovely shots, Erica. It’s great when a place can give you that feeling.
Ahh … these photos bring back so many wonderful memories. Great photos!
Cuzco certainly is a wonderful city for taking photos. I became more inspired to shoot when I arrived here as well.
Oh, one more quick thing. Your twitter handle is not showing when pressing your tweet button.
The bright colors lift my mood!
Wow, easy to see how a person could get inspired here! Beautiful shots.
I really enjoyed Cuzco – yes, it’s touristy, but it’s also really pretty and lots of fun! Glad it filled you with inspiration, can’t wait to see the photos that Machu Picchu brings.
@Andi: You really need to go back to Peru – it sounds like you had a miserable time! lol We were really sick for days as well due to altitude sickness. We were only able to leave the room a few hours a day.
@Phil: I’m so glad that it lived up to my expectations. So in love.
@Ellen: I’m so glad that they do. Cuzco is so beautiful and amazing.
@Samuel: Seriously! It is like there is something in the air that makes you walk around aimlessly for hours. Not to mention it was one of the safer cities that I felt better about hauling “Big Mama” out.
@Sam: Also, it appears as though DiggDigg reset everything – thanks for the heads up!
@Heather: Awesome! This is a beautiful place to be happy for sure!
@Amanda: I’m so glad because it ignited something that had been dormant too long!
@Emily: I don’t know what I’m going to do with the Machu Picchu post. There are so many amazing pictures.
Amazing, and now you see why I love living here. I miss it so much. Looking at your photos made me so sad.
No place in the world is the same for me. I can’t wait to get this Australia thing out of the way so I can go back home.
🙁
Great pictures! I really want to go to Peru too. I’m hoping next year, and I’ll be reading through your blog again to see what we should do. I’m glad you’re enjoying it!
@Mica: I can TOTALLY see how you could live there. Now I’m craving rice and “palta” with a fried egg from the market.
@Ali: South America is FANTASTIC and one of my favorite places EVER.