August 20 - September 2, 2012

Itinerary The Sacred Valley Day 1: Travel to Miami for departure to Lima, Peru. (Those from the West Coast can fly directly from Los Angeles. Flights from other places in North America connect with either the flight from Miami or the flight from Los Angeles. Please inquire for details.) Day 2: Morning flight from Lima to Cuzco and then drive to the Urubamba Valley, the Sacred Valley of the Incas, with high peaks of the Andes surrounding it. The Incas' belief was that the gods lived in these mountains. Take the rest of the day to relax, acclimate, and enjoy the beautiful surroundings. A welcome buffet lunch, then introductions of staff and meeting with Gregg Braden* in the late afternoon. Ollantaytambo Day 3: Meeting and seminar. Later, for those who wish, hike up into the mountains on a trail to see the majestic mountains and the ancient Incan terraces still being used to this day. Truly, the Apus continues to bless this place of inner peace and nourishment. Or, take the rest of the day to relax, journal or shop. Greetings from the warm-hearted people of Peru Day 4: Seminar time with Gregg. Today visit the ancient Incan town of Ollantaytambo. This important site is situated at the end of the Sacred Valley in the midst of spectacular mountains, and we will take a while to savor their inner power and majesty. Ollantaytambo is most famous for six enormous stones, so huge that some say only magical powers could have moved them there. If time allows, you will have the opportunity to shop in the colorful shops and Town Square of present-day Ollantaytambo, which adjoins the ruins of the ancient city. Travel to the ancient Incan village of Chincero, where the terraced farmlands of the Incas are still visible. Chincero was the main population center for the entire Sacred Valley in Incan times and today an active traditional “weaving” center. Later today a Peruvian Shaman will do an ancient Incan ceremony and welcome blessing with the group. Day 5: Meeting and seminar time with Gregg. Later visit and share in a prayer ceremony at the ancient ruins of Pisac, a superb Incan center high on the mountainside. Pisac covers an entire mountain and is located in a spectacular surrealistic mountain setting with a variegated green carpet of intact Incan terraces flowing up to the peaks. The temples here blend perfectly with their environment. The most sacred temple contains the famous "Intihuatana" stone, or "Hitching Post of the Sun." This is speculated to have been a solar clock and astronomical and astrological calendar as well as a prayer site. There is also time to enjoy a visit and be up close and see first-hand alpacas, vicunas, and llamas at a local textile factory. Machu Picchu Day 6: Board the first class tourist train for mystical Machu Picchu, the Lost City of the Incas. It was here that the Incas succeeded in combining the wonders of civilization with those of nature. The sheer beauty of what is considered by some the most dramatic place in the world overwhelms you as you are immediately drawn into its "still alive" mysteries. After an extensive guided tour with your spiritually oriented guide, you have free time to explore and meditate here. Day 7: This morning visit Machu Picchu early to experience sunrise over the magnificent ruins. Experience a special meditation and ceremony with Gregg. Afterwards, morning and mid-day free time around Machu Picchu. If you would like to, you may go to the nearby local, rustic hot springs at Aguas Calientes or bathe in the wonderful Vilcanota River, fed by pure mountain springs. Travel back to the Sacred Valley in the late afternoon and overnight. Sachsayhuaman Temple Day 8: Travel to Cuzco, elevation 11,400 feet, the “navel of the earth” according to the Incas, their Holy City, and center of the ancient Incan civilization. Cuzco is the oldest inhabited city in the Western hemisphere. When the Spaniards arrived here the beauty of its edifices, surpassing all they had yet seen in the New World, astonished them. Gold in the form of intricate religious symbols and artifacts was seen everywhere. Our stay in Cuzco is centrally located, making it easy to enjoy this wonderful town where ancient, original Incan walls and cobblestone streets blend with colonial Spanish architecture. On the way to Cuzco, experience the immense stone ruins of Sachsayhuaman Temple. The cyclopean stones of this temple fit so closely together that one cannot wedge a knife between them. Also visit the very powerful purifying baths of Tambomachay, and the Temple of Kenko dedicated to the Earth Mother and the four elements. Coricancha Day 9: Seminar time with Gregg. Enjoy a walking tour to visit the Coricancha, the "enclosure of gold." Its perfect architecture and stonework reflect the fact that it was the most important, most sacred temple in the entire Incan realm, the sacred hub of the mystical Incan Empire. The essence and feeling of this temple, the heart of this land, is not to be missed. Its Altar of the Sun, the holy of holies of the ancient Incas, still remains. Also, you will have free time today to explore charming Cuzco, including wonderful shopping opportunities. Lake Titicaca Day 10: Travel on a beautiful first class tourist train and enjoy spectacular scenery on your way to Lake Titicaca, the highest navigable lake in the world. Incan legend tells us that children of the Sun, Manco Capac and Mama Ocollo, emerged in a shower of spray from the deep waters of Lake Titicaca to found the Incan Empire in Cuzco, where Manco Capac's golden staff sank into the ground. Anyone fortunate enough to look upon Lake Titicaca today cannot help but feel the same sense of awe that the ancient Incan peoples had when viewing their sacred lake, their spiritual birthplace. With lofty snow covered peaks rising above distant shores, the vast blue lake at 12,400 feet elevation presents one of the most breathtaking panoramas of the Andes. The 3,000 square mile lake is located in the "altiplano" which extends for hundreds of miles across Peru and Bolivia. On the grassy plains graze herds of llamas and alpacas, whose fine wool is woven into clothing and sold in the markets of Cuzco and all over the Andes. Day 11: Board a boat to cruise on spectacular Lake Titicaca. Go to the floating reed islands of the Uros Indians, who created these man-made islands centuries ago to live on in order to escape the warfare throughout the area. Then experience Taquile Island, a remote surviving center of Incan culture. (It is also in this area around Taquile Island that there have been numerous sightings of UFOs, which are sometimes said to immerse themselves deep within the water.) You will enjoy the exhilarating feeling that emanates from this sacred lake. A soothing and nurturing sense envelops people here, which is a wonderful way to culminate this part of your spiritual odyssey. Brief meeting with Gregg. Hayu Marca Day 12: Seminar and meeting with Gregg. Later today, experience Hayu Marca, the site of mysterious ruins discovered only in recent years. The door or the “Puerta de Hayu Marca” (Gate of Gods) has been at some time in the distant past carved out of a natural rock face and in all measures exactly seven meters in width with a smaller alcove in the center at the base. Day 13: If time allows see Silustani in the Lake Titicaca area this morning. Then fly to Lima in the late afternoon. Day 14: Take a very early morning flight (just after midnight) from Lima for your return to the U.S. arriving early morning local time same day.

*Note: Seminars with Gregg Braden will take place throughout this program. Exact times to be announced on site. Note: Itinerary subject to change.

"Gregg Braden is a rare blend of scientist, visionary and scholar with the ability to speak to our minds, while touching the wisdom of our hearts."- Deepak Chopra, M.D.

Gregg Braden is a New York Times best-selling author, a former Senior Computer Systems Designer for Martin Marietta Aerospace, computer geologist for Phillips Petroleum, and the first Technical Operations Manager for Cisco Systems. For over 20 years he has searched the remote monasteries of Egypt, Peru, and Tibet for the life-giving secrets that were encoded in the language of our most cherished traditions. His work has led to such pioneering books as The God Code, The Divine Matrix, The Spontaneous Healing of Belief, Fractal Time and his newest, Deep Truth. Gregg's work is published in 17 languages and 30 countries and shows beyond any reasonable doubt that the key to our future lies in the wisdom of our past. www.greggbraden.com