Machu Picchu: Wondrous Wonder of the World

On Nov. 5 on a bright spring day – this is south of the equator – I was chanting at Machu Picchu. I travelled to the Andes after a week-long press tour of the Peruvian north coast. Machu Picchu is truly stunning and majestic. The place is crawling with tourists and hard to find solitude. But I discovered a small cave on the mountainside and sat just outside in the shade. Before me were glorious green-clad mountain tops amid the clouds. I meditated for a while and then began chanting "Esa eynai el he-harim" (I lift my eyes up to the mountains), composed from Psalm 121 by my teacher, Rabbi Shefa Gold.

On a short hike from the ruins to the Inca drawbridge through jungle foliage and butterflies, I wanted to chant something that reflects the area but I know no Quechua, the native language. So I used a phrase of Spanish, the language of the Incans' conquerors, "Vaya con Dios" (Go With God), with a melody that owes a lot to "The More We Get Together". It was my intention to plant seeds for Shefa's pilgrimage there in March.

Northern Peru: Whacked out on huacas

After six days on a press tour of the north coast of Peru, my mind is reeling with the richness and complexity of the country's ancient cultures. Everyone's heard of the Incas and their most famous wonder of the world -- Machu Picchu. It's reached by turning south from Lima. But head north and there are many other civilizations that predate the Spanish conquerors with lost cities and buried treasure that will excite even the most jaded traveller. All from huacas, which look like large dirt hills but are so much more. Thanks to an explosion of archeological discoveries in the last 20 years, fantastic pyramids, temples and amazingly intricate artifacts -- many in gleaming gold and precious jewels -- are emerging from dozens of huacas.