Words by Madi Wong.
Stine Danielle McLaughlin attributes her innate passion for photography to the time she spent as a child in her grandparents’ Kodak store in their hometown of Tanauan in Batangas, The Philippines.
"Lola, my grandmother, told me that she would often find me in the darkroom. The smell of fixer was something I grew up with," she said.
Into her teenage years, it was clear that she couldn’t see herself pursuing anything other than photography.
That decision blossomed into a career spanning 15 years, taking on commercial and fine art projects that ranged from intimate family weddings and portraits, to the documentation of her own life.
Most recently, McLaughlin pointed her lens towards a new landscape — embarking on an 8-day tour through Peru — documenting food, culture and historic land surrounding Machu Picchu.
“For years, my cousin Leslie and I have been wanting to travel together. I live in Toronto and she lives in Denver. We both enjoy hiking, and so we wanted to travel somewhere we could do that. Leslie and her husband Kirby both speak Spanish, and enjoy travelling to Spanish-speaking countries. Interestingly enough, Kirby’s travelled to almost every Spanish-speaking country in the world, except for five, including Peru. The Inca Trail has been on our list of dream hikes to do, and so we finally decided on Peru.”
For World Photography Day, McLaughlin shared a curated collection of photos that capture the essence of travelling through Peru.
Smelling wild mint above Machu Picchu
“We had already passed Sun Gate and were on our way to the historical centre of Machu Picchu when our Chief Experience Officer (CEO) Yossep noticed some already picked muña, Andean mint, on the side of the trail and encouraged us to smell it. When it was my husband David’s turn, I took a photo. I enjoy photographing tangible moments like this. It might have seemed like a small moment, but to me, it felt monumental. There's something to be said about being able to connect to a place outside of expectation.”
Tasting fresh passionfruit while overlooking the Sacred Valley
“When we entered Parwa Community Restaurant l was amazed to see the mountains towering above it. Their gardens are beautiful and well cared for, and the food you eat is directly sourced from it.”
“After our meal, Yossep went out into the garden to look for ‘tumbo’, also known as banana passionfruit, for us to try. Here he was, going out of his way to introduce us to something new, about something native to the land. He warned us it wouldn’t be very sweet, and he was right; it was bright and sour when I ate it, and I loved it.”
Witnessing Pachamanca from start to finish
“Another experience at Parwa was watching the people who work there preparing an earth oven for pachamanca. On top of hot stones, they layered protein wrapped in tin foil, plantains, potatoes and other root vegetables with Andean herbs. Afterwards, they placed a wool blanket over top of it and dirt. I thought it was really beautiful the way they topped it off with flowers. I had never seen anything like it before. I felt lucky to witness the communal process of it.”
Reflections from overlooking Sun Gate
“I think we had a very special experience because of our small hiking group. There were only five of us and it made for, I think, a much more pleasant experience, because it felt intimate. So even though the hike was incredibly challenging, we were laughing a lot, talking a lot, in spite of the elevation and the difficulty of it. Reaching Sun Gate felt like a huge accomplishment, even though we hadn’t finished our hike yet. We still had a small stretch to go to the historical centre, but it was amazing to witness — our first sight of Machu Picchu.”
Unexpectedly sharing the Inca Trail with a family of llamas
“Earlier on in our hike, I asked Yossep the question many guides are often asked on the Inca Trail: ‘how many times have you hiked the Inca Trail?’ He said hundreds of times, over 500. When we came across a group of llamas on the trail, he appeared just as surprised as we were. He said it was his first time ever seeing llamas on the trail. And yet there we were—hiking alongside a whole family of them. Throughout our entire trip, Yossep talked at length about Pachamama, about mother earth. This moment felt as if she was showing us, in close proximity, the best she has to offer.”
Read more stories like this:
How one traveller trained for Peru’s high-altitude Salkantay Trek to Machu Picchu
