Machu Picchu
Machu Picchu called the city in the clouds is a journey through the many sectors of the Inca citadel. It is wrapped in a halo of mystery and mysticism. Due to its temples, plazas, ceremonial fountains, streets, storehouses and agricultural terraces, it has led Machu Picchu to be considered as a masterpiece of architecture and engineering and one of the wonders of the world.
It is a halo of scenic grandeur and cultural richness with an air of mystery. Revealed to the world just a century ago.
So how do you get there?
There are a number of ways. If you have time you can do the amazing Inca Trail or the Lares Trek or half an Inca Trail. If you have limited time, you can start from Cusco as we did. Our “package” involved a night in my hopefully last ever hostel in Cusco. The next day, a bus ride (2 hours) to Ollantaytambo
and then a train ride Inca Rail (I remember when Inter Rail was a sensation!!! – the world is changing from inter to inca) also 2 hours long passing along the river and mountains into Aguas Calientes
The next day involves a 4:15am wake up, a bad cold and a stubbing of the toe on the shower basin, resulting in a bright purple colour and a series of swear words before the sun even rose. 😫
At 5am you find yourself standing in an already long queue to catch another bus to Machu Picchu.
However…..arriving at Machu Picchu is just truly amazing and as the sun rose at 7:10am, my purple toe became a distant memory in that simply magnificent moment – I’ll say it again, because it was…..a magnificent moment. 🌖
One section where mortars were believed to have been filled with water to facilitate astronomical observations of the constellations.
Today however – full of tourists reflecting their own faces – like us 😉
After an amazing tour, you have several options depending on what you have booked. You can explore the site further and go to the Sun gate and the Inca Drawbridge. You can climb Machu Picchu, you can even go home….or you can do what we did…………
Huayna Picchu can be climbed after passing through the plaza where the sacred rock is located. I made the fatal mistake of reading Trip Advisor before doing this ascent – a huge mistake!!! People describe it as the scariest thing they’ve ever done, some backed out, some said, “never again!!!’ This did not go down well with my cold and painful toe…..and I wasn’t going to do it at all. However the fact that we’d booked it and only 400 people per day (2 time slots 7am and 10am 200 per slot) are ever allowed on the mountain made it a now or never situation and at 9:30am it became a “now” situation.
The entire southeastern face of the mountain has a pathway leading to the summit. The ascent is difficult but well worth the effort as it provides a new perspective on the entire city
of Machu Picchu.
Every step along the trail reveals a stairway carved into the rock, sections of stone pathway, terraces and elegant Inca structures built on impossibly steep slopes. Some of the terraces feature alters, the surfaces of which project out over the abyss where some seven hunter metres below the brown waters of the powerful Urubamba River rush.
The summit of Huayna Picchu is crowned by a series of sharp, ragged rocks. The view is overwhelming, spectacular. It is a great granite cliff rising 2,000 feet sheer.
Let me just say I was more than extremely proud of Dani and myself and we earned our chocolate for at least a week after that.
There is however no time for a long patting on the back ceremony, because as soon as we came down, we had to catch the bus back to Agua Calientes, pick our baggage up and go the train station by 2pm. Then the train journey again and finally another bus journey back to Cusco. We were then unceremoniously dumped as a group in the main square and had to walk back to our accomodation.
You can imagine what state we were in by the time we reached our bed and breakfast (thankfully not a hostel!!!!)
Would I do it again? No question… not tomorrow but definitely the day after 😀