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Published: September 8th 2009
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Breakfast at the Inkarri's: Cereal with yogurt and fruit and orange juice.On Tuesday 08/25/09 we got up at 5am, had breakfast, and were out the door at 6:30am to take a taxi to nearby Poroy to catch the Backpacker train to Aguas Calientes, the town at the bottom of the mountain where Machu Picchu is located. There are no highways to Aguas Calientes, located 110 Km (about 64 miles) from Cuzco, so the only options from Cuzco are train, Inca Trail, combination car ride/train ride/hiking to towns along the way, or helicopter flights (which we hadn’t really seen or heard about, maybe they’ve been discontinued).
For rail, there are three options: The Backpacker (equivalent to coach by plane), the Vistadome (with huge windows on the sides and roof for photographing), and the Hiram Bingham (luxury train). The prices vary greatly the higher train type you go in and the types are whole trains, not like one car is a Backpacker, another is a Vistadome, and so on. The departure times also vary. We found the Backpacker train appropriate and it seems like many travel agencies place their clients on this one too.
The Backpacker train no longer leaves from Cuzco, as it took a long time to zigzag up the
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Bread with butter, a fried egg, and milk with coffee. mountains that surround Cuzco. Instead of 45 minutes zigzagging in the train, one now spends 30 minutes by taxi. We got to the station with plenty of time to board our three hour train ride to Aguas Calientes. We had requested our seats to be on the left side of the train (I had read about this hint on other blogs) and they definitely provided the best view of snowcapped mountain landscapes, the Urubamba River, farmlands, farmers’ homes…all very picturesque. About half-way to Aguas Calientes, we had a short stop in Ollantaytambo, where more passengers boarded and we saw the Inca Trail hiking groups prepping for the multi-day hike. Access to the Inca Trail is limited to a certain number of people a day and all hikers must do the trail through a hiking company, so that the integrity and preservation of the trail is ensured. The hikes are set up so that hikers carry some of their luggage and the porters the rest. The hiking companies organize hikes of 16-20 people, with about as many porters, a couple tour guides, and a cook. One Aussie we chatted with said that the porters really busted themselves. He said that they
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A rare sight: Cathy eating. would run the trail so that by the time they arrived at the overnight sport, the camp was already set up and the meals ready. The next day, the hikers would start the hike and the porters stay behind, cleaning up and packing everything up. Then, about 45 minutes later, the porters would catch up to and run pass the hikers, so that by the time they had to stop for a meal break or overnight camp, everything would be set up. That was remarkable, especially when you take into account the humongous packs (see the pictures) that they carry on their backs and they do this at more than 10,000 feet above sea level. I could barely walk a block without getting winded.
We arrived in Aguas Calientes about 10:30am and were met by a representative from La Pequeña Casita, where we would spend the night, as we wanted to visit Machu Picchu for two days. We got set up in our room (a double bed plus a twin) and then headed out to get an early lunch before setting off to an afternoon visit to Machu Picchu. We strolled the town, which according to Ben, has an
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Poroy train station old-west frontier-town feel to it. There are no roads in or out, only the rail, but there are cars around town. Aguas Calientes is pretty small, just a few blocks long and wide. We strolled the couple of blocks between our hotel and the main plaza and the local restaurants we passed really wanted you to go into their establishments. Just as in Cuzco, they have a person outside holding the menu, telling you about their specials and deals. It can get a little too much. We finally settled for a place that had a fixed-price menu (where, depending on the price level, you pick an appetizer, entrée, and drink/dessert) that we found reasonable for what we wanted at the time. We had Ocopa (Similar to Papa a la Huancaina but the sauce is made with Huacatay, which gives it a green color and different flavor), Palta Rellena (Avocado stuffed with mixed veggies), Palta a la vinagreta (Avocado in a vinaigrette sauce), Sopa a la Minuta (ground beef and angel hair soup), Crema de choclo (Cream of corn). Ben also had Steak and fries and Cathy had Milanesa de pollo (Breaded, fried chicken breast).
After lunch, we got our
tickets to enter Machu Picchu (I got mine at the National’s rate) and the roundtrip bus tickets to get up to Machu Picchu. Yea, yea, we could have walked up and down the mountain but I didn’t want to put the other hikers to shame (Ha!).
We got to the entrance to Machu Picchu and we were quickly approached with offers of private tours. It was past 1pm and all the group tours are in the morning only. We hired one guide for a two hour private tour for S/. 100, or about $30. We passed the controlled entrance and BOOM! Machu Picchu was right there. It was spectacular! Our guide (his name escapes me now) took us around and explained the main sites: The temple of the sun, the three-window chamber, the temple of the condor, the Intihuatana (or solar calendar—actually, a seasons calendar, as it marks the seasons’ solstices primarily). He also took us around the various chambers and outlooks, pointing out architectural characteristics and techniques used to build Machu Picchu.
Machu Picchu was declared a World Heritage site by UNESCO in 1983 and one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in 2007. To
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The Backpacker Train Peruvians, it’s a source of pride in their heritage and to the local descendants of the Incas, a sacred place. To us, the citadel and landscapes transported us to a time long gone and inspired awe and admiration towards the accomplishments of the Incas.
Machu Picchu is located at 2,400 meters (7,870 feet) a.s.l. in the mountain of the same name, which means “Old Mountain” in Quechua. The city, built of granite, was a religious, spiritual, and astronomical center, which took about 100 years to build but was abandoned, unfinished, after the Spaniards took control of Cuzco in 1532 and the supplies to Machu Picchu vanished. The residents escaped to Vicabamba. The site was forgotten until the early 1911, when a local boy from one of the handful of families living in the area that’s now Aguas Calientes, guided Hiram Bingham to some stone walls. The citadel, as we see it now, is 80% original construction and 20% reconstructed or restored.
On one side of the city, Machu Picchu features terraces for growing crops. On the other, one can see the sacred buildings and residential structures that were occupied by the Inca, religious authorities, and civilians. The houses
and temples used to have thatched roofs, which the Incas changed every four years. There are underground water channels, fountains, and irrigations systems; series of steps carved from a single, huge stone; ceremonial plazas. Most noteworthy, the entire city was built without mortar, just stone to stone, which fit so perfectly and tightly that you can’t put a pin between stones. The Incas used the trapezoid-shape construction, with the walls narrowing in thickness as they go up, making them earthquake-proof. Stones placed in corners rounded them, effectively tying one wall to the perpendicular one, so that one stone would actually be part of two walls. There’s no doubt: Machu Picchu is a masterpiece of Inca architecture.
The mountain you always see in pictures behind the city is Huayna Picchu, “Young Mountain” which rises to 2,800 meters (9,180 feet) a.s.l. There are steps to climb Huayna Picchu as well as the slightly smaller mountain next to it, but the steps are very steep, narrow, and irregular. Nevertheless, a long queue always forms way before sunrise to hike up Huayna Picchu, where only 400 people are allowed per day. Hikers must sign a waiver, perhaps the only such waiver required in
all of Peru. Huayna Picchu, which offers a spectacular view of the city, also has Inca ruins, which is an astonishing feat when you realize that the Incas where hauling these huge stones up a cliff! Where did they stand while building the structures? I have no idea.
After our private tour, we had a few hours before the city closed for the day, and by our guide’s recommendation, we set out to the Guard’s Gatehouse. There are a fair number of steps to get there and we stopped once or twice to catch our breath and to take in the views.
At Machu Picchu, every sight is postcard worthy. The imposing mountains, the stone city, the landscape, the grazing llamas…it’s an amazing place.
We made it to the Guard’s Gatehouse, located next to a large terrace and were lucky to be there right when most of the resident llamas (about 14) where grazing and just hanging out. It was an awesome time.
Soon it was time to go; we’d be back the next day for more!
We headed to the exit and got our passports stamped with the date and a picture of Machu Picchu.
Pretty cool! We got to the bus and about 30 minutes later we were in Aguas Calientes. After a pit stop at the hotel, we set out to get dinner. In preparation for the trip, I had conducted countless hours of research. When it came to eating in Aguas Calientes, one place always came up: El Indio Feliz, so we went there. What a place! It’s a restaurant that serves French style food prepared with Andean ingredients in a setting that is a combination Colonial Peru, Pirate’s bar, and Jamaican feel. The prices are high by Peruvian standards but believe me, WELL WORTH IT. This could very well be the best place we ate at while in Peru. Ben and I ordered the fix-priced “menu,” where you pick your appetizer, entrée, and dessert from a pre-selected list. As appetizers, we both had the Quiche Lorraine. For entrées, Ben chose the Chicken in pineapple sauce and I chose the Trout in garlic sauce. Our entrées came with homemade potato chips and a side dish of sweet potato slices, green beans, and pesto stuffed tomato. Cathy had Fettuccini, which came with a platter of sauces—she mostly went for the olive oil and
pesto. Our desserts were orange pie and fresh fruit cup topped with vanilla ice cream. To drink, we had lemonade (they put the lemonade and some egg whites in a blender, hence the foamy top), water, and Inca Kola. Ben and I also had a Pisco Sour and Algarrobina (tastes like Kahlua, made with Pisco). We were stuffed! I couldn’t even finish my side dishes. It was a fabulous dinner. On the way out, we stopped by the first dining area, which is covered pretty much top to bottom with business cards from visitors; I didn’t have one of mine The owner/chef, Patrick, asked us if we needed anything and we said that we were just admiring the place, so he took us upstairs, to give us a personal tour of the place and showed us part of the second floor that’s under renovation, which will include an outdoor area; the other portion of the second floor is currently the upper dining room, decorated with antiques, in the same style as the first floor. The place will be quite sizeable when completely finished. Patrick’s a great host and we noticed that he’d also clean the tables and take plates
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Views from the train to/from diners. I HIGHLY recommend you stop by Indio Feliz while in Aguas Calientes.
After dinner, we strolled by the main plaza, which has a statue of Pachacutec, the Inca who started the expansion of the Kingdom of Cuzco into what became the Inca Empire, or Tawantinsuyo (Four Kingdoms) in reference to the four states the empire comprised.
Before calling it a night, I stopped by the pharmacy to get some meds; I was suspecting that the congestion I had had for the last two days was actually due to a sinus infection, which proved true in the next few days. I HAD to get better; next day, we had a full day in Machu Picchu.
Luckily, you don’t need a prescription to buy most antibiotics in Peru, so they are easy to get. The way it works is: You don’t feel well, so you go to the pharmacy and explain your symptoms to the main pharmacy attendant (I heard their coworkers refer to them as “Doctor”). The “Doctor” asks you several questions to determine if you’ve already been taking something else, allergies, etc.; then he/she tells you what medicines will best treat the ailment and/or ease
the symptoms, you buy the meds, you get better. Done deal.
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