Ollantaytambo and Aguas Calientes

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Although it wasn’t the most restful sleep, we were all quite pleased with it’s duration of ~10 hours. Following a hotel buffet breakfast we checked out of the hotel, leaving most of our luggage with them, heading out with only backpacks and feeling slightly giddy at traveling into the Andes with only what we were carrying on our backs. Our taxi was right on time for our drive to Ollantaytambo. The drive started with a seemingly nonsensical back and forth through Cusco that gave us an opportunity to see more of the city as we gradually climbed even higher to the ridge where the highway is. As we reached more remote and less touristy parts of the city, we started to feel we were getting more of a sense of how people actually live. There were some ugly parts, such as the stray dogs eating from trash piles, but mostly an interesting blend of old and new: construction crews with hard hats pouring cement while women, some dressed in traditional garb, were carrying large bundles on their backs or balanced on their heads. Before long we were out into the countryside, with the jagged peaks of the Andes still towering above us on either side of the road. Most are covered with the soft green of low vegetation, but some of the taller peaks are snow-capped. The drive took the promised 90 minutes, and crossed through a few towns along the way. Our destination is the site of some notable Incan ruins, but also a convenient location to catch the train that is the only transport into Machu Picchu. Our taxi drive spoke virtually no English, so we had our challenges negotiating with him to pick us up on our return the following day. Lauren wasn’t exactly fluent, but she ultimately came through (at least we think so – the true test will be whether he is here when we return). We arrived around 11 am and decided to visit the ruins before lunch and then get lunch before our 3:30 pm train. Built by terracing a steep hillside, there was a lot of climbing involved. Although the altitude is a bit lower here in Ollantaytambo than Cusco, we still needed more frequent rest breaks than we would at a more hospitable oxygen level. As we reached the Temple of the Sun, we encountered a number of people from the cruise. The cruise line runs an extended tour that includes a trip to Machu Picchu that happened to be there at the same time (we opted for a similar itinerary on our own, both to save money and have greater independence). After a quick chat with some of the people we had gotten to know, we pushed on taking in the views and pondering the architecture of the massive hillside site. After climbing to the crest of the main hill we crossed a narrow ledge (from a distance it looked like a scary narrow crossing, but when we were actually on it, it seemed comfortably wide and safe) into another section where we saw what we think were grain silos. We then descended and took a detour that gave us as sense of some of the aquaduct projects the Incas had used to deliver water where they needed it. We took a short walk through town, mostly browsing for a lunch spot but also taking in the place. We settled on a café that had been recommended by TripAdvisor and had a relaxing lunch. John tried the Alpaca burger which he found edible, but not exactly something he would recommend. A short walk took us to the train station a bit early for our train. The 90-minute train ride to Aguas Calientes was quite beautiful, following the Urubamba River through a narrow valley. Sonia shot what photos she could through the train window. Upon arriving we got a glimpse of the “Hiram Bingham train,” a train named in honor of the archeologist that “discovered” Machu Picchu that follows the same route as ours, but treats the passengers to some serious old-world luxury (at five times the cost of our ticket). Upon our arrival in Aguas Calientes, we were met, as planned, by someone to “assist us” from the train station to our hotel. Although we had assumed it would be a short bus ride, it turned out to be a guy with a luggage cart (unnecessary for us, since we travelled with only our backpacks) to lead us on a short pleasant walk to the hotel. After check-in we enjoyed the truly amazing view of the Urubamba River and very steep and close mountains from our balcony before leaving the kids to partake of our complementary Pisco Sours (cocktail of Peruvian origin). Dinner was included with the hotel, making a decision on where to eat quite easy. We had another great dinner conversation covering topics such as what makes a person amazing, and the fallacies inherent in human thought. We briefly considered a planning a pre-dawn start for our visit to Machu Picchu, but Lauren talked us into a more reasonable plan.

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Photos

The Ruins at Ollantaytambo
While the ruins at Ollantaytambo were not in the most spectacular setting we have seen, nor were they the largest ruins we had seen, they still made for nice viewing.

Brothers Sometimes Open Doors
Lauren and Andrew couldn't help fooling when they saw this utility door in the ruins.

Sunlight at Ollantaytambo
Although the air temperature was cool, and most of our trip has been overcast, the bright sun was apparent today.

Lauren at Ollantaytambo
The backdrop of the Andes Mountains is still spectacular

Steep Climb
The Incas were not afraid of steep uneven and long staircases. I guess their building codes were different than our!

Andrew Likes High Places
Andrew probably wasn't supposed to climb on top of this doorway, but I decided to snap a photo before yelling at him

Water Supply
This photo shows part of the water distributions system used by the Incas, but doesn't capture the classic series of channels that turn at right angles and run downhill along the steep staircases, presumably from springs. Ollantaytambo is a good place to see these, and the caretakers keep the water flowing today by refilling the system with hoses.

Drying Maize
We saw this drying corn through an open doorway while strolling through town. Corn, quinoa, and many different varieties of potatoes are the staples in Peru, available at almost every meal. We even had tabouleh made with quinoa. It was delicious!

Menu
John had the alpaca burger at this restaurant. Guinea pig was also offered at several of the places we ate, but we couldn't bring ourselves to try it. We read that the Incas domesticated the guinea pig as a food animal.

Boarding Peru Rail
We took Peru Rail to Machu Picchu. The "Vistadome" train offers on-board snacks, has a bathroom on-board, great views and announcements about features in the terrain.

View from Peru-Rail
View of the Urubamba River from the train

Inka Trail
The beginning (don't know which of the three beginnings) of the Inka Trail as seen from the train. It would have been a long walk

Urubamba River from the Train
The train stayed level with the river following its direction of flow, so we were clearly traveling downhill

First View of Aguas Calientes from the Train
As we rounded the corner, we caught our first glimpse of the town. The hotel we stayed at, though not visible in the photo, was slightly further downriver from the one's seen here. The view of the mountains and river from our balcony was gorgeous.

Night Photo from Hotel Balcony
Looking back into town from our hotel balcony. Our hotel was the very last one along the riverfront.