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Picked up at hotel by bus at 6:30 am. Oswaldo was on the bus in the first seat and told the driver to stop. The other front seat was held for us. We went up to MP (the only way up is to walk or take the bus for $10). It was mostly sunny and Oswaldo gave us a thorough tour. On July 24th (Sue 's birthday) 1911 (not the year !!) is known as the Day of the Discovery of Machu Picchu. The stonework is so amazing and totally incomprehensible when you think about the tools they had. The Sun Tower was very important to the Incas and showed superior stonework. The king and queen's quarters were of the same high quality and the king actually had a "bano".
The incredible ingenuity of the Incas was displayed everywhere -- the pools that reflected the stars; the locks on important doors; the column that indicated the summer and winter solstice for planting and harvesting; the compass stone showing directions; the aqueducts and fountains; the terracing for planting -- truly awesome!
The city is huge and they are still discovering more ruins . They are not sure if it was
a Capitol city, a summer home for the king or, as Shirley McLaine seemed to think, built by aliens!
The many llamas cut the grass and also add to its beauty. About two hours into our tour, it began to rain lightly and the mountains began to disappear. There were hundreds of tourists but because of the immense size of the area, it did not seem overcrowded.
After watching the condors in the Colca Canyon, we admired the Inca's representation of the condor (head, eyes, white collar and wings). We learned that the condor was a messenger to the gods!
At approximately 10:45, Oswaldo was finished with our tour and gave us our tickets for the buffet lunch at the Sanctuary Hotel located at the exit gate. As we were waiting for the doors to open, we met a couple, George and Linda, who as it turns out, grew up in Maryland (and George actually in Canton on Fait Street!). We had lunch with them and later were on the same train. It's a very small world! The lunch was very nice and we were glad it was included in our tour since it was 114 soles
per person ($40)!
After lunch we headed down the mountain on the bus and met Oswaldo one last time at 1:30 at the last bus stop . He took us to the local market and Sue bought a tee-shirt with "I survived the Inca Trail" printed on it. (Dave already got one in Cusco before we hiked which we thought might jinx it for us!)
We went to a sidewalk cafe where we shared drinks with Oswaldo and we said our goodbyes. After spending the last six days with him, we felt like old friends.
We were suppose to pick up our luggage at the train station for our ride back to Cusco and nearly panicked when the hotel got them there at the last minute.
The train was really nice with windows even on the roof so we could view the mountains and sights. It followed the river Vilcanota about half of the way with Class V plus rapids. Some sections had really high mountains with even a glimpse of a glacier. Other sections went through a narrow valley with terracing. It was a pretty ride and the train moved slowly for our enjoyment. It
had full service and offered a snack of pizza, sweet yellow tomatoes, nuts with raisins and a cookie. It even had entertainment: a costumed dancer and a fashion show. Of course they were trying to sell their alpaca sweaters and coats but they included some passengers in the show which was fun!
When we got to the train station, we were met by our tour operator and taken to our hotel.
We had a really nice surprise in our room of a bottle of wine from Bligh, Dan, and Brennan for Mother's Day and congratulating us on finishing the Inca Trail.
We had a lot of repacking to do and then we headed to the Main Square where we had great pizza at Morino's.
We loved Cusco but did not have a lot of time there. Tomorrow brings a 9 1/2 hour bus ride to Puno and Lake Titicaca.
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