Machu Picchu

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After almost 3 weeks in Peru, we finally made an excursion to Machu Picchu. From Cusco, we took a bus/train combo to Aguas Calientes, a.k.a. Machu Picchu Pueblo. The scenic train ride through el Valle Sagrado (Sacred Valley) was worth the price of the train alone. We rode beneath lush green mountains next to the surging river Urubamba. Aguas Calientes is a cute little town, but it's VERY touristy. The restaurants overcharge for average food and the train station opens up into the souvenir market. But we were able to find a few restaurants with delicious food. I had alpaca tenderloin that was better than any steak I've had in the U.S. We stayed in a hostel overnight in the town.

Machu Picchu itself is made up of the famous Inca ruins, a lookout hill, and Wayna Picchu, the mountain overlooking the ruins. It is all included in the price of an entrance ticket, 126 soles, or about $46. However, they only allow 400 people onto Wayna Picchu for erosion reasons. Entrance into Wayna Picchu is on a first come, first serve basis. People show up early for tickets, and I mean early. Buses go up and down the mountain all day, but the first one doesn’t run until 6 am. So Tony, Zach, Nic, and I decided to wake up with the hardcore trekkers at 3:30 am and hike our way to Machu Picchu. Little did we know it’s actually an hour and a half hike straight up about 10 sets of stone steps. On top of that, it was pouring rain. So we gathered with the rest of the crazies at the bridge leading to the mountain, which opens at 5 am. In total, there were probably 100 people with us when we started. We stumbled our way up through the pitch dark, half asleep. About half way up, completely drenched, we decided to put in work. We almost ran the last half of the way, if not to make sure we get Wayna Picchu tickets, then to stay warm at least. When we reached the top, relieved and soaking wet, we were confronted by a guard who said, “Congratulations, you are numbers 2, 3, 4, and 5 in line.” We beat everybody except for a Chilean guy who probably runs a couple marathons a year. You’d think I inherited genes from somebody who hates crowds and will do whatever it takes to beat them or something. Needless to say, we were very proud of ourselves.

At no other time will you hear me say this but our first few steps into Machu Picchu were almost magical. We were surrounded by fog, the sun had just risen, and the first thing we see is a herd of llama eating the grass on the terraces. The rest is hard to explain, you just have to see the pictures. I can say that Machu Picchu lives up to any and all hype you hear about it.

Wayna Picchu was totally worth it, but when we left at 1 pm there were still 10 spots out of the 400 available. Who knew?

-R

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Comments

[jessi]

Wowww!!!!