We got up and ate at the hotel, just like every day this trip, which is very nice – good, free food within a 30-second walk from your bedroom. Just like home, except for the whole no washing dishes, four types of fresh fruit juice, all-you-can-eat part. Then, we went down to the train station, a 5-minute walk, and waited for the train to come from Cuzco so we could get on it. A train coming up the canyon stopped first, bringing with it droves of uniformed school children, who scrambled off and ran down the platform and up the hill to the town. Behind the children came lots of the porters coming back from taking people hiking on the four-day trek to Machu Picchu along the Inca Trail. Most of the porters were significantly smaller than I am, yet they carried large loads, many with tents, propane tanks, sleeping bags and tarps. They literally ran past us carrying about 100 pounds of gear. It was very impressive. After a while longer, I started talking to Steve about his job as an ocean-going tug boat captain. It was very interesting and I enjoyed learning about his work tugging large barges all over the west coast of North America, including back and forth from Hawaii.
When the train came, we got on and the car we were assigned to was empty except for our group and a couple others, including a tour guide from another company. He said his group was sitting on a different car, and asked if he could tell us stuff along the way because he wanted to guide even if his group wasn’t there. We were glad to learn from him. He explained that the porters, while they had to work hard, like their job because it pays way better than any other job they can get and they only have to do it as often as they want. Most do a few treks a month to supplement their income from agricultural work.
As we went down the valley, we saw it slowly turn from a wide plain to a narrow canyon, with Urubamba raging through the bottom. The river has many large rocks in it, making incredible rapids. They are too dangerous for rafting or kayaking, although people do so farther upstream. As we rode along, we could see glimpses of Incan terraces along the mountains, and they heightened our excitement to see Machu Picchu.
The train stopped in Aguas Calientes, the town below the ruins, so named (it means “hot waters” in Spanish) because there are hot springs in the area. Harry met us at the train station, as he had traveled on the train the night before. We left our luggage with people from the hotel and got on the bus to go up to Machu Picchu.The bus drove farther down the canyon, along the edge of some cliffs (one section of rode was a one-lane bridge built right out of the edge of the cliff), then crossed the river on a bridge and went up, up, up, following a dirt switchback road. The trek from town is about 5 miles, and rises 1,100 feet. We could see bits of terraces and stone buildings as we rose. We stopped at the top and waited while Harry took all our passports to get them stamped with a special Machu Picchu stamp, which wasn’t technically diplomatically necessary, but got us a really cool stamp! Then, we started hiking.
Instead of going straight to the main city complex, Harry guided us up a modern set of stone steps through some trees which blocked our view of the ruins. That way, we came out of the woods on the trail above the main ruins, giving us a better first look. We walked out onto an overlook and I was speechless. The beauty and majesty of the site is amazing, as it is nestled between two large mountain peaks: Machu Picchu – “the old mountain,” and Huayna Picchu – “the young mountain.” The terraces and buildings accentuate the hills’ natural features, and every spot in the whole city has a beautiful view of the peaks surrounding the valley. We climbed even higher, stopping frequently both because of the steep climb and the intoxicating beauty of the site.
Instead of going down to the ruins, we hiked along the base of Machu Picchu Peak, following an old Incan road built as an evacuation route in case the city was ever attacked. In all, seven roads lead into Machu Picchu from all parts of the Incan Empire. The trail we were on skirted the cliffs, and eventually stopped at an overlook where the rocks piled up to build a path on a sheer cliff had collapsed. Still intact, however, was an Incan bridge, with about 50 feet of rock piled up the rock face on either end, and a few boards placed across the chasm. It was amazing and dizzying to see that structure at such a height, several hundred feet up on the cliff. The Urubamba River, thousands of feet below us, was roaring over some rapids and could be heard clearly from our lofty perch.
The river is an ever-present part of the site, because it flows next to the base of the mountain, around Huayna Picchu Peak, then on the other side of the site, making a natural moat of sorts surrounding the site with 300 degrees of protection. Such heights and powerful water made it an easily defensible place. Watch towers were built on Huyana Picchu and several of the surrounding mountains, as well.
After the hike to the bridge, we walked back down to the main gate for lunch since you aren’t supposed to eat in the park itself. We pulled out our money-saving tuna fish feast and enjoyed it quite a lot. We ate under the green umbrellas set up on a modern terrace, then, when Daddy started talking to a guy who turned out to be a fellow photographer, Crystal, Mother and I wandered down some stone steps and found a cool, shady stone-foundation bowery where we rested for a few minutes until it was time to meet everyone again for our tour of the city. We decided a hammock would have been nice in that cool, shady bowery.
We toured all over Machu Picchu, seeing the 16 water fountains near the Temple of the Sun, seeing the beautiful stone work and the playful way the water was channeled down the hillside. We also went to the Grand Temple, a temple on a hill on one side of the complex, where we saw a sun stone and could look out over the whole area. A camera crew from a TV channel, Canal Sur, was around doing interviews with people about Machu Picchu, and if they had voted for the site to be one of the 7 New World Wonders. I had voted several months earlier online, and they interviewed me on camera. I did the interview in Spanish, and I think I impressed the guy. He said the show would air in the U.S., but I never found out when or how I could see it.
We walked around some more and saw several “echo” rocks, which were carved in the same shape as the surrounding peaks. We then went to the Temple of the Condor, where the natural rock formations was slightly altered to show a condor in flight, with a carved stone, making the head and neck, placed on the ground close to two huge “wings” – stones that sprawl out, up and away from the head. Then, the tour was over, but our family stayed for a few more minutes exploring the housing of the area before we had to get on the bus to go down. We saw three chinchillas, rabbit-like rodents that live in the complex, and some llamas, which wander all over the site serving as photo subjects and grass trimmers. The llamas also freely fertilize the grass, so you have to watch your step as you walk around. The last bus leaves at 5:30 p.m., so we got on the 5:15 p.m. bus as the sun was going down and made it back to Aguas Calientes in about 30 minutes.
Crystal and I stopped by our room at the hotel briefly, and then went off to explore the town. We wandered through the tourist market, where Crystal indulged herself with some cool black-and-white ceramic dishes. We also stumbled upon the local food market, where Crystal again indulged herself with a large, fresh avocado, which only cost 1 sol (or about 35 cents), and was twice as big as the ones we can buy in the U.S. We bought it for Friday’s lunch, to supplement the tuna and crackers. Also while in the market, we got hungry, so I bought a pack of Cheese Tris, a Cheetos-like snack, and in it I got a prize of a fake eyebrow piercing. I wore it for a while and it was funny.
We went back to the hotel and met the whole group for dinner. We went to a place in town and I ordered cui, or guinea pig, Crystal got a pizza and I liked her food more than mine! The little critter was roasted whole, and the meat was sparse, tough and bland. It wasn’t bad, but wasn’t particularly good, either. I do recommend anyone try it at least once, though, to know what it is like and to know that in time of famine they could totally raid a pet store for meat! It was kind of weird to look at the rodent’s charred ears and bared teeth. Most of the meat I could find was on the ribs and legs. I ate it with my hands and actually passed my whole plate around the table for everyone to try.
After dinner, Steve and Geri said good-bye to everyone, as they were leaving Friday morning to go back to the states. Steve came up to Crystal and me specifically, shook our hands, and said we are an impressive young couple. It was very nice and a very great compliment which we will not soon forget. After dinner, Crystal had some ice cream, then we went back to the hotel to go to bed because Daddy and I had big plans for an early day Friday.
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