Machu Picchu

Trip Start Jan 25, 2007
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Trip End Jun 30, 2007


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Thursday, April 26, 2007

Last time I wrote, it was about the Sacred Valley of the Incas, near Cusco. Having stayed at Ollantaytambo the night, I caught the Backpacker Express train next morning to Aguas Calientes, a little town at the head of the valley that has no reason for existing other than to feed and house and sell stuff to the hordes of tourists (including me) that pour in to see Machu Picchu (it even has the horrible interlocking red brick paving use in pedestrian malls and shopping centres in Australia).
A select number of people (500 at a time) come in via the Inca Trail, a 4 day trek through the mountains and valleys nearby, but I didn't book early enough, and it was booked out, so the train it was.
Lest I sound completely cynical and world-weary, Machu Picchu is truly a magnificent site and one not to be missed. The setting is superb, high above the valley, and once again I am amazed by the order and precision of the layout, stonework, terracing, etc and how they managed to build it 01 Prickly pear - from the Backpacker Express
01 Prickly pear - from the Backpacker Express
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The train arrived at 11.30am and the return train was leaving at 5pm, so I had to really get a move along if I was to climb up, have a good look around and come back. I asked some people in the plaza how long it would take to get to MP and they said 2 hours, which really put the wind up me because it was nearly 12 midday by the time I got going (you have to queue up and pay for permits, etc).
So I raced furiously up the mountain, working up a bit of a lather, and got to the top in 55 minutes, and then spent the next 10 minutes drying out and watching my fellow tourists and the funny outfits they wear.
There's not a huge amount to say about MP, so I have let the pictures do the talking. Most of the time I wandered around on my own, but ocasionally stopped where there was a tour group and eaves-dropped on them. I spent about 3 hours on the site and would have liked to go up to Wayna Picchu, the big rock behing MP, but again there were restrictions on how many people can go up and I was too late. The Incas weren't content to build MP, but actually built temples and houses on Wayna Picchu, which you will see from the pictures is much higher again and very steep.
Finally, I raced down the mountain, ate a plate of avocado, and caught the evening train back to Cusco, having had a lovely day out.
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