{ 19 décembre 2005 }
la ciudad inca perdida y una montaña alta
after our tour around the sacred valley, we caught a 2-hour train from ollantaytambo to aguas calientes, a town near machu picchu where pretty much all visitors stay. the sun had already set when we boarded the train, and there were zero lights along the way, so it was quite dark and kind of surreal. after arriving in aguas calientes—where there is the train station and pretty much only 1 street, which is full of restaurants, hotels and little shops—we wandered around a bit then found a hotel for the night.
jimmy & ilario on the main street
for those who don’t know, machu picchu is a very well-preserved inca city located high atop a mountain above the urubamba valley. it is sometimes referred to as the lost city of the incas and is 1 of the most familiar symbols of the inca empire. the view from the city and the city itself are gorgeous.
early the morning after our train ride, we took a bus ride from aguas calientes to the base of the mountain machu picchu sits on, up the 13 switchbacks up the mountain, finally reaching the entrance to machu picchu. the bus took 20–30 minutes, and it costs $12 roundtrip. the entrance fee for machu picchu is s/. 77 which is less than $25.
ilario & jimmy with machu picchu & huayna picchu in the background
we walked around machu picchu, and 1 of the 1st things we saw was a group of llamas! i was beside myself with joy because here was exactly what i wanted to see: llamas on machu picchu.
jimmy had purchased a book about machu picchu, so he was able to give us information as we walked around the different rooms in the different sectors. there were residential rooms, rooms where the llamas were kept, bathrooms, party rooms, temples and more. it’s interesting that each room had a specific purpose because most of the them look relatively similar to us in the modern era since the rooms are empty now and—without research—most of us don’t know anything about what the shape of an inca room signifies. another interesting fact is that the majority of the doors and windows were placed so that a mountain was right in the centre of it.
besides warning jimmy & i that we would be stared at for being blonde, ilario also told us that people would want to have their picture taken with us, and this was definitely true at machu picchu. jimmy, ilario and i were chilling in a little covered building, and jimmy started talking in spanish to a woman next to us. she was there with her young son and teenage daughter. next thing i know she wanted a picture of me and her son, bill stalin. [stalin is his middle name. he has a cousin named lenin. and i’m not joking.]
bill stalin & me
then the woman wanted a picture of her daughter with jimmy and ilario. all of a sudden a large group of teenagers showed up, and the girls started running up and sitting between ilario & me and taking pictures. then all these boys wanted their picture taken with me. when the first 2 sat down on either side of me, i put my arms around them, and the rest said, “ohhhhhh!” it was really funny. i could see some visitors getting irritated about everyone wanting a picture with them, but we found it to be rather amusing.
among the mountains directly around machu picchu, huayna picchu is the largest peak. there is a path leading up to the top, and we decided to climb it. in jimmy’s book, it mentioned that you can indeed die on the mountain, plus you have to sign in and out, so they’ll know if someone goes missing.
as i mentioned when writing about pisaq, i am scared of heights. there were definitely a few times while climbing huayna picchu that i wanted to turn back, but i persevered. and i was actually quite enthusiastic at first.
flat ground + no steep drop-off = enthusiasm
but when i saw parts like this with a dizzying drop-off to the side, i lost some of my enthusiasm.
yikes.
once we got to almost the very top, all of the foliage went away, and there were only tiny, even steeper steps. that is where i decided to stop, chillax and enjoy the view while jimmy and ilario went all the way to the top.
despite how scary it was at times, i did really enjoy climbing up huayna picchu. also, seeing machu picchu was incredible—the views, the architecture, the llamas. ilario said that there are concerns about how tourism is affecting the ruins, so if you want to see machu picchu, make sure you do so before they potentially close it off to visitors.
happy i survived the climb.
after a bus ride back to aguas calientes, we caught the train to cusco, which took about 4 hours. at some of the stops, women would come by the train, offering their handmade crafts [dolls, blankets, bags] and corn. as often noted, i have a weakness for llamas, so ilario haggled and got this llamas backpack for me.
note the guy with corn in the background.
posted at 22.05