The magic of Machu Picchu
We woke up the next morning at a disgusting hour and decided to take the early bus up the mountain to Machu Picchu itself. Walking up was also an option, but seeing as we had walked the day before and were planning a rather serious hike up Waynu Pichu as well, we decided to be slightly lazy and touristy and bus it up. We thought we would get there nice and early to beat the crowds, but alas even at 5.15am there was a massive line. First bus was way out of the question, the 30th bus was much more realistic. At this point I realised that perhaps we were a little naive. Everyone in this town was there to see Machu Picchu, how could it not be completely crowded???
We arrived at the top at about 6am, and again had to wait in a massive line to be allowed through the gates. As we lined up, we were asked if we wanted to climb Waynu Picchu, the rather prominent mountain just behind Machu Picchu that can be seen in just about every postcard or photo. We of course said yes and recieved our tickets for that as well. The number on the tickets? 397. The number of people allowed to climb every day? 400. It really was our lucky day, and I dont even want to think how angry I would have been if we had missed out.
We found a guide, a lovely little peruvian lady who could only speak spanish (thank you Mireia for doing a mighty lot of translating that day) and we set up the steps to actually see Machu Picchu. It was amazing. There is no other way to really explain it. On top of a mountain surrounded by many other jungle clad mountains tipped with clouds, the most majestic buildings, now ruins, have been carved into the mountain. Houses, temples, schools, churches, terraces for agriculture or simply to provide stability, have all been moulded into the mountain, or sometimes the mountain has been changed rather dramatically to fit what was needed. To think that the Incas built this with such primitive tools and no machinary is almost impossible to do.
After many a hundred photo happily snapped away, soooo many group shots at every different angle, we finished our tour and went to climb Waynu Pichu, the rather fierce looking mountain behind Machu Picchu. A rather vertical climb up was well worth the view that met us at the top. Perched atop some boulders which marked the summit, we look out at the mountains and valleys stretched before us… Not to mention the possiblilty of seeing Machu Picchu in all its splendour stretched out across its peak. The ruins, like most inca ruins, have a particular shape. Ollyantytambo for example was built in the shape of a Llama. Machu Picchu is built to the shape of a condor. With a little imagination you can see this majestic bird resting on the mountain.
We climbed back down, thoroughly exhausted, physically from the climb but also mentally from all that we had seen. We had been to Machu Picchu. It hardly felt real. We spent the afternoon walking down the mountain back to Aguas Caliente where we were getting the tourist train (oh the shame) back to Ollyantytambo. This was a rather gentle stroll down, following both the road and a path occasionally which was mainly steps. Down is always better than up!
Dinner in Aguas Caliente was an average affair, however it was here that I discovered just how much I had been savaged by Mozzies over the weekend. Oh the pain and the itch! The others hardly got attacked, so I like to think I have rather sweet blood. Man it itched, and continued to do so for quite a few days. After a boring train trip we finally arrived back into Calca by taxi to be greeted by flooding rains and NO electricity. Convenient as I had just lost my torch somewhere on Machu Picchu or surroundings. Dirty and wet we went home and fell into our beds. The idea of dealing with everything in the morning was very attractive.
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