3:30 in the morning. Cold, excited, exhausted and exhilarated. We each got one pancake and a cup of coffee or tea for breakfast.. The bathrooms up at the restaurant didn't open 'til 4am, so we communed with nature. We lost sleep, packed frantically, and pissed in the bushes by flashlight all to make absolutely sure that we were the first ones to arrive at the checkpoint, a 15 minute hike down the trail, that didn't open until 5:30pm. A little anticlimactic after all of that to just sit around for the next hour and a half 'til the guy manning the booth showed up to stamp our passports and let us through the gate.
The next 45 minutes or so were a race down the trail. We were determined that no one would pass us. Those with walking sticks were detailed to use them to block anyone trying to pass us on the way to the Sun Gate. The Sun Gate was the original, traditional entrance to Machu Picchu. The first group through gets a chance to see Machu Picchu without dozens of other people all blocking the view. We booked it. The trail wasn't hard, just a constant up and down undulation. That is, until the final staircase. Each stair was about 5 inches wide and 20 inches tall. It was STEEP. We climbed using our hands. Then, we were there. At the top. At the sun gate. Ahead of us was Machu Picchu, the goal of the last 3 sweaty, painful days. There wasn't any music, but it was still a movie moment. The whole intense experience was made even more so by Richard's proposal to Annette, which was a surprise to everyone. He asked her to climb up to the highest point, brought Chris along to take photos, got down on one knee and produced a ring inscribed "Forever". Sniffle. It was extremely romantic.
Everyone congratulated the engaged couple and then began walking the last hour or so to Machu Picchu. We arrived and took our photos from up near the hut. This is the spot to stand to get the classic shot with Winaypicchu in the background. There, Sol began the final tour. We were finally told why it was very important to pronounce the second 'c' in Picchu. Apparently, in Quechua Machu means old; Winay means young; Picchu means place/mountain; and Pichu means penis. All of the mochileros (backpackers) wandering around enthusing about Machupichu are actually saying how much they love old penis. Hah! No wonder people think gringos are crazy!
We had a half hour lecture about Hiram Bingham and the rediscovery of Machu Picchu by his expedition from Yale University. He seems to have been the first person to have thought to ask the local people if they knew anything about any old Inca remains. They scratched their heads and said, "you mean like that big city in the mountains?" The site is thought to have been a royal retreat and religious center. The quality of the stonework and the many fine details definitely show that Machu Picchu was something special.
After the intro to our tour, we went down to the tourist center to use the facilities and grab a snack. We also came across a big bank of computers hooked up to the internet and signs saying, "Votemos por Machu Picchu". It was the last day to vote for the new Seven Wonders of the World and all of Peru was committed to making the list. I cast my vote there at Machu Picchu. Well, and I checked my email...since I happened to be online anyway.
Back to the tour, we learned about the diamond shaped rock with the edges pointing to the cardinal directions. There was a sundial that actually told the times of the year - think harvest instead of noon. There was a rock carved to mimic the shape of the mountain range in the distance behind it. There was a set of three steps (3 being the sacred number) that cast a perfect shadow during winter solstice. There was a temple of the sun above the temple of the earth. There was a condor in the ground and rock. My personal fave was the set of two reflective pools to stargaze by. Overall, it is a collection of the strange, the mysterious, and the haunting. We'll never know what it all meant and was meant for, because there are no records and the site was lost to history for a good 300 years, but there is enough at Machu Picchu to amaze and inspire generations of people far into the future.
My ankles had suffered from repeated twists and I didn't feel up to climbing Winay Picchu, so I lounged in the shade of a wall and watched the people. I overheard great bits of conversation, like the bit about the enormously fat man climbing Winay Picchu, completely blocking the narrow trail, causing a serious pileup. When asked to please move to the side and let the faster hikers through, he turned and growled, "Get Off My Ass!!!" Classic. There was also an ugly altercation between a young woman and her grandmother. I'm ashamed to say they were American and the young witch was heard by half the site when she screamed at her grandma, "You just see how you like it when I leave you here with no bus ticket and no money! I'm sick of you!" Charming. On the positive side, there was a lovely older Englishman explaining to a polite American family that he was here at Machu Picchu on the geriatric tour. I also had the slightest glimpse of a young Quechua girl giggling and hiding from her nursemaid 600 years ago.
After people watching and dreaming, I took the tourist bus into Aguas Calientes and walked upriver to the hot springs. The springs were a little disappointing, not being quite hot, but the river was amazing and another chance to be immersed in water was welcome. Then I checked Google news at an internet cafe to make sure that the world hadn't ended while I was out of contact, and met up with the group at a pizza place near the railroad station. We ate, drank and were merry and then we boarded the train to Ollantaytambo. There was a bit of a mix-up with the seats and one seat was seperated from the rest of the group. Though it wasn't my seat, I was the better person and volunteered, as the one single traveler to seperate from the herd. I ended up sharing a set of four seats with an amazing Polish woman who works as a Polish television editor and two American film students finishing their years abroad in Argentina and taking a holiday before heading back to the States. We had a great conversation and the hour and a half to Ollantaytambo passed like nothing.
We were met by a microbus that took us back to Cusco at rapid speed. The best part of Peruvian driving is the way that they speed up when approaching a blind turn and honk to let anyone on the other side of the turn know that they are coming. Despite our suicidal driver, we made it safely to Cusco and it was time to break up the family. There were hugs and handshakes all around as well as exchanged email addresses and promises to share photos. Chris, Julie, Richard, Annette and I all went off for a falafel wrap at the Israeli shwarma shop in Gringo Alley. Then it was off to my hostel for a shower, the internet and Skype to call home, and then bed. I grabbed my bag from the storage room, threw out the crappy day pack
and stuffed everything in my bag. I set my alarm for 6:45 and went off to dreamland. And that was my trek along the Inca trail to Machu Picchu.
Questions: Why did Xine set her alarm for 6:45? What will she do on her birthday? Won't somebody tell me? Stay tuned for the further adventures of Christine in Peru.
The next 45 minutes or so were a race down the trail. We were determined that no one would pass us. Those with walking sticks were detailed to use them to block anyone trying to pass us on the way to the Sun Gate. The Sun Gate was the original, traditional entrance to Machu Picchu. The first group through gets a chance to see Machu Picchu without dozens of other people all blocking the view. We booked it. The trail wasn't hard, just a constant up and down undulation. That is, until the final staircase. Each stair was about 5 inches wide and 20 inches tall. It was STEEP. We climbed using our hands. Then, we were there. At the top. At the sun gate. Ahead of us was Machu Picchu, the goal of the last 3 sweaty, painful days. There wasn't any music, but it was still a movie moment. The whole intense experience was made even more so by Richard's proposal to Annette, which was a surprise to everyone. He asked her to climb up to the highest point, brought Chris along to take photos, got down on one knee and produced a ring inscribed "Forever". Sniffle. It was extremely romantic.
Everyone congratulated the engaged couple and then began walking the last hour or so to Machu Picchu. We arrived and took our photos from up near the hut. This is the spot to stand to get the classic shot with Winaypicchu in the background. There, Sol began the final tour. We were finally told why it was very important to pronounce the second 'c' in Picchu. Apparently, in Quechua Machu means old; Winay means young; Picchu means place/mountain; and Pichu means penis. All of the mochileros (backpackers) wandering around enthusing about Machupichu are actually saying how much they love old penis. Hah! No wonder people think gringos are crazy!
We had a half hour lecture about Hiram Bingham and the rediscovery of Machu Picchu by his expedition from Yale University. He seems to have been the first person to have thought to ask the local people if they knew anything about any old Inca remains. They scratched their heads and said, "you mean like that big city in the mountains?" The site is thought to have been a royal retreat and religious center. The quality of the stonework and the many fine details definitely show that Machu Picchu was something special.
After the intro to our tour, we went down to the tourist center to use the facilities and grab a snack. We also came across a big bank of computers hooked up to the internet and signs saying, "Votemos por Machu Picchu". It was the last day to vote for the new Seven Wonders of the World and all of Peru was committed to making the list. I cast my vote there at Machu Picchu. Well, and I checked my email...since I happened to be online anyway.
Back to the tour, we learned about the diamond shaped rock with the edges pointing to the cardinal directions. There was a sundial that actually told the times of the year - think harvest instead of noon. There was a rock carved to mimic the shape of the mountain range in the distance behind it. There was a set of three steps (3 being the sacred number) that cast a perfect shadow during winter solstice. There was a temple of the sun above the temple of the earth. There was a condor in the ground and rock. My personal fave was the set of two reflective pools to stargaze by. Overall, it is a collection of the strange, the mysterious, and the haunting. We'll never know what it all meant and was meant for, because there are no records and the site was lost to history for a good 300 years, but there is enough at Machu Picchu to amaze and inspire generations of people far into the future.
My ankles had suffered from repeated twists and I didn't feel up to climbing Winay Picchu, so I lounged in the shade of a wall and watched the people. I overheard great bits of conversation, like the bit about the enormously fat man climbing Winay Picchu, completely blocking the narrow trail, causing a serious pileup. When asked to please move to the side and let the faster hikers through, he turned and growled, "Get Off My Ass!!!" Classic. There was also an ugly altercation between a young woman and her grandmother. I'm ashamed to say they were American and the young witch was heard by half the site when she screamed at her grandma, "You just see how you like it when I leave you here with no bus ticket and no money! I'm sick of you!" Charming. On the positive side, there was a lovely older Englishman explaining to a polite American family that he was here at Machu Picchu on the geriatric tour. I also had the slightest glimpse of a young Quechua girl giggling and hiding from her nursemaid 600 years ago.
After people watching and dreaming, I took the tourist bus into Aguas Calientes and walked upriver to the hot springs. The springs were a little disappointing, not being quite hot, but the river was amazing and another chance to be immersed in water was welcome. Then I checked Google news at an internet cafe to make sure that the world hadn't ended while I was out of contact, and met up with the group at a pizza place near the railroad station. We ate, drank and were merry and then we boarded the train to Ollantaytambo. There was a bit of a mix-up with the seats and one seat was seperated from the rest of the group. Though it wasn't my seat, I was the better person and volunteered, as the one single traveler to seperate from the herd. I ended up sharing a set of four seats with an amazing Polish woman who works as a Polish television editor and two American film students finishing their years abroad in Argentina and taking a holiday before heading back to the States. We had a great conversation and the hour and a half to Ollantaytambo passed like nothing.
We were met by a microbus that took us back to Cusco at rapid speed. The best part of Peruvian driving is the way that they speed up when approaching a blind turn and honk to let anyone on the other side of the turn know that they are coming. Despite our suicidal driver, we made it safely to Cusco and it was time to break up the family. There were hugs and handshakes all around as well as exchanged email addresses and promises to share photos. Chris, Julie, Richard, Annette and I all went off for a falafel wrap at the Israeli shwarma shop in Gringo Alley. Then it was off to my hostel for a shower, the internet and Skype to call home, and then bed. I grabbed my bag from the storage room, threw out the crappy day pack
and stuffed everything in my bag. I set my alarm for 6:45 and went off to dreamland. And that was my trek along the Inca trail to Machu Picchu.
Questions: Why did Xine set her alarm for 6:45? What will she do on her birthday? Won't somebody tell me? Stay tuned for the further adventures of Christine in Peru.
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