machu picchu: Day 4

Day 4: unique

Wake up at 3:30am to eat breakfast, then wait in line for the trail to open at 5:30am 

for the last stretch to Machu Picchu. By now, after all of the experiences that happen to you on the Trail, it's easy to forget why you set out in the first place.

One of my group members asked me if I studied horticulture since I took so many photos of flowers & plants.

We hiked for about two hours before reaching the Sun Gate and our first view of Machu Picchu from above. To get to the Gate, we had to climb about 50 nearly vertical steps. I didn't even realize at the time that I was headed toward the Sun Gate, I didn't look ahead nor back, I just kept climbing upward with my walking poles like a spider.

I later learned that one of the guides had a 21 year old woman who fell and died on the stairs of the Sun Gate right before getting the first view. That's one thing nobody ever seems to mention - the Inca trail can actually be quite dangerous, even if you're fit and in good health.

Heading downhill further, we finally made it to the ruins. It looks so much bigger in person. It was really hot out too, so funnily enough most of our group didn't want to stay and wander the ruins for too long.

Following the postcard pictures, we began a 2 hour tour of the ruins. One guy in our group had been unable to eat, he was so nervous. He proposed to his girlfriend while we were sitting on one of the terraces overlooking Machu Picchu. 

Wilfredo thanked us

"You have wonderful energies."

Mr. Hiram Bigham, an American historian, was first led to Machu Picchu in 1911 and the one responsible for bringing it into the spotlight.

'Machu' means ancient, or old, and 'Picchu' means peak. However, the name always reminded me of Pokemon as a child.

The Spanish ended up changing the names of many places that they conquered as they had difficulty pronouncing the Quechua words. Both of our guides speak Quechua!

Machu Picchu is located in the middle of 3 mountains which is indicative of the importance of duality and trilogy at Machu Picchu and in Incan culture.

It is estimated that there were 800-1000 inhabitants here in the 200 plus buildings. The exact purpose of Machu Picchu may be reached by educated speculation, though it likely had multiple purposes, with farmers, builders, teachers, priests, and military probably living there.

It was built around the 1450s, but it was unfinished. The structures are about 80% original. The terraces for farming have different temperatures, with each facing the South East or East so that they're exposed to the sun in the morning, and in turn the stones absorb the heat till the afternoon.

It's also fascinating to note that Incans used to divert snow from the mountains for water rather than always relying on sources from nearby bodies of water.

In 1533 the Spanish arrived, and today Cusco has 23 churches as a souvenir.

With 180 men, the Spanish began their conquest of the Incan empire of 10-12 million which extended across Peru, Bolivia, Chile, & Ecuador. Say what? Well, the civil war between two brothers in Peru helped speed things along. This, and that the Spanish sought the assistance of the Chankas - one of the Incan's worst enemies.

Summer and winter solstice were important occasions fr the Incans, and some windows were built specifically with these dates in mind.

Sampling of what grew in an Incan garden:

Modern-day Incan builder

We bussed to nearby town Aguascalientes for lunch & goodbye.

A few of us hit up the hot springs which was even nicer considering none of us had showered for the last 4 days.

Perhaps a little too modern for the Andes.

I had one more meal before leaving Aguascalientes in the evening. The town is tourist-ready, with hoards of overpriced restaurants lining the streets and staff trying to lure you in. The waiter practically begged us to sit down at the restaurant we went to. It also ended up being a funny ordering experience.

From there, we took a train to Ollantaytambo which swayed side-to-side as magical flute music spread through the air and helped drown out the group of obnoxious drunk American 20-somethings. Finally, we took a bus back to Cusco where the showers are.