salut peru! - part III
J and I decided not to hike the famed Inca Trail because firstly, I didn’t feel like I was fit enough for it, especially considering the altitude - I would get a bad headache from climbing up a few flights of stairs! Also, we didn’t have our backpacks and hiking gear with us in NY and I didn’t want to spend money buying things that we already had just for one trip. Some of the people in our group did go for the three-day hike though, and they said that it was a trip of a lifetime. I can imagine so. We took the train up towards Agua Calientes (the small town just below Machu Picchu) and saw parts of the trail along the way. While undeniably scenic, it also looked very tough. As it was, I was already shivering in bed every night in our Cuzco hotel room (no heat!), and I was very glad I was shivering in a bed, and not in a tent high up in the mountains.
We did get to walk part of the Trail though when we arrived at Machu Picchu early in the morning. After registering with the main gate, our guide pointed out a point up on the mountain where the view was supposedly spectacular, so J and I headed up, not realising we were actually heading in the wrong direction, towards Intipunku, also known as the Sun Gate, which is the main entrance into Machu Picchu from the Inca Trail. It was a pretty tough walk even if the incline did not seem so steep; every twenty steps or so I had to stop to catch my breath, and all this time we were rushing, rushing to catch the sunrise because we could see glimmers of its rays just peeking out from behind the mountains. I never panted so hard in my life.
On the trail towards the Sun Gate; Machu Picchu at sunrise
Of course it was worth it. We were there on June 10, which is close to the sacred date of June 21, the winter solstice in the southern hemisphere. This is the when the sunrise is aligned to hit the Sun Gate and for the first rays of the sun to touch the tip of the Temple of the Sun, which is located on the left of the picture above. So when we finally reached the Sun Gate, all our efforts were rewarded by the sun bursting into the sky right before us, almost blinding us with its brilliance. I have seen the sunrise before, but at sea level, and nothing really prepares you for seeing sunrise over the mountain range, at a point precisely aligned for the moment. The Incas worshipped the sun, and simply being at the Gate, watching everything around you burst into light and warmth, gives you a sense of the awesome power of nature.
I’m glad we managed to get to Machu Picchu before sunrise, not just because we managed to witness the sensational sunrise, but because we also saw the ruins in the cloudy dawn, as can be seen in the top two photos above. The place looked magical with wispy clouds abovehead, and it was also much quieter than later in the day, when the tourist hordes had arrived and the sun was high up in the sky.
Machu Picchu means ‘Old Mountain’ and is actually the one glimpsed through that stone corridor in the photo on the bottom center. Discovered by Hiram Bingham in 1911, who was brought to the ruins by a peasant boy, it is one of the finest and best-preserved citadels from the Inca Empire. The stonework is astounding, especially as you wander in and out of buildings. Simply add a thatched roof and everything is complete, ready for habitation. Even the fountains, which channel spring water from the mountains, are still working.
Climbing up Huayna Picchu; view of Machu Picchu; the switchback roads used by the buses to reach the mountain peak
J decided to make the climb up Huayna Picchu, which is the mountain that looms over the ruins, the one most commonly seen in tourist postcards of the area. (It is the taller of the two peaks from the photo taken at sunrise.) I didn’t go because we were warned that it was a tough, nearly vertical climb, and we had to be back in town by 1pm to catch the train back to Cuzco. So I told J to go ahead without me since I would slow him down, and I spent two hours wandering the ruins by myself, sitting in hidden corners watching the birds and the clouds go by. J returned hot and breathless, and as we drank the most overpriced beer in Peru (they set up a concession stand right where you need it the most!) we looked through the photos that he took and marveled at the surreal majesty of the site. Machu Picchu is probably the most recognisable structure in Peru, having been photographed and featured in tourist postcards and brochures everywhere, but nothing beats seeing it for yourself. It was a fitting end to our journey in Peru and the culmination of everything we experienced in the country - breathtaking landscapes, a rich historical legacy, a culture proud to preseve its past.
We did get to walk part of the Trail though when we arrived at Machu Picchu early in the morning. After registering with the main gate, our guide pointed out a point up on the mountain where the view was supposedly spectacular, so J and I headed up, not realising we were actually heading in the wrong direction, towards Intipunku, also known as the Sun Gate, which is the main entrance into Machu Picchu from the Inca Trail. It was a pretty tough walk even if the incline did not seem so steep; every twenty steps or so I had to stop to catch my breath, and all this time we were rushing, rushing to catch the sunrise because we could see glimmers of its rays just peeking out from behind the mountains. I never panted so hard in my life.
On the trail towards the Sun Gate; Machu Picchu at sunrise
Of course it was worth it. We were there on June 10, which is close to the sacred date of June 21, the winter solstice in the southern hemisphere. This is the when the sunrise is aligned to hit the Sun Gate and for the first rays of the sun to touch the tip of the Temple of the Sun, which is located on the left of the picture above. So when we finally reached the Sun Gate, all our efforts were rewarded by the sun bursting into the sky right before us, almost blinding us with its brilliance. I have seen the sunrise before, but at sea level, and nothing really prepares you for seeing sunrise over the mountain range, at a point precisely aligned for the moment. The Incas worshipped the sun, and simply being at the Gate, watching everything around you burst into light and warmth, gives you a sense of the awesome power of nature.
I’m glad we managed to get to Machu Picchu before sunrise, not just because we managed to witness the sensational sunrise, but because we also saw the ruins in the cloudy dawn, as can be seen in the top two photos above. The place looked magical with wispy clouds abovehead, and it was also much quieter than later in the day, when the tourist hordes had arrived and the sun was high up in the sky.
Machu Picchu means ‘Old Mountain’ and is actually the one glimpsed through that stone corridor in the photo on the bottom center. Discovered by Hiram Bingham in 1911, who was brought to the ruins by a peasant boy, it is one of the finest and best-preserved citadels from the Inca Empire. The stonework is astounding, especially as you wander in and out of buildings. Simply add a thatched roof and everything is complete, ready for habitation. Even the fountains, which channel spring water from the mountains, are still working.
Climbing up Huayna Picchu; view of Machu Picchu; the switchback roads used by the buses to reach the mountain peak
J decided to make the climb up Huayna Picchu, which is the mountain that looms over the ruins, the one most commonly seen in tourist postcards of the area. (It is the taller of the two peaks from the photo taken at sunrise.) I didn’t go because we were warned that it was a tough, nearly vertical climb, and we had to be back in town by 1pm to catch the train back to Cuzco. So I told J to go ahead without me since I would slow him down, and I spent two hours wandering the ruins by myself, sitting in hidden corners watching the birds and the clouds go by. J returned hot and breathless, and as we drank the most overpriced beer in Peru (they set up a concession stand right where you need it the most!) we looked through the photos that he took and marveled at the surreal majesty of the site. Machu Picchu is probably the most recognisable structure in Peru, having been photographed and featured in tourist postcards and brochures everywhere, but nothing beats seeing it for yourself. It was a fitting end to our journey in Peru and the culmination of everything we experienced in the country - breathtaking landscapes, a rich historical legacy, a culture proud to preseve its past.