Roger speaking.
We were up at the crack of dawn for a full day of sight seeing. 6:30 a.m. for breakfast and depart via taxi at 7:00 for an hour an a half ride to Ollantaytambo to catch the train. After certain delays, we were on the train and bounding away on a narrow gage train track at a blistering pace of 20 mph. Two hours later (11:30), we arrived at Agua Caliente -- the end of the train ride and jump off point for Machupicchu. We met our guide and were told that others would be joining our tourist group from a later train -- come back in twenty minutes. After the others arrived, we boarded a bus for the trip from Agua Caliente to Machupicchu -- a twenty minute, up the hill, switchback laden, dirt road that frequently did not accomodate two way traffic. Once on top of the mountain (8,000 to 9,000 feet altitude), we were instantly introduced to the psysiological effects of high altitude, we had a 10 minute walk uphill on a stone stairways to begin the tour. Boy, was I wheezing!
A little history. Machupicchu was built in a period spanning the 1400's and 1500's. It was a place for the Inca nobles to relax and worship their Gods. The site sits on top of a mountain and is surrounded by mountain peaks in all quadrants. There were 80+ Inca villages that surrounded Machupicchu and provided the labor for building the structures and farming the land to provide food for the visitors. The entire complex could house approximately 700 people. Machupicchu was never discovered by the Spanish Conquistadores and remained a lost city until the early 1900's when Hiram Bingham (a U.S. archeologist) discovered the site. Why the Inca's left the city is unknown.
Well, we spent the next two hours stumbling around on the stone walkways -- in and out of the structures. The important building, temples, etc., received extra attention on the stonework and the pieces fit like an expensive jigsaw puzzle -- pretty amazing considering the stones were all hand cut with crude implements. Interestingly, the entire site is a series of terraces that would have been farmed to supply food. The buildings were constructed on some of the terraces. And in line with the Peruvian way, llamas are used to maintain the lawns.
After our two hour tour of the ruins, we took the twenty minute bus ride back to Agua Caliente where we had to wait until 7:00 p.m. (four hours) to board the train bound for Ollantaytambo. Our taxi driver met us and then we had the one and a half ride back to Cusco. Now, I don't consider myself faint of heart but I will say the taxi ride back was one cushion biting event -- at night, in the mountains, third world taxi driver (get the picture). We arrived at our hotel in Cusco at 11:30 p.m. -- a full day and some for another.
Pictures later.
We were up at the crack of dawn for a full day of sight seeing. 6:30 a.m. for breakfast and depart via taxi at 7:00 for an hour an a half ride to Ollantaytambo to catch the train. After certain delays, we were on the train and bounding away on a narrow gage train track at a blistering pace of 20 mph. Two hours later (11:30), we arrived at Agua Caliente -- the end of the train ride and jump off point for Machupicchu. We met our guide and were told that others would be joining our tourist group from a later train -- come back in twenty minutes. After the others arrived, we boarded a bus for the trip from Agua Caliente to Machupicchu -- a twenty minute, up the hill, switchback laden, dirt road that frequently did not accomodate two way traffic. Once on top of the mountain (8,000 to 9,000 feet altitude), we were instantly introduced to the psysiological effects of high altitude, we had a 10 minute walk uphill on a stone stairways to begin the tour. Boy, was I wheezing!
A little history. Machupicchu was built in a period spanning the 1400's and 1500's. It was a place for the Inca nobles to relax and worship their Gods. The site sits on top of a mountain and is surrounded by mountain peaks in all quadrants. There were 80+ Inca villages that surrounded Machupicchu and provided the labor for building the structures and farming the land to provide food for the visitors. The entire complex could house approximately 700 people. Machupicchu was never discovered by the Spanish Conquistadores and remained a lost city until the early 1900's when Hiram Bingham (a U.S. archeologist) discovered the site. Why the Inca's left the city is unknown.
Well, we spent the next two hours stumbling around on the stone walkways -- in and out of the structures. The important building, temples, etc., received extra attention on the stonework and the pieces fit like an expensive jigsaw puzzle -- pretty amazing considering the stones were all hand cut with crude implements. Interestingly, the entire site is a series of terraces that would have been farmed to supply food. The buildings were constructed on some of the terraces. And in line with the Peruvian way, llamas are used to maintain the lawns.
After our two hour tour of the ruins, we took the twenty minute bus ride back to Agua Caliente where we had to wait until 7:00 p.m. (four hours) to board the train bound for Ollantaytambo. Our taxi driver met us and then we had the one and a half ride back to Cusco. Now, I don't consider myself faint of heart but I will say the taxi ride back was one cushion biting event -- at night, in the mountains, third world taxi driver (get the picture). We arrived at our hotel in Cusco at 11:30 p.m. -- a full day and some for another.
Pictures later.
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