The Epic Macchu Picchu Adventure Table of Contents:
I: Getting There
II: The Amazingly Wonderful Place
III: Leaving
I: Getting There
Getting to Macchu Picchu is an epic journey, no matter what route one takes. I would have liked to have treked along the Inca trail for four days, or have taken one of the alternate jungle routes, or taken the train from Cusco. However, not having much time nor money, we chose the following option...
We went to the Santiago bus terminal, located at the outskirts of Cusco, at 8 pm and borded the coach-style bus to Santa Maria. There was only one minor scary part in the middle of the night when we all had to jump off the bus into the driving rain so that the driver could navigate the bus through a pile of rubble that had fallen from the cliff above.
We arrived in Santa Maria at 2:30 in the morning and had to wait for the "combi" or small bus to Santa Teresa which would arrive at 4:00am. Lillian and I, along with the other travelers (a group of Argentinian guys, a Dutch couple, and some locals) hid from the rain under the only shelter available and tried to sleep on the wooden crates stored there.
Finally the combi arrived and we piled in. It was another three hours or so to Santa Teresa. I was asleep for the first half, but the second half was perhaps the most nerve-wracking ride of my life! The mountain pass very steep, very sinuous, not very wide, and very very high. I was ready to kiss the ground when we reached our destination!
When the combi dropped us off, we signed in with the park police and began the 5 hour walk to Aguas Calientes, the town just next to Macchu Picchu. From the registrar, one must cross a bridge to a train station. From there, one can board teh train or walk along the tracks. We chose to walk. However, it was still poring tropical rain, so we decided to join an Argentinian man for breakfast and wait out the deluge.
After great conversation about life with the man, the cook, and the cooks little daughter, we put on our ponchos and headed down the tracks in the rain. It was a great route, hopping from wooden track to track, stopping to rescue snails and to look at the plants! We were both well ready to find a shower and a bed to nap in when we got to Aguas Calientes!
Part II: The Stair Master of the 15th Century!We woke up at 4am in order to be the among first to arrive at Macchu Picchu and perhaps see the sun rise from there. (I actually woke at 3:30 because I was so excited!) We stumbled sleepily into the street and met up with a group of English folks also headed for the ruins. The group of us walked down the hill from Aguas Calientes, by the light of our flash lights, to the base of the mountain. From there, we walked about one hour straight up on stone stairs, the morning slowly growing brighter as we ascended. It was an exhausting climb and by the middle, Lil and I had left the rest of the group in our dust. At 5:45, quads burning, we reached the entrance of the ruins and had to wait until 6 for the gates to open.
We showed our tickets and walked through the gate into a land of deep green grass and grey stone shrouded in a dense fog. The famous ruins refered to as Macchu Picchu is hidden between two very large mountains, one called Macchu (old) Picchu (mountain), and the other Waynu (new) Picchu. On the top of Waynu Picchu, there is a sacred temple. Because only a limited number of people are allowed up there each day, we had been advised to make that our first stop. It took us about an hour to hike up the steep stone stairs to the top. We arrived thirsty and breathless (the elevation gain is 1000m from the gates to the top of WaynuPicchu), just in time to watch the fog peel away in thick sheets. Below us, the ruins were revealed as the clouds gave way to sunlight and blue sky.
With care, we decended Waynu Picchu, leaving the serenity of that mountain for the crowds and heat of the main part of the site. (Nothing could detract from the majesty of the ruins, however. The history and sacred energy transcends the tourist attraction it has become.) We walked through the stone buildings and hallways, across the green terraces, up to the stone temples, marveling and piecing together the story of the Incan empire that once was. I tried to feel what it might have been like to have been the princess that lived in the round tower, or a priest sacrificing a llama in the temple of the sun, or a servant planting crops for the rulers. We didn´t want to pay for a guide, so we walked the suggested route through the ruins backwards, in order to discretly eavesdrop on tour groups for bits of historical information. We learned about the structures that correspond with the equinoxes, the small pools of water that helped the astronomers track the stars, and about the temples dedicated to Pachimama, or Mother Earth. We learned about the symbology that is so everpresent in nearly every structure built by the Incas. We ended up staying until they kicked us out at closing time, pausing only to eat our picnic lunch and to buy a bottle of water that was ten times as expensive as it should have been.
III. Getting away...
After closing time, we had to walk down the billions of steps back to Aguas Calientes. We were passed by local boys, dressed in traditional garb, running down the slippery stairs without worry.
Back in town, we met up with our friend Tristan, who happened to be there too. We decided to go back to Cusco together.
The next morning we took a train to the hydro electric plant, then a combi to Santa Theresa. We had to switch combis...I was the last one out of the first combi, so did not have a seat, which meant I got to ride in the front seat with the driver and his mate. That meant I got to choose the music, from a limited number of tapes. The driver had a groupo cinco tape, so we listened to that.
After some hours, we arrived in Santa Maria, where we had to wait for another bus. We passed the time by forming a great group of internationals...some from Brazil, Holland, Belgium, etc.
On the final bus, I got to sit next to a woman who taught me some of the Quechua language. She was traveling with her children, who were fascinated by the gringos, and their pet monkey.
Thus ends my loooong post.
