What a long and wonderful day it has been. I couldn´t sleep last night as I was so excited abuot visiting Machu Picchu. Plus the people in this hostel were so bloody noisy.
Anyway, I got up at 4am, and set off for Machu Picchu which was 8 kms away. I walked and walked, up the steep steps from the town below (Aguas Caliente). I finally arrive at the top, sweating like a pig as dawn approache. However the gates only open at 6am, but an atmosphere of excitment ripple through the people gathered outside. And when the gates were finally opened, everyone rush through. Only to miss the sun rise as the entire site was shrouded by mist and fog.
The well preserved stone house.
It was almost like a mirage when the ancient ruins revealed itself. I could not believe how well preserved the site was! I did learn later that 30% of the site was restored. I was simply blown away by how well Machu Picchu fits perfectly into it´s surrounding. The dull grey colours of the blocks, the steep steps which zig zags up and down, those symetrical terraces... There was a perfect harmony in it. I was told that the rocks were all queried from the same mountain. This was smart as it would have been a bitch to carry these blocks up to it´s lofty height of 2,430 metres! After entering the site and exploring a bit I quickly ran to the entrance of it´s sister mountain, Hauayna Picchu. And out there I bump into Laird, a friend from Sucre, Bolivia. Together we climb up the steep stone steps to 2,720 metres for an awesome view over Machu Picchu and it´s surrounding valley.
Climbing the steep steps.
This was the moment I caught myself saying: IT WAS WORTH IT! And yes I was thinking "Machu RIP-chu" yesterday, after paying a hefty 77USD on a return train ticket and 40USD on entrance. I really was mad at the feeling of being ripped. Also, I had been rather bias towards my number 1 wonder: Angkor Wat in Cambodia. But comparing the both is like comparing apples and oranges. Machu Picchu hasn´t got the intricate carvings or huge statues, it isn´t set around a jungle, instead the ruins of Machu Picchu has archive harmony in this environment and it is set in a magical setting of tall slender mountains and deep narrow valleys. What the Incas have achieve here will go down in time as one of the greatest wonder the world has seen.
Click on wikipedia to find out the history and more about this amazing site.
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