Up at the unholy hour of 4.15 so that we could join the queue for the first buses up to the Machu Picchu site. There were stacks of peopled queuing already when we arrived at the bus station half an hour later, mostly under the age of 25 and white. There was a sense of keen competition in the air as we were all vying (so we thought) for 400 tickets to climb Huana Picchu – this is the massive mountain that you see behind the ruins in the “classic” Machu Picchu photo (second in popularity only to that photo everyone takes in front of the Taj Mahal!).
First glimpse of MP from on high
Despite a desperate last-minute rush to buy bus tickets (everyone else had done this the night before we discovered), we made it and in fact were among the first into the Huayna Picchu site. It was a clear morning and walking through the centre of Machu Picchu was an intense and magical experience, very much worth the expense and hassle of getting there.
Llamas in the central plaza
Ceremonial Baths
I girded my loins and faced my fear of heights, the climb taking about 3 hours in total up and down the mountain; when we came down for a late breakfast it had started to rain, and soggy tourists were clambering all around the ruins. Despite the rain and the anachronisticly colourful guided tour groups, it was an amazing experience. We rounded the day off by walking back down the mountain, an experience we are still recovering from as I write this more than a day later.
Laur and me near the summit of Huayna Picchu
Sacred Valley from Huayna Picchu
Laur outside caretakers hut, huayna picchu in background
Farewell to a genuine wonder of the world
In the late afternoon, we soaked our aching limbs in the hot mineral baths that gave Aguas Calientes (hot waters) its name, drinking Cusqueno beer with the towering Andes in the background. We rounded off probably my favourite Monday to date, with dinner at an eccentric frenchman’s restaurant – far and away the best food we’d eaten in Peru, picky westerners that we are.
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