This past Sunday we got a late start heading to Chinchero. Unfortunately, mom had gotten quite a few bad bug bites on her legs and has been trying to deal with the itchiness for these previous days. We arrived to the ruins around noon, and walked around them for a while. Chinchero was cool, however after seeing other Inca architecture it is not quite as impressive. One thing that does set it apart, however, is the Spanish colonial church built right atop the ruins. There were also very few tourists, meaning we had the place practically to ourselves the entire time, which was pretty relaxing. After checking out the ruins we tried to score some lunch there but all the restaurants seemed to be closed. Luckily, I ran into a guide and he directed me to a large familiar home where they would supposedly serve us lunch if we spoke Spanish well (and we do). At first it seemed like they had just finished eating themselves and that we wouldn't be able to find service, but they were kind and offered to reheat the meal for us. The food itself was quite good and the family was very kind, although they had a human skull as decoration that kind of made us a little uneasy. After our meal, we went down to the Sunday market in Chinchero, which is a good deal less touristy than the Pisaq market, and bought some more gifts to take home with us.
Afterwards, we caught a combi back down to Urubamba and decided to buy our tickets to Santa Maria for that night at 9 P.M., so that we would have enough time get to Aguas Calientes A.K.A. Machu Picchu Village the following day. We went back to the Llama Pack, packed up our bags, made dinner, and then said our goodbyes to Coqui and Alejandra. We took a Tuk-Tuk down to the bus station and waited there for about an hour and a half until the bus arrived (late, as usual). The bus ride was a bit long and took us all the way to the other side of the mountains. We got some good views due to the brightness of the moon, but the winding roads and the squeaky breaks were a little unsettling.
We arrived in Santa Maria at around 2:30 A.M., and our next step was to take a taxi to Santa Teresa. After packing the taxi with 5 passengers, the driver took us down a curvy dirt road very fast. The road was actually quite scary, but fun once you got used to it. To our right there was a crumbly cliff line above us, and to our a left a dark drop-off. The taxi crossed little streams every now and then, and even a rickety wooden bridge that could only support 3 tons maximum. After about an hour of this, we arrived in the little town of Santa Teresa. Surprisingly, lots of people seemed to be awake at this time so we had no trouble finding a cheap hostel for the night.
The next day, we awoke at ten and got some decent breakfast. Afterwards, we walked twenty minutes from the town to the natural hot springs of Colcamayu. The springs were great: cheap, clean, great scenery, and very few people. We soaked away our troubles an aches for about an hour, then walked back to our cheap, little hostel. When we got there, the owner offered us to rest a bit there, which we gladly accepted. The rest turned into a 2-hour nap, and we awoke at 3 P.M., a bit worried that we might not have enough time to make it to Aguas Calientes before nightfall. We hurriedly packed our belongings, thanked the owner, and then caught another taxi to the Hydro-electrical plant up the river. The road was similar to that we had just took to from Santa Maria, however it was the day time and we could see the amazing landscapes, including waterfalls, mountains, and the raging Urubamba river.
At our arrival to the Hydro-electric station, we began our two hour hike along the train-tracks to Aguas Calientes. The trail was surprisingly well used, and the walk was amazing. The scenery of the Inca Jungle was that of which I had never witnessed before here in Peru. Dramatic mountains covered in greenery, exotic plants like banana and avocado trees, and the calls of various different tropical bird species. After about two hours, when the day began to grow dark, we finally arrived to the civilization in the middle of the jungle known as Aguas Calientes. By this time, were both pretty tired from hauling our gear all that way, and so settled on the first hostel we could find there. It wasn't too cheap, but then again nothing in the Machu Picchu Village is. After grabbing some pizza and beer, we reluctantly went to go buy train tickets back to Ollantaytambo, seeing as that we would not have enough to to return the way we came before mom had to leave from Cusco. The train tickets were extremely expensive, about $70 each for an hour and a half ride, and what's worse is that the Peruvians are only charged 10 soles a piece. Feeling hurt by this injustice, we resolved to walk the way up to Machu Picchu the following day instead of buying $20 bus tickets.
The next morning, we woke up at 5 A.M. to get an early start for out big day. After making a simple breakfast of banana-peanut-butter sandwiches and coffee, we got on our way at 6 A.M. The walk up to the gates of Machu Picchu was not too easy, about an hour of stairs going straight up. Luckily for me, I had been so well acclimatized that in the lower altitudes I was not winded whatsoever. Mom had a slightly more difficult time, yet we made it to the gates at 7:30. When we entered, the clouds were still covering the sight but we caught some glimpses of the amazing Inca Citadel. We decided we should use our Machu Picchu mountain passes before the checkpoint closed, so we did another two hours of walking straight up to the tallest mountain above Machu Picchu. The path was not easy, a bit sketchy at times, and at the top the clouds were still to thick to see anything, but we made it nevertheless. We hung out for a bit, ate some snacks and fruit, then decided it was time to head back down.
Once we got back to the bottom, we got our first real views of Machu Picchu. Being on of the wonders of the world, everyone has seen it in pictures, but it is truly even more spectacular in real life. Not just the buildings and the architecture, but the landscape surrounding it and all the wildlife within. We walked around the sight, maneuvering our way through the herds of tourists, getting our pictures and checking out various parts. Honestly, it was a bit much to take it all in at once. Mom was also very tired from the mountain we had conquered. After spending several hours marveling at the genius of the Inca, we decided it was time to head back. On our way out, we encountered several llamas who were employed as full time lawn-mowers for Machu Picchu.
We walked all the way back down the steps, back to Aguas Calientes, and grabbed some lunch before our train. We realized that the longer we stayed in that area, the more money we would spend. Even though the sight was amazing, we were glad to get out of the tourist trap. We boarded the over-priced Inca Rail at 6:30, and were on our way back to Ollantaytambo. After several delays, and making a few friends with the people sitting next to me, we finally arrived to Ollantaytambo at 9:00 P.M. From there, we caught a auto to Urubamba and decided to stay another night in the Llama Pack Hostel. Upon arrival, we encountered a group packing up for their 4-day llama hike to the surrounding communites in the mountains-sounds like fun! We made ourselves a modest dinner, took showers, and got some much deserved sleep after a long day.
My consensus: Machu Picchu is amazing and is totally worth the journey no matter how you get there. However, it is a bit expensive and very crowded. After visiting other Inca ruins in the Sacred Valley, the architecture was not quite as shocking, in fact mom and I both found it comparable to Pisaq, however the surrounding mountains and jungle make its location very special. If you're in Peru, you ought to go, but perhaps check out some of the other sights as well, they are also quite amazing.
Today, we are heading back to Cusco to stay one more night in Marina's hostel before mom returns to the U.S. tomorrow. I myself, am returning this Sunday. Looks like we'll be taking it easy these next few days, but I'll keep you all informed on what's up. Hope to see you all soon when I get back to the States! Alrighty then, Chao, amigos.
Afterwards, we caught a combi back down to Urubamba and decided to buy our tickets to Santa Maria for that night at 9 P.M., so that we would have enough time get to Aguas Calientes A.K.A. Machu Picchu Village the following day. We went back to the Llama Pack, packed up our bags, made dinner, and then said our goodbyes to Coqui and Alejandra. We took a Tuk-Tuk down to the bus station and waited there for about an hour and a half until the bus arrived (late, as usual). The bus ride was a bit long and took us all the way to the other side of the mountains. We got some good views due to the brightness of the moon, but the winding roads and the squeaky breaks were a little unsettling.
We arrived in Santa Maria at around 2:30 A.M., and our next step was to take a taxi to Santa Teresa. After packing the taxi with 5 passengers, the driver took us down a curvy dirt road very fast. The road was actually quite scary, but fun once you got used to it. To our right there was a crumbly cliff line above us, and to our a left a dark drop-off. The taxi crossed little streams every now and then, and even a rickety wooden bridge that could only support 3 tons maximum. After about an hour of this, we arrived in the little town of Santa Teresa. Surprisingly, lots of people seemed to be awake at this time so we had no trouble finding a cheap hostel for the night.
The next day, we awoke at ten and got some decent breakfast. Afterwards, we walked twenty minutes from the town to the natural hot springs of Colcamayu. The springs were great: cheap, clean, great scenery, and very few people. We soaked away our troubles an aches for about an hour, then walked back to our cheap, little hostel. When we got there, the owner offered us to rest a bit there, which we gladly accepted. The rest turned into a 2-hour nap, and we awoke at 3 P.M., a bit worried that we might not have enough time to make it to Aguas Calientes before nightfall. We hurriedly packed our belongings, thanked the owner, and then caught another taxi to the Hydro-electrical plant up the river. The road was similar to that we had just took to from Santa Maria, however it was the day time and we could see the amazing landscapes, including waterfalls, mountains, and the raging Urubamba river.
At our arrival to the Hydro-electric station, we began our two hour hike along the train-tracks to Aguas Calientes. The trail was surprisingly well used, and the walk was amazing. The scenery of the Inca Jungle was that of which I had never witnessed before here in Peru. Dramatic mountains covered in greenery, exotic plants like banana and avocado trees, and the calls of various different tropical bird species. After about two hours, when the day began to grow dark, we finally arrived to the civilization in the middle of the jungle known as Aguas Calientes. By this time, were both pretty tired from hauling our gear all that way, and so settled on the first hostel we could find there. It wasn't too cheap, but then again nothing in the Machu Picchu Village is. After grabbing some pizza and beer, we reluctantly went to go buy train tickets back to Ollantaytambo, seeing as that we would not have enough to to return the way we came before mom had to leave from Cusco. The train tickets were extremely expensive, about $70 each for an hour and a half ride, and what's worse is that the Peruvians are only charged 10 soles a piece. Feeling hurt by this injustice, we resolved to walk the way up to Machu Picchu the following day instead of buying $20 bus tickets.
The next morning, we woke up at 5 A.M. to get an early start for out big day. After making a simple breakfast of banana-peanut-butter sandwiches and coffee, we got on our way at 6 A.M. The walk up to the gates of Machu Picchu was not too easy, about an hour of stairs going straight up. Luckily for me, I had been so well acclimatized that in the lower altitudes I was not winded whatsoever. Mom had a slightly more difficult time, yet we made it to the gates at 7:30. When we entered, the clouds were still covering the sight but we caught some glimpses of the amazing Inca Citadel. We decided we should use our Machu Picchu mountain passes before the checkpoint closed, so we did another two hours of walking straight up to the tallest mountain above Machu Picchu. The path was not easy, a bit sketchy at times, and at the top the clouds were still to thick to see anything, but we made it nevertheless. We hung out for a bit, ate some snacks and fruit, then decided it was time to head back down.
Once we got back to the bottom, we got our first real views of Machu Picchu. Being on of the wonders of the world, everyone has seen it in pictures, but it is truly even more spectacular in real life. Not just the buildings and the architecture, but the landscape surrounding it and all the wildlife within. We walked around the sight, maneuvering our way through the herds of tourists, getting our pictures and checking out various parts. Honestly, it was a bit much to take it all in at once. Mom was also very tired from the mountain we had conquered. After spending several hours marveling at the genius of the Inca, we decided it was time to head back. On our way out, we encountered several llamas who were employed as full time lawn-mowers for Machu Picchu.
We walked all the way back down the steps, back to Aguas Calientes, and grabbed some lunch before our train. We realized that the longer we stayed in that area, the more money we would spend. Even though the sight was amazing, we were glad to get out of the tourist trap. We boarded the over-priced Inca Rail at 6:30, and were on our way back to Ollantaytambo. After several delays, and making a few friends with the people sitting next to me, we finally arrived to Ollantaytambo at 9:00 P.M. From there, we caught a auto to Urubamba and decided to stay another night in the Llama Pack Hostel. Upon arrival, we encountered a group packing up for their 4-day llama hike to the surrounding communites in the mountains-sounds like fun! We made ourselves a modest dinner, took showers, and got some much deserved sleep after a long day.
My consensus: Machu Picchu is amazing and is totally worth the journey no matter how you get there. However, it is a bit expensive and very crowded. After visiting other Inca ruins in the Sacred Valley, the architecture was not quite as shocking, in fact mom and I both found it comparable to Pisaq, however the surrounding mountains and jungle make its location very special. If you're in Peru, you ought to go, but perhaps check out some of the other sights as well, they are also quite amazing.
Today, we are heading back to Cusco to stay one more night in Marina's hostel before mom returns to the U.S. tomorrow. I myself, am returning this Sunday. Looks like we'll be taking it easy these next few days, but I'll keep you all informed on what's up. Hope to see you all soon when I get back to the States! Alrighty then, Chao, amigos.
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