Machu Picchu and Things

I know it has been an extremely long time since I have wrote. But these are my excuses; first, I had finals here. I had two exams, two presentations, a negotiation simulation and a final paper. So I was being very studious (for the first time since arriving!) and prepping and finishing those things. I think I did well in all my classes, I am still waiting for two grades but the two I have gotten were good and everything was in Spanish!

Once I finished classes, I had a couple days full of good-byes to all the semester people and only one breakdown on my part about staying for a year and being here for Christmas. So I would say I handled it pretty well.

After all this, Mari’s best friend and my Facebook friend, Jane came to visit us and we set off on a ten day adventure! This part of the story is way more interesting than the school description so, I will describe it in detail.

CUZCO

Cuzco is the town most people go to for awhile before visiting Machu Picchu. We decided to take a plane there, as it was almost as cheap as taking a bus, not to mention 19 hours shorter. So, we hopped on an early morning flight and I promptly fell asleep and missed all the scenery. Arriving in Cuzco, we took a cab and walked around the main plaza to find a hostel. We found a cheap one that met Mari’s standards of cleanliness and my standards of security and set out to explore. Cuzco is so CUTE. It has this great architecture that is a mix of Inca stone work and colonial style.

We walked around Cuzco and bought tickets for Machu Picchu and the train and our bus ride. There were some stressful moments with a women who was not terribly helpful in getting us our student cards, but we completed our errands and had all afternoon to explore!

We went to a religious art museum and were educated by a recorded tour. Mari snuck some photos, and I was thoroughly impressed although the only thing I remember is an Organ that was the first one to arrive in South America. Side note: the musical kind, not the human body kind.

After this we walked up the cobble-stone streets past lots of blue doors and found a great place for lunch! We all decided to try the Alpaca meat, but with different flavors. Jane and I had it in a rosemary sauce, Mari has it saltado, and Nico in a wine sauce. Served with tequeños (think wonton wrapper around cream cheese and guacamole) and pisco sours (traditional drink with egg white, lime, and peruvian alcohol called Pisco) it was all delicious!

Later, we went and walked around a plaza and some markets, where Nico, Mari and Jane were harassed by a shoe shiner and a women selling some small items. I watched and took pictures.

We ended the night with some hot chocolate, and then Jane, Mari and I sat in the main plaza and listened to a band consisting of old peruvian men playing a variety from the Beatles to a more typical peruvian style. The plaza was decorated for Christmas, and I would say the moment was quite magical.

SACRED VALLEY

All around Machu Picchu there are other ruins and on our way to take the train we decided to explore a few. We crammed on a tiny bus with other Peruvians and got dropped off in a town that seemed in the middle of no where. After hiring a taxi, we got to some amazing ruins in Pisac. They were gorgeous, I wish we had more time to spend there.

After Pisac we drove to Ollantaytambo, where you take the train to Machu Picchu. There were some ruins we explored there. My favorite part about this site were 3 cute brazilians and when Mari and I touched a roped off rock.

Finally, we were on the train to Machu Picchu. And I sat right next to the Brazillian! But he didn’t speak much English or Spanish. And there was an Australian across the table talking Jane and I’s ears off. Mari and I passed notes across the aisle.

MACHU PICCHU!

In order to take the very first bus up the mountain we woke up at 4:30 in the morning and got outside and in line. I bought some coffee from a street vendor to aid in the waking up process, but I was so excited I almost didn’t need it! The bus wound up the mountain, and then... I WAS THERE!

Machu Picchu is like a jungle ruin on top of mountains. Basically, completely indescribable. The first thing we did was take a picture to prove we were there. Then we walked up some floating stairs.

Our first hike was to an Inca bridge, which they used to escape. But we couldn’t walk on it because it was made of wood and also right on the edge of a cliff. After this we decided to go to the Sun Gate. This turned out to be a much longer hike than expected. I thought we were there about 3 times before we actually were. And then once we got there some old people showed up and it was just crawling with people (about 10). So, we left. I don’t like crowds.

After this, we had to race across to the other side to make our 10:00 start time for Huayna Picchu. This is a mountain that over looks the ruins of Machu Picchu so you can see everything. This hike consisted of rock stairs that were almost completely vertical. The only safety measure was the occasional rope nailed into the rock face. But it was once again very beautiful. After the difficult climb, some more floating stairs, a ledge jump and a tunnel we reached the top! It was breathtaking. Literally, I thought maybe Mari wasn’t breathing she was so scared. The top was a bunch of rocks with too many people, and Mari’s fear of heights kicked in. On our way back down, she may or may not have had a panic attack and took some of the stairs on her butt. I did my best to be supportive, but I did laugh a little. Although, I must agree it was very dangerous.

After Huayna Picchu we explored the main ruins, which were all pretty great. Although i don’t really remember them too much because I was so tired from all the hiking earlier. My enjoyment of Machu Picchu had a direct correlation to my energy level.

After Machu Picchu, we hit up some hot baths to ease our achey legs. There, we met the sweetest little girl who gave us kisses on the cheek. I would say that was almost as much fun as being at Machu Picchu.

Finally, we ended our adventure taking the train back to Cuzco. Here, I sat next to the Brazilian again! What a perfect ending to a perfect trip.