Having heard so much about Machu Picchu (MP) and having seen the photos, it was great to finally get to experience it ourselves.  Our  time in Peru started with a rest day in Sacred Valley, which we badly needed both to recover from Galapagos and to acclimatize to the higher altitude.  Neither of us felt great or had any energy.  A short walk to the market in the town was all we could manage. And we were taking our altitude pills, drinking cocoa tea and even eating cocoa candies. Thanks to TripAdvisor we found a very good restaurant on the train platform so that improved the mood.

 

 

After taking the scenic Vistadome train to Agua Caliente and checking into our hotel, we had quite a hairy bus ride up a very windy mountain road.

 

We had a passionate guide who was determined that we would learn her standard routine spiel about the history of MP, whether we were interested or not. Mostly we were interested and Dick asked lots of questions.  In brief, MP was started by the Inca’s in 1450 and building continued for 90 years to 1540 when the Spanish came.  It was rediscovered by the West by Prof Hiram Bingham in 1911, and was largely overgrown then.  Bingham took lots of photos and realized it was a special place.  Of course the locals already knew it was there and were farming parts of it.  We spent 3 hours walking around the lower part of the city.  In the peak season 7000 people per day visit.  We probably only visited it with 4000 others but that was enough.  The rain curbed our enthusiasm somewhat but the guide insisted we learn about all the important places and how the people lived there. Both of us were tired (and wet) as we’d climbed up and down so many stairs all afternoon in the rain.

 

 

 

Our Day 2 at MP was much better.  No guide, better weather and we’d both had a much needed good sleep. Also we had a plan to see the upper sections that afforded the good views. Even got to the upper guardhouse and took some pics before it started to drizzle.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Missed our transfer guide when we got off the train (probably our fault as we just pushed thru the crowds), but found him eventually and endured a 2 hour drive again on those windy roads to Cusco in the dark.  Not feeling good and not happy. A good sleep always helps but we probably weren’t ready for a 4.5 hour guided tour of Cusco at 1pm the next day.  Guide knew his stuff but had no people skills.  Saw lots and learned about the history but no break and no food stop did not go over well. Probably not feeling well at the high altitude also colored my impressions.

 

 

Interesting to learn about the Inca and Spanish periods in Cusco.  We saw more archeological ruins before visiting the Basilica Catherdral, which included the first and last churches built by the Spaniards.  In the Spanish churches our guide delighted in showing us famous paintings that included Inca symbols, unbeknownst to the Spanish who did all in their power to destroy the Inca culture.  It sounded like the Inca’s seemed to leverage the skills and knowledge of the civilizations they conquered (ie in engineering, medicine, architecture etc) in contrast to the approach of the Spanish who destroyed the buildings, culture and religion and enslaved the indigenous people.  Today Cusco feels very old with its narrow cobblestone streets and old stone buildings. The population is 500,000 and 65% work in tourism.