This was going to be a long day, but we are (finally!) going to the site. By train?
The Hiram Bingham is an upscale train named for the US explorer who “rediscovered” and spread knowledge of Machu Picchu in 1911. The train was nice and followed the Urubamba River along the Sacred Valley.
The train had what I could only call a “glass caboose” for taking in the views as we traveled.
The ride was pleasant and the views reminded me of the fjords of Norway I visited over a year ago. I suppose “water eroding rocks” should look similar, but here we are about 10,000 feet in elevation.
After more than 2 hours we arrived at the modern village of Machu Picchu, which seems to purely support the tourist trade. However, stepping off the train provided a different surprise – of the tropical flower kind. Our guide explained that we crossed ecosystems – from the high mountains into the rain forest. The continental divide in South America is very far west and this Peruvian river is a tributary of the Amazon.
We found our chartered bus and switch-back climbed the 2000 feet to get to the archeological site. Note: you do not have to that the bus as there are stairs. I didn’t see anyone climbing up, but did see many using the stairs down to save 50% of the bus fare.
We needed our passports to confirm out tickets, and we were in. The park uses 10 “circuits” for crowd control – your ticket is for a specific walking circuit. At the start there were yet more steps to take to get to high ground. But we finally found our view of Machu Picchu.
Our guide explained how Machu Picchu construction started about 50 years before Columbus landed and was designed to hold 500-700 people. There was enough rainfall for terraced farming, but for human use an aqueduct was created along the crest of surrounding mountain crests. There is not any agreement of the purpose of this city, probably a mix of religious and political ideas. The site did not last long. When the Spanish showed up and started stomping on everything it was abandoned and the people moved further into the mountains.
About 60 percent of the stones and buildings are original with the remaining 40 percent being repaired. About 30 years ago National Geographic came by to film a documentary and felt the site looked to sterile. They imported a couple dozen llamas, which are still here – they keep the grass under control. The ranger said if you ignore plant maintenance more than a few weeks the jungle starts taking over again.
As we left the park we stopped at a cafe and had hibiscus juice. Which I did not know even existed. Two hours on the train was followed by another hour on the bus to get to our new hotel within Cusco. We arrived after 10pm and left around 7am to make it to the airport to return to Lima and then board the ship.
So, that was my field trip to the roof of the world. It was a lot of time traveling, but the mountain views were amazing.
Machu Picchu is a world heritage site and I’m glad I went. However, I feel no need to return withing escorting friends and/or family. Kind of like my feelings about Antarctica. That compares to Japan or the Galapagos Islands – I’d go back there easily.
We have many sea days on the cruise ship as we cross the Pacific. Lots of small islands between us and New Zealand.