Machu Pichu

We woke up at 3:50am and excitedly met our friends to begin the ascent from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu. After passing through the park gate we joined the snake of keen head-torch wearing hikers eager to conquer the 3200 steps and beat the sunrise.

And what a reward awaited us... the Inka's hidden kingdom!!! It didn't seem real! Almost suspended between the green jagged Andean peaks it sits there as it has since the mid 15th century- mystical and majestic, truly looking like something out of a fairytale. We took advantage of being some of the first to arrive for the day and snapped up some sweet pictures in the dawn light.

Andres began the tour of the site with some history- Machu Picchu means 'old peak' in Quechuan. It was built around 1450 at the height of the Inka Emperor and was a sacred place believed to be used by priests and the most noble members of their society. The site was abandoned a century later however around the time of the Spanish Conquest. Although it is located only 80km from the Inka capital Cuzco, the site remained hidden and consequently it was not destroyed by the Spanish (in an attempt to eradicate pagan worshipping of the sun gods most Inka sites were destroyed). Over the centuries the jungle grew over the site and it wasn't known to the western world until 1911!

We learnt so much exploring but here are some of the highlights for me:

The engineering of this place is incredible! Every stone is put in a specific place for a specific reason and the city is designed to last forever! For example trapezoidal windows and doorways were built and no mortar used to ensure the buildings were earthquake proof. Sophisticated irrigation systems run from a spring in Machu Picchu mountain to supply the city with fresh drinking water and drainage in the rainy season to prevent flooding or the ground weakening from the rain. Furthermore the whole city is aligned with the sun, compass directions and constellations. Windows make perfect shadows at the solstices and equinoxes and everything is carefully designed worship of the sun god. This place really blew my mind. The Inka people were so intelligent and their city is an absolute masterpiece!

Within the city their are so many organised areas, temples with their smooth stonework for worshipping the four elements: water, fire, wind and earth; tiered fields for growing crops or stabilising the site; assembly points with perfect acoustics and      quarries where they broke stones by inserting wood into cracks and wetting the wood so it expanded and broke the stones!! Incredible!

At the end of the tour we said 'sulpulchi' to Andre, which is the Quechua alternative to goodbye meaning rather 'see you in the next life' and took a photo with him with Salkantay Mountain in the background. This reminded us how far we had come over the past five days of trekking and justified the ache in our calves.

We were now on our own and quickly got lost amongst the 200 stone buildings. Ged was highly distracted by the llamas- they are hilarious and roam the ancient city like they own it!! It was magic to just wander but we decided that we hadn't had enough exercise in the last few days and that we really should climb another mountain, this time Machu Picchu at 2430m. It was a hard slog with the sun beating down on us and somewhat hairy as the paths were narrow with steep drop offs. Henry got the nickname Smeagle as he scrambled on all fours, terrified of the cliffs. Ged was I think cursing me and my love of mountains and suggested multiple times that we turn around. An hour and a half later we made it the top, absolutely knackered (see photo of Ged for evidence). The view was unreal though, you got a great perspective of how ingeniously the site fit together geographically with snowcapped andies on the horizon and the powerful Urubamba river wrapping itself around the site like a python below. We made sandwiches and took in the overwhelming view before descending.

After chatting with some more llamas, walking more inca steps and taking in our last glimpses of this world wonder we collapsed in a heap and drank our weight in water. We descended the 3200 steps and found a spot to sip beers, share stories and eat pizza before out 4:20 train came.

Peru and other wild things

Valparaiso seems far away now as we sit on our bus Bolivia bound. We have been traveling at a frenetic pace trying to fit as much in before our third wheel (Molar) disappears.

On our return to Santiago we managed to squeeze in a quick trip to the Museum of Memories - quick because it took us 30 minutes of walking to find it 30 secs from the station exit. The museum has a permanent installation that is devoted to the period that Chile was subject to the rule of Pinochet. It was a sobering experience as we listened to testimonials of torture of all kinds being committed in literally thousands of locations across Chile. It is sad to think that not only did the western world do little to stop these atrocities but that they contributed to the environment that led to Pinochet's coup - President Nixon's words sum up the attitude of the western world to a socialist Chile "make their economy scream".

A short flight later and we picked up Molar from the lost property box in Lima. To celebrate our reunion we had traditional Peruvian cuisine and thanks to my limited Spanish I ordered ceviche a raw fish dish that thankfully caused no harm.

As Molar had been in Lima for a few days already he was able to give us a personal tour of the city where we learnt a bit about Lima and a lot about his absence of a sense of direction. That being said we did get to see some ruins that dated back to pre Inka times. While the tour was informative it was also entertaining to look at the "representations" of the builders and their burial practices.  We did have cause to question the "restoration" of the site as there were significant parts of the pyramid being built by workers as we watched.   

A short flight and a cup of coffee later and we were gasping for breath in Cusco. Our first full day having been allocated as an acclimitizaion day Sarah decided to enroll us in a walking tour of Cusco. While it was perhaps disappointing compared to others we have been on, it did teach us a little about the size of the Incan empire as well as some interesting tidbits about the city of Cusco. Jumping ship from the tour half way we visited the Cultural Museum which is dedicated to the history of the region from before the Inka empire through to a couple of centuries after the Spanish invasion.  While it was short on detailed information it was nonetheless a great summary of 2000 years of history and one of the installations showed actual mummies.

That night we had the briefing for our much anticipated 5 day Salkantay Trek (this is the harder and consequently less popular version of the Inca Trail) and met Andres, our guide, for the first time. The combination of intelligence, knowledge, sarcasm, patriotism, cynicism and an extraordinary sense of fun proved to make him an absolutely fantastic guide for our trek. The only problem I had with him is false advertising - the trek should be pitched as "Fucking hard but rewarding".

Day One:
We wake up at 3 am and stumble into the town square to catch a bus that finds every ditch for 3 hours before stopping for breakfast in Molapata. We handed over our large packs to the horsemen and shouldered our day packs and started our trek. This first day of trekking is the second hardest and Andres constantly reminds us is a measure of our condition to see if we can do the hardest day - day 2. I struggle. On what few flats and downhills there are I am able to laugh and joke with my new "family" but at the slightest incline my lungs betray me and I am reduced to gasping for oxygen. It is hard to remain pessimistic however as we stop every now and again to take in the stunning scenery of the rolling hills that we are trekking in - did I forget to mention we are in the Andes?!!

Andres strategical chooses opportunities to teach us about the Quechua (this is the name of the Inka culture,  Inka means king in Quechuan and so is a reference to only 14 people that were kings and not the culture) history and culture before or after particular steep sections. Two particular lessons remain with me, the first are the three pivotal rules of the Quechuan's:
1. Don't be lazy;
2. Do not lie;
3. Do not steal.
Andres would often quote rule 2 whenever telling us the less believable of his stories.

The second is the Quechuan's belief in the three worlds and the animals that represent each level:
1. The celestial life  (heaven) which is represented by the bird the Condor;
2. The present life which is represented by the puma;
3. The underworld which is represented by the snake.
Andres would often point out rock or star or mountain formations that resembled these creatures - although we never saw a real life one of any.

Lunch is worth mentioning as it is representative of all our meals on the trek - vegetable soup, followed by a main of combination of pasta, rice, potato and possibly meat which was rounded out with cocoa tea (the exact effects of which still allude me).

A total of 8 hours walking found us at our camp site by early afternoon and after some star gazing we were quickly asleep.

Day 2
High altitude and low temperatures make for a poor sleep but we awoke to a soon to be familiar call of "Cocoa tea amigos,  cocoa tea?". Shortly after we started climbing to make the Salkantay pass from a starting altitude of 3600m to 4600m above sea level. While we surrounded by the most beautiful scenery I've ever seen from beautiful lush green fields to snow capped mountains; it was physically the most challenging thing I've ever done. Sarah thought it was a walk in the park. The last 200 vertical metres my feet were  moving only 10-15cm at a step, Sarah to her credit walked with me.

The top was amazing! Mostly because I could now breathe as I was walking down hill but also the views and the sense of accomplishment. Andres guided us in a traditional ceremony of thanks to the mountains and Pacha mama (mother earth) where we placed the rocks we had carried from the bottom up to the pass and Sarah gave me a heart attack as she jumped on a rock near the ledge. Our descent to the next camp was quick and easy and we became fast friends with Henry an Englishman how was part of our group.

Day 3
Today we descended into the rain forest (in the dry season) and saw an amazing variety of plants from strawberries to eucalyptus to bamboo and crossed far too many stick bridges. For much of the day we trekked with Louise, Helen, Nicole and Kendra some of whom we are having further adventures with. We stayed up late and celebrated that night, mostly because there was a shop with beer in it (1.1L cost $4 AU), partly because it was the first night we weren't drop dead exhausted and lastly because we had almost definitely survived the trek. We were in bed by 10pm.

Day 4
At some point in the last 2 months I had decided it would be a good idea to face my fear of heights by zip lining in a 3rd world country. I was less convinced now and I think Sarah was less convinced. After some initial nerves and some CBT I was strapped in and pushed off and to my surprise, it was amazing!!! 6 zip lines later and I was traveling upside down,  my feet holding me in position. Not to be outdone Sarah let go completely and was spinning around as she flew down the line. Molar was a bit scared. Proof it happened... http://youtu.be/oOcXJXMgTa0

A bus ride later and we were reunited with some of our walkers and walked along the picturesque train line that meanders through the Andes to Aguas Caliente, our final destination before Machu Pichu.

Day 5
Sarah takes over for our exploration of Machu Pichu as it deserves it's own post, it will follow soon!