Machu Picchu, Peru

The view of Machu Picchu from the top of Waynu Picchu.

The quintessential photo of Machu Picchu. We also hiked Wayna Picchu (the mountain in the background) where there are more ruins at the top.

The beautiful mountain scenery surrounding the site.

June 6, 2009

On Friday from Ollantaytambo, we took the train to Aguas Calientes. This is the only means of transportation to Aguas Calientes. A.C. is the closest town to Machu Picchu. It contains mostly hotels, hostels, restaurants, and souvenir shops for the loads of tourists that arrive there daily (approx 1000 people/day in the high season). We woke before daybreak on Saturday to watch the sun rise at Machu Picchu. The ruins are amazing as well as the views that surround it, even the 998 other tourists couldn't ruin that.

Pisaq and Ollantaytambo, Peru

A dog and a monkey?


The sun setting above the Inca fortress located on the hillside above town.


This is the town of Ollantaytambo. This picture shows original Inca roads, walls, and irrigation still in use today. This town has been described as one of the best surviving examples of Inca city planning.

Terraces

These are Inca tombs. The cliffs behind the Pisaq site contain hundreds of Inca tombs that were plundered by grave robbers.

Pisaq Ruins

Pisaq Ruins. The trapezoidal windows and doors were typical of all of the Inca ruins.

Corn, corn, and more corn.

The town of Pisaq

The road from the center of Pisaq up to the ruins.
(It also felt like going around a race track)

June 5

Peru was the end of our South America part of the trip, and time is not always on our side….(although we are not complaining J) we opted to do our own two day trip to Machu Picchu instead of a longer multi-day Inca Trail hike. In between our stay at Cusco we left early Friday for Aguas Calientes (the closest town to Machu Picchu) visiting Pisaq and Ollantaytambo along the way. Pisaq is a small colonial village that sits beside a river with a large Inca Ruin on the mountain side above. It is the starting point of the Sacred Valley. Ollantaytambo is another Inca village (the next stop on our trip toward Aguas Calientes). Its narrow cobblestone streets have been continuously inhabited for over 700 years and it is a great example of Inca city planning. It has a large Inca fortress on the hillside above it.

Cuzco, Peru

A view of another church and a local walking in front of the market.


Cuzco


The cobblestone streets of Cuzco-as well as one of the many churches

Here you can see some of the original Inca stonework in this foundation wall

View from the room

Plaza del Armas-center of town

June 3-June 6

Once arriving in Cuzco, to our surprise we found a sprawling town of over 320,000 people. It is the continents oldest inhabited city. Again, we were first on the search of a place to stay. Hotel Royal Frankenstein (run by a German ex-pat) was the winner. Sounds a bit strange, but goes down in the book as one of our favorites-great location and 3rd floor room with an amazing view. Once you get to the center of the town you find out why it is known for being a beautiful place to visit. You can still see the original Inca stone foundations on many of the buildings in the center of town. However, it is also well known that the city’s economy is heavily dependent on international tourism and this is the launch pad for trips to Machu Picchu. Be prepared for being attacked by “sales people” trying to real you into their restaurants/travel agencies/etc. They even have shirts for sale that say “No Gracias”…hence, if you wore the shirt, you wouldn’t have to say it so much.

From Puno to Cuzco, Peru

Sitting on the steps of a famous 17th century Jesuits church in Andahuaylillas. A traditional Andean village.


Kids playing in the fountain in the center of Pucara. A small Andean village


The Abra la Raya pass. The highest point on the trip (from Puno to Cuzco)
4319 meters, 14,166 feet. They actually have oxygen on the buses…just in case.


The temple of Viracocha located in the town of Raqchi. The temple was supposedly built by the Inca Wiracocha in honor of their Superior God invisible for the Andean people. Here we are at 3500 meters, 11,500 feet. This temple is had the largest know Inca Roof.

June 3

On Wednesday we took the Inka Express tour bus to Cuzco. We could have chosen a less touristy way to get there, however it’s about a 6 hour bus ride and this tour bus stops at 5 sites along the way, and includes a Peruvian lunch and tour guide. It made the trip a few hours longer, but was nice to see the sites along the way.

Another Border Crossing to Puno, Peru

Peruvian taxi's

Yavari, the oldest boat on Lake Titicaca. It was constructed in England and shipped in pieces around Cape Horn (the southern tip of South America) to the port of Arica (Chile), then transported to Puno part by train and hauled over the Andes by mules. It took 6 years to arrive. It was ordered by the Peruvian navy to protect their territory on the lake, but it was never used defensively because the guns for the boat never arrived with the shipment. It was built in England in 1864 and launched in Puno in 1870. The navy used it primarily for transporting people and goods. In the 1940s, it was used as a tanker for transporting petroleum, until it was left to rust on the shores of Lake Titicaca. Recently it has been restored and now takes people out for private tours on Lake Titicaca…..muy caro!

June 1-June 2

We took another 3 hour bus ride from Copacabana crossing another border into Peru with the final destination to Puno. By this point everyone on the bus were tourists. When crossing the border the bus stops on one the Bolivian side, lets everyone out, you walk across, check in, and get back on the bus on the other side. Puno is a port typically used as a stopping point on the Gringo Trail for tourists to get to the many islands of Lake Titicaca from Peru as opposed to Bolivia. It was our stopping point on the way to Machu Picchu.

Copacabana and Isla del Sol, Bolivia

Many parts of the island have been cultivated for generations. You can see the terraces here.


Terraces, Mountains, and Lake Titicaca

Inca Ruins along the lake

Hiking the trail

View of Lake Titicaca and the Andes Mountain chain known as the Cordillera Real.

The view of the lake and the city from the roof of our hotel at sunset.

We had to cross part of Lake Titicaca to get to Copacabana. They put the passengers on a small boat for the crossing and this was the “barge” that brought the bus across.

Our bus from La Paz to Copacabana (about 3 hours)

May 30-May 31

After sight seeing La Paz the next stop was Copacabana. At this point we were working our way towards Machu Picchu and quickly found out what they mean by the “Gringo Trail”! Copacabana is on the southern shore of Lake Titicaca. Lake Titicaca is one of the highest navigable lakes in the world. This city is at about 3800 meters, 12,464 meters. The main reason for traveling through here is to get to Isla del Sol, the legendary Inca creation site and birthplace of the sun according to the Inca legend. We traveled to the island for a day, and hiked from the north part of the island to the south part of the island seeing Inca Ruins along the way.