Machu Picchu

    Two weekends ago was our much celebrated trip to Machu Picchu. The entire group had split into three- those hiking (5 day hike, around 300 dollars), those taking a van there (2 days, one night, small hike, around $145), and those who didn't go, or went with their families (no days, lots of money saved). I took the middle option, and we set off on a Friday morning early- extremely early for Kula and me (the only Urumbamba people who would be doing the van option) who had to wake up at 4 in the morning (I didn't sleep at all because I was too scared I would miss my alarm and then the trip), take a 1 hour combi to Cusco, and then a 30 minute taxi drive with a very lost taxi driver who drove in circles for the latter half of the trip muttering "I don't know this" to himself over and over in Spanish. 
     Once in the van our group slept for most of the drive, but woke up to observe the steep ascent across the face of many a mountain, on roads so narrow that you could no longer see the edge when you looked out the window, but rather the dried out bed of the moribund Urumbamba River, blocked by a dam. As entertaining as "car-on-the-edge-of-a-cliff" stories are, however, I have to admit that I never really felt unsafe or like our driver was recklessly flirting with our demise- I'm sure that there are a lot more terrifying roads out there, and less qualified drivers. 

     We debarked at the Hydroelectric station, and proceeded to walk 11 km along train tracks and through the jungle to our destination of the burgeoning resort town, Aguas Calientes. The walk was beautiful and reminded me of Costa Rica (the only other time I've been out of the country). While most of the group shopped, one other member, Detti, and I decided to go to the renown hotsprings, a 10 minute walk from our hotel. There, I was disappointed to find that the hotsprings were actually just water funneled into giant tubs- I had expected a more "authentic" atmosphere, maybe a waterfall and some rocks. I'm glad I went though, even if the notorious healing powers of the water did nothing to keep me from getting sick the next week (more on that later).

     On Saturday we again woke up at 4 in the morning to reach Machu Picchu in time to obtain tickets to climb Wayna Picchu, a gorgeous nub that sits right above the Machu Picchu ruins. Only 400 are allowed to climb it each day, which is why we arose so early. Climbing felt very nice in comparison to Chicon, where I thought I might pass out upon every ascending step. We scurried up Wayna Picchu fast enough to impress our tour guide (good progress, as the majority of us were in the "slow group" for Chicon) and spent the better part of an hour at the top, marveling at the view of Machu Picchu and surrounding mountains. 

     We also saw a 50-some couple from Brazil, thoroughly enjoying the healing powers of Machu Picchu (the landmark is said to be at the center of an energy vortex) as well as the effects of the hallucinogenic drug in which our tour guide informed us that they had copiously indulged. They sang and danced and played maracas (and were very well practiced, too)  to thank Mama Pacha (sp?), the Quechua phrase for Mother Earth.