Elias had told us that Peruvians will use any excuse for a party. Eating breakfast in the hotel restaurant while watching the activity on the platform, we could believe that.
Whenever a train towards Machu Picchu was due, women in local dress would lead the passengers skipping and dancing onto the platform holding a banner with the carriage number. Once there was a bit of space on the platform a group of Peruvian morris dancers would then dance up and down the platform to the sounds of drums and pan pipes. They became a little less enthusiastic if the train was delayed! On one train, there was even a guy hanging out of the observation car playing pan pipes as the train left.
We were booked on the Vistadome train, which has glass panels in the roof so you can see how small you are compared to the mountains around you. It was half an hour late, but that didn’t matter because there was lots of music and two masked dancers cavorting behind us.
As we continued down the line, the mountains closed in until there were granite cliffs to our right and a fast flowing river to our left. Which is when I realised that we were going down; I’d thought that we’d be going up towards Machu Picchu, but that wasn’t the case. At least, not in the train.
Eventually, we arrived at Aguas Calientes, or hot waters, which wasn’t the sleepy little village, we’d been expecting. Leaving the station we had to run the gamut of a huge, indoor, souvenir market!
We then had to scramble for the shuttle bus that takes you up to Machu Picchu itself. The journey takes 25 minutes along a narrow dirt road that zigzags up the side of the mountain. Every now and then we’d see people hiking it. I almost felt like joining them!
Eventually we got to the top and the bus turned round before letting us off. By doing a five-point turn between the cliff face and the queues of people going in. Which we duly joined. We already had our entry tickets; there are two circuits and we were assigned to circuit 2.
In we went and we finally got to see Machu Picchu in all its glory. Elias told us all sorts of things about it, but the gist of it is that:
· It predates the Incas
· The Spanish never found the place, possibly because the locals destroyed the trails
· It was “rediscovered” by Hiram Bingham around 1911
· There’s a lot more underground than above, but they are unlikely to uncover it
· Only one gold artefact has ever been found
· They uncovered a lot of ceramic and seashell artefacts
· Most of the names ascribed to the site have proved to be wrong
Anyway, here’s a bunch of photos, not that any of them can do justice to the place.
Shortly after we arrived it rained; we’d been warned to bring appropriate clothing, and it didn’t last long, so no problem. However, as we were nearing the end of our tour (or our ability to take any more in) it started raining again and this time it didn’t stop. We decided to return to Aguas Calientes, which meant joining a huge queue of people with the same idea. And if you think that heading up was scary, heading down on a wet dirt road is even scarier!
We had reservations for the train, so there was plenty of time to grab a bite to eat before boarding. There were only 2 coaches in the morning and we were in coach A at the front. The train going back was 7 coaches and we were in A again. We thought it would be at the back this time, but no, we had to walk all the way to the front.
This was a livelier ride, with “traditional” Peruvian entertainment in the buffet car at the front, first for carriage B, then for us. After that the staff put on a Peruvian “fashion show”, accompanied by rapturous applause from the Americans on board; surprisingly, they also bought some items. We checked out a couple of items and they were three times the price you’d pay in the market.
We eventually got back to Ollantaytambo after a very tiring day, had a bite to eat and went to bed, hence this post being a day late.
The following morning, we checked out, found Alan, our new driver, and headed up to the ruins of Ollantaytambo. While not as extensive as Machu Picchu, they are equally spectacular, Again, they predated the Incas who just took them over and improved them.
And now we’re back in Cusco for the night. Tomorrow we’re setting off on a very special trip.
Steve and Diane on Tour 