Machu Picchu

July 16th, 2009 by Heather Silvernail

Our trip to Machu Picchu was great. Took the Vistadome train so we got to see some amazing scenery on the way there and enjoy a tasty snack. It was a very cold ride on the way there since there is no heat and we are up pretty high in the mountains. Thankfully we brought an extra blanket so it was bearable. We got to Aguas Calientes and settled into the hotel. Nice place, pretty view, hot water, can’t complain. Spent the day exploring the city. It’s small and overpriced (3x’s as much as Cusco) but has some charming spots. When we woke up it was raining :( And pretty hard too. We put on the hotel provided shower caps and our ponchos and set out to make the most of it. We arrived at Machu Picchu wet and cold by 6:30am. Since there was no chance of seeing the sun rise in the Temple of the Sun we headed straight to the ticket hut for Wyana Picchu, the big mountain next to Machu Picchu. Only 400 people can hike it a day so we were in a hurry to get in line. Waited for 45 minutes while the rain kept pounding down but finally got to sign in the book and start off on what would become a 4 and a half hour journey. The way is steep and slippery in the rain but even with all the cloud cover it was worth it. We decided to take the back way down the mountain and go to the Temple of the Moon and Grand Caverna. It wasn’t too bad getting down there but the way back up and around the mountain was tough. The clouds broke and the sun came out which gave us some great shots of the mountains around us and Machu Picchu on thr next moutnain. It also however brought out the mosquitos which was not as cool. We made it back alive, with good pictures and some new friends so I’m calling it a good day even with the rain. We toured Machu Picchu and got pictures with a baby llama before heading back down to Aguas Calientes to get our things and board our train back to Cusco. It was an amazing journey and something really spectacular to see. I’m very glad to have gotten the chance to visit and be a part of it if only for a day.

Last 5 posts by Heather Silvernail

This entry was posted on Thursday, July 16th, 2009 at 11:59 am and is filed under Peru.

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