Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu has become extremely popular. To enter the gate at 9.00 am , you have to line up for the bus two hours earlier

Normally that would not be a problem except today it is raining and misty and there is no shelter. Can you cope?

Is this the bus?

Finally we are on our way . On route you have to stop to allow other buses to pass …. It is a sheer drop so don’t look. There were some brave hikers coming up via the Inca trail. The bus is looking a good choice.

Machu Picchu is not called the cloud mountain for fun. It is often misty which was great for growing crops and medicine plants. Historians think Machu Picchu was both the place for ceremonies and also a place of study. It was built around 1430 from rock on the site.

Tiers were built from the bottom up. This was good for drainage and also as a barrier for landslide. Crops were then grown on the terraces. Its location was chosen as central to the capital and the Amazon and caught water laden breezes.

It is hard work climbing the wooden stairs but a thousand times easier than the stone stairs.

To begin we just had glimpses of the city and surrounding mountains through the swirling mist.

Eventually it cleared enough that we could see the whole city

Houses would originally have wooden and leaf thatch roofs. Naturally these no longer exist. Mortar was used in house construction but not in religious buildings.

The stone at the front is positioned so that at the winter solstice, the Inca cross symbol will be created by the shadow of the stone. Pretty clever don’t you think? The Inca’s also created a hydro system for both drinking and keeping the land dry. It consisted of 15 water retaining areas that drained down into a circular structure

Many of the plants still grow in the area

Last chance to admire the skill of the Inca builders especially moving the massive stones in place. Machu Picchu was abandoned when there was a threat of a Spanish invasion. The Spanish didn’t realise there was a settlement high on the mountain and left. The people would have been safe.

It’s time to go back to town.

It’s back to town, lunch and then the train.

Say goodbye to the group as you are catching the train at 6.40 for Puno. They were fabulous travelling companions weren’t they. Repack and I will see you tomorrow.