Machu Picchu, Seeing is Believing

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(Machu Picchu, Peru) - For more years than I can remember, Machu Picchu has been on my list of major destinations. I have been fortunate to see many of the magnificent manmade wonders of the world including the Great Pyramids in Egypt, the Parthenon in Greece, the Great Wall of China and the Panama Canal, but Machu Picchu was the one I longed to see most of all. Since first discovered by the American explorer Hiram Bingham in 1911, Machu Picchu has fascinated the world with both its complexity and simplicity - two attributes, which in the case of this UNESCO World Heritage Site are not mutually exclusive.

For us, getting to Machu Picchu was fraught with almost as many challenges as Hiram experienced when he first discovered the fabled city in the early 20th century. Compared to his, our trials and tribulations had a modern-day twist to them, but tested us none-the-less. For starters, tour companies are just about the only way to book any excursion in Peru. However, for a family of five on a very tight budget it was cost prohibitive to use them, which meant we had to get creative in putting together our sightseeing itinerary.

Aqua Calientes (hot waters) is a small touristy town at the base of Machu Picchu. It's nearly a five-hour train ride from Cusco, which represented only one-third of the challenge in getting to the summit of the famous Inca city. In addition, it is necessary to purchase tickets for the bus that takes visitors from the town up to the park entrance and additional tickets to enter the national park. The process is not centralized and requires anyone too cheap to use a tour company to visit three different agencies/companies. Furthermore, they are miles apart and have no connection or affiliation with each other - at least that was the case in October 2009.

What should have been a two-hour cost cutting journey to procure all of the necessary tickets turned into almost five hours - we quickly understood why people paid the extra for the "convenience" of using a tour company. However, in our case we had more time than money, so the inconvenience of spending five hours to walk countless city blocks to visit three different bureaucracies was worth the trouble and frustration. The cost of all the tickets for five of us was $1,059 USD, which included student discounts. Purchasing our tickets à la Carte saved us at least $300 USD. And since our budget per day was $200 USD, the savings helped reduce the financial hemorrhaging we had just experienced.

On the morning of our departure I awoke extremely sick. I must have eaten something the day before, and a latent bacterium reared its ugly head just after midnight. I didn't know what was worse, not seeing Machu Picchu, losing the $1,059 USD or having to go back to all of the agencies to rebook or cancel our tickets. It was a "toss up", which is exactly what I had been doing since my stomach started rumbling at around 12:30 a.m.

Somehow I pulled myself together and we met the (prearranged) taxi at 5:15 a.m. Meeting the taxi was the beginning of a series of calamities of epic proportions. For starters, I had failed to request a station wagon or van. Instead, the taxi was a small four-door Fiat that would make a Smart car look roomy. I sat in the front seat while the other four somehow crammed into the back seat. They were laughing uproariously as they finally closed the doors, which were no doubt bulging. Perhaps if I had not been so sick, I too would have found it funny. Instead, it was just plain annoying. In addition, they had all of our gear piled around them, as the hatchback trunk could only hold a few small items.

Off we went and arrived at the train station approximately 10 minutes later. However, it was not the train station where we purchased the tickets and in my weakened state I insisted the driver take us to the "other" train station. When we arrive, the gates were locked tight and there was no line queuing to board the train for Aqua Calientes. After speaking with a security guard we learned the taxi cab driver was correct, and he took us back to the first train station. Each time we disgorged from the "clown car", everyone had to pile back in with the back doors bulging - for a total of three times, as if once was not bad enough.

Believe-it-or-not, the taxi driver was feeling sorry for my mental and physical state and took us to a side entrance where we did not have to fight for a place in line. After presenting our tickets, I was concerned the conductor would not let me on the train because of my obvious illness. Thankfully he did and we left the station promptly at 6:05 a.m. The train ride through the Sacred Valley was spectacular, but was lost on me since I was too sick to care and could barely open my eyes.

The train arrived in Aqua Calientes nearly five-hours later. While my family went in search of a hotel, I sat on a street curb with all of our gear trying not to look as if I was loitering, which I was. We were not scheduled to visit Machu Picchu until the next day, so after checking into a bare-bones hotel I slept for the remainder of the day while the others looked around the town. I felt better the following morning and we left the hotel to catch one of the buses that leave about every five minutes for the summit.

There are two options for getting to the park entrance - hike a very steep trail or take the bus. Originally we wanted to hike and save the cost of the bus, but were glad we spent the money, especially given my still weakened state. It was a harrowing ride up the mountain on a switchback dirt road with very few guardrails. Bus drivers raced up and down the winding road as if they were on a long straight highway, which they were not. During the 30-minute ride up the mountain, a few drivers reluctantly pulled to the side of the road at several narrow places to let other buses pass going in the opposite direction.

Once we entered the park and saw the ruins and breathtaking scenery, all of the trials and tribulations we experienced to get there were worth it. Machu Picchu and its sister peak Wayna Picchu, higher and in the background, were sights beyond description. I have read many accounts and narratives of both, but no one has come close to capturing the amazing, awe-inspiring majesty of the fabled city in the clouds.

There are many legends about Machu Picchu and after seeing it firsthand, it is difficult to refute any of them. Valleys plunge thousands of feet below the peaks and surround the city on nearly all sides. The buildings were constructed with the same precision as all the others we saw throughout the Sacred Valley and Cusco. No mortar or other materials were used; only extreme skill and unparalleled craftsmanship held together this oasis for Inca royalty. Stair-stepped crop terraces clung to the sides of the steep cliffs. They once produced food in such abundance that it was exported to Cusco and other parts of the empire via pack llamas.

Machu Picchu is approximately 8,000 feet above sea level. The thin air was not helping my malady, but it didn't matter because I finally made it to the place I had waited so long to see. We even hiked a short portion of the Inca Trail, which was the original thoroughfare linking Machu Picchu to the rest of the once far-reaching empire.

We took the same harrowing bus ride back down the mountain. At the bottom we had time to walk around the town and bazaar before catching the train to Cusco. It's not a question of if, but when we visit Machu Picchu again. Although next time, I will do everything possible to avoid getting sick. It was worth all of the unfortunate events and sickness, but I would like to see it again without the myriad challenges of our first visit.

If I could make just one observation about the Incas, it would be that they were the only civilization I have ever seen who worked with nature to tame and harness its power. Unlike present day cultures that are constantly battling with nature to stake a claim, the Incas engineered everything in concert with the natural world around them. You only have to look at places like New Orleans and the Netherlands to see the constant tug-of-war between man and nature. The Incas got it right!

Santiago, Chile was next on our itinerary. The good news was the flight between Lima and Santiago was only five hours. The bad news was it arrived at 3:00 a.m. and we had no place to go when we arrived plus were assessed a hefty tax just for the privilege of entering the country. But more about that next week.

And remember . . . "Travel is the ultimate education."

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