Our trip to Machu Picchu began with the sound of an alarm clock at 3:15am, as our departure time was 4 on the dot. (4 AM as our tour guide Javier told us multiple times the evening before). We began the day with an hour bus ride, followed by about an hour scenic train ride on Peru-Rail, the beautiful blue tourist train, that if you stay on it, will take you all the way to Aguas Calientes, the little town closest to Machu Picchu. We hopped off at Km 104 to begin our 7ish hour hike UP (almost leaving Michael in the bathroom). Immediately, everyone in our group seemed to forget the early hour and began soaking in the first of literally thousands of picture-worthy moments. Our cast of characters made the hours fly by as we hiked, rested, listened to the ever-so-knowledgeable Javier tell us about "his ancestors" and their struggles, climbed Incan stairs which are incredibly steep for people that had such small legs, and soaked up the natural beauty around us.
Our group consisted of us, a girl from Germany, one from The Netherlands, a 71 year-old woman from Arizona named Judy (she was a rockstar that had no trouble keeping up with us), and a group of 7 guys from Dallas (what are the odds). It made for fantastic conversation about travel, the Texas Rangers, owning hotels, flying advice, Jerry Jones, and ultimately reality TV.
(Side story: During the first night "roll call" one guy had a name that Michael and I immediately recognized. We actually thought we may have gone to HS with him before we realized he was quite a bit older. Eventually through conversation, and some random girls recognizing him in the hostel, we realized that he didn't actually go to Lee HS, but was actually "The Bachelor" from a few years back. I guess that would explain why the name sounded familiar. I googled him later to find out that season of "The Bachelor" was called "On the Wings of Love.." so there's that.)
Although it is rainy season, the sun stayed out for our entire hike to Winay Wayna and then on the actual Inca trail to Machu Picchu. We saw a waterfall, killer ants, and entered the sacred ground of Machu Picchu through the Sun Gate, just like the Incans did 500 years ago.
"You guys will thank me for this later"--- he was right. What a great picture.
A "park ranger" watching over Winay Wayna. Not a bad view every day.
When we arrived at the Sun Gate, it was midday. Our first views of this wonder of the world were every bit as overwhelming as I thought they would be. There aren't words to describe something like this place--- mystical, incredible, majestic-- while all accurate descriptions, don't actually come close to painting you a picture. We sat in the Sun Gate, and watched the rainy season creep up on us, as the pilot kept trying to decide whether or not it would turn our way. It eventually did, and a portion of tour was conducted in the rain as we were the last people to leave for the day. (Javier kindly ignored the rangers telling him to go until he was finished doing what he wanted... ).
There is a "dramatic" setting on my camera which makes all things look rad.
Our fellow Texans lugged a giant Texas flag to represent the Lone Star State in Inca land. We may have forgotten that red goes on bottom, but we represented just the same.
And then we embraced the rain before heading down to Aguas Calientes.
Once we arrived at our hostel, Javier asked how much time we needed before we'd all be ready to head to the bar. Pisco Sours and Cusquena rounded out an excellent day before we headed to bed to prepare for our second visit to Machu Picchu the following morning, yet again at stupid o'clock.
We made it (barely) to Machu Picchu the following morning in time for sunrise. Yet again, we were blessed with gorgeous weather, stunning views, and an incredibly passionate tour guide. As we walked through the old city, we all grew more and more excited for our hike of Huyana Picchu (the mountain that gives you the epic view of the city) in a few short hours. The clouds hung low like smoke on the water (you're singing it aren't you) making the ancient city eerie in a good way.
Ninja duck makes an appearance.
Our other tour guide Andy.
This llama appears happy now, but earlier he was trying to "get frisky" with another llama, causing the park ranger to chase him full speed with a belt. One of the guys on our group decided he felt sorry for him and tried to feed him a granola bar, getting him in trouble (yet again) with the "Machupolice".
Sunrise at Machu Picchu.
Before I left Alamo, one of my darling students gave me this bracelet and I quote "so Alamo would always be in my heart." I visited this place the week after these students competed in their All City competition, and I was seriously overwhelmed with excitement for their success. I feel super blessed to have the opportunity to be doing what I am doing, but that kid (at only age 12) was right... I will always be connected to Alamo. When Javier asked me what my bracelet meant, I got almost choked up telling him about my kids I had left behind; however, I can rest easy knowing that they are taken care of :).
Javier explained the Incan cross on his necklace. We so lucky to have had such a knowledgeable tour guide with so much passion for the Incan culture. (He even speaks the ancient language). The Incans believed in giving to the Mother Earth and one of their pillars or rules of their faith was the act of "not being lazy". Everyone paid "taxes" in the form of work, they embraced the acquisition of knowledge, and they managed to keep their "holy city" hidden from the Spaniards even long after they were gone. (Yellow fever wiped them out unfortunately). If was fascinating to learn all about the people who built this magnificent place that is still standing.
That is "Huaynapicchu".. the mountain we would climb soon.
And THEN!! The world remembered it was rainy season, meaning it started and never stopped. We climbed that mountain in the pouring rain triumphantly. Yet again, the steps seemed awfully steep for those tiny Incan legs that used to make the trip. By the time we reached the top, there wasn't an inch of dry on any of us. We looked out for the excellent view and saw... clouds. These pictures could have been taken with a white wall behind us, but I assure you, we are at the top of that stinking mountain. Javier mentioned that his record speed to the top was 17 minutes, we definitely took closer to 45.
This was my attempt to sneak a picture of Machu Picchu from about half way down. As you can see, I was less that successful. By the time we made it down, not only were we soaked to the bone, but everything in our backpacks was soaked too. We all made our way through the rain to the bus and back to our hostel for dinner, the rain never ceasing. Because everything was soaked, I made the purchase of these over the top PERU Pants (along with about 5 other members of our group).
By the time we made it to the train, everyone was super tired... as displayed by this adorable picture.
When we finally made it back to Cusco, our group dispersed for showers, and even though our tour was over, we met up to eat dinner. We found a Peruvian restaurant WITH dancing entertainment (unintentionally) which somehow brought up "Dancing with the Stars" and that the Bachelor guy had been on it. Nice. We enjoyed one another's company and late that night went our separate ways, always sharing a once in a lifetime experience.
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