Back from one of the new 7 wonders of the world

Cusco, Peru

Jess and I are back from our 5 day Salkantay trek which ended at Machu Picchu. The trek was a wonderful, long 5 days which took us over a 4650 m pass and usually consisted of 6 to 8 hour long days of hiking. We decided to go with an organized tour instead of doing it on our own because it cost only a little bit more and its nice to have a cook and guide. Our group was just over a baker´s dozen strong: 2 guides, a donkey driver (DD), a cook, 2 Ecuatorians, 3 French girls, a couple of Brazilian guys, and a Swiss backpacker. All in all the group was a good mix and at any one time there could be up to 5 languages being spoken at once! Even though the days were much longer than the past trek, we felt better with the altitude and being on the move everyday. Every morning we were woken up by our crazier guide Jose with "Amigos, Amigos, Coca Te, Coca Te". So we basically started each day hopped on Coca tea, which is suppose to help with the altitude, hangovers, and lack of sleep. We suffered from most of these symptoms. The first day and half was high up in the mountains and after that we were into the jungle. In the high mountains it is cold at night, extremely bright during the day, and has little air, while the jungle has hot days, and tiny biting bugs (BTW all biting bugs that fly in South America are called Mosquitoes) so you have to pick your poison wisely.

Anyways the first four days we walked up and down towards the base town of Machu Picchu, Aguas Calientes, which sole purchase is to host visitors to Machu Picchu. The Peruvian government has done everything possible to make this the most expensive place possible. First, there is only two ways to get there, walk (free) or ride the train which is a rickety old thing that cost $40 each way (mind you that our budget for Peru is $25/day/person). The train pretty much eliminates most outside transportation in because the goverment is the only one that can operate trains on it. After you are in the town you are still 1500 feet bellow the ruins. This leaves you two more options to get there, walk (free), or take the bus that was brought by the train which is $6 dollars each way. I and the Swiss guy opted to rise at 4am and hike 1 hour and 15 minutes straight up, the other decided to take the 20 min bus to the top. There really isnt any other reason to hike beside to beat everyone else to the gate, I was the 3rd person to arrive (we even beat the workers!) The student entrance ticket was $20, and the last place they get you is with $0.15 bathroom charge. Don't forget to hide a lunch in your bag or you´ll be opting for the $45 lunch buffet, I hear its nice. But other than that its a really good deal... kinda.

Once you are in the main gate you climb a couple more minutes to the watch tower where the typical picture of Machu Picchu is taken (the one with the mountain in the background). At that point you forget about money and know why its part of the new seven wonders of the world. Our guided tour started at 6.30 am and lasted for two hours where we were guided around by a local expert. Really not much is known about the city (including the name, Machu Picchu is the name of the mountain that it resides below) experts now think it was a university for Incans and only housed 800 residents. The city was never completed because the Spanish sacked it. Only 40% of the ruins have been rebuilt meaning most of the city was untouched since the 1500´s. I can ramble on some more but i´d better stop here or Jess and I wont have any stories to tell you when we get back!

After that we took the train then bus to reach Cuzco Friday night where we ate and fell asleep. We are planning to go to Lake Titicaca tomorrow and hangout around there from a week or so. After that its were off to Bolivia, where the air is thin and everything is cheap.

Hope everyone is doing well

Best,

Justin

PS The pictures are up for the trip under Picts 1... enjoy