Saturday 19/05
Vlog by Florence: see below.
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By me:
Wake up at 5:15am. Buffet breakfast.
We arrive at 6:15am at the departure point of the buses to Machu Picchu. The queue for the bus is already long. We queue for 30′.
We arrive on the Machu Picchu site a bit after 7am.
Quick passage on the terraces to enjoy the nice morning light to take more pictures of the site. There are quite a lot of people; 2,500 people are admitted daily.
Then interesting visit of the site itself (temple…) with José. We don’t only learn about the site itself (historians are still divided about the function of the site) but also about the life of the Inca. The morality of the Inca cultures is a beautiful and simple approach to life. The Quechua saying, “Ama suwa, ama llulla, ama qhella” (do not steal, do not lie, do not be lazy) was the code of conduct that guided Incan culture.
Another interesting fact is that Peru consists of 50% of Amazonian basin, 48% of the Andes and 2% only of coastal area.
We then climb the Machu Picchu mountain. Quite a challenge: it’s only 1.6km to the top but it’s a very tough climb, with high stairways. The permitted capacity to enter this Machu Picchu Mountain is 800 people per day, divided into 2 groups; we are allowed to “enter” between 9 and 10am. We have a rewarding view at the top. It indeed offers the site’s most extensive view. But it’s not that much different from the view from the Sun Gate, although much higher; we probably should have climbed the opposite Wayna Picchu Mountain. Kids are amazing: while the Lonely Planet talks about a strenuous climb of 1.5 to 2 hours, the 3 of them arrive in less than one hour (even 50′ for Ludivine). I’m the last one to arrive on top. The descent is also tough for the knees. We are back on the site at 12:45pm.
We get a great reward for lunch: a very nice buffet (before taking the bus down to Machu Picchu Pueblo). It’s highly appreciated by the 5 of us (I love the trout ceviche). We are all full when we leave the restaurant. There’s a long queue for the bus back to town (more than 30′).
In Machu Picchu Pueblo, we go to the train station to take our train to Ollantaytambo. It’s a 2-hour trip.
