Machu Picchu

"The lost city of the Incas rose up out of the mist as I ascended to the watchman´s tower . . . " or something like that. Although many have tried, I don´t think words could ever capture the feeling of encountering Machu Picchu. Pablo Neruda, the Chilean poet whose house I recently visited, came closest:

"Machu Picchu is a trip to the serenity of the soul, to the eternal fusion with the cosmos, there we feel our own fragility. It is one of the greatest marvels of South America. A resting place of butterflies at the epicenter of the great circle of life. One more miracle."

Woke up at 5:00 a.m. to catch the first bus up a series of swithbacks leading to Machu Picchu. We arrived at 5:55 and waited with the excitement of children standing in line for Disneyland until the gates opened (finally!) at 6:00. There were only about 20 or 30 of us that came in right at 6:00 and we were treated to an untainted view of the ruins.

And here´s the coveted shot: a view of the site containing no tourists.

Dammit! I didn´t see that person there at the bottom. I can photoshop that out, right?

Moving on. There are about a thousand of the classic "me in front of stuff" pics of Machu Picchu. I will subject you to only one.

Below is a shot from the watchman´s tower, near the entrance to the site. This is what the Incan watchman would have seen.


But this, this is truly my prize photo (Michelle and Sarah, I hope you´re paying attention, cause this is for you): Llamas!!


Once again, even closer.


Yes, Peru´s most iconic images, llamas and Machu Picchu. Hard to get one of those buggers to stand still for you though.


Anyway, before I wandered through the ruins for hours, there was a mountain to be conquered. The one standing behind Machu Picchu, Waynapicchu, was a short but steep climb to the top.


Personally, I think the views of the ruins were much better from here.


I don´t have much to say about Machu Picchu because, as previously stated, words wouldn´t suffice. There was one interesting factoid that I think is worth sharing though. There is a monument in the center of the ruins known as Intihuatana, which was aligned perfectly to mark the solstices and is thought to have served as a calendar for the Incas. Was. A few years back, the beer company Cusqueña filmed a commercial at Machu Picchu (so many things wrong with that statement already) and KNOCKED A CHIP OFF OF THE MONUMENT with one of their pieces of equipment. It no longer aligns correctly with the solstices.

How´d you like to be that guy?