Machu Picchu

A visit to Machu Picchu was a must. It is the most visited tourist destination in South America and so just like all the other thousands of tourists it was an essential part of our holiday in Peru. Rather than trekking the arduous 4-day Inca trail into Machu Picchu we opted for a relaxing evening in Aguas Calientes, a night in a comfy hotel and an early morning bus up to the site. 

The weather was good to us and the clouds cleared soon after we arrived at 7am. This is the down season in Peru, and so although there were over 20 buses waiting to transport people up to Machu Picchu, there was no queuing and as we set off across the terraces instead of up them like most other people, it really wasn't crowded at all.

This picture shows the winding route taken by the bus on the left and the incredible location of the ruins of Machu Picchu

It was surprisingly tricky to navigate our way around the ruins, deciding which was a grain store, a royal house, a temple, prison or bathroom.

Impressed by the walls. No mortar was used in Inca walls, instead all the blocks were chiselled to fit nicely together.

The ruins are interesting but no more so than many British castles. It is the location that makes Machu Picchu so awesome. One of the greatest pleasures of the visit was simply pausing to appreciate the surrounding scenery.

There are still a few inhabitants. We saw this rabbit-like creature scampering about the place. 

A steep ascent up an adjacent mountain to Machu Picchu from within the site led us to the lesser ruins of Wayna Picchu. They lend fantastic views over Machu Picchu (the top photo was taken from here).  We left our older generation behind for this sweaty, breathless hike up at least a thousand Inca steps, through a tunnel, up a rickety ladder and Inca terraces to a pile of rocks at the top covered with a smattering of tired but exhilirated tourists. 

At the top of Wayna Picchu

There was an alternative option for the route back down to Machu Picchu, signed 'Great Cave'. We thought this sounded interesting and so set off. An hour later we were still descending steeply down the wrong side of the mountain. There was a surprisingly present risk factor considering we were in such a prime tourist location (although we seemed to have left them all behind on the main path). We were presented with a couple of enormous ladders to climb down with pretty sheer drops beneath. 

As we were on the point of giving up and facing the prospect of climbing all the way back up to the top we stumbled upon our great cave. There were some nicely made Inca walls inside the cave but the best thing about it was the slightly less punishing path back around the mountain to Machu Picchu. We arrived back drenched after a downpour in the last 10 minutes of our hike to find the others enjoying coffee and sandwiches (which for the record they had also saved for us) in the cafe.