Machu Picchu, Part One

I'm really not sure what to say about Machu Picchu. We've all seen the photos and we've all said Ooohhhhh. But being there is different. It's more than the "turn the corner and be confronted by the grandeur." (If you've been to Mesa Verde, you'll understand that too.) It's the architecture, the setting, the monumentality, the realization of what these people did. For me, there was something indefinable in the air, too -- I've felt it before and have yet to describe it well for others. Either way, the pictures don't do it justice and it is something that definitely was impactful on a number of levels. And the weather could not have been more beautiful. 

There was a landslide recently, so it's now a nearly 2-hour bus ride to the train.

The train is 1.5 hours long. Service is wonderful and the scenery is spectacular.

And you can see it all because you're in dome cars! Brilliant. Once you get off the train, you find your guide and then take another bus up to the site. Then you go through security and find your other guide, and finally, off you go.

And you basically turn a corner to see this.

The beautiful green peak here is Huayna Picchu, or young mountain. 

The guide takes you on a tour of about 2 hours in duration. You do get over the entire complex. Our group was small, about 10 people total, including a British Ambassador and his family. They were all lovely and our guide was terrific. 

Two gentlemen in our group had climbed Huayna Picchu that morning. It is a very difficult climb, with the last part being narrow and vertical. People have died on that climb. No thanks. This was much more my comfort zone.

Crews working on the terraces. The terraces are part of the remarkable hydrologic system that underlies the complex. They are key elements of the drainage that has kept the site securely attached to the mountain for nearly 600 years.

I think that's the hut I climbed to at the end? 

Storehouses. These likely had thatched roofs.

Incredible masonry. Remember -- no iron tools, no wheels, no mortar. And they've stood in an area prone to earthquakes and erosion.

This was the sun temple. Think of the Qoriqancha photos from Cusco.

In this one, you can see the road. It comes through that v and extends to the right in the photo, toward the site. For people who do the four-day hike, this is their approach to Machu Picchu.

Many hallmarks of Inka architecture here, from the masonry, to the precisely fitted cut blocks, from the double jamb doorway to the long single block lintel over the top. I find it all mesmerizing.

I haven't posted photos like these in a long time, where I like to look through small gaps (like arrow slits) and see what I can see. Here, I'm standing in what appears to be a schoolroom, and looking out toward the mountains.