Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Machu Pichu.
By the time I reached Cusco, the big city base closest to Machu Pichu, I was quite saturated from all the traveling. I was clearly not upto, atleast that's what I thought at that point, the frentic activity making a trip to MP would entail. I was quite satisfied to indulge in the many options Cusco offered--like the most beautiful square I've ever seen (see below), all the dining and drinking options including a really cool Irish pub full of friendly tourists, the views afforded by the hilly terrain around the square, and the night clubs that closed only when the last patrons left. At the same time MP was one of the big reasons for coming down to SA--in the last few years of my PhD, when I was inching my way towards what turned out to be the finishing line, my escape fantasies were dominated by visions of MP. So, despite my fatigue, I was keeping my eyes open for inspiration.
It came in the form of a Canadian girl who was staying in the same hostal as me. During one of the later conversations we had she told me that she'd gone ahead and booked with the travel operators located in the hostal itself--the softest option available--she too was too exhausted to shop around as everyone had advised us to do. I followed her example, a decision in no small part aided by the prospect of traveling with a friendly and attractive girl.
We left Cusco in the evening. Following a 2 hour long taxi-ride and a 4 hour train-ride we arrived at Aguas Calientes after midnight. We were so exhausted that we decided against, despite this possibly once in a lifetime opportunity, hiking up early to see the sunrise at Machu Pichu. I think it was the right decision. But, around 3:30 am the hostal came alive with the noises of obviously more determined people, who were too excited to make an effort to be quieter (only in retrospect am I able to put this in such innocuous language). Finding it impossible to sleep through the commotion, the once-in-a-lifetime aspect of being at MP became harder to ignore, and we did decide to hike it for the sunrise (buses started only later, to see the sunrise hiking was the only option). It was still quite dark when we left. The first part of the trail was alongside a very loud Rio Urubamba the energy of whose waters lifted our spirits.
The hike up was hard, we had estimated that we would have to do it fast if we wanted to beat the sunrise. Initially, I was no match for the Canadian (she an experienced hiker and me just out of a very long and sedentary stay in grad school!)--I was wheezing like I was 40 and found myself wondering how much punishment a heart can take before it gives up--yes, it was that bad! The higher we climbed, the lighter it got, the harder we tried. Towards the end my heart had so wholeheartedly, as it were, embraced the activity it had been dragged into that, when after climbing for about 50 minutes we finally reached the gate, I could have easily climbed some more.
But there was no sun to be seen. We were not sure then if it was because of the clouds. There were about 20 disappointed looking people on the steps outside the gate waiting to be let in. The authorities, we learnt, were being strict about not letting people in before the official time. Even if they had it would have been pointless because Machu Pichu was covered with clouds as we discovered some 30 minutes later, when they did eventually allow us in. Our first views of Machu Pichu were therefore dull and disappointing; we could only see brief stretches of the terraces Machu Pichu is famous for. This is how it looked like to start with:
We ran into an Austrian couple we'd sat across from in the train the night before. While traveling anyone you meet a second time is like your best friend, and we reacted accordingly when we saw them. They had taken the bus up which turned out to be a smarter decision although at $6 a person it was way too expensive for Peru. We had an English speaking guide whose delivery was very zen-like. He lingered on many points and took his time. He obviously liked being a guide. In that sleep deprived state, however, I found his labored delivery highly exasperating. I would often space out, miss the important bits and pieces. Ended up getting a somewhat garbled version of the history lesson he gave us. The tour lasted about an hour and a half, I was not getting less impatient with time. We could see other tour guides who had started at around the same time as ours finish much earlier and were envying the tourists in those groups. We were really dead by the time our guide finished and came back out for a much needed breakfast. Something about breakfast changed the tenor of the day. Suddenly, we were all very relaxed, happy to be there, as if finally realizing where we were, and excited about going back in to explore Machu Pichu on our own terms.
We walked around; by now the clouds too had lifted, and it was like Machu Pichu had come alive. We took lots of snaps. I was in unbridled love with the Canadian by now no doubt encouraged by the wonderful example the Austrians were setting. They were on a year long trip around the world and joked that they would marry if they were still able to stand each other's presence at the end of that time. There was a lot of laughter and the conversation really flowed.
Once we'd covered the main parts of Machu Pichu a second time, we decided to hike up Wayna Pichu which was an adjacent peak which afforded spectacular views of Machu Pichu from above. This hike was also a pretty difficult one although it seemed a lot less safe than the previous one.
In toto, we managed to spend, despite being so weary to start with, about 12 hours at Machu Pichu. What made that possible and the day so truly memorable was not merely the location but also the wonderful group of people that surrounded me. To save $6 the Canadian and I actually hiked down too--not too difficult this time as we were on a high from the way the day had shaped up.
It came in the form of a Canadian girl who was staying in the same hostal as me. During one of the later conversations we had she told me that she'd gone ahead and booked with the travel operators located in the hostal itself--the softest option available--she too was too exhausted to shop around as everyone had advised us to do. I followed her example, a decision in no small part aided by the prospect of traveling with a friendly and attractive girl.
We left Cusco in the evening. Following a 2 hour long taxi-ride and a 4 hour train-ride we arrived at Aguas Calientes after midnight. We were so exhausted that we decided against, despite this possibly once in a lifetime opportunity, hiking up early to see the sunrise at Machu Pichu. I think it was the right decision. But, around 3:30 am the hostal came alive with the noises of obviously more determined people, who were too excited to make an effort to be quieter (only in retrospect am I able to put this in such innocuous language). Finding it impossible to sleep through the commotion, the once-in-a-lifetime aspect of being at MP became harder to ignore, and we did decide to hike it for the sunrise (buses started only later, to see the sunrise hiking was the only option). It was still quite dark when we left. The first part of the trail was alongside a very loud Rio Urubamba the energy of whose waters lifted our spirits.
The hike up was hard, we had estimated that we would have to do it fast if we wanted to beat the sunrise. Initially, I was no match for the Canadian (she an experienced hiker and me just out of a very long and sedentary stay in grad school!)--I was wheezing like I was 40 and found myself wondering how much punishment a heart can take before it gives up--yes, it was that bad! The higher we climbed, the lighter it got, the harder we tried. Towards the end my heart had so wholeheartedly, as it were, embraced the activity it had been dragged into that, when after climbing for about 50 minutes we finally reached the gate, I could have easily climbed some more.
But there was no sun to be seen. We were not sure then if it was because of the clouds. There were about 20 disappointed looking people on the steps outside the gate waiting to be let in. The authorities, we learnt, were being strict about not letting people in before the official time. Even if they had it would have been pointless because Machu Pichu was covered with clouds as we discovered some 30 minutes later, when they did eventually allow us in. Our first views of Machu Pichu were therefore dull and disappointing; we could only see brief stretches of the terraces Machu Pichu is famous for. This is how it looked like to start with:
We ran into an Austrian couple we'd sat across from in the train the night before. While traveling anyone you meet a second time is like your best friend, and we reacted accordingly when we saw them. They had taken the bus up which turned out to be a smarter decision although at $6 a person it was way too expensive for Peru. We had an English speaking guide whose delivery was very zen-like. He lingered on many points and took his time. He obviously liked being a guide. In that sleep deprived state, however, I found his labored delivery highly exasperating. I would often space out, miss the important bits and pieces. Ended up getting a somewhat garbled version of the history lesson he gave us. The tour lasted about an hour and a half, I was not getting less impatient with time. We could see other tour guides who had started at around the same time as ours finish much earlier and were envying the tourists in those groups. We were really dead by the time our guide finished and came back out for a much needed breakfast. Something about breakfast changed the tenor of the day. Suddenly, we were all very relaxed, happy to be there, as if finally realizing where we were, and excited about going back in to explore Machu Pichu on our own terms.We walked around; by now the clouds too had lifted, and it was like Machu Pichu had come alive. We took lots of snaps. I was in unbridled love with the Canadian by now no doubt encouraged by the wonderful example the Austrians were setting. They were on a year long trip around the world and joked that they would marry if they were still able to stand each other's presence at the end of that time. There was a lot of laughter and the conversation really flowed.
Once we'd covered the main parts of Machu Pichu a second time, we decided to hike up Wayna Pichu which was an adjacent peak which afforded spectacular views of Machu Pichu from above. This hike was also a pretty difficult one although it seemed a lot less safe than the previous one.
In toto, we managed to spend, despite being so weary to start with, about 12 hours at Machu Pichu. What made that possible and the day so truly memorable was not merely the location but also the wonderful group of people that surrounded me. To save $6 the Canadian and I actually hiked down too--not too difficult this time as we were on a high from the way the day had shaped up.
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