(Aguas Calientas - Machu Picchu - train to Ollantaytambo)
I woke up at 4.45am. 5.30am or so was departure by bus. I remember standing in line with Andrea. Somehow the topic shifted to why we travel. It was about her. But I remember sharing. It was engaging and throughout the bus journey. For her it was discovery and trying to find herself amidst the noise. Dr. M read that as midlife crisis kicking in early. :)
The hotel was fine, functional. I took nice long bath. Mosquitos had bitten the hell out of feet. Red big spots. I bought red, alpaca wool socks outside it. I forgot my card in the ATM, the bank security guard approached me and gave it. Outside.
Early morning itself there was a line to the bus. Water at the shop was expensive - S/.4.
I was happy we were going. Took a pic of my tix. There at Machu Picchu - it was like a busy, busy tourist site. Early morning still. At any given time, apparently there are a 1,000+ people. But it's very well organized, maintained. Toilets are outside and paid ones.
I wonder what my first impressions were. It's nice, pleasant. I took pics. I was indeed impressed with what humans do. It's up there. And so wide. There's a certain technical nature to the construction. While there's broader symmetry, they aren't obsessed about it at the granular level. A lot of it seemed like living quarters. Like a mini-city. Temple. Religious areas. Living areas. I took one video for B from there (it was because of him, I was there!). It's very beautiful.
But I was so glad we didn't come here first. I was glad for choosing Salkantay and not one of the Inca trails. I was much more open and accepting of the crowds and the touristy-nature (was quite open by then) because we already came from the mountains deep.
At around 10am, Andrea went to hike Waynapicchu. We went for the Sun gate. We lost Mads somewhere in that transition but ran into him later. Jhois seemed pre-occupied generally since the past day.
The hike up to and down from Sun Gate was what I most enjoyed. It was just fun. I was taking pics, videos. Generally frolicking. On top, sat with Sarah and lazed. Gazed at everything. Actually I did this many times on the way up. There's a security guard right on top at the sun gate. He keeps whistling whenever you sit with your legs touching the terrace/steps. You are supposed to keep it up - like you can sit crosslegged.
On the way down, I met one Slovakian. He was singing a folk song. I asked him which language. Then he said he would sing for me too. I took a video of it. Fun! Then he said, $20 jokingly. He told me India special, India special. He's traveled to Varanasi, the ghats (he indicated with his hands, going up! Then I understood he was referring to Manikarnika Ghat...hmmm I've been there few years back).
In one area, one lady - she was chubby and round - she wore one long dress, white with flowers. She kept rotating and swaying her dress - her husband was taking pics. This was somewhere on Machu Picchu. People do the most interesting things. Have the most interesting desires.
Sarah wanted me to do Macarena with her. I refused, too shy to do it there. But Dr. M did. I took the video. She had wanted to do it for many years. ("Okay, we're good!") Then she wanted Dr. M and I to do free-style. I sang yeh dosti (why that song!) and he hummed along. It was fun. When I look at that video now - it's so crazy really - it's this really wonder of the world types heritage site and I'm there singing loudly. It's interesting. I wonder what happened to the shyness.
[Machu Picchu history]
Hiram Bingham, an American explorer, was the one to make Machu Picchu so public. He wrote a book called the lost city. As I understood from Larco museum, it's surprising that the thing we know so much about Peru is about the Inca civilization and Machu Picchu - whereas the whole thing lasted only a 100 years. Humanity in Peru has existed for tens of thousands of years. There's evidence from even 70,000 years ago. We are talking of a really old primitive place. But yet we know mainly Machu Picchu. Satyajit Ray also chose to highlight it in Agantuk. But the world's knowledge is only from 1911. (I later saw a movie, Lost City of Z in NJ - Percy's discoveries coincide around the same timeline - I was thinking it also coincides with the Jalianwalabagh tragedy when India was dealing with its own problems pre-independence).
Other people's dreams become yours. So may be it wasn't B's dream. But may be we all have to thank Hiram Bingham. He made us dream.
Jhois said, he was the first Westerner (or whatever he word he used) to discover it. But the local people, Quechua people knew of it all along. They just didn't think of it to be a big deal. When Hiram Bingham traveled, explored, the local people (may be a farmer) showed him this. He was surprised by the scale of what he discovered, wrote about it, it became popular etc. The West seems to think (this is so deeply ingrained it's crazy) that what they discover marks the first time. I see this pervasive in the Indian context too - for e.g. in math. There's was much before Pythagorus - apparently he borrowed his ideas from Arabia who learnt about zero and other concepts from India. But modern history credits only Western astronomers, scientists etc. - may be D is right. By rooting out language, culture, we make people forget their past. Then we replace what we already know.
That's basically what Spanish conquerers did. They didn't think, oh let's learn about the Quechua people and what they have to offer to the world. They thought let's just wipe them out completely. Same in India. Mughal invasions are similar. Somehow religion plays a key role everywhere. Conquerers feel if they wipe out religious beliefs, people change, they become themselves. Quechua will become Spanish if their temples are replaced by churches. Humans are weird really. Anyway, everything keeps changing.
Jhois said perhaps Machu Picchu could've been just a retreat. Cusco had the industries. It was widely connected by roads to other places. The Spanish never found it so it remains - they didn't plunder or destroy it or change it into a Spanish town. Cusco looks like a semi-European city. With 11 churches. There's a huge Basilica. The Quechua people abandoned it just a 100 years later - coinciding it with the Spanish conquest. Most of the skeletons that were found could've been those of servants. So may be they were simply looking after it. While the Inca rulers functioned from their main cities. They may not have even called it Machu Picchu.
Perhaps it's overly popular. There might be other, more complex, more detailed archeological sites. But they aren't popular. And we live in a world of popular. There's still a lot of discovery going on. Who knows what we don't know. What secrets the jungles hide, the mountains hide.
All aside, it's still a spectacular site. What the Incas did was amazing.
[Back to the trek]
With that the trek was over. Just like that. We might've walked about 80km. All kinds of terrains. What can I say...it was very nice. It bound me to Peru.
I woke up at 4.45am. 5.30am or so was departure by bus. I remember standing in line with Andrea. Somehow the topic shifted to why we travel. It was about her. But I remember sharing. It was engaging and throughout the bus journey. For her it was discovery and trying to find herself amidst the noise. Dr. M read that as midlife crisis kicking in early. :)
The hotel was fine, functional. I took nice long bath. Mosquitos had bitten the hell out of feet. Red big spots. I bought red, alpaca wool socks outside it. I forgot my card in the ATM, the bank security guard approached me and gave it. Outside.
Early morning itself there was a line to the bus. Water at the shop was expensive - S/.4.
I was happy we were going. Took a pic of my tix. There at Machu Picchu - it was like a busy, busy tourist site. Early morning still. At any given time, apparently there are a 1,000+ people. But it's very well organized, maintained. Toilets are outside and paid ones.
I wonder what my first impressions were. It's nice, pleasant. I took pics. I was indeed impressed with what humans do. It's up there. And so wide. There's a certain technical nature to the construction. While there's broader symmetry, they aren't obsessed about it at the granular level. A lot of it seemed like living quarters. Like a mini-city. Temple. Religious areas. Living areas. I took one video for B from there (it was because of him, I was there!). It's very beautiful.
But I was so glad we didn't come here first. I was glad for choosing Salkantay and not one of the Inca trails. I was much more open and accepting of the crowds and the touristy-nature (was quite open by then) because we already came from the mountains deep.
At around 10am, Andrea went to hike Waynapicchu. We went for the Sun gate. We lost Mads somewhere in that transition but ran into him later. Jhois seemed pre-occupied generally since the past day.
The hike up to and down from Sun Gate was what I most enjoyed. It was just fun. I was taking pics, videos. Generally frolicking. On top, sat with Sarah and lazed. Gazed at everything. Actually I did this many times on the way up. There's a security guard right on top at the sun gate. He keeps whistling whenever you sit with your legs touching the terrace/steps. You are supposed to keep it up - like you can sit crosslegged.
On the way down, I met one Slovakian. He was singing a folk song. I asked him which language. Then he said he would sing for me too. I took a video of it. Fun! Then he said, $20 jokingly. He told me India special, India special. He's traveled to Varanasi, the ghats (he indicated with his hands, going up! Then I understood he was referring to Manikarnika Ghat...hmmm I've been there few years back).
In one area, one lady - she was chubby and round - she wore one long dress, white with flowers. She kept rotating and swaying her dress - her husband was taking pics. This was somewhere on Machu Picchu. People do the most interesting things. Have the most interesting desires.
Sarah wanted me to do Macarena with her. I refused, too shy to do it there. But Dr. M did. I took the video. She had wanted to do it for many years. ("Okay, we're good!") Then she wanted Dr. M and I to do free-style. I sang yeh dosti (why that song!) and he hummed along. It was fun. When I look at that video now - it's so crazy really - it's this really wonder of the world types heritage site and I'm there singing loudly. It's interesting. I wonder what happened to the shyness.
[Machu Picchu history]
Hiram Bingham, an American explorer, was the one to make Machu Picchu so public. He wrote a book called the lost city. As I understood from Larco museum, it's surprising that the thing we know so much about Peru is about the Inca civilization and Machu Picchu - whereas the whole thing lasted only a 100 years. Humanity in Peru has existed for tens of thousands of years. There's evidence from even 70,000 years ago. We are talking of a really old primitive place. But yet we know mainly Machu Picchu. Satyajit Ray also chose to highlight it in Agantuk. But the world's knowledge is only from 1911. (I later saw a movie, Lost City of Z in NJ - Percy's discoveries coincide around the same timeline - I was thinking it also coincides with the Jalianwalabagh tragedy when India was dealing with its own problems pre-independence).
Other people's dreams become yours. So may be it wasn't B's dream. But may be we all have to thank Hiram Bingham. He made us dream.
Jhois said, he was the first Westerner (or whatever he word he used) to discover it. But the local people, Quechua people knew of it all along. They just didn't think of it to be a big deal. When Hiram Bingham traveled, explored, the local people (may be a farmer) showed him this. He was surprised by the scale of what he discovered, wrote about it, it became popular etc. The West seems to think (this is so deeply ingrained it's crazy) that what they discover marks the first time. I see this pervasive in the Indian context too - for e.g. in math. There's was much before Pythagorus - apparently he borrowed his ideas from Arabia who learnt about zero and other concepts from India. But modern history credits only Western astronomers, scientists etc. - may be D is right. By rooting out language, culture, we make people forget their past. Then we replace what we already know.
That's basically what Spanish conquerers did. They didn't think, oh let's learn about the Quechua people and what they have to offer to the world. They thought let's just wipe them out completely. Same in India. Mughal invasions are similar. Somehow religion plays a key role everywhere. Conquerers feel if they wipe out religious beliefs, people change, they become themselves. Quechua will become Spanish if their temples are replaced by churches. Humans are weird really. Anyway, everything keeps changing.
Jhois said perhaps Machu Picchu could've been just a retreat. Cusco had the industries. It was widely connected by roads to other places. The Spanish never found it so it remains - they didn't plunder or destroy it or change it into a Spanish town. Cusco looks like a semi-European city. With 11 churches. There's a huge Basilica. The Quechua people abandoned it just a 100 years later - coinciding it with the Spanish conquest. Most of the skeletons that were found could've been those of servants. So may be they were simply looking after it. While the Inca rulers functioned from their main cities. They may not have even called it Machu Picchu.
Perhaps it's overly popular. There might be other, more complex, more detailed archeological sites. But they aren't popular. And we live in a world of popular. There's still a lot of discovery going on. Who knows what we don't know. What secrets the jungles hide, the mountains hide.
All aside, it's still a spectacular site. What the Incas did was amazing.
[Back to the trek]
With that the trek was over. Just like that. We might've walked about 80km. All kinds of terrains. What can I say...it was very nice. It bound me to Peru.
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