Visiting the Ancient Cities of the Inca

(Oct 29, 2012)

After a few unfortunate hiccups with the Peruvian long distance bus system (decentralized system with full buses and protests on the highway), Peter and I have made incredible headway in our trip and are now actually in Cuzco, which is in the Southeastern Andean region of Peru!

Upon reaching the bus station in Chiclayo we found that the only bus going to Cajamarca that day was full. Not wanting to miss a day waiting around in a city that we had already seen, we decided to continue onwards to Trujillo to visit the ancient walled city of Chan Chan.

Trujillo was not quite as picturesque nor as much of a backpacking destination as we had imagined. Upon arrival, we spent most of the day weaving through its streets in search of affordable accommodation. Trujillo, it seems, likes to take on airs of being a backpacker friendly city but as we wandered the streets we found that none of the ‘hostels’ actually resembled anything close to the affordable, accommodating, and vibrant communal spaces that we are accustomed to. As we expanded our search further out of the downtown core, we finally found one ‘hospedaje’ (like a hotel in someone’s private home) that had internet, was close to one of the city’s many bus terminals, and was run by a kind man named Javier. With not a lot more to see in Trujillo itself, we ventured out to the ruins of Chan Chan set among desert sand dunes bordering the tempestuous Pacific coast. Chan Chan can only be described as a sandstone/adobe labyrinth that has slowly withered away over the years. The walls were covered in geometric and animal motifs, carved into the soft surface of the desert fortress and reminded me of some of the desert tombs that I visited in Egypt.

Though we had had enough forethought to purchase our night bus tickets to Huaraz the day before, when we arrived at the bus terminal at 8pm we learned that a vibrant protest along the highway to Huaraz meant that we could not leave that evening. With time of the essence we decided to leave the hiking mecca of Huaraz for our return to Peru and hopped on a night bus to Lima. After a restless 12 hour night bus to Lima, we took another bus (this time 24 hours!) that winded along Peru’s desert Pacific coast and then turned into the highlands en route to Cuzco.

Cuzco, as we have learned, is a tourism hotspot and the entire downtown is swarming with tourists from all countries and budgets (from the weather-beaten wanderer to the most sophisticated and luxurious traveler). The architecture in the downtown centre presents a fascinating mixture of ancient incan and more recent colonial influences and the ancient incan stone alleys snake through colourful artisan vendors and trendy restaurants and cafes. In Cuzco we have been staying with a wonderful couple, Lorenzo and Paty, in their home-turned-couchsurfing-headquarters. Since we have been here we have met 5 other couchsurfers who have moved through and stayed with us at the house and we are told that 6 more are coming sometime today! What fun! Lorenzo is an energetic French jazz pianist who has traveled the world almost continuously for the past 25 years. While we have been here, Paty has been a wonderful companion and has taken us out to see the city, led us to all of the best markets, and has helped us find tours to visit the countless ruins in the surrounding area.

As I was lucky enough to visit Machu Picchu when I had been volunteering in the highland region of Peru, Peter and I decided to go on separate adventures – he on a two day journey to Machu Picchu and I to the many smaller ruins that speckle the sacred valley region. Throughout my adventures I climbed the steep slopes of many ruined inca and Quechua communities, gazing on the remnant of ancient resource management innovations championed by the ancient civilization. Among the various ruin sites I found cuy (guinea pig) domestication spaces, was inspired by the characteristic agricultural terraces that altered the naturally steep Andean landscape, wondered at the ancient cemeteries built into the rock faces, was dazzled by the mineral mining techniques and hillside salt pans, and was impressed by the massive scale construction methodologies that I visited. There was even a giant hilltop food storage structure that harnessed the cooling power of wind to preserve food products! Everything about their civilization, from both spiritual and practical aspects, were dedicated to the management of natural resources and it is through these innovations that the empire was able to grow and prosper until the coming of the conquistadors.

These themes were further discussed during Peter’s very successful tour of Machu Picchu (detailed below).

I set off for the first time by myself at 6:45 in the morning to find my bus to Machu Picchu.  There are two main ways to get to Machu Picchu:  You can take a bus to a small town and from there catch the train to Aguas Calientes (the town at the base of Machu Picchu itself) but this method it quite expensive – about $50USD each way.  The alternative is to catch a bus from Cusco to a hydroelectric dam (6-7 hours on tremendously twisty roads) and from there walk the 16 kms to Aguas Calientes.  This option was much cheaper and is the way I went.

On the bus I met some a French couple, an older Dutch couple and a really nice Colombian guy and quickly made friends with all of them.  We arrived in Aguas Calientes just as it was getting dark and our tour guide prepared us for the following day.  To go from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu, you can either take a bus at 5:30AM or start walking at 4:30AM.  Not wanting to pay the $9USD for the bus (each way!), I decided to walk.

Guillaume, the fellow from the French couple, joined me and so we arrived at the bottom of Machu Picchu and the first gate just before 5AM .  The gate is the first checkpoint to Machu Picchu and opens at 5 when all the many backpackers start climbing at various paces.  It was suggested to us that the average time to climb the 1861 steps to Machu Picchu was about 1.5 hours but this wasn’t going to work for us because the top gates open at 6AM and the buses arrive to disgorge hordes of tourists shortly thereafter.

We started off strong with my pulling Guillaume along (whilst he complained about his “poor smoker’s lungs” – no sympathy!) but after 25 minutes of climbing I was starting to flag and our roles reversed.  Suddenly I was huffing and puffing, encouraged to climb faster by calls of “Hey! Come on! If my smoker’s lungs can do it, you can do it!”  We finally made it to the top, exhausted, after only 45 minutes and were the fifth and sixth in line – totally worth it.

We entered Machu Picchu and were able to take some photos before the ruins became overrun (which happened quickly once the buses made it to the top).  We later learned that over 5000 people visit Machu Picchu every day.  Wow!

Things I learned about Machu Picchu:

• Machu Picchu was built as a palace for the Incan King but was only inhabited for 100 years, 1432-1532.  When the conquistadores conquered Cusco, word was sent to Machu Picchu and the people fled to the jungle.
• The Incan people had a messenger system that used the Incan Trail type paths to reach the corners of their far reaching empire.  Using these trails, trained messengers (they trained at a university type structure in Machu Picchu itself) could relay a message from Machu Picchu to Cusco in only six hours!  Similarly, messages could be sent to as far as Ecuador and the south of Chile in less than a month.  Very impressive!
• The most important buildings in Machu Picchu (and many other Incan settlements) are built without using any mortar.  The stones are excavated and then polished for hours until they can fit perfectly next to each other.  As you’ll see in the photos it’s quite impressive.

After five hours atop Machu Picchu, I headed down to Aguas Calientes to get some lunch before heading back to Cusco.  I arrived in Cusco, exhausted, and quickly went to bed.

We’ve had a great time in Cusco (and Peru!) but we’re ready to move on now.  Today, we leave for Puno, which borders Lake Titicaca on the Peruvian side.  We’ll spend some time there, head over to Copacabana on the Bolivian side of Lake Titicaca before heading to La Paz in time for the weekend!