I was talking to my sister a while back about how excited I was for the Nebraska group’s upcoming trip to Machu Picchu, when she stopped me and said, “Whenever I think about Machu Picchu, I replace the word ‘Picchu’ with ‘Pikachu’ in my mind.” While I did not witness any Pokemon action during my visit to Machu Picchu, I still think that it was an experience I will not soon forget.
Our journey started at 4 a.m., Thursday morning, when we all met at the airport to board our plane, Cusco bound. We arrived in Cusco around 7 a.m., checked into our hotel, and slept off the growing altitude sickness. Cusco is not necessarily the highest altitude that I have ever been in, but one does need to acclimate to being so high above sea level when she has been living at sea level for the past month and a half. Later, we ate lunch at a restaurant that served typical Peruvian foods, and toured Incan ruins that were close to Cusco. On our way back to the hotel, we stopped at an Alpaca wool factory. While at the factory, we learned how to discern between acrylic, acrylic and llama mix, and real alpaca (baby and adult) materials. I think that I am doomed to obliviously buy cheap imitations because I thought that all of the materials felt the same.
Friday we spent a lot of time touring around Cusco and the surrounding area, looking at more Incan ruins, shopping, and watching women dye alpaca wool. The shopping in Cusco was like nothing I have experienced before. The shopping markets are packed with vendors and shoppers alike, and while most of the materials being sold from shop to shop are similar, everything is also very different. Shopping in Cusco is like a game because you can barter with every vendor. Students in the group would practically compete with each other to see who could get the lowest prices on the same materials. Shopping in the States will never be quite as much fun again after that experience.
Saturday was the day that we traveled to Machu Picchu, which was another incredibly early morning. By 5 a.m., we were all loaded onto the bus, ready to travel to Ollantaytambo, the town where we would board the “Machu Picchu Express.” Once on the train, we had another hour and a half journey to Machu Picchu town, where we had to catch one more bus to take us to the top of Machu Picchu. Finally, after three modes of transportation and even more cups of coffee, we had arrived at Machu Picchu.
In my first steps through the gate, I was incredibly worried that our trip to Machu Picchu would be a bust. The fog was so thick that I could barely make out the people in front of me, let alone the great peaks they call Machu Picchu. However, the fog lifted soon enough, and the ancient Incan ruins that had been built into the sides of these majestic mountains were revealed to us. Let me just say the Machu Picchu is absolutely breathtaking. It is much more massive than I ever imagined it would be, which made its significance seem even more powerful. My favorite part of the day happened when the sun came out long enough for the butterflies to come out too. Being in the mountains always makes me feel at peace with the world and my surroundings, and Machu Picchu heightened that experience for me.
I normally prefer the mountains to the sea, so being in Machu Picchu was a dream come true for me! For an entire weekend, green, luscious mountains and valleys surrounded me, and I also experienced the best weather that I will have the pleasure of knowing this semester. It was hard to say goodbye to Cusco, but like they say, all good things must come to an end eventually. I would like to return to Machu Picchu someday and actually try the four-day trek across the Inca trail. For now, I have my memories and pictures to tide me over until I can make that dream a reality. Pura vida. Life is good in Perú.
Our journey started at 4 a.m., Thursday morning, when we all met at the airport to board our plane, Cusco bound. We arrived in Cusco around 7 a.m., checked into our hotel, and slept off the growing altitude sickness. Cusco is not necessarily the highest altitude that I have ever been in, but one does need to acclimate to being so high above sea level when she has been living at sea level for the past month and a half. Later, we ate lunch at a restaurant that served typical Peruvian foods, and toured Incan ruins that were close to Cusco. On our way back to the hotel, we stopped at an Alpaca wool factory. While at the factory, we learned how to discern between acrylic, acrylic and llama mix, and real alpaca (baby and adult) materials. I think that I am doomed to obliviously buy cheap imitations because I thought that all of the materials felt the same.
Friday we spent a lot of time touring around Cusco and the surrounding area, looking at more Incan ruins, shopping, and watching women dye alpaca wool. The shopping in Cusco was like nothing I have experienced before. The shopping markets are packed with vendors and shoppers alike, and while most of the materials being sold from shop to shop are similar, everything is also very different. Shopping in Cusco is like a game because you can barter with every vendor. Students in the group would practically compete with each other to see who could get the lowest prices on the same materials. Shopping in the States will never be quite as much fun again after that experience.
Saturday was the day that we traveled to Machu Picchu, which was another incredibly early morning. By 5 a.m., we were all loaded onto the bus, ready to travel to Ollantaytambo, the town where we would board the “Machu Picchu Express.” Once on the train, we had another hour and a half journey to Machu Picchu town, where we had to catch one more bus to take us to the top of Machu Picchu. Finally, after three modes of transportation and even more cups of coffee, we had arrived at Machu Picchu.
In my first steps through the gate, I was incredibly worried that our trip to Machu Picchu would be a bust. The fog was so thick that I could barely make out the people in front of me, let alone the great peaks they call Machu Picchu. However, the fog lifted soon enough, and the ancient Incan ruins that had been built into the sides of these majestic mountains were revealed to us. Let me just say the Machu Picchu is absolutely breathtaking. It is much more massive than I ever imagined it would be, which made its significance seem even more powerful. My favorite part of the day happened when the sun came out long enough for the butterflies to come out too. Being in the mountains always makes me feel at peace with the world and my surroundings, and Machu Picchu heightened that experience for me.
I normally prefer the mountains to the sea, so being in Machu Picchu was a dream come true for me! For an entire weekend, green, luscious mountains and valleys surrounded me, and I also experienced the best weather that I will have the pleasure of knowing this semester. It was hard to say goodbye to Cusco, but like they say, all good things must come to an end eventually. I would like to return to Machu Picchu someday and actually try the four-day trek across the Inca trail. For now, I have my memories and pictures to tide me over until I can make that dream a reality. Pura vida. Life is good in Perú.