Huayna Picchu

From this view at Machu Picchu you can see Huayna Picchu in the distance. Machu Picchu means "old peak" in Quechua and Huayna Picchu means "young peak". Look closely at Huayna Picchu and the small peak to the left of it. It is said that the two peaks together ressemble a reclining side view of an Inca. We were also told that from Huayna Picchu to the right is the representation of the puma, one of the sacred levels of the Inca religion. I think Huayna Picchu represents the condor and the Rio Urubamba, which curls around the base of Machu Picchu and Huayna Picchu, represents the snake. The three levels, the condor, which represents the afterlife, the puma, which represents the present, and the snake, which represents the underworld, are all represented in most Inca structures.

400 people a day are allowed to climb Huayna Picchu and if you want to be one of them, you must go directly to the Huayna Picchu entrance gate and acquire a ticket as soon as you get to Machu Picchu. We did that---in retrospect, I wish we wouldn't have made that rush. First of all, on the day we went, there wasn't a crowd at Machu Picchu and I don't think 400 people even made the climb and secondly, rushing through the gates to get to the other side took away some of the serenity of the experience of just being at Machu Picchu. But, we got in line before 7:00 to get our tickets. The first group of 200 is admitted to Huayna Picchu at 10:00 and the second group at noon.

We decided we would make the 10:00 group, so after we got our tickets, we took our time to leisurely retrace our steps across Machu Picchu. We went up to the guardhouse for the standard post card view and pictures.

Just before we were to go up Huayna Picchu, Grant was not feeling well and decided that he would stay and rest. I decided to go ahead with the climb---mostly because I wanted to see how it compared to our hike up Putukusi the day before.

In the picture above, you can see the trail as it crosses from Machu Picchu to Huayna Picchu. Follow it starting in the lower right hand corner, up through the middle, and finally up to the upper left hand side of the picture. It was about here that I started thinking I really didn't know if I wanted to go ahead with the climb. The clouds were starting to come in and it wasn't going to be an easy hike.

Here is one view of the trail---mostly just stone steps---steep stone steps. That's a person at the top. It was very misty and that made everything very slick.

Another view of the steps was previously posted with the pictures of stairs at Machu Picchu.

Well, here I am at the top! Yes, that's the view. An hour climb and this is the prize. There are ruins at the top---more buildings, but with the clouds and mist, I didn't try to take many pictures.

The clouds did break up a bit while I was at the top. Look through them and you can faintly make up Machu Picchu. I didn't want to spend a lot of time up there because I felt that I was missing precious time in Machu Picchu, and Grant was there.

More Machu Picchu views...

In this view of Machu Picchu you can see the extensive agricultural terracing on the front side. At the top of the photo is the Caretakers Hut, probably used for guard duty. This is the Principal Temple, where many of the important functions were held. In this picture you can see some of the deterioration that is happening at Machu Picchu. While we were there we were told that a team of scientists from Japan was studying the effects of tourists and the environment. The study is to be finished sometime this year and if the results show that deterioration is serious, they may recommend to close Machu Picchu for 10 years so steps can be taken to reverse the damage and prevent further damage.

I was interested in the various forms of walls and buildings that could be seen at Machu Picchu. In this picture you see a triangular wall made with smaller stones. Note the thickness of the wall and the trapezodial window.

Here is a double thickness door. The room that it encloses probably held something important. All of the windows and doors designed by the Inca were trapezoids.

This is the rock quarry. The large unused stones sit waiting to be used in building.

More views of Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu is such an awesome place and no matter how many pictures you see, you can't really appreciate its beauty unless you visit. But, I tried to capture some of that beauty in my pictures and felt successful in some.

This picture conveys a little of the feel of surrealness that you feel when visiting Machu Picchu. The cloud forest hanging over the Andes in the background, the beauty of the nearly perfect remains of the stone buildings, the feeling of being suspended in air are all in this picture for me.

The area portrayed is called the Industrial Sector.

This is the Main Portal. I believe it receives that designation because it is the entry into the most revered part of the city, where the temples, the Intihuantana stone, etc. are located.

Look closely at the door and you can appreciate the precision with which the Inca construction was done. All of the stones were put together without mortar!!! And they fit together so closely that a piece of paper cannot go between them.

To the right of the portal you can see the sacred peak Putukusi.


In this view you see the rock on which the Intihuantana stone sits. This part of Machu Picchu is carved out of a large stone -- see the lower, middle section. If you remember from a previous post, the Intihuantana stone was considered to connect the Inca to the heavens.

In this view you can see some of the agricultural terraces. This is where the Inca grew their crops and where their llamas and alpacas grazed. Imagine as you look at this picture constructing those walls on the side of the mountain---and fitting together those stones with no mortar!

Machu Picchu- miscellaneous views

The Intihuatana, a sacred stone at Machu Picchu, is shown here. Inti is the Inca sun god and Huana means "hitching post". So, this is the "hitching post to the sun". The Inca believed that this stone was sacred and gave off powers. Many visitors today believe that it has a spiritual aura. It is blocked from touching because of the damage that constant contact can have. In recent years, filming crews that were allowed on location at Machu Picchu damaged the stone by dropping a camera boom and cracking the stone. Two times a year, at fall and spring equinoxes, March 21 and September 21, the sun stands directly overhead. This room is named "Room of Three Windows". The windows show a view to three sacred peaks which surround Machu Picchu. It is believed that Pachacuti stayed in this room when he was at Machu Picchu.

This is a view of the fountains. The fountains, which still work today, provided water, but many were used for bathing. There are 16 fountains at Machu Picchu. This view is from the top looking down. The uppermost fountain was believed to be used by Pachacuti for ritual bathing. The more important you were, the higher up you were allowed to bath. Some of the fountains even have indentations which would look like cubicles for soaps.... At the bottom of this picture you can see the Rio Urubamba.

This room is called the Temple of the Condor. The condor was sacred to the Inca as it was believed to be connected to the afterlife. The three levels of Inca life were represented by the snake (the underworld), the puma (the present), and the condor (the heavens). The stone formation on the ground in this room is meant to represent the condor.

This view shows the backside of Machu Picchu as it descends down to the Rio Urubamba.

Stairs at Machu Picchu

Visiting Machu Picchu means climbing lots of stairs---up and down and up and down. There's really no way to avoid it. It's fun to notice all the different kinds of steps the Incas made.
These steps were made with many stones laid together.

Large flat stones make this stairway.
Notice Rio Urubamba at the bottom.

This stairway is made by using the stones as the edge of the stair, with the "tread" just dirt and grass.


This set of steps let up Huyana Picchu. They were basically large blocks of stone.

Machu Picchu!

On the morning of our visit to Machu Picchu, we arose at 4:30 a.m., got dressed, had a little breakfast (I don't even remember what we had) and headed to catch the bus to Machu Picchu. We initially had planned to hike in from Aguas Calientes to capture some of the sense of hiking the Inca Trail, but after hiking Putukusi the day before, we decided that we didn't need that experience. We would have had to leave at 3:30 a.m. to arrive at opening, 7:00, and felt that it may have been a little much.
There were what seemed to be hundreds of people in line for the buses and I thought, "Oh, great, we will have to deal with crowds all day long....", but amazingly, once we arrived, everyone seemed to disperse and crowds were not an issue. The bus ride was a twisty, turny ride on hairpin curves on a dirt road. I am amazed at the skill of the bus drivers. Everyone seemed full of anticipation and I know that although I tried to relax, I was not wanting to miss anything. I plan to post many pictures of Machu Picchu, since it was the most important part of my trip, so I hope not to bore you.

Well---here we are...Machu Picchu!!! ---the climax of the trip! It was everything I had imagined, and more! It was beautiful, mystical, other-worldly... amazing! I think we were very lucky to have gone during the off season, when it wasn't overrun by tourists.

This picture shows Machu Picchu at around 7:30 a.m. when we first arrived. You can see in the middle a room that is being renovated, the Temple of the Sun. I did some photoshopping on this picture in another view and erased the tarps, etc., but, in this picture you see it exactly as we saw it. The wispy clouds hanging over the Andes mountains added to the ethereal quality of the site. What amazed me most was how quiet everyone was. It was as though everyone could feel the spirituality.

Here's a picture of Grant and me with Machu Picchu in the background.

This is the sacred Inca mountain, Putukusi, which Grant and I hiked yesterday. The part we hiked was on the back side, away from what you can see here, but if you look at the very top, that's where we ended up and got the cloud shrouded view of Machu Picchu.

The llamas are the only official residents of Machu Picchu. They seem very happy in their home and not at all intimidated by the visitors.

In this picture you can see the part of Machu Picchu called the Industrial Sector with Mount Putukusi in the background.

Another view of Machu Picchu with the agricultural terraces in the background.

Ollantaytambo

One of the things I loved about Ollantaytambo was the quiet, small town atmosphere. In this picture you see an Inca courtyard. Ollantaytambo is a wonderfully preserved Inca settlement. The streets and homes have been maintained in the same style as they were built by the Incas. One of the ways that the Inca designed homes was a "cancha", or block of homes. This is an example---the opening from the street opens onto a courtyard, off of which are 4 houses. Our guidebook told of a family who opened their home for people to see. It wasn't easy to find, but I followed the directions and found the house.
Notice in the picture the canal down the middle of the courtyard---stone lined from Inca times. In the background on the mountain you can see ruins of Inca storehouses and the Inca face that I posted in the previous post. Grant and I climbed part way up that mountain---to the storehouses on the previous day. It is where the cactus I posted was. I also found some tiny shells on the side of the mountain. They looked like tiny sea shells.




These skulls were on the mantle inside the house pictured above. I spoke in my limited Spanish to the woman, who told me they were skulls of her Inca ancestors. She was very personable and welcoming. I wish my Spanish had been better so I could have asked my many questions.
















The husband was preparing a fire to cook the cuy, guinea pigs. The cuy seemed so happy living in the house with the family. See the one perched on the stone overlooking the fire? He doesn't know what his future holds....








The woman shows me her bowl of cuy ready to be roasted. "Cuy al horno" is a dish available in the restaurants. I didn't want to try it.

This old dog was laying on these steps every time we walked by. He never lifted his head to check us out, even when I talked to him He reminded me of Champ, our 14 year old dog, who mostly sleeps these days.

Well, good-bye to Ollantaytambo. Grant is shown here waiting to board PeruRail for Aquas Calientes. Grant and I rode the "Backpacker", which was the cheapest and slowest of the three trains. The middle choice, the "Vistadome", was considered 1st class, and the most expensive, the "Hiram Bingham", named after the man who rediscovered Machu Picchu in 1911, was luxury, costing about $450 for a one way ticket.

Our ride to Aquas Calientes was comfortable, lasting a couple of hours. We met a kid from France, Valentin ---you can see him getting his ticket out in the picture. We ended up sharing a hostel that night with him.

More Ollantaytambo...

These are some photos which show the beauty of Ollantaytambo. We spent only one night there, but I could have spent several nights. It was a beautiful location as these photos show.
In this picture two cattle are grazing at the base of the ruins. You can see the cloud forest floating over the Andes in the background.






Several little mountain streams flow through Ollantaytambo towards the Urubamba. In this photo, you can see how close we are to the tropical jungle. The vegetation is becoming more and more dense and very lush.
The Inca were very advanced in their engineering skills and harnassed the power of these streams.












These are ruins of the baths at the base of Ollantaytambo. Water from the stream above was diverted into these pools. Behind you can see the bathhouses.










This picture shows a part of the mountain which thrusts out and to me looks like the profile of an Inca. Grant was not totally in agreement.
















This is the carving of an Inca in the mountainside. He overlooks the valley and the temple.

Ollantaytambo

I have been remiss in completing my blog about my trip to Peru. Life goes on and there are so many pictures to take and things to do. But, I do want to finish the story, so hopefully I will complete the postings in a more timely manner.


This picture shows the main entrance to the temple of Ollantaytambo. It was built by the Inca Pachacuti, but is probably most well known because this is where Manco Inca retreated after his defeat at Sacsayhuaman. Manco Inca actually held off the Spaniards here and when you look at this entrance, it's easy to see how. There are 200 steps to the top! One of the Spaniards main advantages over the Incas was horses and the horses offered no advantage on these steps. That put the Spaniards more in line with the Incas. When the Spaniards advanced on Ollantaytambo, they were bombarded with stones thrown by thousands of Inca warriors. They were unable to gain any advantage and finally retreated. Manco Inca finally left Ollantaytambo when he felt it was to his advantage to lead his attacks from a more remote location further into the jungle.

This wall of pink granite at Ollantaytambo is considered to be one of the finest examples of Inca architecture in existence. It appears to be the beginning of a room never finished, probably because of the Spanish invasion. The stones are huge and smooth and fitted together amazingly.

Behind the wall, on the side of the mountain, you can see ruins of Inca storehouses. The Inca (actual name for the leader) never wore the same outfit twice (Paris Hilton would be proud) and changed outfits several times a day.

In this close up, you can see some of the detail that was begun in the wall. One that you see in the center is the beginning of a chakana cross, a symbol of the Incas. It has 12 corners, representing the 12 months; 4 arms, which represent the compass points; 3 steps on each arm, which represent the 3 tiers of the Inca world; and the hole in the center, which represents Cusco, the center of the world for Incas.

One view looking down from the top....

This was a series of narrow steps which led down and after the light rain, it was very slick. There was no rail and I was feeling a little unsteady descending them with my camera in one hand and nothing to hold onto.

(Those little black dots at the bottom are cattle.)

Another view looking down from the top. You can get an idea from this viewpoint of the advantage the Inca held over the attacking Spaniards here at Ollantaytambo.

Ollantaytambo

We are in the Sacred Valley, surrounded by the Andes mountains, at an elevation of around 8,000 feet and guess what---sunflowers! Dorothy, are we still in Kansas?
I loved Ollantaytambo---it was a wonderful little village, built by the Inca Pachacuti and still seems the same as it was then---beautiful little cobblestone streets, stone canals running through town in all directions, Inca walls, Andes mountains looming all around. It was a feast for the senses!


We love to climb, so we found a little path that let up the mountain that faced the ruins and overlooked the village of Ollantaytambo. Here I am with the ruins on the mountain in the background.

These are the ruins of Inca storehouses. The Incas kept storehouses full of supplies of food, clothing, tools, weapons, etc. all along the routes between villages. These storehouses were on the mountain we climbed.

I always think of cactus as being a plant that grows in the desert---hot, dry, flat... but here on the side of the mountain was this skinny little cactus. There were other types of cactus---one that I would call the prickly pear, and they were huge---some probably 6 feet tall and about 4 feet wide. I think the variety of vegetation was an example of the diversity of climates that you see in Peru.

This is the plaza in Ollantaytambo at around 6:30 in the morning. The wispy clouds were floating over the town and it was so peaceful and scenic. Grant's on a mission to find something to eat before we head over to the ruins, which open at 7 a.m.

Q'enko

Q'enko, another Inca ruin above Cusco, is about 1/2 mile from Sacsayhuaman. The hike was fairly easy, fairly flat along a road that was not very busy. But, I was feeling the effects of the altitude that day and it seemed a lot farther than 1/2 mile.

In this picture you can see the carved out remains of a large ceremonial chair. Q'enko is a small ruin believed to have been the site of ceremonial rituals of fertility and solstices.

This picture shows a large table believed to have been used for sacrifices.

Q'enko is primarily a series of carved stones which were used for tables, chairs, and other ceremonial uses. They sit atop a hill underneath which are caves and tunnels---at least that's what the guide book said. Grant and walked the perimeter of the ruin and couldn't find any way to get under the ruin. There were no guides at the site---in fact we saw only two other people the whole time we were there.

The site of Q'enko was beautiful, peaceful, and relaxing. Even Grant welcomed the chance to sit and relax.

We were there on a Monday which was probably part of the reason there weren't many people. We also happened to be visiting the ruins in the off season.

This day, December 5, also happened to be my mother's birthday. She would have been 92.

This is the view Grant saw as he sat at Q'enko. You can see Cusco below. Cusco sits at an altitude of 11,000 feet. I don't know the altitude of Q'enko and Sacsayhuaman, but you can see that they are considerably higher. I would have loved to have had a GPS on this trip.

This picture also shows the remains of another structure, perhaps something for storage.

Here Grant is heading up the hill away from Q'enko. You can see the wall of Q'enko on the right and on the left is a grove of trees that I was enthralled with. I haven't been able to identify them. The bark looked like the bark of a cedar tree, the leaves were long, thin, and smooth. The "nuts" were small with a point on each end and on the ground they were opened across the middle and had a star design on the inside.

There are two more ruins above Cusco. The next one is about a mile from Q'enko and the last another 1/2 mile or so from it. When we left our hostel that morning, we had planned to visit all 4 ruins. It didn't seem like a bad hike---two miles each way. Two miles at home are nothing, but two miles at 11,000 + feet was something else. We decided to return to Cusco after visiting Q'enko. We were hungry, thirsty, and feeling the effects of the altitude. I worried that Grant would be disappointed and feel he had missed out because he was with an "old" woman, but I think he was ready to return also.