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 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.

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.