Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Peru Diaries 4 - The Old Mountain a.k.a. Machu Picchu

Aguas Caliente is a town that was built to accommodate tourists who visit Machu Picchu. We got there by 7 pm the day before our awaited visit to the "Old Mountain". On arrival, we wandered to a bar for a much needed beer. As we were sitting enjoying our beverage we heard a song by Nazia Hassan being played "Aap Jaise Koi mere zindagi mein aye  - toh baat ban jaye". In the foothills of Machu Pichu we hear music by a Pakistani singer that was popular in the late 70's - how bizarre is that ! Our wake-up call was at 4 am the next morning and an hour later we were put on a bus and off we went to Machu Picchu. We hiked up to the Guardhouse - from this spot you can see all of the city. We were the first ones there; but it started raining heavily and all we could see were clouds. There was much disspointment - but as they say good things come to those who wait; and slowly but surely the clouds cleared and we saw the Magnificence that is Machu Picchu. Ruben (our guide) gave us a great tour - I am not going to go into the details of each spot that we saw but it truly is a wonder of the world and it took our breath away. 

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