Today we took a 1 3/4 bus ride to Ollantaytanbo to catch the train to Aguas Calientes (meaning hot springs in Spanish) which is known for it's natural pools. Aguas Calientes (now officially Machu Picchu Pueblo) is a small town at the bottom of the valley next to Machu Picchu, and the principal access point to the site. It's the last town for visitors going to Machu Picchu and the end of the line for the train. The train ride (1 1/2 hours) was simply gorgeous with the majestic mountains and river rapids whizzing by. 

Despite its magnificent setting, we heard that it's not the nicest town, owing to fast and ruthless development to support the huge influx of tourists. There are lots of hotels, restaurants and souvenir and arts and craft stalls.  The streets are filled with vendors and even the train track turns into a market once the train leaves. Nevertheless, it has a certain quaintness about it. It is situated on the side of a mountain and is very pretty with a river running through it and no cars are allowed. The prices here are a bit more than Cusco due to the influx of tourists. 

We welcomed the group of hikers that did the 3 day Lares trek at the train station. We were glad they completed their hike safely. They couldn't wait to hit the showers. After they cleaned up we went for dinner with them and their fellow hikers and ended up going out to a pub to play darts. The game was called killer. I was the runner up. I lost out to an Irish lad. 
 
We had to stay the night here so we could get up early to catch the first bus up to Machu Picchu. We're starting to get excited. Machu Pucchu was the main reason we came on this trip.