Up at 4am breakfast at 4.30am on the busline to Machu Picchu just after 5am. We are not the only ones heading off early. The buses start at 5.30am and each one carries 29 passengers and we are on bus 20. It was a long line but very well organized so we were not waiting for long.
The bus ride is 25 minutes on a bumpy dirt road. Gates to Machu Picchu open at 6am and we are in about 6.15.
The plan now is to walk up to the highest platform to watch the sunrise and the mountains light up.
It’s a lot of steps and they are quite large and steep in parts. Marcial allows us photo breaks along the way which are actually rest stops for those of us puffing so hard it sounds like a train!
The sight of Machu Picchu in real life is amazing. We have all seen photos in magazines or from other people but to actually be here is pinch yourself stuff.
Machu Picchu is 2440m above sea level and it’s a rainforest area. From the terrace where we stop you have 360 degree views of the mountains, glaciers, Inca Trail and the Incan Settlement. As the sun comes up the colors of the mountains change and it’s very special to witness this, just us and about 400 others.
Those that do the 4 day trek into Machu Picchu following the Inca Trail time their arrival at the gate to the sun for sunrise and then make there way down.
We spend almost 4 hours inside and Marcial makes sure that we cover the parts of the site that are accessible and his information is very detailed and explains what we are seeing very well.
He leaves us to spend our time at leisure and to make our own way back to the village on the bus when ready.
Back in the village we have about 4 hours before we catch our train back to Cusco at 3.15pm so as it’s a small village and we covered most of it yesterday we decide to take it easy. An early lunch at a cafe overlooking the square where many people are gathering for a parade. Undoubtedly it is a religious parade but also a festival of music and dance. Very colorful and loud.
It’s quite warm today, perfect weather. We head back to the hotel to get our backpacks, charge our phones out of the hot sun. The train back to Cusco will be 3 1/2 hours and I think maybe a little snooze will be in order.