Wooo today is the day! We had an early breakfast & deliberated again over whether to take the shuttle up to the site or to walk from the village! I said we would be chickening out & doing half a job if we took the bus so we decided to walk! It was a steep hike from our hotel through the forest below Machu Picchu it was pretty challenging as it was getting hotter & I struggled with my breathing! It was about 1.5- 2 hours to the gates of the citadel Machu Picchu, the scenery on the way up was stunning when you could see through the jungle especially once it started to get higher & you could see back down to the river below. Once we arrived at the gates all the tourists were gettin off the shuttles looking fresh & perfectly dolled up ready for their selfies, me on the other hand looked like a drowned rat ha! Out of breath sweaty but we had made it! We freshen up then went straight to the main site for a look around, from the first moment I was absolutely stunned with the beauty, the pictures & videos I have seen just don’t even come close to standing looking at the ruins they are just fascinating. The surrounding scenery is just out of this world. All around the site rich green mountains with the Urubamba river running below & in the distance snow capped mountains. I honestly can't think of a more impressive setting. We didn’t have long before we had to start our next climb we had pre booked tickets to climb the mountain, this is located behind the citadel & looks down on the ruins. It’s 2139ft above Machu Picchu, the original Inca steps gradually ascended to a steep incline, the majority of the climb was so hard with little water left & breathing issues I almost turned around numerous times that was before my legs started shaking with the sheer drops on each side!! Kurt was slightly ahead of me most of the way but was struggling with his knee from a previous injury! We took breaks & caught up to each other, those who were coming back down were encouraging us to keep going & saying the view was so worth the pain. Most of the people on the climb were well equipped hikers with obvious experience, I don’t think our ten weeks alcohol training was helping us out to be honest but that just made us even more determined. The last part of the trail was so steep & with the valley looming below I was gripping the steps trying not to look down! Once we reached the summit 10,111ft above sea level the relief was something I’ve never experienced before, such a sense of achievement with the most amazing view I’ve ever seen as a reward. We sat on the edge of the peak taking in the views & getting our breath back, We had selfies & plenty of photos, the backdrop of the citadel makes the place even more spectacular. I knew it was going to be a struggle going back down because of the heights & having to watch my step, I didn’t really have an option but once we set off I tried to focus on my breathing & foot positioning rather than how high we actually were. Kurts knee was even worse on the way down. Once we were back at the citadel we ended up surrounded by llamas which followed Kurt down the hillside it was a surreal moment & I captured it on video. We both got changed & have a drink before looking around the main site we were shattered but couldn’t wait to look around the ruins. The site was just jaw dropping & no matter what you have heard or seen before simply doesn’t prepare you for it first hand. We wandered around taking plenty of photos wondering how they had built such a place with little equipment it was just unbelievable. We had been in the site almost 7 hours but it had gone so quickly, we bought a ticket for the shuttle back to the village there wasn’t a chance I was trekking back down & I don’t think kurt fancied it either ha! We queued for the bus & kurt got chatting to a Scottish couple who were visiting Peru & Mexico for Scotland friendly football matches, we sat with them on the bus swapping stories & having a laugh, they ended up joining us at a bar for 4 for 1 beers before their train back to Cusco. We had something to eat & collapsed pretty early wow what a day!