Machupicchu

Yesterday I visited South America's most popular tourist attraction. It would certainly touristy, but it was totally worth it. Because we don´t have a lot of time as I have to be in Arequipa ready to start at the orphanage on Monday, we opted not to do the 4 day hike along the Inca trail, which goes from Cusco to Machupicchu. It is something I would like to do someday though. Instead we took a bus and then a train, stopping at a few villages along the way. We spent the night at Aguas Calientes, the town which sits at the foothill of the mountains that surround the ancient Inca city. That town exists purely for tourists. It´s full of restuarants and bars and shops and that´s about it. And it´s very expensive. The whole thing was probably the most expensive thing I´ve done throughout my travels. But it is worth it to see Machupicchu. I feel like it is one of those places that you just have to see in life, like the Eiffel Tower or the pyramids in Egypt (haven´t seen the latter yet, someday).

The next day we took a bus up to the park, because we were planning on walking around and walking down so we though it was best to conserve energy. At first, dealing with all the tourists so early in the morning made me feel slightly cranky. We ended up following a tour which was kind of interesting, but I usually to prefer to do those types of things on my own. I am never a very good listener when it comes to guided tours. But it was a nice easy way to start the day. After that we climbed up Machupicchu Mountain, which is the tallest peak surrounding the city. It's not the most popular one, that is Wanupicchu, people begin lining up as early as 3:30 AM to climb that one because the park only lets 400 people a day do it. We decided not to do that one. The peak we chose instead was much taller and much more difficult, therefore not as many people choose to do it. We signed in at the bottom at about 11:00 AM and I think I was only number 40 on the list. That's nothing considering there were thousands of people visiting that day. It was nice though to get away from all the people. The climb was definitely challenging. But I took it slow and managed to complete it. As usual, it felt great once I got to the top. Unfortunately the view wasn't that great because it is the rainy season, so it was very cloudy, plus it was raining. But we tried to be patient, and waited up there for about an hour. Finally we got a glimpe of the "Mysterious" Inca city. It was worth it for the view. I think the summit of the mountain is about 9,000 feet above sea level, so of course it's an awesome feeling to look down from such a high place. After that we climbed all the way down back to town which took a couple of hours, plus it was slippery. Suprisingly I didn't fall, although I came close a few times. After the long walk into town we celebrated accomplishing Machupicchu with pizza and beer. We definitely deserved it. We arrived back to Cusco at about midnight and I pretty much went right to bed, I was exhausted.

Tomorrow I head to Arequipa, it's time for me to part ways with my travel friends. Tonight we are planning to go out for one last night of fun. Plus, I have a reason to celebrate. Yesterday I found out I was accepted into the English Opens Doors program, a government initiative in Chile to improve the teaching of English in public schools. Starting the beginning of March, I will be teaching English in Chile. I don't know where yet, but hopefully somewhere in the South as I requested. I am very excited, it´s a job I really wanted, it´s going to be a great experience for me personally, culturally, and professionally. Everything seems to be falling into place, I am so grateful for the experiences I have had thus far, and those that are yet to come. I am even more grateful for all the wonderful and supportive people in my life. There's no way I could do all this without the great support network I am blessed with. Lots of love to all!