Lost and Found
November 14, 2007
Machu Picchu
Historical and Factual
“Rediscovered” in terms of its significance to the world in 1911 by Hiram Bingham, Machu Picchu is widely reputed to be the best example of work of the Inca Empire. Despite the fact that after its completion in approximately 1450, it was in use for less than a hundred years. This was due to the Spanish invasion which saw the Incas’ ruination.
Meaning Old Mountain, Machu Picchu is approximately 2400 Metres above sea level. Some 72.5 Miles of rail track Northwest of Cusco. The multitude of buildings, steps and walls are mainly comprised of a white granite, which contains a high content of quartz and other minerals. There is still uncertainty as to the primary use of the site. Suggestions include a royal retreat and centre for spirituality. The location is thought to have been chosen due to the surrounding scenery resembling the Inca, with Waynapicchu, approximately 2900 Metres in altitude, a resemblance to his pierced nose. Machu Picchu has come to be known as The Lost City Of The Incas.
Visit
Shortly after leaving Cusco, the steam train made a number of switch backs, edging its way up into the hills. Trundling through what seemed like dramatic rising peaks and lush lands. After three hours or so it arrived in Auguas Calientes, the small and extremely touristy town closest to Machu Picchu. I decided on arrival to visit Machu Picchu the following day so as to get a look before the majority of tourists arrived on that day’s train.
Taking the bus early to the Inca ruins, I realised that as well as the enormity of the city, the other draw was its location. The landscape in front of me made that of the train ride seem quite mellow. Machu Picchu itself is a collection of buildings, terraces and walls that cascade down the side of the mountain. On stepping closer to the edge, one can see the river, railway track and whole valleys in miniature below.
The panorama is made up of a number of large cloud forest covered mountains. The highest and with out doubt most dominant is Waynapicchu. I moved swiftly through the ruins to get there and arrived as number 274 of the 400 quota of people to climb it each day.
Despite the accumulation of blood lactate in my legs, I only let myself recover enough in each rest period so as not to fall off the edge of the narrow winding paths that led upwards. After thirty minutes of rocky steps I reached a tunnel that opened out onto a collection of giant boulders at the top of the mountain, which were on a level with the surrounding clouds.
I found a rock on which to sit. Machu Picchu had now been reduced to the size of an ants’ nest. The wide grassy ledges appeared as the tiniest of steps. An optical illusion presented by the acuteness of the slope meant that although the drop below my protruding rock was barely enough to kill me, it felt as if by jumping I would land at the valley’s bottom itself. There was a tantalising urge to try it out.
Instead I settled for scrambling up to the highest rock with the sheerest drop, to get my photo taken. Only one other, a Colombian woman, was daring enough to do the same, and afterwards we began the descent together. This time with gravity on my side, I afforded myself the chance to admire the ethereal landscape below.
Back down at Machu Picchu we found a grassy terrace looking over the valley in which the river nestled and sat in the sun for a while. Interupted only by an indigenous looking Peruvian who pointed out a number of mosquito bites on my leg and said something in Spanish which I never understood. When he had gone the Colombian woman told me he had simply said I should wear repellent.
After spending some time amongst the ruins I returned to the bus depot, and headed back to Auguas Calientes for a quick bite to eat of Choclo con Queso – giant kernel corn on the cob with a lump of cheese. Then collected my bag and jumped aboard my return train to Cusco.
As somebody who usually finds that nature’s most startling or beautiful leaves a greater imprint than that of man’s capabilities, I am inclined to say that the location is the making of Machu Picchu. Although if you combine that with the historical aspect and from afar, the ambiguous and random lines of the ancient citadel, like a postmodern art piece embroidered onto the mountain, it all amounts to something intensely dramatic.
