Machu Picchu: Final Frontier

Without saying, this trip has been filled with wonders. For example, its a wonder I went to South America at all. I had a great job, I had a near perfect life in San Diego, I got accepted to an amazing school, and I was working to support myself in a pretty cool life in Southern California. Its a wonder I made it the whole four months, with little cash, health problems, a blonde United States citizen traveling alone, and constant misinterpretations of the bus system and my lack of knowledge of traveling by bus beforehand. I just realized how wonderous it is that I have survived so many bus rides, probably over 100 hours, with my last 22 hour bus ride from Cuzco to Lima making me scared for any more in the future!

A real world wonder, Machu Picchu. I made it!

Hike through the Jungle to Machu Picchu

Aside from my own personal wonders, I actually got to visit some of the worlds greatest wonders. After visiting one of the World's Natural Wonders in September, Iguazu Falls, and seeing up close the Chirst the Redeemer Statue last month in Rio de Janeiro, one of the ''New 7 World Wonders'', I finally made it to another New World Wonder, and a personal site of curiosity for myself: Machu Picchu. After a rough start in Peru, with a crazy witch doctor visit and too many Pisco Sours, I was worried my trip would be cut short and I wouldn't make it to the real peruvian culture and beauty outside of the city of Lima. Yet, after about a week in Lima, I was on my way. Finally, I made it to Cusco where I started a 3 day trek to Machu Picchu- the perfect choice to conclude my four month trip abroad. Let me just say that its way better in person than in the post cards. I have seen so many pictures of the ruins and always admired its beauty and desires to walk amongst the leftover walls from the old lost Inca City. But never, ever, will I forget my first up close view of the ruins. As I turned a corner on the entrance path, all of a sudden I encountered it: the ancient old stones, bright green grass and a illuminous horizon of mountains glaring with light from behind. I just started smiling hard and gasping for air (after 2 hours of basically climing and walking straight up hill). Like finding a pearl in a shell, it shined. It could not have been more perfect: I was one of the first to enter at 6AM and got to view the park with no person in it. This is rare, as every day the limit of 400 people allowed to enter Machu Picchu is fulfilled. With luck, the day was one of clearest days in months, with not a cloud in the sky. I was hoping to experience clouds dipping into the city at 8,000 feet elevation. But better, we had a clear sunrise shine over Machu Picchu.



The whole week was filled with inspiration natural views and cultural connections with the humble Peruvian culture the glows with textiled color. I started in Arequipa, South of Cuzco and Lima. The town has a spectacular nature layout, as it is situated around 80 Volcanoes, most of the active, including one massive one that the city is located around. I spent a day exploring the small city (which is actually the second largest for Peru with a little over 1 million residents). I tried the famous shrimp of Peru, experienced amazing outdoor markets and art fairs and for the first time, I ate the delicous Alpaca steak of the district, experienced my first brush with altitude sickness (''soroche'' or ''malo de la altitud'' as it is called here) and was able to learn the history of Incan sacrificial rituals as I checked out a museum with a 600 year old well preserved 10 year old Incan child named Juanita. She was discovered about 10 years by an American Arqueologist with hair, nails, some skin and eye lashes still intact. The two days that followed I traveled to el Valle del Colca where I got up close with llamas in the desert, reach heights of almost 18,000 feets that brought me to the freezing cold of snow, and descended down to el Cañon del Colca, where I stayed in a small pueblo called Chivay and witnessed an all night dance celebration in the streets of the Inmaculada Concepcion. The people were blissful and warmhearted with celebration. Most of them only spoke Quechua, a native language leftover from the Inca Empire, and only spoke Spanish to outsiders. I was invited to share drinks and dances with them, and favoured as the only gringo blonde boy around. It was one of the most authentic cultural experiences I have had yet. The next day I viewed the Colca Canyon, a canyon twice as deep as the Grand Canyon in some parts. The scenery was mind blowing and peaceful at the same time, and we were able to view the famous condor up close and walk amongst untouched ruins and tombs built by the Incas.

Cuzco was my favorite area to explore of all the places I have been. A little town with a lot of bustle from tourists and the local Cusqueños, it was impossible to not love it. The Plaza de Armas was the most beatiful of all three Peruvian cities I have seen, and the nature and history surrounding this town was the most interesting yet. I walked the streets and spotted still standing Inca structures used as builidings, most of which were built over by the Spanish. It reminded me of Florence, Italy as the city is in a valley, encircled by mountains. I got a my own private room in a small hostel and chilled out to the Cuzco vibes. I was able to visit the Sacred Valley, one of heavenly design, including ruins and small towns such as Pisaq, Ollantaytambo, and Chinchero. Then I started the three day trek through the jungle to head to Machu Picchu with a mix of foriegners including two Australians, 3 Israel soldiers, an Italian, and Welsch girl, and two girls from Berkeley, California ironically! All of the mosquito bites on my body will prove that this trek was definitely a real trek in the wild. The first day we drove up to hieghts of 12,000 feet with snow and temperatures as low as 30F degrees, and descended down on bikes for 3 hours through the mountains. The first night we stayed on a Coca plantation in the middle of a Pueblo in the jungle. Coca is the plant that make cocaine by the way. Fabio, the owner of the small hostel, gave me a tour of all the Coca growing, along with Cocoa (coffee), mangos, bananas, avocados, tangerines, lemons and pineapples. The next day was a 22 kilometer walk through nothing but green dense jungle and mountains. It was a beautiful experience and our arrival at hot springs was well deserved. From here I had to take a cab that raced me around mountain cliffs and through dense jungle to arrive at a train that would take me to the small town of Aguas Calientes where I would stay the night until my 4AM start of hiking to Machu Picchu.

Now I sit here, back in Lima, enjoying my last few hours in South America with a curious feeling of wanting to stay. I just spent almost 2 weeks seeing another way of living, on farms, talking to people who live in a hut in the jungle surrounded by exotic animals and plants, experiencing preserved pride for tradition, the beautiful smiles and fascination from Andean children at a blonde American (and the women, too!), hand made clothing and food, and a completely different attitude towards life and our world. I am about to head back to life in a super power in the world, with rapid speed in the culture, without jungle, with proper trafic lights and painted lines on the road, with safe cab drivers and a privatized health care system, with quick lines for waiting and no people talking to each other about politics or their life, and with an easy and quick option for almost everything. I'm scared to see how I will fit back in, as I feel like most of who I am now revolves around life in Latin America. I will become an American again, but will not forget about the rest of ''America'' nor will I forget about places where homeless children are abundant and starving in the street. And hopefully, I will return to do what I really want to do here: live in a small pueblo and learn the real life of Peruvian working to lower class.

I am definitely not looking forward to the next couple of days:

A 10 hour flight to LAX via Lima tonight, December 21 at 1:40AM.
Arrive in LA at 7:40AM. Take a three hour train ride to San Diego at 9:45AM.
Arrive SD between noon and 1PM same day, on December 21.
Depart San Diego for Cleveland, Ohio the following day, December 22 and 9:30AM.

Not to mention the adjustment of going from the Peruvian culture around the jungle and Machu Picchu in the middle of summer, to the United States Midwest culture during the freezing temperatures and snow of winter in Cleveland, Ohio!

Now I am spending my last day with an old friend from the states as well, Nathaly. Shes from Mexico, so its cool to observe a Latina's perspective on things here in comparison to my own US perspective.

Nathaly e yo en Lima

Here's some other photo's of my Peruvian excursion:

A small pueblo just outside of Lima

Plaza de Armas and the full Moon
 - Arequipa, Peru

Heading up in elevation outside of Arequipa. First Desert with wild Vicuña, then. . .

Snow! I had to buy these clothes from this
child below. We climbed over 16,000 feet after this,
to almost 6.000 meters. I was feeling the soroche
 pretty intensely.

Peruvian businessman

Andean Family

Andean outhouse

Traffic of Chivay, Peru

Celebration of la concepcion inmaculada in Chivay