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Of all the places on my trip, Cusco was one of the ones I was most excited about visiting, being the nearest city to Machu Picchu, the 'lost' city of the incas. The first thing I did when getting there was to head to the train station to book my train tickets to Aguas Calientes for Machu Picchu. The rest of the day was spent exploring the beautiful city of Cusco, the many churches and museums (and enjoying the Real McCoy, an English bar there with PG Tips!) The next morning was a VERY early start, to catch the 6.30 am train to Aguas Calientes, which the guide book (accurately) describes as 'the most overpriced and ugly little town in Peru'. Unfortunately, if you want to spend a decent ammount of time at Machu Picchu, and to get there early to avoid the crowds (a 1000 people a day visit in June) you have to spend the night in Aguas Calientes. We arrived there at about 11am, and wasted the afternoon wandering around the craft market which is the only thing in the town aside from the many, many overpriced cafes. The next morning was an even earlier start, as I was determined to be on the very first bus to Machu Picchu, which left at 5.30. I arrived at the bus station at 5 to be on the safe side, and found there were already 20 people ahead of me in the queue. Still, I got on the first bus and arrived at Machu Picchu just as the sun was coming up. Stepping into the lost city is a truly surreal experience. The first thing I did was climb up to the 'hut of the caretaker' where you get the classic, 'postcard' view of the city (as in the photo)- and it actually felt like stepping into a postcard. I've seen so many pictures of Machu Picchu that to actually be there and seeing it for myself was amazing. After a while, I headed through the city to Waynu Picchu, the mountain behind it. It's possible to climb it, to get another view of the city, but they only allow a limited number of people up each day and I was determined to be one of them, so I got there as 7 as it opened. Getting there early paid off, I was the 12th person allowed up that day. The climb was hard work- basically one huge flight of steep stone stairs, made even harder by the alititude. But the view from the top made it worth it, high above the city, and we spent a good half an hour just sitting up there admiring the city. If I thought the climb up was hard work, the climb down was even harder- the steep, uneven step were terrifing (I met more than one person on the way down refusing to carry on, they were too scared) Plus, by this time the crowds had arrived, and there was a steady stream of people trying to get up- making the paths even more difficult. When I got to the bottom I began exploring the city properly; the homes, the chapel, the prisons. It is without a doubt one of the most amazing places I've ever been to- I've certainly never seen ruins like it. Eventually it was time to get the bus back, and get on the train back to Cusco. When I arrived back I headed straight to the hostel, where I was meeting some of the people I had volunteered with, who were also in Cusco. That night we went around some of the many bars and clubs around the beautiful old plaza, taking advantage of all the free vouchers that are given out on every corner, and not leaving until nearly 7 am. It's very weird to come out of a bar and find it's daylight outside. Back at the hostel breakfast was being served, so we ate and I finally got to bed about 27 hours after I'd gotten up that morning. The next few days we spent just relaxing in Cusco, and making use of the huge DVD collection in the hostel before Katie and I headed off to Arequipa.
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