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Cuzco is generally on most travellers itineraries as a base to get to "the lost city of the Incas" - otherwise known as, Machu Picchu. We spent a few days here chilling, exploring the town via WTF walking tour free which was good as it was obviously free but also very informative and we got to try some of the local delicacies. Another local delicacy that we had the pleasure of trying was…..the Guinea Pig!!!! Luckily we went to an upmarket restaurant where the nice household pet was in cutlets, unlike the other restaurants who serve a whole deep-fried Guinea Pig. The pictures look horrific and I'm certain if it was served this way I wouldn't have been able to eat it. Not that great tasting…..much better as a regular old pet if you ask me!
After 2 days relaxing, we set off early the next morning to begin the Inca Jungle Trek. Being low-season it ended up being only the two of us, so we had our own private tour guide for the next 4 days. First day we done yet more mountain biking….thankfully not along the world's most dangerous road this time. After arriving at our private lodge for the night in Santa Maria we got a nice early night in preparation for the trekking tomorrow. The second day was definitely the most knackering……7am start and 8 hours of long trekking through the Jungle, along a scary mountain track and the apparent Peruvian "flats". Sampling the fresh fruit along the way eased the journey a little…..picking fresh oranges, jungle tomatoes, pineapple, berries! The views along the way were outstanding….although the track leading to these were not so much…..at one point we were clinging to the edge of the mountain face with a 1000 of metres drop below us! Clearly we were well prepared for this in our Nike hiking trainers and non-existent walking sticks. After a long hard day trekking and a dodgy cable cart across a river, we reached the well needed hot springs to soak our aching legs!
The next morning and a new challenge awaits……canopying between the mountains. The canopying involved 6 ziplines suspended between the mountains, the longest being 600 metres. Thought it would be more scary than it was…..Great fun whizzing between the trees. A few more hours trekking and we reached the final destination, Aguas Calientes the deep valley town below the infamous Machu Picchu!!!!!!!
What better way to see Machu Picchu, than waking up at 4am, in the pitch black, and climbing 2000 steps to the summit of the lost Inca city. It was worth it though and 45minutes later we were one of the first 4 people inside! The good old lonely planet states that this is one of the most spectacular experiences travellers will face and feel tantalised with its mystery?????? Hmmmmmmmm…..unlike us, we were not that impressed! I just can't get my head around how they know that the reason they built a certain ruin was to reflect an odd shaped condor that apparently is a huge symbol in their cultures??!! To me it looked nothing like a bloody condor! And the compass rock made so the shadow represents a llama???? Really!!! Jodie did look up at the sky and see a cloud formation that resembled Simba from the lion king so……..Hakuna Matata is now our belief and culture!
On a serious note…we did walk up to the Sun Gate (where the famous Inca trail enter Machu Picchu) and the view from here was pretty impressive! Although we had bought tickets to take the 2 hour climb up Machu Picchu mountain…..we were basically too lazy after the 4 day trek we had done, so decided to skip this and head back to the main town for food instead. A nice end to our tantalising experience of Machu Picchu!
Next stop Huacachina, the gringo playground of sand dunes!
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