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Helicopters ferried out the last tourists stranded near Machu Picchu on Friday, leaving the country to contemplate a prolonged shutdown of its most important tourist site. Some 3,900 tourists and residents were flown out of the tiny mountain village of Machu Picchu Pueblo this week after mudslides and torrential rains on Sunday destroyed sections of the railway that is the only form of transit to the village, which is below the Machu Picchu citadel. The remaining 1,277 travelers were evacuated Friday, a police colonel, Santiago Vizcarra, said. The railway’s operator, Perurail, said that it would take months to repair the line.

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
NYTimes.com
Published: January 29, 2010

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The Incas adopted Cusco as its sacred capital in AD 1438, giving it the name Qosqo, meaning ‘bellybutton’ or ‘navel of the world’.   Its rise in popularity as an important centre coincided with the emperor Pachacuti coming to power, at a time when the Incas were really making themselves known throughout South America.

Even though the Incas were around for over 300 years, the mark they made on the history books was only really during the last 100 years of these.  Prior to the Inca Empire, it was different cultures that dominated society – the Moche, Nazca and Tiahuanuc.  Each culture was characterised by their architecture, ceramics, jewellery or textiles, which are marked with their specific symbols and patterns.  These cultures coexisted simultaneously for hundreds of years, usually peacefully, but in later years the Tiahuanuco culture became particularly dominant throughout most of Peru.  Various tribes developed within these cultures and internal war faring soon caused the Tiahuanuco culture to slowly disappear.  It was replaced by a number of small empires along the coast, the most notable being the Chimu who constructed the Chan Chan complex near Trujillo.  Inland, three tribes developed, including the Incas who, under the rule of Manco Capac established themselves at Cusco around AD1200.  It took the Incas over 200 years to develop from a large tribal unit into an Empire.

Once established, the Inca Empire quickly became the largest and most powerful ever witnessed in South America.  The name Inca originally applied only to the Emperor, but nowadays refers to the whole nation of some 20 million Indians.  At their peak, the Incas ruled over territory stretching 5500km from southern Colombia to the Maule River in central Chile, and eastwards as far as the fringes of the Amazon Basin.

Many aspects of the organisation and structure of Inca society were inherited from previous cultures. Using the existing cultures and tribes, utilising buildings and towns, the Incans developed on what was already there.  That’s not to say the Inca’s relied totally on what had been before them and they set about constructing huge fortresses, urban and agricultural centres and temples.

The Incas have become world famous for their impressive architecture.  They developed a system of carving massive, multi-angled stone blocks with remarkable precision.  The stone used was often very hard igneous rock, like granite, which is particularly difficult to cut.  Although these blocks are all irregularly shaped, they interlock perfectly.  The walls were designed to withstand the considerable seismic activity common in the Andes.

Wandering around the city centre we caught glimpses of this famous Inca legacy – cobbled streets lined with the remains of the exquisite Inca architecture.  In many cases more modern buildings had been constructed right on top, and next to the Incan stonewalls.

When the Spanish arrived in Peru in 1526, under the command of Francisco Pizzaro, it heralded the demise of the Incan Empire.  Impressed by the extensive mineral deposits of the Inca Empire, Pizzaro sailed back to Spain to recruit an army of fortune hunters.  The Inca were warriors, with a strong and powerful army but they were no match for the 160 Spanish guns Pizzaro had enlisted and they quickly crushed a 40,000 strong Inca force.

In 1532, the Inca leader, Atahualpa was ambushed and held for ransom, but even 20 tons of silver and gold failed to buy the release of the captured Inca leader.  In 1533 Atahualpa was ‘tried’ and executed. By 1535, the Inca society was completely overthrown.  In the same year Pizzaro founded the city of Lima, which quickly replaced Cusco as the major economic centre for the Andean nations.  The new Inca ruler Manco Inca managed to escape from Cusco with an army of 50,000 and held out until 1572 when the resistance ended with his capture and beheading after a failed rebellion. 

In the process of defeating the Incas, the Spanish managed to dismantle most of the Incan temples, fortresses and fine buildings.  The introduction of their own architectural ideas involved knocking down structures and using the stones for their new buildings, often just placing their new buildings on top of existing foundations.

This is no more apparent than at the church of Santo Domingo.  Also known as Coricancha, it is a fine example of the Spanish culture imposing on Incan history.  The church comprises of a wonderful courtyard, in the centre of which is an octagonal grey-stone coffer.  Known as the Cusco Car Urumi (the Uncovered Naval Stone), it supposedly represented the centre of a field planted by the Incans with corn fashioned out of pure gold.  The stone was particularly symbolic and had been surrounded by numerous Incan temples.  The Spanish proceeded to build the church around it, plundering the 55kg of gold that once covered the stone.  The Inca site was forgotten until an earthquake in 1951 that demolished the church, exposing the earthquake resistant Inca block foundations beneath it.

Article taken from Inca Hoots by Caius Simmons & Vicky Brewis.

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The city of Cusco sits in a beautiful setting in the Peruvian Andes, at an altitude of 3400m asl, a height that left many fellow passengers breathless as they stepped of the plane.  As we were waiting for our bags we were serenaded by a bunch of poncho clad pan pipers, hands fully extended while they played.  Touts quickly descended on us like a swarm of bees.  Even after saying “no”, we still managed to find ourselves sitting next to a tout in our taxi who pointed out sights of interest as we headed towards the centre of town.  We engaged ourselves in a long and boring conversation about the weather, not giving him a chance to get a word in edgeways.  Desperate for an opportunity to give us his sales pitch, he hovered around as we were booking into our hotel.  Eventually collaring us, he tried to flog us a tour on the Inca trail to Machu Picchu, a bus trip through the Sacred Valley and a visit to the jungle.  We were trying to enjoy our first cup of coca tea (a pile of leaves in a cup filled with boiling water – it smelt rank but did not taste too bad), and the last thing we wanted to do was think about what trips we wanted to go on.  Eventually our tout got bored, storming off in a huff and back to the airport to await the next flight arrival.

We arrived in Cusco at the worst possible time of year (July), when the streets, hotels and museums were full of Americans and Europeans, mostly on large guided tours. 

A British pub – The Cross Keys – sold European and American beers, but we didn’t think the Guinness would have travelled well and kept to the local beer, Cusquenan, instead.   Mounted on the walls were photos from the UK, Premiership football scarves and a large wide screen TV showing sport highlights.  They even had pool tables and served roast dinners.  We could see why it was so popular.

It is impossible to walk 10 metres through the streets of Cusco without being hassled by someone.  It is a real shame as it ruins the ambiance of the place.  We were constantly harassed by street vendors to buy postcards, chocolates or fags, have a shoeshine, or take a taxi ride – the touts would not take “no” or something harsher for an answer.  We wanted to shout at them all, but most of them were just kids who were trying to earn a meagre living.  The most frustrating ones were those would hang around while we ate, loitering at the end of the table, with their hands limply extended and a pathetic look upon their faces.

As time went on, our boots got dustier and dustier, and we were attracting the attention of more and more shoe shiners.  Young boys seemed to appear from every side street, shouting a very bored, “Shoeshine” as they spotted even the smallest speck of dirt on your shoes.  We would reply, “no gracias” and they would reply, “only one sol, shoeshine” again.  This dialogue would go on a few more times, round and round in circles, until they got bored and left.  They appeared to work in teams and as soon as one walked away another quickly replaced them, “Shoeshine mister?”

 “No gracias”.

“Only one sol, shoeshine?”

 “No gracias”.

“OK, shoeshine?”

Aaargh.  After a while we ended up giving in and at one stage we had one boy cleaning a shoe each, surrounded by a dozen more of them who were desperate to clean his shoes again when the other two had finished polishing.

We experienced a new pest that we had encountered before, but not to such a great extent – restaurant touts.  They were ten times worse than those that you find in Europe hanging outside the doors, thrusting menus into your hands.  Nothing would deter this new strain of super pest, and they would even chase you down the streets.  It was no great surprise that the busiest restaurants, as well as having the best reputation for good food, did not have touts hanging outside the entrance.  One evening, after having looked at the menu in peace, we decided to go into the restaurant and we’re bombarded from all directions by a bunch of touts from other restaurants, who literally tried pulling us away from the door.  They really started getting on our nerves and we felt like punching them.

Cusco was quite stressful and after one afternoon of being there we were desperate to escape.  The only thing that made our visit bearable was that it is such beautiful city.

Article taken from Inca Hoots by Caius Simmons & Vicky Brewis.

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No one seemed too bothered about the early start (4am) on the final day.  We were all too excited and had been unable to sleep properly anyway – our dreams of seeing Machu Picchu were about to be realised.  For almost the first time in four days it was not raining and the sky was full of bright stars.  It was only now that it became apparent how many other people had been actually walking the Inca Trail.  Joined by extra groups who were on a shortened two-day Inca Trail there suddenly appeared to huge numbers of walkers heading towards Machu Picchu.  Looking in front and behind us along the path was a torch lit procession snaking along the side of the mountain through the woods.  We walked in almost complete silence for a couple of hours, getting more and more excited.  The hair on our heads stood on end from the anticipation, and not the fact that it had not been washed for 4 days.  Heading towards Intipunku, the Sun Gate, we became agitated by slower walkers.  As the sky became lighter and lighter, the whole valley below us was revealed to us as the sun started to rise from behind a mountain in the distance and we were anxious we were going to miss our first view as the sun rose up over Machu Picchu.  We virtually ran up the steep steps to the Sun Gate.  As we walked around the corner and looked down on the ancient citadel, our hearts dropped.  The valley in front was filled with a mass of swirling cloud.  We tried not to be disappointed, but after 4 days of walking in the rain to be greeted with fog was not what we had planned on.

Joe, an American in the group, chuckled to himself.  He had not really been prepared for the walk, wearing jeans and trainers that got soaking wet on the first day.  His attempts to carry all his kit did not last and he had resorted to hiring a porter by day two.  He caught a cold and looked like he had not enjoyed the trek.  It was also very disturbing when he spoke, because his slow drawl sounded just like the character played by Billy Bob Thornton in the Oscar winning film, Sling Blade.  At any moment we expected him to say, “Ah, Huh, I Rekkun”.  If he could see the funny side of the situation then we had no reason not to either.  There was nothing else we could do about it, but laugh with him.

   We hung around at the Sun Gate, waiting for the fog to clear, but it was not looking very hopeful.  Our guide told us that he probably only sees Machu Picchu from that spot once or twice a year.  That is something they don’t bother to tell you in the guidebooks or at the tour agencies.  Of course we had to take some photos, it was after all our first view of Machu Picchu.  We thought we might be able to use it for a game, a bit like pin the tail on the donkey.  As we descended into the clouds we glanced behind us to admire the valley and mountains from where we had come from which were now bathed in early morning sunlight.

After 30 minutes walking down through the fog we finally reached the photographers vantage point, known as the ‘Hut of the Caretaker of the Funerary Rock’.  If you have ever received a postcard of Machu Picchu, it is likely that it was taken from this spot.  The fog started to lift and we got our first glimpse of the ruins.  There were the obligatory wisps of clouds clinging to the hillside making it looked really mystical.  An ideal photo opportunity, the only noise was from the clicking of cameras.

Maybe it was the angle that the photos had been taken at, but we imagined the ruins to be a lot bigger.  It is the location of the ruins that make them so important and not it’s size.  The beautiful natural setting of Machu Picchu at 2,430 m above sea level, set amongst tropical mountain forest, is extraordinary.  The site lies in the middle of a saddle shaped ridge between two mountains.  No one knows what the Incas called their city, which has adopted its name from the mountain that rises behind the ruins, Machu Picchu (literally meaning ‘Ancient Peak’).  This mountain is just one of four ancient peaks that surround the ruins, the other three being Huayna Picchu, Putukusi and Pumasillo.  From the centre of the site, each peak points towards a specific direction, North, South, East or West.  Blending in naturally with the landscape, its giant walls, terraces and ramps could easily be mistaken for the rock escarpments that it is built on.

It is easy to understand why these ruins went undiscovered for so long, it’s remote location and its concealment ensuring that the Spanish did not know of its existence.  If they ever did know, it was probably too inaccessible for them to have bothered with.  For whatever reason, it luckily escaped the looting, plundering, burning and destruction that most Inca sites were subjected to during the Spanish Conquest.  As a result, this has become the most significant and famous archaeological site in South America.

It was not until 1911, when a Yale University expedition led by a chap called Hiram Bingham, that the ruins at Machu Picchu were ‘rediscovered’.  Bingham paid a local Quechua man one sol (things haven’t changed much since 1911), who told him that on top of the hill, out of sight was an archaeological ruin.  He assumed it to be the site he was looking for, Vilcabamba (one of the last Inca strongholds), and so he actually discovered Machu Picchu purely by mistake.  The site was totally overgrown with vegetation and although it had been abandoned by the Inca centuries before, a couple of local peasant families were living there.

The search for Vilcabamba continued for many years, until 1964 when Gene Savoy (an American archaeologist) unearthed the site at Espiritu Pampa.  Hiram Bingham had already made it there not long after he had discovered Machu Picchu but had left it alone thinking he had already found the last Incan stronghold.  In his excitement he forgot to log the exact location, and therefore it became ‘lost’ again.  More recently, Peruvian and British explorers have discovered a number of other lost Inca cities all in the same area.  Lying only 40 kilometres from Machu Picchu are one of these sites, Corihuayrachina.    These ruins are even more sophisticated than Machu Picchu, suggesting a well-developed settlement.  Included in the site are ruins of circular homes, storehouses, cemeteries, funeral towers, roadways, waterworks, farming terraces, a dam and a truncated pyramid.

Obviously, there has been a lot of archaeological exploration since the discovery of Machu Picchu and new things are always being excavated.  In total, about 150 skeletal remains have been exhumed; the vast majority of these are females, with only about 20 males and four children.  The large number of female remains was quite curious and has led to various theories, the most popular being that the last inhabitants of Machu Picchu were women, left by the men who had gone off to fight the Spanish, selected to stay to continue important ritual ceremonies.  The theory of it being a glorified brothel is a great suggestion but, unfortunately, very unlikely.

The mystery surrounding Machu Picchu and its precise function is one of is greatest attractions and huge numbers of people believing it was a particularly important centre of worship and ceremonies come searching for a spiritual experience.  Maybe it was the two dogs copulating in the main grassy plaza that distracted us, but it did not really feel that it was a particularly sacred place.  Neither of us felt compelled to sit down and meditate, or take off our clothes and run around naked for that matter.

The majority of the site is split between agricultural terracing and buildings to accommodate about 500 people.  Even though there are a number of temples and the usual stone alter that is illuminated by the sun during one of the Solstices, most of the buildings are very functional consisting of not just houses, but also workshops, storage areas and baths.  Built at the height of the Inca Empire it was probably one of the most amazing urban centres, not the biggest, but certainly one of the most dramatic.

Machu Picchu is an exceptionally well-preserved archaeological site, with some fantastic granite stonework, locking together like a huge jigsaw puzzle (one stone had 34 interlocking angles cut into it).  Anyone who has ever worked with granite will know that it is not only a very heavy stone, but also very tough and is takes a great deal of skill to cut it accurately.  There are 3 granite quarries within the site, which must have been working full time to provide a constant supply of stone during the city’s construction.

 Our guided tour only took an hour and a half and by 10 am we were left to explore on our own.  Vicky decided to climb up Huayna Picchu (Younger or Lesser Peak).  This is the hill that is the backdrop for most of the photos taken of Machu Picchu and is almost 400 metres higher than the ruins.  We had been warned it was not the easiest hills to climb and those with a fear of heights, including Caius decided to give it a miss.  The route clings to the side of the mountain and there is an almost vertical stairway of about 50 metres carved into the rocky face.  It was not too scary and there was a handrail much of the way to support and pull yourself up.  The final climb to the top was with the aid of a rope, which someone had apparently recently misjudged and had tumbled to their death.  The panoramic view from the top was worth the tiring climb, with Machu Picchu, the Urubamba Canyon and the snow-capped peaks in the distance.  There were too many people hanging around at the top, determined to try and find the highest and most precarious rock to conquer.  The walk back down was a little more disconcerting and from the top of some mini terraces we realised how steep it really was.  The set of tiny steps we had come up now seemed even smaller and steeper and we realised there was nothing at the bottom to stop us from falling right to the bottom if we had slipped.

By the time we had reached the bottom, the ruins were crawling with tourists.  Caius had managed to spend a relaxing hour wandering around before the train from Cusco had arrived.  Even though there are restrictions on the number of people walking the Inca Trail, there are none on the number that can visit the ruins.  From a height it looked like someone had been painting the ruins in splodges of white, blue, red, green, yellow and black.  What we were actually looking at was a load of tourists wearing ponchos, shuffling around in their organised tour.

It had been a good idea to walk in shorts, while it was raining, but now we were lower down and it was warmer we were the prime targets for sand flies again.  We were too engrossed in the excitement of going to Machu Picchu we had forgotten to put on any mosquito guard that morning.  They were particularly attracted to our bare legs, which were soon covered in small, weeping wounds.  Our early start had been worth it, but sharing the ruins with a couple of thousand other people (and sand flies) was not enjoyable, so we made our escape just as it started to rain – again.

Article taken from Inca Hoots by Caius Simmons & Vicky Brewis.

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(Lonely Planet CUSTOM Guide)

 

Sorry the button is so big!

The trekking in Peru is world-class you can camp below tropical mountains, reach Machu Picchu via the Inca Trail or lesser-known routes, and descend into one of the planets deepest canyons in Arequipa. If you’re looking for one guide to help plan your trip and your trekking in Peru, this book is for you. It combines in-depth trekking information from our 2003 Trekking in the Central Andes guide, with detailed travel information from our 2007 Peru guide.

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These travel writings capture the excitement and spirit of the South American Andes.

Our journey starts at the equator and takes us south through Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia and Chile. Wherever possible we leave the beaten track to get a true feel of the cultural, geographical and historical diversities of this inspirational continent.

Highlights include a tour of the mysterious Galapagos Islands, walking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, a humbling trip to a working mine (in Bolivia) which has claimed the lives of millions and being robbed at gunpoint.

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