There are different options in getting to Machu Picchu, all of them quite expensive. You can hike there, take a train or you can hire a private tour. The first one is a 4-day hike called Inka Trail that is considerably expensive as it is necessary to hire a guide, added to the fact that it has to be booked up to months in advance. The train option would be a good option, except for the fact that is one of the most expensive trains in the world, even if you choose the cheapest fares. Because we didn't want to book with any agency, we ended up to make our way from Cusco to Machu Picchu through a combination of bus and train to get to Aguas Calientes (or Machu Picchu Village, the base town for visiting the ruins).
The first part of our trip was in a tour bus, the typical stop-everywhere-there-is-a-shop-so-that-they-can-spend-money tour! We visited the main spots of the Valle Sagrado de los Incas (the Sacred Valley of the Incas). The valley formed over time by the river Urubamba was not only a sacred and religious area for the Incas, but also had enormous economical and agricultural importance for the Inca Empire as it offered great conditions for farming and had important mineral deposits.
The first part of our trip was in a tour bus, the typical stop-everywhere-there-is-a-shop-so-that-they-can-spend-money tour! We visited the main spots of the Valle Sagrado de los Incas (the Sacred Valley of the Incas). The valley formed over time by the river Urubamba was not only a sacred and religious area for the Incas, but also had enormous economical and agricultural importance for the Inca Empire as it offered great conditions for farming and had important mineral deposits.
One of the first spots of the tour was a good example of that: the ruin complex of Písac is an impressive group of terraced land used for farming along with buildings used for crops storage and workers housing. There is also a necropolis that consists on holes on the slope of the mountain, where the deceased were buried, facing the sun. The colonial city of Písac, built after the Spanish destroyed the original one, is also interesting for its artisan market. Local mines still provide the artisans the raw materials such as silver to produce fine hand made jewelry.
Other highlight was the ruins of Ollantaytambo. Although much was destroyed by the Spanish, the ruins are still an impressive sight and a fine example of what the Inca Empire was all about. Some of the huge stones that served as base of a temple are still standing and the containing walls that still support the site puts it in total different scale. Those walls served also as a defensive measure. In fact, Ollantaytambo was one of the few places that resisted for some time the Spanish invaders, when the Manco Inca Yupanqui made it a stronghold of the Inca resistance!
Our guide also pointed out some large scale faces carved deep on the mountain facing the Ollantaytambo temple, which are thought to be representations of Inca divinities.
Our guide also pointed out some large scale faces carved deep on the mountain facing the Ollantaytambo temple, which are thought to be representations of Inca divinities.
Our trip ended in the town of Chinchero where we've learned the traditional process of treating and dyeing of lama wool. Although we haven't quite figured out how much of that was a tourist trap, the presentation given by a young local girl was quite enjoyable to watch. And yes, we ended up buying a scarf out of lama wool !
From there, instead of going back to Cusco with the rest of the group, we went back to Ollantaytambo, where we would sleep and take the train the next day to Aguas Calientes, by using a combi, which is a small van that is used around as a shared taxi – a very cheap one! The Sacred Valley was surely a great appetizer for the greatness of the famous Machu Picchu...