Wednesday......Machu Picchu...SKIing..(Spending the Kids' Inheritance)
I am outside the house at 8 and Manuel arrives with the van very promptly. It is clean and comfortable. We are at Poroy before 8:30 to catch the Hiram Bingham to Cusco. www.perurail.com/Pages/hiram_bingham.htm There is music and dancing at the station, also sparkling white and/or orange juice. I opt for the sparkling white; are you surprised?
A duo starts playing in the observation car shortly after we leave Poroy. I get to have a go with the canastas, lucky me.
Once again the train follows the valley between mountains, however there are very few towns.
We have brunch at 10:45, which is very nice. We arrive at Aguas Calientes at around 12:15, get into buses and go up a steep zigzag road to the entrance to Machu Picchu. Those who are staying at Sanctuary Lodge, www.sanctuarylodge.net, including me, have time to go to our rooms for a few minutes.
We meet at 1:45 ish and 11 of us go into the ruins with our guide. We spend around 2 ¼ hours going up and down stone steps, listening to the guide and asking questions. There is only one area that I don’t go to because it is very steep and has no handrail; probably wouldn’t even go there with two good legs. Sometimes someone gives me a hand as the steps are too steep, or there is nothing that I can hold onto to keep my balance. Otherwise I manage to keep up with everyone else. Machu Picchu is a magical place. There really aren’t that many tourists.
We have afternoon tea at Sanctuary Lodge at around 4:15 and it’s a magnificent spread. Real afternoon tea like I imagine the British had in bygone days. Lots of little cakes and sandwiches, including cucumber.
I had booked the “Poetry at SL” package, so at 5ish I was to meet with a Shaman. I went with a translator to an area at the back of SL next to a waterfall. As most of what the Shaman said was in Spanish and he spoke very slowly, I was able to understand most of what went on, without needing the translator. It was basically a religious ceremony and interesting, as I wanted to understand more about the spiritual beliefs of the indigenous people. As I headed back to my room, I came across a couple who I’d been talking to earlier and stopped and had a drink with them. I had dinner at 7:30, had a nice hot shower and washed my hair (big event). I wasn’t cold at all, such a relief after Cusco nights. The bed was very comfortable; I had big plans for watching cable, but I was too tired.
