My first trip to Machu Picchu and Cusco

Hello, everyone! I hope you are well. Today, I want to tell you a little bit about my visit to the Inca citadel, Machu Picchu, and Cusco. I have had the great opportunity of getting to know this beautiful place twice: the first time in 2010, and the second time just two years ago.

The first time that I was working a real job and had a month-long holiday, one of my goals was to go and see the architectural gem that is Machu Picchu, so I spent one week getting to know as many parts of Cusco as possible and, in particular, this magnificent sanctuary that I still very much hold close to my heart.

Here is a photo of the Plaza de Armas in the imperial city of Cusco, one of the most beautiful in Peru:

Machu Picchu impacted me in one way or another during each and every one of my visits there in an indescribable way... it can leave you completely speechless. All I am simply saying is that you have to see it and have this experience for yourself. Besides, the famous photos that circulate of this citadel all over the world will seem small when you see it with your very own eyes: it's one of the seven wonders of the modern world, located in Peru, and leaves everyone shocked, not just Peruvians but foreigners too.

I want to share one of the photos that I took of the citadel with you:

To get to Machu Picchu, I first took a flight from Lima to Cusco with LAN, which, the first time, cost me $100 round-trip, as I found an exclusive promotion only available for Peruvians. Although, if you are a foreigner, you may also be able to find some other promotions for flights to Cusco.

On the other hand, I will tell you that this was the second time that I had ever taken a flight (my Mum told me that the first time was when I was a baby, but I obviously don't remember that), so, for me, the plane journey and seeing Jorge Chávez Airport were some of my first memories. I will take advantage of this opportunity to tell you that Jorge Chávez Airport is considered to be the best in South America; it's small compared to other airports that I have been to, but it's my 'home' airport and I therefore have a lot of love for it.

When I arrived in the city of Cusco, I felt amazed and like I was in a film, I couldn't really believe it! I still fondly remember mental images of the city of Cusco. Believe me, Cusco is a really beautiful city: they say it's the "Rome of America" and the archaeological capital of South America. It's a must-see destination if you are passing through Peru.

Here, I want to share one of the many photos I took of the city of Cusco:

Cusco is a city where you can find a whole host of options for accommodation that will suit all budget types. The first time I went, I stayed in a hotel called 'La Posada del Inca' for 10 Soles a night, which was situated very close to the main square (Plaza Mayor), and the second, I stayed in a five-star hotel called 'Palacio del Inka: Luxury Collection'. I stayed in the aforementioned hotel as it was one of the hotels part of the chain that I used to work for, so I took advantage of a special tariff rate that I had to stay there for my first night in the city before going to a hostel called 'Pariwana'. The hostel seemed cheap and simple, as well as being a good option for seeing other accommodation options in Cusco, as I would like to run my own backpackers' hostel in the future, be it in my home city or another part of Peru, and allow them to best enjoy their trip to my country as best they can. So, little by little, I have been learning about all of these, whilst taking my own holidays, thanks to the different places that I have been able to stay in.

I knew that the altitude could shock me the first time I came to Cusco, and I honestly wasn't mistaken, as I spent the first night of my trip in bed and I started to feel something strange between my eyebrows, it felt as if I had been punched there. I drank a mug of mate de coca and then I went to bed very early. Luckily, I only felt like this during the first night in Cusco and the feeling eventually passed and I adapted to the altitude (obviously Andean blood runs through my veins, as my father is from the Ancash region, specifically from a village called Quinuabamba, so it shouldn't have been a huge problem for me).

After my first night in Cusco, I felt much better the following day, so I took advantage of the opportunity to get to know the city better and see its cobbled streets and historic city centre for myself. I saw so many places whilst I was out and about, but I think I will tell you about each one separately so that you can also get to know them better; if you haven't already visited this beautiful part of my country, you must do so. However, I'll round this up by telling that, the first time I visited Cusco, I bought a tourist ticket package that allowed me to go to many places like Coricancha (also known as Sacsayhuamán), Pisac, Ollantaytambo, Maras, Moray, and a dance spectacular, amongst the other things that Cusco had to offer.

The first time that I went to Cusco, some of my aunties, uncles and cousins were also there, however they arrived before me, which meant that they had already bought their tourist tickets in advance of me... I guess that it was just one of those things. In the end, we agreed on spending a couple of days together in Cusco, which is how we finally ended up visiting the Inca citadel, Machu Picchu, as a big group.

Here, you can see part of the Plaza de Chincheros:

You can find the majority of the tours being offered in Cusco's very own Plaza de Armas. There, you are going to come across several tour companies that will offer you their tourist packages to the Inca citadel, as well as trips to so many other destinations across the region. I felt very satisfied for having been able to see some magnificent tourist hotspots, like the Salinas de Maras, shown in the photo below:

Cusco is a first-class destination: in the past, it was said that Cusco was the shape of a jaguar. Whilst walking through the city centre, you can find the Avenida El Sol, which is the narrowest road that I saw in Cusco and the surrounding areas. On this avenue, you can also find shops, libraries, banks, and internet cafés, amongst other things.

One place that I really liked in Cusco was the Convent of Santo Domingo, or, as it's also known, the Coricancha Temple. Although, some of my compatriots may cause you to have some mixed feelings about it after finding out that, when the Spanish arrived here, they superimposed this temple as a church, as a way of demonstrating their superiority and forcing the Andean worldview, that existed long before their arrival, to change. Within the museum itself, you are going to come across a lot of art, just as much colonial as some incredible constructions from the Inca era, that will leave you speechless.

Here is a photo of the Inca fortress in Sacsayhuamán:

Another place that I really liked was the Inca fortress in Sacsayhuamán, which consists of some huge stone constructions located very close to the city of Cusco, where human beings feel small in the face of something so grand. I can only imagine how this complex must have been during its glory days... it must have been a real wonder that would have stolen more than just a heart beat from us. Without a shadow of a doubt, Peru is one of the richest countries in the history of humanity, with such a rich, mysterious and varied civilisation where so many different points of view came together and have made the nation what it is today: a nation that draws together people of all backgrounds and colours.

In the centre of Cusco, I also walked through the streets and their markets, where I found the best cakes I have ever eaten and some of the most reasonably-priced meals that I have never seen in my own city, Lima. In addition to being able to eat some delicious breakfasts, like healthy quinoa jars and bread with cheese or corn, you'll also be able to find juices or souvenirs that you can buy, like keyrings, hats, ornaments, etc. In short, there are lots of things that are really worth seeing when you walk around this area; you will see all the beautiful and varied things that make up my country, Peru.

The city of Cusco is blessed with its mountainous landscapes, its valleys and its rivers, like the Urubamba, where you can also find tourist package offers for canoeing and other adventure sports, although I personally didn't end up doing any myself. The only thing that I did walk around and take photos of everything that I saw. Sadly, however, the majority of my photos have been wiped from my laptop in Lima by mistake, so the only ones that I have are the ones that I uploaded to my Facebook account (and are the ones that I'm using throughout this post to illustrate this incredible experience that I had in Cusco).

Another of the sites that I was able to visit was the remains of Tambomachay, with a clear Inca presence in its construction, so you will be able to get to know some more about their culture. They were used to have a trapezoid-shaped door and windows, which are said to be able to keep their surroundings protected during eventual seismic movements, as Peru is located within an entirely seismic area. The ancient Peruvians were great masters and developed very advanced engineering techniques for their time.

Another thing that sticks in my memory are the handicraft markets in Cusco's San Blas neighbourhood. There, you will find huge works of art made with love by the residents for their visitors.

During almost every day of my visit to Cusco, I was able to see different places and feel a kind of magic that only this destination could offer, like Chincheros, for example. There, you will find a square with people selling their goods, as well as a church, which, from its gates, you can see incredible sunsets that will leave you speechless on more than one occasion (well, at least that's what happened to me).

I want to take advantage of the opportunity to show you this Cuscan sky with its beautiful rainbow - something that you can only see in Cusco:

One place that wholeheartedly deserves my recognition is the centre of Pisac, a place that I had seen in some of my father's old photos from when he used to live in this part of Peru. I remember expending a lot of energy while climbing up to this ancient complex, but, believe me, the view from up there is so impressive: you feel completely connected with nature, despite it being man-made. However, I would like to say (with pride) that the Incas, in fact all people with backgrounds in every different culture that has existed at some moment or other in Peru, have always respected the country's nature and environment. The latter is something that both Peruvians and people all over the world should learn nowadays in order to better appreciate that we, as human beings, are not the only inhabitants of this planet, but animals, plants and Mother Earth (as the ancient Peruvians would say way back when) too. I hope that this horrific situation with climate change fixes itself already... we still have time to make a change, but that all rides on our shoulders, right?

Another place that I remember fondly is Ollantaytambo, located very close to this archaeological centre, where one of the dedicated train stations for Machu Picchu can be found. When I say Machu Picchu, what I really mean to say is Machu Picchu Pueblo, also known as Aguas Calientes, as it's necessary to take a bus or hike to actually get to the sanctuary itself.

There is so much to tell you all about my trip to Cusco. In other posts, I have already talked a bit about places like Maras and Moray, which, for me, were honestly some of the best places I have visited here; they are places that I wholeheartedly recommend going to. At Moray, the Peruvians carried out experiments to create different ecological floors, and it was in this way that they began to produce many products, like the different potatoes we have here in Peru. Another first-class tour destination is that of Maras, where the Peruvian salt flats are located: it's arguably home to the best salt in the world, a place that you definitely must include as part of your visit to the Sacred Valley of the Incas.

You are surely going to find lots, in fact, endless amounts, of guides about how to get to Cusco, what to do and where to eat there. I, on the other hand, just wanted to tell you about my experience in more of a sentimental way, talking about how Cusco impacted me personally: it's a place that I am never going to forget. Here, you breathe a wonderful kind air and feel like the world is literally revolving around you.

It's true that there are many options for transportation when it comes to getting to the citadel of Machu Picchu, but I want to take this opportunity to tell you about what I did the first time I went. Basically, I had to take a bus from Cusco to Ollantaytambo, where I later spent a night, before waking up very early the next morning to continue my journey to the Perú Rail station there. I then took a train from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes. Upon arrival there, I then had to take another bus, which took approximately 20 minutes, to Machu Picchu itself, the most beautiful Inca site.

When I visited the first time, I chose to take the bus (rather than hike up) and whilst we were travelling up to the sanctuary, I was feeling a whole host of emotions. It was almost an unbelievable situation: after years of waiting, the moment of getting to see one of the oldest and most majestic places in the world had finally arrived.

When I entered Machu Picchu and began to walk through the mountains, I felt as if I was in the clouds... I could die happily after having seen its monuments and constructions. Machu Picchu means "old mountain", and there is so much to talk about when it comes to the Inca citadel that we could end up debating about the many ways it could have been built and the highly-skilled methods of engineering used by the ancient Peruvians of those times in order to build this complex.

This tourist hotspot started to be investigated by Hiram Bingham, an American male who studied at the prestigious Harvard University, on June 24, 1911. However, I should tell you that, nowadays, it is being revealed to us little by little that Machu Picchu was previously discovered by the local inhabitants and it was actually thanks to them, these unknown individuals who form part of this important history, that Hiram Bingham arrived at the citadel. Not too many years ago, in 2011, Peru celebrated "the first centenary of the discovery of Machu Picchu". Although, I also think that we have to give credit to and highlight the importance of those individuals who both worked to make this monument a site of cultural and natural heritage and to maintain it as one for many years. Thank you to the many Peruvians who always have and will always be the unsung heroes of my country.

One thing that I remember is that many archaeological pieces were retrieved from the citadel to be investigated in the USA, spending many years there.

Machu Picchu is located 132 kilometres away from the city of Cusco, and from there, you can see the famous mountains of Huaynapicchu, where, nowadays, only a limited number of visitors can enter per day to see it in all its glory. On the other hand, I will tell you that the altitude at Machu Picchu is some 2490 metres above sea level, which is a little less than it is in Cusco, as this archaeological area is known as the "ceja de selva" of my country, Peru.

Perhaps these are facts that most, if not all, people know, but I will tell you that "Mapi" (as some of us call it) was voted as one of the 'New Seven Wonders of the World' in 2010, which was widely celebrated across Peru upon the news of this breaking. I quite fondly remember watching the television and realising what this news meant. Of course, a huge advertising campaign was released both nationally and internationally to recognise this magical place. However, for all Peruvians both past and present, Machu Picchu was already a true wonder of the world: the citadel is one of the best legacies that life has given us in terms of a responsibility to maintain it, preserve it, protect it, and show it to the world, but especially to the new generations of Peruvians (and those still to come). We need to keep this complex in good condition and do absolutely everything possible to avoid the impact of tourism damaging it. Since July 2011, a limit on daily visitor numbers has been in place to reduce the effect of tourism, but there is honestly still lots more to do if we want to preserve Machu Picchu as much as we can.

After spending the whole day walking around Machu Picchu with my family, staying there until they tried to kick me out, I saw some must-see places like the Intihuatana or the solar clock, as well as some llamas within the Inca sanctuary.

Machu Picchu left me feeling very satisfied, and walking... the simple fact of just walking and listening to their stories of knowing who still lives here is really intriguing! There are still so many things left to discover, which also makes me want to be part of this change that we are all pushing for in my own country - sustainable tourism.

After finishing my tour around the sanctuary, I walked through the town of Aguas Calientes, before going to some thermal baths and an indoor market there, where I ate some really delicious pork with corn and onion. After the evening rolled around surprisingly quickly, I had to return to the train station to be able to get back to Ollantaytambo, and from there, I saw part of Urubamba and ate in a really nice restaurant.

I hope you have enjoyed this post, thanks for reading it! ¡Que Viva el Perú! Viva el Perú de todas sangres, el Perú de todos los rostros, ¡Siempre!

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