Trek to Machu Picchu
By Guest Blogger Emily McKenzie
Is visiting one of the 7 Wonders of the World on your bucket list?? Maybe you’ve never even considered it? Well, now that I’ve got you thinking, I’d highly suggest Machu Picchu!
The trek to get there is LONG but so worth it!
Let’s first rewind to the Summer of 2015 when I had the chance to visit my longtime friend who was living in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil at the time. We decided to take a side trip together while I was visiting and eventually settled on Peru. Of all the South American countries I’ve visited, Peru has been by far my favorite!
We actually almost didn’t make it to Peru because we slept through our 4 am alarms for our early bird flight. Solution – we hired a taxi who drove 90 mph through the streets of Rio to get us to the airport on time! (I do not recommend this).
FRIDAY – Our first stop was Lima, the capitol pf Peru, where we had a 24-hour layover. I can’t say I recommend visiting Lima, as there wasn’t a whole lot to see here but the owner of our hotel was AMAZING and that made it worth it! He drove us around the city for the day in his personal car, simply because the internet wasn’t working at the hotel and we had no idea where to go. We started off at the BEST Peruvian restaurant where we were able to try all of the local favorites ~ Ceviche, Fried Fish, Causa (Yellow potato stuffed w/ avocado, chicken, egg & celery), soup w/ popcorn, giant corn kernels known as Choclo, Paella and fried plantains. And don’t forget the Chica Morada – an amazing purple drink made from sweet purple corn and served cold!
Next, we headed downtown to explore the capitol square, better known as Plaza de Armas, which is surrounded by beautifully, ornate governmental buildings. We were also able to try Pisco Sours – a drink Peru is famous for! (Made with pisco, an alcohol made from grapes, lime juice, syrup, bitters, ice, and a raw egg to make it foamy). We ended the day on the water near Miraflores, where we found an ‘Americanized’ section of town with a JW Marriott hotel and a Starbucks!
Side note – traffic in Peru is some of the WORST I have ever experienced around the world. From where we were on the water, back to the hotel (a good 12 miles) took almost 2 hours to get back!
SATURDAY – We were up early the next day to catch our flight to Cusco, one step closer to Machu Picchu! If you’ve never been, I highly recommend it as it’s the cutest little town with the absolute nicest people. We found our hostel, Milhouse Youth Hostel and then went out exploring for the day, which included the center square and the big market in Cusco – Mercado Central de San Pedro. There’s everything from meat, produce, flowers, juice bars, food stands, textiles, clothing and MUCH more!
We had lunch with an amazing view, explored the rest of the town and even got to hold baby Alpacas! The evening was spent relaxing at the hostel, gearing up for the rest of the journey ahead of us!
SUNDAY – We boarded a bus early in the morning for a day long tour through The Sacred Valley, taking us from Cusco, to Pisac and finally arriving in a town called Ollantaytambo where we would stay for the evening.
Ollantaytambo is an old Inca settlement where we got to explore the ruins of its fortress. I don’t remember all the details of the tour at this point but the views were absolutely amazing! The tour also included a traditional Peruvian lunch buffet and a stop at a roadside market for souvenirs and more Alpaca pictures!
MONDAY – Finally the day we had been waiting for!! Another early morning wake-up, but not after breakfast at the hostel (I’m telling you, Peruvians are so nice – The hotel had an ‘early bird’ breakfast for those waking up at dawn to make the trek up the mountain!) We took a quick mototaxi ride (also known as a ‘tuk-tuk’) from our hotel to the PeruRail train station which took us from Ollantaytambo to the foot of Machu Picchu. And, believe it or not, the journey was not finished yet!!
From the train station at Machu Picchu we boarded a bus for the final leg of the journey to Machu Picchu. When we had purchased our tickets months back, Ellyn and I had opted to purchase additional access up one of the mountains at Machu Picchu – Montaña Machupicchu. Sitting at an altitude of 10,007 feet about sea level, the mountain gives great views of the surrounding areas but I have never been so scared in my life. Imagine steep rocks with a mountain on one side and nothing on the other, incredibly narrow at some points. A few wrong steps and…well let’s not think about that, but make it to the top and WHOA. We definitely felt accomplished after that!
After the trek back down to Maccu Pichu proper, we explored a little more but then it was time to start the journey back home. But not before a quick stop for a bite to eat, which included ‘quy’ or guinea pig, a Peruvian delicacy! The day we had been waiting for finally ended with a lengthy taxi ride back to our hostel in Cusco.
22,206 steps, 1 Moto taxi ride, 2 train rides, 2 bus rides and 1 taxi ride later we got to experience Machu Picchu!
Emily McKenzie is the founder and owner of Details Not Drama (www.detailsnotdrama.com). When she’s not working full time as a pediatric nurse in downtown Detroit, she’s probably off planning an event, writing an e-mail or strategizing social media with a client.