Why do I say this?  Because when you get to Cuzco, everyone is talking about doing some kind of trek to get to Machu Picchu, not just the Inca Trail. You almost forget that they already built a fabulous railway that gets you to Machu Picchu easily as getting cheap flights to Bangkok. At first, I’d even feel a bit embarrassed to say that I’m going to train it instead of trail it. Then I thought, what the hell? This is my trip!

Inca Trail or NO trail at all

I would do the Inca Trail because of its historical value, but as I mentioned in the previous post, I didn’t know you have to book it in advance. It’s not on my bucket list to walk it, but if I have the chance to do it in the future, I would. But now that I’m in Cusco, I don’t have to give in to any of the alternative treks.

Ok maybe I’m a bit jaded at this time with the Colca Canyon trek fresh on my mind (and hurting body).  Just saying that I cable car’d to The Great Wall of China, bussed to Petra in Jordan and they were still absolutely grand. Plus, you would need all your energy to explore the massive area of Machu Picchu and climb Wayna Picchu.

I read a review in Trip Advisor saying that he somewhat regretted doing the trail because he was so tired when he got to MP, he weren’t able to explore the massive area. He said that he hope to go back to Peru one day and he’ll definitely train to Machu Picchu. I’m so sold. Haha.

How to Train to Machu Picchu

So if you’re sold as well, here is how you do it from Cuzco.

1. Buy your Machu Picchu (and Wayna Picchu) ticket which you can only do in Cuzco. Used to be you can get it on Aguas Calientes, but not anymore.
2. Get on a bus to Ollantaytambo. It costs 10 soles and takes about 1 hour.
3. Get on a train in Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes the town below Machu Picchu. You can buy ticket in Ollantaytambo but advisable to get it in Cuzco to secure the time slot you want. The ride takes about 2.5 hours. It costs $37.
4. You can spend one night in Aguas Calientes as it’s a colorful little tourist town with many restaurants. It has hot spring, ergo the name of the town.
5. You can climb the 1,800 Inca steps at 4.30 a.m. that leads to Machu Picchu. You get there at 6 a.m. in time for the opening of Machu Picchu. If you’re lucky, you’ll catch the glorious sun rise. If not, then it’ll be foggy but it’ll pass fast.
6. If you’re still not convinced to exert any physical effort, because the 1,800 steps will be a bitch to climb, then the 1st bus that takes you all the way to the MP entrance leaves at 5 a.m. Return ticket costs USD17.

Machu Picchu

If you’re not in a tour with a guide, I suggest you hire one available at the entrance. I was with a group. You can explore the nooks and crevices on your own, but you’d want to know the story and what they mean. Even if what they’d tell you are based a lot on archeological guess work, you’d want to be in on the loop.

The Incas Empire lasted for about 100 years ending at the arrival of the Spanish in 1530s, which makes it a relatively recent history. As sophisticated as the Incas’ were, they never invented a form of writing, so there is no written record of Machu Picchu anywhere. In fact, with all that they learned from Machu Picchu city, scholars still doesn’t know what its original name. They called it Machu Picchu, the Quechua term for old mountain and Wayna Picchu meaning the young mountain.

Although I missed the explanation how the scholars learned that Machu Picchu was built by 2,000 workers but only 300 people lived there. MP is like a religious and scientific center where only royalties, high priests, and scholastic people. It took them 60 years to build and fled when the Spanish came. As there is no written record, that is the assumption. It’s quite a shame that they left because the Spanish didn’t even discover this place. They could have plotted against overthrowing the Spanish sooner there.

Wayna Picchu

You probably got the idea that I’m not such a fan of climbing but I would strongly recommend that when you go, you include Wayna Picchu on your agenda. It requires some sort of climbing and walking for 1.5-2 hours and it’s a tough and scary one! There are bits where it’s steep and narrow and that you have to crawl or pull yourself up. And by the look of it, if one falls, one dies. So be really careful. I obviously survived it so I’d say everyone can do it.

There’s a limit of 400 person per day in WP, so sometimes you have to wait (if you didn’t book your trail in advance). For example, if we had booked our ticket on the day we arrived in Cuzco, which was a Wednesday, we could have had the ticket for Saturday. But because we weren’t sure and waited for the following day to do it, the soonest schedule we got was Monday.

I would say that I truly appreciate the extraordinary civil engineering of this ancient citadel when I saw it from Wayna Picchu. It’s so surreal to see a complete city built in the center of mountain ranges without the use of modern transportion facilities. Everything had to be brought in by human and donkeys though the hairpin like Inca Trail.

Machu Picchu is super impressive. The ruins, staircases, terraces, temples, palaces, towers, fountains, stone works are amazing as it is. But to imagine that they were built before any modern equipment were available. Everything done with bare hands. It would just blow your mind away. We paid tribute by staying in there for 10 hours climbing and visiting all possible nook and crevices of the city. It’s a labyrinth and we imagine it must me amazing for the kids to grow up here and have Machu Picchu as their playground.

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Finally I arrived to Peru. I realized that while I know of Machu Picchu and the Inca Trail, I really don’t know anything about it. So what is Machu Picchu? Here’s a quick introduction to Machu Picchu, the Inca Trail, and the Incas.

The Incas

The Incas arrived to the Andes from Lake Titicaca and established their capital in Cusco in the early 1200s. Since then have conquered more territories from the north and south of Cusco forming the most organized empire in South America. The territory stretched from Quito, Ecuador, their northern capital, to the mountain regions of Peru, Bolivia, north of Chile, and north-east of Argentina. But the astounding empire lasted only about 100 years, ended by  the arrival of the Spanish in 1532.

Machu Picchu

The ancient citadel straddles the saddle of a high mountain with steep terraced slopes falling away to the fast flowing Urubamba river snaking its hairpin course far below in the valley floor. Towering overhead is Wayna Picchu, and green jungle peaks provide the backdrop for the whole majestic scene.

Machu Picchu is a complete Inca city. For centuries it was buried in jungle until Hiram Bingham stumbled upon it in 1911. However, there were families living there at the time of his arrival who helped him explore the lost city, making historians declare them as the true discoverer of Machu Picchu. The ruins, staircases, terraces, temples, palaces, towers, fountains and the famous Intihuantana (Post of the Sun) requires a whole day. We were there for 10 hours. Take time not only to appreciate the mansard, but also the selection of large rocks for foundation, and the water channels.

The Inca Trail

The most impressive way to reach Machu Picchu is via the centuries old Inca Trail that winds its way from the Sacred Valley (near Ollantaytambo), taking 3 to 5 days. The spectacular hike runs from KM 88, Qorihuayrachina (2,299m) a point immediately after the first tunnel 22km beyond Ollantaytambo station. A sturdy suspension bridge has now been built over the Rio Urubamba. Guide tours often start at KM 82, Piscacucho, reached by the road. What makes this hike so special is the stunning combination of Inca ruins, unforgettable views, magnificent mountains, exotic vegetation, and extraordinary variety.

Is Machu Picchu on your bucket list? It’s pretty amazing.

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Cross border Bolivia to Peru by land

We took the bus to Copacabana (Bolivia, not Brazil), spent one night to visit Lake Titikaka and Isla del Sol and then again a night bus to Arequipa. The border crossing procedure is quite easy. About 10 minutes from Copacabana center, you arrive to the border where you get exit stamp from Bolivia then walk the 200 meters no man’s land to where you get entry stamp Peru. You can exchange your remaining Bolivianos at either ends.

Arequipa is quite a breath of fresh air from Bolivia. It’s touristy, but then I’m a tourist and following the tourist route. People are nice and the city looks bright with beautiful parks, lovely white buildings, and magnificent snow mountain backdrop. There were plenty of restaurants and cafes and here starts my eating quest with the Gougain sisters. I must have felt so energized and invincible that when Morin suggested doing the Colca Canyon Trek, I had very little qualm. I have no idea why the 7-8 hour trek on the first day didn’t trigger a warning bell. And so we booked.

Colca Canyon is a canyon in the Colca River in southern Peru. It is located about 100 miles (160 kilometers) northwest of Arequipa. It is more than twice as deep as the Grand Canyon in the United States 4,160 m. The Colca Valley, our destination, is an Andean valley with towns founded in Spanish Colonial times and formerly inhabited by the Collaguas and the Cabanas. The local people still maintain ancestral traditions and continue to cultivate the pre-Inca stepped terraces. Beside it’s magnificent view, the main attraction of Colca Canyon is that it is home to the Andean Condor (Vultur gryphus), a species that has seen world-wide effort to preserve it.

Colca Canyon Trek – DAY 1

The day started horrifyingly at 3:00 a.m. where we were picked up and hauled into a tight van. We were so sleepy anyway and I luckily got the seat at the back where the aile ends, meaning leg space. I try to sleep. It will be 6 hours drive to Cabana Conde in Colca Canyon with stop over for breakfast at Chivay and the La Cruz del Condor. As I normally couldn’t sleep while sitting, it might as well be because the ride was absolutely gorgeous. I wish I could take photo but I was sandwiched in the middle. I saw my seat mate tried and failed, so I content myself with admiring the view. La Cruz del Condor is a popular tourist stop to view the condors. The condors are best seen in the early morning and late afternoon when they are hunting. At this point the canyon floor is 3,960 ft (1,200 m) below the rim of the canyon. The site is amazing.

After another 20 minutes of car ride, we arrived where our trek down hill starts. Down hill might sound easy as you thought you just go down. That is true except that while your lungs rest, your knees take the toll. We broke into 6 person group + the guide. A few meters into the hike, I knew it was a bad idea to come. It was steep, hot, hard, high, narrow, slippery path, everything I’m scared of! Ok, so maybe it’s not the hardest trek in the world. It certainly looked easy for the rest of the group, except for Chantal, who did pretty well although not too thrilled. But it’s definitely hard for me which made me do a quick evaluation of my sanity. Why didn’t I check what was the trek like?

It was cold when we started and then quickly became hot. I didn’t carry much, just a sweater, a change of shirt, toothbrush, and water, but they quickly felt like a ton. The path was dry with those tiny pebbles that made it kind of slippery and I slipped quite a number of times. At first I blamed it on my worn out trainers, which after 1 year of walking on them, were kind of thread bare. But then I looked at my guide’s battered shoes who does this trek 3x a week. I was so slow because I kept slipping and was so scared to fall into the cliff. I was so bummed out even the amazing view did nothing to encourage me. I really just wanted it to be over but the road stretched forever!

The next 4 hours or so, we descended from 3,300 m. to 2,100 m. to a small village where we had our lunch and short rest. It was also a chance to bond with our trek mates and make fun of me. Then in no time at all, my agony began again as we continued our trek. It will be another 3-4 hours to our destination, Sangalle, a village deep in the canyon where we’ll spend the night at bamboo resort ala honolulu hotel with swimming pool, gardens, fountain, and temperatured water.  Except we didn’t get to enjoy the “resort” because it started raining halfway into the trek and we just wanted to be dry.  There’s no electricity in this place and it got dark quickly. It’s quite a challenge getting from the room to the dining to the toilet. It’s definitely not the modern honolulu.

Colca Canyon Trek – Day 2

The day began at 5:00 a.m.  Sin breakfast, we started climbing uphill in the dark. It’s going to be 3-4 hours with a little bit of pressure because we will have to be there at 9:00 a.m. to catch our van (after breakfast). What occupied my mind that helped me get through were the following: (1) This is better than a death march. (2) Hunger Game–borrowing Katniss’s determination to survive. (3) Left. Right. Left. Right. One foot ahead of the the other. Left. Right. Left. Right. (4) Imagine myself running away from a serial killer or communist or godzilla.  (5) To finish with as much dignity as I can, meaning no donkey!  Because there is actually a way out. It is possible to hire a donkey at 60 soles (25$). I’m so happy nobody offered me because I would have caved in.

And so I survived

I thought the road will never end but of course it did. I didn’t die thank God because I’m yet to do Machu Picchu and the Galapagos. After climbing out of the canyon, there’s another 45 minutes walk on flat land for breakfast. It’s amazing how you can keep going even if you swear you couldn’t anymore. We had breakfast, waited for the van, took another 2-3 hours ride to be back in Chivay for the hot spring “La Calera”. It was really nice ending to the trek, if only to be able to take a shower. It felt good to soak my numb and battered legs into 38°C water, even if it was sunny. Lunch and another long ride until we are back in Arequipa.

The reward of this trip is that the people  I’m with were so nice. On the first day, in the beginning Morin and Chantal kept me company because the guide went ahead. She found how slow I was and later stayed behind with me. Emmanuel from Canada offered to take my water, which was a nice gesture, but when he saw I had a 2L bottle decided he had no room in his backpack. Then super nice Christian, Swiss, said to put it in his. Chantal later pointed out the difference between European and North American men. European men are generally more sweet and nicer to women even if they have no intent of sleeping with them.

And of course the next day, as if to prove a point, when I was almost completely destroyed yet had to climb out of the canyon, tripping already at the beginning of the trek, Christian took my rucksack and carried it the whole way up. I am so thankful and so touched with his super niceness. I gave my contact to his girlfriend Moreen and offered to host them in Philippines.

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Ironically (or not), the danger of this road made it a famous tourist attraction. In the early 90′s, some thrill-seeking mountain bikers decide to ride down this 61km stretch of continuous downhill path. Since then over 50,000 people ride down this route every year. Tour operators sprung around La Paz catering to this activity offering guides, equipment, and transport like those car hire menorca.

I don’t remember if I’ve known of this before coming to South America, but if I did, it was for sure not on my list of things to accomplish in south america.  I’m not really confident in bicycle. Well, I was when I was a kid and up until a couple of years ago, always believed that you never forget how to ride a bike. Well, you don’t forget alright, but the proficiency certainly isn’t as before. When I was in China in 2008, the group I was traveling with decided to rent a bike to ride along the beautiful countryside of Yang Shuo. When I hopped on a bike for the first time after 10 years, I found I didn’t have the same control and couldn’t even smoothly negotiate a right turn! It was a WTF moment because riding a bike was one of those things I thought I could depend my life on.

I survived that countryside tour, and since then have been trying to gain back my riding confidence by going on a bike when I can while traveling. I probably should do it too at home, but it’s just not a popular form of transport. During this round the world tour, I did a wine tasting tour on bike in Vienna countryside and a monumental 20km ride in Holland, for example. But still, those can’t prepare me for an adventure with “death” attached to its name. And statistic shows there are a number of riders who died on this road, most recently, a Japanese girl.

But since getting to South America, I met so many travelers who did it. In the beginning, I always quickly say no, I’m not doing it but the more it came to the conversation, particularly as I was getting nearer to Bolivia, it began to creep into me that maybe I can do it? Bungee jumping in Costa Rica often came to mind. I started to seriously consider it when I spoke with Markus, a guy I was in Brazil carnival with. It was not as scary as everyone thought, he said. That it was all marketing and that unless one is doing a stupid stunt, it’s impossible to die. That 3 meter wide road is more than enough space for a bicycle. He even went on saying that if I do fall off the road, he will go back to Bolivia and jump after me.

Finally, I came to La Paz but still wasn’t decided 100%, but I did book into a hostel with a reputable tour agency for death road. I obviously wanted to do it, just that I was terrified. I kept thinking how stupid it would be to pay to die. However, the statistic of people dying on this tour is less than .002%. Then one night in La Paz, I met 2 girls who I quickly connected with, Amanda & Fiona. They were going to do the Death Road and like me were nervous about it. So while downing 2-for-1 vodkas 1 after another during happy hour, we made a pack that we’re doing it together, the day after tomorrow, allowing ourselves 1 day to recover from hungover.

There are over 100 sellers and resellers offering death road tours around La Paz, but I was only looking at 2 companies that have good review in Trip Advisor, Vertigo or Overdose. Gravity Assisted which is affiliated with my hostel is also reputable but more expensive at 700 Bolivianos ($100).  The 2 former companies are cheaper at $70 yet with better protection gear: helmet, jacket and pants, elbow and knee pads. The later only has helmet and an orange vest.

The girls were staying in another hostel, so we agreed that if Vertigo shop is open, we book with them, if not Overdose. I woke up late, not surprisingly, and had plans to meet with other travelers, so I decided to book my tour online. You can book online with Vertigo and not with Overdose, so I just hope that Vertigo shop was open and it’s where the girls book their tour. But of course, it wasn’t and we’re with different companies.

“I’m so scared!” was my greeting to everyone when they came to get me at 8:30 a.m.  Almost everyone were so confident including an older couple of over 60′s. There was a girl from Australia who were as uneasy as I am which helped make me feel not so out of place.

At 9:30 a.m. the van stopped at a flat wide area at “La Cumbre” where we were fitted with our gears and given our bikes. The guide explained the bikes, routes, and gave us the guidelines and warnings. I was listening very carefully. The tour didn’t start at the Death Road, but downhill none the less. This is a 20km stretch of paved (and wide) road which should help us be familiarized with our bikes.  We began at elevation was 4,650. The scenery was amazing.  Included in the tour is someone taking video and photos so we don’t have to do it ourselves. According to the grapevine, some girl fell off because she was taking photos.  Some of the guys in my tour have cameras. I wish I had mine because the photos taken by the guides were not that nice, but obviously I was very concentrated on just making through this tour alive that I didn’t bother bringing it. I should have. I would have stopped to take photos. I was always the last one to arrive anyway. There would always be some kind of pit-stop every 30 – 40 minutes where we’d take some photos, or more instructions were given.

About 11:00 a.m. we arrived to Unduavi where you have to pay a toll 25 Bolivianos to enter the Death Road. Since 2005, a new (better) road was built for the cars, but some still uses this as a short cut.  The Death Road is almost exclusively for this bike tour. We got some sort of snacks which I ate but didn’t taste. The first segment helped but I was still so nervous. A new set of instructions and guides were given. The road is going to be steep, narrower, slippery, bumpy with sharp to hairpin corners, be careful!

The traffic rule is downhill has to take the outer lane, which is the left side, which is the opposite of the general driving rule in Bolivia. But we were told to ride near the wall (right side) and stop to let car pass. I follow this rule and constantly chant in my head if I have to fall, to “Fall to the right. Fall to the right.”

Because the road was indeed rocky and bumpy, I couldn’t apply my break without falling, so I just held on to my handle and ride it gravity assisted! I didn’t fall, not once, not even at the bumpiest part, where a couple of my tour mates did.  I actually felt that I learned how to bike better. I’m sure I did, why not? It was the longest bike ride of my life. And because I was concentrating on not falling, my aeroacrophobia became secondary. And by the end of the death road, about 2:00 pm, I wasn’t the last one to arrive!

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Today the city had lost its luster with most of the once beautiful colonial houses almost falling apart. A small grant was received for restoration when it was name a Unesco World Heritage site. Although the hill now stands about 800 meters shorter and basically depleted of silver, mining continues to be the main industry.

Touring the silver mine is now a popular tourist attraction in Potosi. It gives the city a supplement income as the now honeycomb hill only produces low-grade silver, tin, and zinc.

The tour began with fitting us with mining costume. Each was given an impermeable suit, a construction hat, a head torch, and rubber boots. After we headed to the miners market. This is the first stop of every miner before going to work as it carries everything they need, from water, coco leaves, hard hat, phone cards, gloves, cigarettes, dynamite, you name it. We were here to buy gifts to bring the miners and the devil god they worship.

Tio, the devil god is the only interesting part in this tour that is in a fun way. Every mine has its own idol, which has been there since the 16th century. They believe they are at the mercy of Tio being inside the earth, so in order to appease him, they offer coco leaves, alcohol, cigarettes, and installed him with a big erection.

For what I thought would be a cool experience of going inside an active mine, turned out to be a really sad experience. We learned that an average mine worker only lived to be 40, that is if he is lucky enough not to be killed by accident. The working condition, as we witnessed, seems to have little improvement since the 16th century. The ceiling is low, the floor is slippery and wet, and everything is moved and lifted by manual labor. The main reason of short life though is that they contract a lung disease, mal de mina, because the air they breath are contaminated with poisonous metallic particles.

On the other hand, it is admirable to see the workers attitude towards work. As they are paid by the amount of minerals they extracted, they work non-stop. Miners chew on coco leaves so they can work the whole day without getting hungry. They don’t eat within the 8 hours they work. We didn’t encounter any miner on break the whole period we were there. They also don’t look beaten or depressed. Our guide, who used to be a miner, told us that they have accepted their faith getting into this line of work. Live Full. Die Young.

It helps them if you visit the mine as part of the fee goes to the Corporacion Minera de Bolivia. And while miners used to reject the idea of having spectators while they work, I think now they welcome. Tourists bring little gifts and serves as diversion from a monotonous day of work.

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