Breathtaking Machu Picchu

In this digital age, there are millions of photos of everything, to the point where they can make the real thing just another common place, ho-hum experience with no element of surprise.  The Inca city called Machu Picchu high in the Andes Mountains of Peru is probably one of the more iconic photos out there.  So as we rode the narrow-gage train through the beautiful tropical Sacred Valley and then took a mini bus up a very steep road to the entry to Machu Picchu, we thought we knew what to expect.   Fortunately, we were wrong—very wrong.  It was a sight and an experience that literally took our breaths away, and not just because of the altitude.

Temple of the Sun

We’ve been to a number of very amazing places together over the past 37 years, but we’ve had only a small number of unforgettable first impressions.  So it is challenging to find something to top or equal such iconic sights like the Thangboche Monastery at the base of Mt. Everest or the Golden Temple and Taj Mahal in India. Machu Picchu succeeded beyond all expectations to the point that it was an emotional experience.

We're staying 2,000 feet lower along a roaring river, a major tributary of the Amazon.  (See Photo below).  We can’t wait until tomorrow to return to the mountain and hike to a high overlook in the early morning.  The weather and the crowds are usually the worst in the morning, but it will be worth it.

View from our hotel window