Macho Machu

Okay, I´ve got to eat my words. After landing in Aguas Calientes, I decided to hike up to the top of Mt. Putukusi. This is a very steep trail, which, in parts, consists of long wooden ladders attached somehow to the rock face. It´s okay as long as you just concentrate on each rung and not look down. The trail reminded me of hiking through the Redwoods, like Muir Woods in Marin County. Everything is dripping wet, but unlike Muir Woods, the temperature is warm. Because everything is wet, this means the trail is a little slippery at times.

The only people I met coming down while I was going up were, of course, Germans, complete with hiking sticks but sadly lacking three pointed robin hood hats or lederhosen. On the way back down I met a group of young people. I knew immediately they were Argentines by their incomprehensible Spanish.

When I reached the top I had a view of Machu Picchu. It is without a doubt breathtakingly spectacular. There were 4 of us at the top: 2 Canadians, an Irishman, and me. My hat went off to the Irishman. He decided he wasn´t going to pay the exorbitant train fare. He relentlessly asked all sorts of people and ended up taking a 12 hour bus ride on muddy dirt roads way around to the opposite side of the mountains. Then he got rides in the bed of trucks for another 5 hours. It cost him less than $10. At one point, a truck he was in got stuck for 2 hours in the mud. Everyone got out and pushed, but it took another truck to winch it out. Quite a story. I think my $57 four hour trip on train and public bus is preferable!

From the top of Mt. Putukusi, I could see the Inca Trail leading down to the ruins, the ruins themselves, the buses winding their way up the switchbacks, all very impressive. It truly is an awe-inspiring site. At times, the sun would break through the clouds, lighting up different parts of the ruins and the terraced slopes.

After walking back down, I went to the local hot springs (!) and luxuriated in the wonderful hot water. THIS is the way to live! The town of Aguas Calientes, meaning "hot waters", is the junction of a river and a creek. The town straddles both sides of both streams. There is a constant loud background noise of rushing water. There´s a trail that leads up the side of the creek, crosses a rickety wooden bridge over the rushing creek, and comes to a fully developed hot springs spa, complete with changing rooms, lockers, swimsuit and towel rentals, etc.
The man next to me in the hot pool was my age and from Germany. We had a great conversation, him in German and me in a mangled mixture of German and Spanish. I kept apologizing. He kept saying, "That´s okay. I understand just enough Spanish to follow along." Tomorrow morning I leave early to visit Machu Picchu.