MACHU PICCHU: Guest Post by Tom Scheaffer

Machu Picchu, Peru

My brother Tom loves to travel and is a true intrepid tourist. He is currently on a trip to South America, which has included stops in Ecuador, Peru and Paraguay. In Peru he and his friends visited Machu Picchu, the World Heritage ancient Inca site in the Andes. I have never been to Machu Picchu but would love to go some day. Several Intrepid Tourist readers have shared their experiences at Machu Picchu in past articles. I am always impressed that even though the place is the same for everyone, each person's experience is unique, depending on the time of year, the weather, and what they personally bring to the visit. Here are a few of Tom's comments and photos.
 
Today we took the train from Cusco down to Machu Picchu. (The elevation of Cuzco is over 11,000 feet (3399 meters);  the elevation of Machu Picchu is 7,972 feet (2,430 meters) above sea level.)

Taking the train to Machu Picchu

We are staying in a really nice hotel right by the river looking at a beautiful green mountain.

View from the hotel window.

Tomorrow morning we go up to the temple and spend the day hiking around up there.

Machu Picchu, viewed from above. For scale, note the size of the people compared to the ruins.

Machu Picchu was built by the Incas more than 500 years ago. It was part of a large network of settlements throughout the Andes.

A path leads down into the valley below Machu Picchu

Amazingly, no mortar was used for building the walls of Machu Picchu

In 1983, Machu Picchu was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

For more about Machu Picchu, click HERE.

For Owen Floody's report on Machu Picchu (TIT Jan 2, 2017), click HERE.
For Scott Chandler's report on Machu Picchu (TIT Nov 28, 2016), click HERE.

PERU: Lima, Machu Picchu, Cuzco, Guest Post by Scott Chandler

Machu Picchu, Peru

For two weeks in September, Art’s colleague Scott Chandler and his wife Sonja traveled to South America, visiting sites in Peru and in the Galapagos in Ecuador. Scott is an excellent photographer and has graciously given me permission to share some of his photos. Scott's photos were taken with an Olympus digital camera. For more of his photos of this trip and of his other adventures, you can go to his website: www.shcphotography.com/Landscapes . Here is his report on the Peru half of his South America trip. The Galapagos report will post next week.

The Andes

We went to Machu Picchu and the Galapagos September 6 through the 22nd of this year, spending our first week in Peru. We started in Lima then went high up in the Andes where we visited the Sacred Valley.

Machu Picchu

Then we spent a day or so overnight at Machu Picchu and stayed in the famous sanctuary lodge which is fabulous and across the street from the entrance to the ruins.

Cuzco, Plaza de Armas

From there we went to Cuzco, the capital of the Inca empire. We visited numerous archaeological sites and were schooled on how precise they built their structures.

Cuzco at night: Fountain in front of the  Iglesia La Compañía de Jesús

We went on this trip with the tour company Tauck. First part of the trip was on land and we had excellent accommodations and food; the Galapagos part was on a yacht/ship that held 40 people. We would sail during the night to different islands and disembark to visit each island during the morning; the day would also include snorkeling. It is fair to say the trip was totally fantastic. I would love to do it again.

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