by Diane Kroeger, WFSU Education and Engagement Curriculum Specialist
Earlier this month, my daughter Kelly and I spent a week in Peru, touring sites in and around the town of Cusco as well as the busy capital city of Lima. Throughout those six days, we were mesmerized by Incan handicrafts, enlightened by views of southern hemisphere constellations at Planetarium Cusco, fascinated by archaeological discoveries at the Museo Larco, amazed by the salt ponds of Salineras de Maras, and beguiled by the Incan agricultural laboratory of Moray.
However, by far, the highlight of the trip was experiencing Machu Picchu—the ancient city of the Incas constructed on a picturesque ridge between two mountains. Built by the Inca people around 1450, Machu Picchu is a collection of over 150 dwellings, temples and other edifices built for (and under the direction of) the mighty Inca King Pachacutec. Erected without iron tools, any sort of wheel or even mortar, Machu Picchu is truly an engineering miracle.
Kelly and I began our trek to Machu Picchu at the charming city of Aguas Calientes.
After crossing a footbridge over the feisty Urubamba River, we began our assent. Gradually and through a series of switchbacks, we climbed the stone-stepped trail toward the city. Lots of fellow-explorers passed us coming and going, many of whom were speakers of other languages. Given the climbing challenge, our fellow hikers each exhibited a shared sense of camaraderie, with lots of encouragement and happy greetings. One key difference I noticed was their ages—almost all seemed to be much younger than I! And, perhaps this is why the climb took us twice as long as locals had advised us to expect. While I consider myself fairly “fit,” my respiratory system was no match for the added 7000+ feet in altitude. After every 8-10 steps, I found I needed to stop and catch my breath for a few seconds. Finally, though, we mounted the last step at trail’s end and were rewarded with a break in the clouds and fabulous views from all points.
No photograph can capture the magnitude of this ancient stone city, nor can my words convey the feeling of standing on a high terrace and taking in the wonder of this mystical place. We wandered freely across the roughly 5 acres, in and out of dwellings, temples, terraces and passageways. At one point, we were surprised to find five friendly llamas, casually grazing between two walls! And, no matter where we looked, the Andes Mountains, tops in the clouds, surrounded us.
For over three hours, we explored this mystical site and with each turn, we discovered anew the ingenuity of the Inca people.
Besides the miraculous stone walls, we came across both a compass and a sundial used to track Earth/Solar cycles, a massive sacred rock (how did they move it?!), gravity-powered water fountains and evidence of a complex drainage system. The Inca clearly were masterful engineers.
We stopped often to absorb the view and ponder what daily life was like in this place. I felt the spirits of these mountain dwellers everywhere, along with a lingering sadness that their occupation of Machu Picchu was limited to around 100 years, possibly cut short by disease.
Exhausted from the two-hour hike and the site exploration, we decided to take a bus back to Aguas Calientes. Even so, we lingered as long as we could until the last tour bus loaded.
Note: After life at Machu Picchu ended, the entire Inca civilization would soon fall by Spanish conquest led by Francisco Pizarro, and Peru’s subsequent colonization by Spain. Throughout this period and for hundreds of years afterward, the local people kept the existence of Machu Picchu secret. It wasn’t until 1911 that word of the site was shared across the world when Hiram Bingham, a North American archeologist found Machu Picchu with the help of local farmers.
