Aguas Calientes

Sunday, March 17, 2008
Aguas Calientes, Sacred Valley of the Incas
Lenay woke us up at 7.45 this morning at the Hostal Las Portadas. We had a train to catch at 9, but I'm usually following Lenay off of the beaten track. Wandering down the narrow cobblestone side streets of Ollantaytambo, nothing but further appreciation for the city grew as I was greeted by the village locals. After 45 minutes of this, We hurried down to the train station, where dozens of vendors were busy selling food and souvenirs to the backpackers making their way toward Machu Picchu. I found a beloved basset hound, but his owner wouldn't sell him.

At a quarter past 9 the train lurched away from Ollantaytambo, and our anticipation grew as we closed on the sacred city, kilometer by kilometer. We sat next to an elderly Chilean and her daughter, and some English students, on their year off. Over an hour later the train puiled into it's destination, Aguas Calientes. This town was built after Hiram Bingham stumbled upon the ruins in 1911. It's caharacterized by dozens of artesan tents, with t shirts, knick knacks, fake Incan statues and whatever else. the town seems to be dominated by hostals and restaurants. Tough it's buried deep within the sacred valley, I counted no less than five internet cafes. we found lodging at the hostal Tumi, down a side steet in upper Aguas.

After dining on fried trout for lunch at Keros, we explored this commercial oddity. Lenay heard about a path leading to an overlook near the town, so she paid a local to take us to the entrance. A sixty year old vendor led us out of the town, along the rail road tracks, to an opening of the Mountain Putukusi. Setting off, it took us an hour and a half to reach the top of the mountain, climbing 100 foot wooden ladders, navigating 3 foot wide paths, and struggling with oxygen at 2400 meters. I honestly didn't expect much to be at the top. My shock though, was palpable.

After spending a half hour gaping at the sacred city, we made the return journey,hoping our fatigued knees would not give out one the climb down. We did make it though, and reflected on our discovery. The rest of the evening was spent wondering Machu Piccu would really be like. However, these thoughts didn't stop Liz and I from enjoying Cristal, and exploring the night life. We visited every bar and dicoteca in town, though all were empty, save the local drunks who would grab Liz for a quick salsa dance. Wiped out from the long day, and afraid of a hangover in the sacred city, I found my excedrin bottle and fell asleep.