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Caption: Machu Picchu
Caption: Cusco was the Capitol of the Inca empire until the 1500s when the empire fell to the Spanish conquistadors. The city is an incredible mix of Inca architecture and history alongside colonial structures.
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Caption: I rode the bus through the high planes of the Andes. Alpaca herds and farms of quinoa fields flew past us.
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Caption: The streets of Cusco are narrow and cobbled. It feels ancient. Cusco was the Capitol of the Inca empire until the Spanish conquistadors arrived and took it over.
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Caption: In order to get to Machu Picchu, one of the best examples of an Inca city, you take a train from Cusco to a pueblo called Machu Picchu. The ruins are still high above you, on the peak of steep mountain.
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Caption: From the village, a bus winds up switchbacks climbing about 1000 meters to the peak of a mountain. Unlike the rest of the high plains of the Andes, these mountains look like jungle, with lush trees, flora, and fauna. Parrots cry out from nearby.
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Picture of Machu Picchu
Caption: We climbed up with a guide. The first thing you notice are the ancient terraces built into the steep edges of the mountain.
Picture of Machu Picchu
Caption: Everywhere, you see the handiwork of Incas. Boulders are smoothed and shaped into temples or homes for the leaders.
Picture of Machu Picchu
Picture of Machu Picchu
Picture of Machu Picchu
Picture of Machu Picchu
Picture of Machu Picchu
Machu Picchu
Caption: The Incas had an empire that stretched from Ecuador down to Argentina. Their civilization is considered to be one of the most advanced of its time. As you wander Machu Picchu, touching the buildings, terraces, water ways, and homes they built, you understand how that was the case. Even though the empire is gone, you see the practices of the Inca in the villages throughout the high plains. Their ancestors are there still.
