More Machu Picchu

I stitched a couple of photos together to make this panorama of Machu Picchu. I promise that the rest of this posting will be details of the city not previously shown and lots of people shots. A person can only look at so many rocks on a blog. The thrill of being there can't be posted unfortunately.

The grounds crew keeps the grass nicely clipped and they work for free.

Wow............... The guard house sits at the top of the terracing.

Freddie explains the Royal Tombs to Beth.

The Temple of the Sun. It has some of the best stone mason work of all the buildings. The Inca's did not have iron or steel tools. The bronze, silver, and gold was nice but too soft to work stone. On top of that, the Inca's used granite for their blocks and granite is one of the hardest stones you can find. That means that fitting the blocks as tightly as they did probably took days and days for just one stone.

Every home has running water even if it isn't hot.

Machu Picchu has steps and then more steps. The steps are amazingly tall given the fact that the Incan's were small people. Just a little something I noticed as I struggle to left my dead tired legs up just one more step.

The main temple wall is heavily cracked.

This stone is set in such a way that it aligns with the sun at certain times each year. The Incan's were very sophisticated astrologically.

A group photo. The front row has Sigrid, Amy Ford, Carson Rustand, and Peggy Westerbeck. The next row has Larry Rader, John, and Linda Guthrie. Then we have Phil Guthrie, Beth and Ken Richards. At the back is Terri Butler.

Maybe the reason that I didn't notice being in high places is that I am more concerned about getting my next breath.

Machu Picchu is challenging and to survive, you have to let it all hang out (Sigrid's photo).

The use of this large stone is unknown, but if you place your hand just inches from the rock, some people feel a rush of energy. I didn't feel a thing and I needed it.

The Incan equivalent of the Blarney Stone......make a wish.

Right on cue as we finished our tour, it began to rain.

A stone cut into the shape of a Condor's head. As a matter of fact, the whole city of Machu Picchu is laid out in the shape of a Condor. Aerial photos make it easier to see that this is true.

We had a relaxing lunch at the cafeteria at Machu Picchu after the tour.

After lunch, we headed back to Aguas Calientes.

On my next visit to Machu Picchu (in another life), I would wish for the following things. I would want to make the trip when I am 21 years old so I could bound around the ruins without issues. Two full days at the city with lots of sunshine would be good. I would plan to look around and take photos at my own pace. I would go to the guard house and then slowly work my way down to the base of Huayna Picchu. I would then climb to the top of Huayna Picchu and take some astounding photos. After an hour of meditation, I would descend and bid Machu Picchu a final farewell.

All this is not to say that I didn't enjoy my visit.......I did very much. I just wanted to share some thoughts and see how many people actually read all the way to the bottom of a long posting.