ROMKids

#REgenerationtour: Adventure to Machu Picchu

We started off leaving Cusco in a hour and a half collectivo (mini van that goes to and from the little towns outside of Cusco) on our way to Ollantaytambo (Ollanta for short), a small town in the middle of the mountains. In Ollanta, we spent one night in a nice homestay with a lovely family. These people were warm and kind and had the most playful dog you’ve ever seen. His name was Tony. We spent hours playing with him. There was Petronilla, her daughter Rene and her nice granddaughter, Cynthia. We also took the Pinkuyllyana hike up to the Incan storehouses, a steep but beautiful hike. The storehouses were quite high up in the mountains surrounding the town. What a view we had from there! Filou and dad went to a mini tower over the ruins. Filou said that the tower looked like bunny ears! After our long hike we took a walk around town. Then we headed home for a freshly cooked meal. There was chicken and soup and rice and pasta and it was all so good! So we chowed down and then went off to bed.

The next day we took a class on how the Quechua (an indigenous group from throughout South America) weave and sew. Filou and I each made a bracelet and learned about how they dye the wool and thread to the right colour using minerals and dried insects! It was very interesting. We even crushed some dried beetles for the red dye!

After that we packed our bags and took a Peru Rail train through the mountains to Aguas Calientes, the small town next to Machu Picchu. Machu Picchu was built in the 15th century by King Pachacuti. We spent the night there in a lovely hostel with a great bed and the next day, we were off to Machu Picchu, the historic city of the Incas.

We took a half hour bus trip up to the ruins at 8:30 and then waited in line to get in. But when we got in, it was nothing like what we had expected. It was so much better than that! It was huge and beautiful and oh so high! There were llamas in the fields and birds in the sky and huge mountains all around us! We spent a whole day exploring and I bet we didn’t even see a quarter of the site. The day was long and the site was cold and misty but what a good time we had! Most of what the Inca had built was held together by mud and sand, but what the Pre-Inca had built was just rocks stacked on top of each other! We also took a hike up the Machu Picchu Mountain to get the best shots and views of the city! When we got down we were all very tired and went to the line for the bus, only the line was HUGE!!! We waited another hour before we got back to town! Then, we all sat down for a coffee, (hot chocolate for us kids) and headed home.

Some cool facts about Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu is 2,430 metres above sea level.
Many people call these ruins The Lost City of the Incas, but it is the most known site to all of the Incas, Peruvians, Quechua people and all other mountain groups.
Machu Picchu is a UNESCO World Heritage site and one of the new 7 wonders of the world.
People used to run around the site nude, so now they are going to set a new rule. Everybody who enters the site has to be with a tour guide.

Image credits

All photos (except where noted): Watanabes, 2014
Image 2: Machu Picchu as the mist’s rise at dawn: By Rtype909 (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

More information:

Follow the rest of the #REgenerationtour HERE!
Anthony’s (Dad) blog on the environmental mission: www.the-regeneration.com
Rose’s (Mom) blog shares the family experience on the road:www.yolomomonthego.wordpress.com
You can also follow Emile on Instagram @emiwata15!
Check out the rest of our #ROMKidsGoesWhere series HERE!