Neither photos nor video can do it justice.
That's what I heard before I ever laid eyes on the Incan city of Machu Picchu. I had seen tons of photographs and viewed countless videos, especially in our family's lead-up to visiting this historic site, and thought that if the images cannot do the place justice, it must be pretty spectacular to see.
It is.
And while my own photos cannot do justice to the city that fades in and out of clouds, here is some of what I captured, anyway.
I've wanted to visit Machu Picchu for as long as I can remember.
Before I started seeing the world in earnest, in my early 20s, when I took my first overseas trip and promised myself that I'd make travel something I would do at every opportunity, there were places that I added to my bucket list. Machu Picchu was one of them but back then, it seemed too remote.
Still, I kept it in mind.
I wanted to see the Great Wall of China when I first learned about it in elementary school, and again I thought it was too remote. Yet, in 1997, I found myself standing on it and discovered that nothing is too remote if you put your mind to making it happen.
When DW and I had young kids, we wanted to travel with them, let them see the world beyond their neighborhood, so we took them across Canada, to the U.S., to Italy, France, Cuba, and more, but we tended to shy away from so-called remote places. Travelling with tots comes with its own challenges.
When they got older, they didn't seem keen on travelling with DW and me as much. In 2019, they travelled with friends: Kid 1, to the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, and France; Kid 2, to Greece. Kid 1 wanted to go with me to South Korea, when I went solo, also in 2019, but I promised her I'd take her another time.
I don't know if I'll fulfill that promise but I'll try my best.
But the kids haven't been interested in joining us in Mexico, when we've offered. They didn't want to go with us to Portugal or Costa Rica. When we said we were going to Peru, however, they both expressed an interest. It seems they've also seen images of Machu Picchu and thought it would be nice to see, but that it seemed pretty remote.
Going on Mom and Dad's tab, however, made it desirable.
We took a train from Ollantaytambo at 5am to get to the Inca mountain city for 8:00. It was raining a bit but looked like clouds were constantly shifting. While photos often show the archeological site bathed in sunshine and clear skies, I was hoping for a bit of drama. I didn't need sunshine but I didn't want the area to be completely shrouded in cloud cover.
I think we got the best weather.
Stay tuned for more.
Happy Thursday.
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| Image: ChatGPT |
It seems that we booked this trip years ago but it's only been a little more than eight months. We've wanted to go for ages but it finally took watching a motorcycling series with Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman to convince us that it was time.
No, we're not riding motorcycles across several countries. But we are going to one of the places where they stopped along their travels.
For decades, I've wanted to visit the historic Inca site of Machu Picchu, in Peru. I wanted to get there in the early hours, watch mountain mist float around the centuries-old buildings, and capture it with my camera. But I didn't know much else about the country, other than the capital is Lima, and I didn't know what else to see, other than these famed ruins.
As much as I wanted to see them, I wasn't going to travel all that distance just for one site.
But when we say McGregor and Boorman traverse the landscape of Peru, I realized that there was more to see. DW was interested in going, so we started making plans. But then both our kids started showing an interest, so we decided we'd make it a family vacation.
After all, we haven't taken a vacation with the four of us since we went out to Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, in 2018. We were due to go somewhere together.
Today is all about getting to Lima. Tomorrow, we fly to Cusco, the highest elevation that any of us have ever been, at nearly 3,400 metres above sea level. We've brought meds to deal with the side effects.
We'll be exploring the old Inca capital and various towns around it, plus the Sacred Valley. Our kids are staying with us for this first week before heading back. In the second week, DW and I will explore another part of the country on our own.
I don't know if I'll be blogging regularly on this trip. It depends on the Internet access and how much down time I'll have. And it'll also depend on whether altitude sickness becomes a hinderance.
If I don't post anything for the next two weeks, be sure that I'll have lots to share when we return.
It's our first time crossing over to the southern hemisphere. A whole new adventure.
Stay tuned.
