Tourists have the option to
travel super-deluxe, dining the full menu and enjoying the local wines with
Hiram Bingham; middle class Vistadome offering complementary snacks or the less expensive Expedition with snacks for sale. The last option and most economic option is to take the shuttle from
Ollantaytambo to Machu Picchu. All trains and shuttles have perplexed roof
windows to heighten the panoramic view.
Travellers using the shuttles are
mainly backpackers with wrinkled clothes, unshaven, happy faces and electronic
devices. They check with regular intervals whether the passport and wallet are
still in the front pockets, count money, make small talk and share where meals
are inexpensive, what markets have the best bargains and which museums are a
must see.
Pisac has spectacular ruins overlooking
the Sacred Valley and has the most famous market on Sundays. Thermal baths at
Aguas Calientes attract many visitors and offer revitalizing minerals
especially for tired, blistered feet. Underlying the trading of new
knowledge single backpackers hope for an invite to assimilate and reduce the
chances of getting lost. They might have a conversation going by the next stop or ending up with
the silent treatment.
Finding the free Wi-Fi spot is
without doubt the euphoria of the day and status updates make the backpackers' Twitter and Facebook friends with or without envy, dedicated followers. This is
also the time when online banking happens and the tour budget might get a boost
from savings.
On the shuttle, room is limited
and the legs from those who didn’t get to put their backpacks in the triangle
between the seats are dealing with dead weight.
In the enclosed space with sleep-deprived
bodies that press every Soles value out for the experience of a lifetime, are
the readers. The world passes them as they read novels,
absorbed by the character’s quest. That is to some extend inexcusable.
John notices a traveller studying the book on How
to make the best out of Traveling Peru. One traveler’s frown is another
man’s smile. He Tweet this and in minutes the astonished John’s Twitter gets a thousand hits. “Some-one is reading about the Sacred Valley,
looking at the photos in the book rather than the real thing?” “You’re kidding
me.” “Ask whether the reader are willing to use my sofa while I take the seat on the train!”
How one can read about the tropical mountain while travelling is incomprehensible; missing the scenery where the inspiration for Indiana Jones series originated, unthinkable.
Whether it happens by luxurious or economic means, the
artistry of nature in glorious colours, the grandeur of an ancient Inca
civilization, talking broken Spanish to natives and mingling with citizens of
the world is a gift of the present time. Resist from falling behind.
The turquoise Vilcanota River to the left of the train tracks and to the right towering mountains with rocks having the outward appearance of heads, imposing.
Any train to the tropical mountain forest is a good train.
Closing the travel guide or novel an excellent option.
Don't forget to chew on the Cacao leafs.
The altitude is high and so is the ecstasy.
