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Machu Picchu: Enduring
Treasure or MacPicchu?
by Rod Lopez-Fabrega & Mary Ashcraft
The good news:
Deep in the heart of the Peruvian Andes, beyond the Sacred Valley of the Incas, is a narrow and precipitous road with the unlikely name of Carretera Hiram Bingham. The Hiram Bingham road snakes its way from deep chasms carved by the Urubamba River, climbing 1,000 feet to the magnificent mountain-top citadel of the Inca emperor Pachacuti: the religious fortress of Machu Picchu.
In 1911, Hiram Bingham, a young
history professor at Yale University (later in life to serve briefly as
governor of Connecticut and U.S. senator) began his search in the wilds of Peru
for the lost city of the Incas. Following the Urubamba, a main tributary of the
Amazon, and relying on stories known for generations to the local Indians, he
and his team made the grueling climb, bushwhacking through tangled undergrowth.
On July 24, 1911, as they cut their way through choking rainforest vegetation,
there began to appear, after 500 years of concealment, stone walls, dwellings,
palaces, temples structures and terraced gardens. Bingham and his party had made one of the great
archaeological finds of the 20th century, the last stronghold of the
Incan Empire before it collapsed under civil war and the onslaught of 16th
century Spain. During its golden age the mighty empire of the Incas stretched
from modern-day Colombia to northern Chile, but during a time of internal
unrest and instability, the empire was vulnerable to the fury of Spanish
conquistadors intent on “saving souls” and looting. With stunning speed, Inca
strongholds fell to the Europeans—all except Machu Picchu, hidden away high in
the Andes Mountains. There it remained for 500 years, known only to the local
natives as a whispered legend.
Most new arrivals are day-trippers, waiting in large groups
for tour guides to walk them through this marvelous place. They congregate on
the broad shady terrace of the Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge (more about this
establishment later) just a few yards from the entrance gate to the citadel.
They arrive at around 10 a.m. and depart around 3 p.m., a much too short
exposure to Machu Picchu.
It is best to arrange to spend one
or two nights at this hotel. It is usually booked, so make reservations several
months ahead. There are good optional accommodations down below in Aguas
Calientes, but the best times to see the citadel are before and after day-trippers
leave, and it is a great advantage to be able to share the Incan citadel with
just a few other overnight guests. You will be able to walk back to the citadel
many times during the day and early evening to experience the remarkable
transformations shifting sunlight creates on those amazing structures as the
sun arcs across the sky. At night it is a magical and mystical place. On your first entry, a few feet beyond the entrance control
point (approximately $10 per visitor on the first day, $5 per day after,) the
first view of Machu Picchu really is stunning. The citadel caps a high plateau
like a stone carpet of complex design, garden terraces built on impossible
slopes framing the residential and religious structures and the central plaza,
all surrounded by precipices and peaks. Once you get over the initial impact, you are free to wander
throughout the complex of agricultural terraces, palaces, storehouses, places
of worship, worker’ quarters, and to admire the amazingly precise stonework and
the skillful planning that went into the design of this mountain top treasure
of a city.
The citadel may also have served as a fortress on the edge
of the empire, a jumping off place for earlier conquest of rainforest tribes,
and a last refuge from political upheavals and European invasion during the
final days of empire. Why it was abandoned is a mystery, but, curiously, most
skeletal remains found on the site seem to be of females, perhaps indicating
that it was a final refuge for the “Virgins of the Sun,” a religious order of
Incan nuns. There can be no mistaking the purposes of the highest
platforms in Machu Picchu. An open terrace with monumental stone obelisks,
alignments to the heavens as in Stonehenge in England, sacrificial altars
(llamas, not humans,) and a stone in the shape of the Southern Cross pointing
directly to that constellation clearly define this as a high place of worship.
Now for the bad news:
As the world treasure that it is, Machu Picchu has been
meticulously maintained by the Peruvian government. Sadly, the government’s
attitude seems to have changed, and this archaeological gem, enshrined by
UNESCO since 1983 as a World Heritage Site, is in immediate danger. Recognition
by UNESCO of the site’s importance for all of humanity, at least in intent,
mandates its preservation for future generations. However, in attempts to
privatize sectors of its economy, the Peruvian government has apparently
changed course and overlooked some of its own conservation laws in regard to
some of its historic sites. Plans have been in the works for close to two years
to construct a six-story, 172,000-square-foot tourist complex at the Machu
Picchu ruins that will include a cable car terminal, tourist boutiques,
restaurants, expansion of the present hotel, and even the possibility of a
night club and casino. Nothing could have a more negative impact on this remarkable
sanctuary, already stressed by its immense popularity as a prime target for
tourism. The international outcry has been loud, but a final decision to
proceed in the conversion of Machu Picchu into a theme park seems imminent. It
seems that the greed and misguided ambitions of Spanish conquistadors may finally be outdone by modern-day
economics. You can help prevent the desecration of this irreplaceable treasure
by writing letters. Cusco, seat of empire:
Before the Spaniards came, Cusco was a marvel of stone
palaces and temples with walls surfaced in hammered gold and silver, of finely
woven tapestries and colorful pageantry suitable for the High Lord of Cusco.
When the Incan emperor, known as The Inca, appeared in public for ceremonial occasions, the shimmering fabrics of
his robes, his golden breast plates and head ornaments of precious stones and
rare bird plumage were, in their own way, every bit as grand as the Baroque
splendors of the courts of Europe. Cusco was a holy city and was as important to the Incas as
Mecca is to the Muslims or Rome to Catholics or Jerusalem to many modern-day faiths.
From all corners of the empire, the Inca people came to pay respects to the
gods, and a man’s value was enhanced by having done so.
In the 16th
century, invading Spaniards destroyed the temples and palaces, imposed their
religion on the Incas and built a Christian city on top of the remaining
foundations—not the finest hours in the history of Spain. The two cultures, one
on top of the other, are still visible. Churches, old residences and many civic
structures perch on top of walls and foundations that are all that remains of
the incredible stonework of Inca craftsmen. Still, Cusco was then and remains
now an Indian city with a vitality all its own. The mix of Spanish and Incan
architecture and customs is unique in the world, and, fortunately Cusco also
has been protected by UNESCO—though the effectiveness of that protection is
being tested. Day trips from Cusco:
Another important day trip is a
drive through the Sacred Valley of the Incas along the Urubamba River to
Ollantaytambo, a major religious citadel that predates Machu Picchu and is of
special interest because it has preserved its original style of Incan city
planning. Indigenous people still occupy its original stone dwellings in a
neighborhood that once was the prestigious residential area of the local Inca
rulers. The area also was a major food-producing center for the Incas, and it
remains so today. In one of the town squares, a fountain carved from a single
granite block is said to have been a bathing place for Incan princesses.
Finally, don’t miss the Sunday market fair in Pisac. It’s a weekly event that
brings groups of Indians in their traditional costumes to this little market
town to barter goods and buy herbal medicines. It’s an amazing sight to see a
single farmer, hurrying along at a full trot, under a towering load of firewood
three times his height. He will offer it for sale to the town locals at the
weekly market. Sad to say, this historic site of immense historic as well
as current day value also is threatened by plans to put a major highway through
the Inca heartland. When you go:
American Airlines has daily flights from JFK directly to
Cusco (with a stopover in Lima but no change of plane.) Other airlines serving
Lima from U.S. gateway cities are AeroPeru, Faucett, United Airlines and
Continental. Direct flights to Lima also are available on many European
Airlines. Particularly when flying South American carriers, be sure to
reconfirm all flights several times. Cancellation practices are enforced and
can be arbitrary. An overnight stay in Lima cannot be recommended. It could be
a beautiful city but isn’t in spite of its many colonial sites of interest.
Crime rates are reported to be high. On the other hand, security has not been
reported to be a tourism problem in Cusco, the Sacred Valley or Machu Picchu,
but normal precautions are in order after dark or in out-of-the-way places.
There are very good hotels in
Cusco. The top of the line is probably the Monasterio del Cusco, an old Jesuit
monastery converted into an elegant hotel—pricey, but worth it. The Inca I and
Inca II hotels are also well regarded, and there even is a Holiday Inn. The hotel at the entrance to the Machu Picchu ruins was
formerly called the Hotel Machu Picchu Ruinas. Now it is The Machu Picchu
Sanctuary Lodge. It is, by far, the preferred place to stay when visiting the
citadel, though its price has changed along with the name. A double now costs
$262 per night. You might keep in mind that, though ideally located, this hotel
is implicated in the huge expansion plans for Machu Picchu tourism.
Helpful contacts:
Aeroperu Airlines = 1-800-777-7717 Hotel Monasterio del Cusco = http://monasterio.orient-express.com/
Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge = http://www.hotelcity.com/peru/machu.htm If you want to help stop the threatened expansion of the
citadel: http://www.mpicchu.org/summary.html PHOTO
CREDITS: Rod
Lopez-Fabrega, Mary Ashcraft, John Tyler |
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TM
Today, a comfortable tourist train
with elegantly uniformed stewardesses and comfortable amenities carries an
average of 1,000 tourists daily on a three-hour ride from modern-day Cusco to
the rustic town of Aguas Calientes on the Urubamba River. From there, a
20-minute ride on spiffy new buses carries the crowds another vertical 1,000
feet up the snaking Hiram Bingham road, around hair-raising switchbacks to the
entrance to the citadel of Machu Picchu. Another option is to skip the buses
and hike up the mountainside as local pilgrims do in their Incan finery.
The exact nature of all the
structures in Machu Picchu is still unknown, but the citadel is just on the
border of the cold highlands and the warmer rainforest. It is thought to have
been an important religious center and a place of retreat for the emperor from
the colder climate of Cusco and the demands of empire.
A few paces away is a remarkable
piece of stone known as the Intihuatana or the Hitching Post of
the Sun. It resembles a piece of contemporary sculpture or a modernistic
sundial, but was clearly of astronomical use since alignment of its angles
coincides with the sun’s positions during the equinox and the solstice, times
of particular significance for an essentially agricultural society. Very
clearly, this mountaintop was a focal point of worship for a civilized,
non-western culture that had a mystical connection with nature and respect for
the sanctity of the environment.
In the vast Incan Empire, all
roads led to Cusco, its capital and seat of all Incan emperors. The name Cusco
means “navel of the Earth,” and it was the glittering center of an empire that
included portions of modern-day Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, a small
corner of western Argentina, and
northern Chile—all connected by a paved highway 2,250 miles in length.
For a fascinating glimpse into the
mysterious Incan past, a couple of day trips from Cusco should be on every
visitor’s list of things to do. One of these would include Sacsayhuaman, the
great Sanctuary of the Sun; Puka Pukara, a grain-storage and travelers’ stop
for the royal relay runners--a 22-day journey end-to-end--that kept the Incan
emperor and his bureaucracy in touch with the empire; and Tambo Machay, a
ritual spring used by priests to purify themselves before offering homage to
the sun.
Tourism agencies are plentiful in
Cusco, and you can arrange daily tours and day trips to the Sacred Valley of
the Incas while there as well as to Machu Picchu, if you elect to be a
day-tripper to the citadel. The local agency will arrange to deliver you to the
train station in Cusco and pick you up afterwards for transfer back to your
hotel—a good idea because the railroad station is in a risky part of town. When
making arrangements with a Cusco agency, it’s O.K. to give a down payment but
best to hold full payment until after you receive all train and tour vouchers.
Unless you are fluent in Spanish, don’t try to arrange trips yourself with
local cab drivers to the archaeological sites around Cusco.