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Location: Machu Picchu
Author: Nico Location: Machu Picchu Unlike most mornings, we were up before the sun today. We got up at 3:30 am to hike and reach Machu Picchu by sunrise. We were all told that the hike would not be easy and that we could take a bus up to Machu Picchu if we wanted to. I’m proud to say that many people, including myself, chose to hike rather than take the bus. When we started our hike it was very dark and slightly cold, the first ten minutes were walking through the streets to get to the entrance of the trail. We were one of the first groups in line when the trail opened; the path was narrow, steep and very crowded. We hiked for over an hour before reaching the entrance of the park and reuniting with the rest of our group that chose not to hike. The whole group entered the park together, and after a short walk, we arrived at the cliff overlooking Machu Picchu where we stopped and took pictures. We then waited for the sun to rise over the Andes before going on our tour of Machu Picchu. We all learned very quickly that the rules there were not taken lightly by the guards, rules such as no walking sticks, no food, no large water bottles, no walking on the grass (in some areas), and no flags. After our tour, we were given time to break up into groups and explore on our own. When we were finished, we met at the front of the park to get our passports stamped and catch our bus back down to town. We had a quiet afternoon hanging out in the lobby of our hotel to watch the World Cup while waiting for the train to take us back to Ollantaytambo where we spent the night after a long day.