Machu Picchu, Peru

Another place struck off the ol' bucket-list; welcome to Machu Picchu, one of the seven Wonders of the World! Whit and I joined a jungle trek tour package and spent an action-packed four days getting there. This trek included some seriously fast down-hill (on a paved road) mountain biking, hiking a panoramic section of the Inca trail, lounging in hot springs next to a turbulent river,  zip-lining across gorges, and, of course, a 4:30am jaunt up to Machu Picchu. We missed the sunrise because of fog, however, this cleared off by mid morning uncovering unbelievable views. Even though the ruins of Machu Picchu are insane, for me, it's where they are located that is most impressive. The ruins are nestled on a mountain ridge between two peaks, about 400m above the valley floor. On one side of the ancient town is a steep drop to the valley below, while the side we hiked up is definitely not a gradual slope. Machu Picchu was discovered by an American Yale historian turned explorer (Hiram Bingham) in 1911 while he searched for a different ancient city. Apparently he was led to the ruins by a local farmer and initially thought he had found an already discovered Inca site. Only after reviewing his pictures of the ruins whilst back in the US did his discovery dawn on him. He returned a short while later to excavate the site and, according to our guide, smuggle some of the discovered relics back to the States (great guy).

Machu Picchu marked the last of our trip's big ticket items. Seeing it makes us all the more aware that our adventure is nearing it conclusion. It's a bitter sweet feeling but we are excited to embark on the next chapter of our lives.Read more