Declared as one of the new wonders of the world on July 7, 2007, the ruins of Machu Picchu are a real landmark worldwide. This, coupled with the title of World Heritage Site, which dates from 1983, concludes that at present the case of one of the most important tourist centers in the Americas and the world.
Machu Picchu is located in the province of Urubamba in southern Peru, and the nearest major city is the beautiful Cusco, Archeological Capital of South America named. To reach this impressive construction done by the Inca Empire there are several options. One is the traditional Inca Trail, which consists of a walking tour of three days of the town of Aguas Calientes.
Another is through a railway that takes three hours to make the journey from Cusco to the same city. And the least expensive and exhausting, chosen by many backpackers lies in travel from Cusco to Santa Maria, Santa Teresa there, then get to what is called “hydro” and last about three hours walking the railroad tracks to finally access to Aguas Calientes.
After just over an hour to climb the stone stairs in the middle of a hot, humid climate where rains are frequent, the first view of what is known as “The Citadel” generates a fervent internal mobilization in the lucky visitors.
The story goes that Machu Picchu, considered a masterpiece of architecture and engineering, was used as a resting place for the first Inca emperor, Pachacuti, between 1438 and 1470. Already on June 24, 1911, an American historian named Hiram Bingham came to the ruins and was marked as the “discoverer”. Bingham, marveling at the site, archaeological work carried out from 1912 to 1915.
However, today it is also necessary to mention the mystery that revolves around Machu Picchu, since more than 45 thousand pieces obtained in the excavations, also made to Huayna Picchu, the mountain backdrop, often appearing in the photographs of complex, arguably the country left and the Peruvian government was never able to recover the material.
These condiments and others make a real phenomenon Machu Picchu architectural, scenic, historical and cultural, which in turn is divided into two sectors: the agricultural and urban areas. It is, without any discussion, one of the tourist areas that no mortal should miss to know.
Is travel 