Tammy and Cynthia atop the Inca's city of Machu Picchu
Machu Picchu was discovered only 99 years ago by a 36-year-old adventurer from Yale, the inspiration behind the character of Indiana Jones — Hiriam Bingham. Today it’s considered a Wonder of the World and the reason why most people visit Peru. If you haven’t been, She’s the First will take you on the climb in our mini documentary to come — Manny recorded hours of footage!
Machu Picchu is one of the last cities the Incas built before the Spanish conquered their rich civilization. No one really knows why exactly it was built, but there is plenty of evidence of its religious significance — temples and alters made of rock are everywhere.
You already know from our earlier post that the Inca’s held wise beliefs — underscoring the importance of taking care of yourself and determination for reaching a goal…but they weren’t perfect. I was horrified to learn from our guide that the Incas sacrificed children to their gods on occasion, and I was disappointed that girls were separated from the boys, only to learn how to be good wives. But the Incas were advanced in other areas, like architecture (all those stones held together for hundreds of years without cement!) and astronomy (they understood the solstices and built structures to cast just the right shadows).
llamas llamas everywhere in Peru -- always grazing Machu Picchu!
By the average Peruvian living standards, it costs a fortune to travel to and explore Machu Picchu. By NYC standards, it costs about as much as a pair of Broadway tickets. It would be brilliant if the Peruvian government or bureau of tourism invested a percentage of their profits into a fund to build schools in remote areas of Peru, so that not only tourists get educated, but local communities in need would too. A tourism model that supports Peru’s natural wonders AND nurtures their future leaders would be ideal. We’re going to research this more, but so far the only give-back option we know of is fundraising hikes, like this one that supports Peruvian Hearts and the very orphanage we visited two days ago in Anta, el Hogar.
Have any of you been to Machu Picchu? Tell us what you think!
The picture of you two in front of Machu Picchu is AMAZING! I can’t wait to see the video footage.
Awesome Tammy!! You’re doing great things, and getting the word out about Peru. It’s a noble cause!
(By the way `Machu Pikchu’ in Quechua means “Old Mountain”)
Good luck with everything you do!