Moochi Peeku

And so, we went.

The day was slightly overcast as we boarded the Perurail train. It took us high, up, up into the mountainous peruvian Andes, above the Urubamba River Valley, and seemingly up into the heavens. One of the most important archeological sites in South America, the name of this UNESCO world heritage site has been interpreted as "Old Mountain." The great, highly revered, Machu Picchu. This is llama country. And weird touristy poses. Is altitude responsible for these poses, or is that substance induced? We will never know.

Machu Picchu was built by the Incas around the year 1450, only for them to abandon it about 80 years later during the Spanish Conquest. The conquistadors never did find it, even though Machu Picchu... Moochu Peeky... Micha Poochy... is located only 80km from the capital, Cusco. The jungle that surrounds it completely outgrew the whole site and nobody really knew it existed. Until one day, this American guy, Bingham, discovered it and showed it to the world in 1911. Dramatic pause for awe-inspiring gaze at the man-made terraces. Look how inspired we are.

It's no surprise that Machu Picchu is the most visited tourist attraction in not only Peru, but all of South America. It became one of the seven wonders of the world in 2007 and in 2017, there were over a million recorded tourists to visit these age-old ruins.

The site of Machu Picchu is about 2, 400 meters above sea level. It's known for its plummeting cliffs, a sheer drop of about 1, 500 feet straight down to the surrounding Urubamba river. When you finally reach the top, you could swear that with one false move, you would fall off the face of the earth and never be heard from again. And just to give you an indication as to how high up we are: those man-made terraces we just admired a second ago, are in the oddly shaped clearing of trees directly next to my right knee in this photo. There are no safety measures, no handrails around this rock, it just drops.

And, after prancing around in her orange pants, having taken photos of the top of world, that priceless moment fully lived and recorded, it was time to go back down the mountain. Time for one more pose with Dad, then on to her birthday dinner: pizza and coke. Yes, 24 has never been so stylish.

Cheers, to the many more wonders this world has to offer.

Bailey Sue