I Survived Macchu Picchu!

by Tanya
(Marysville, WA, USA)

I had the amazing opportunity to visit Cusco, Peru and to see the beautiful Inca city on Macchu Picchu. This was a place I had always wanted to visit and see personally. The day I visited turned out to be a VERY eventful day!

First we were driving from Cusco and our bus was pulled over by police, as a result we almost missed our train! We eventually arrived at the town at the base of the mountain, boarded another bus to take us up the mountain which turned out to be the most terrifying drive I have ever taken! A dirt road with hairpin turns with barely enough room for 2 buses to pass each other. I could not even look out the window at the sheer cliffs below us...I was too scared! But our day in Macchu Picchu was very pleasant and beautiful. It was so amazing to be there. But we still had to go back down the mountain!

I wanted to just walk. Well, we survived that bus ride, and got back on the train to head back to Cusco. After about 2 hours on the train, the train broke down! We sat there for about half an hour with several attempts to move. Luckily we had just passed a rare station on those tracks just 10 minutes behind us (down the mountain) so they got the engine to just give the train a good push and we coasted back down to the station, switched engines and were back on our way.

When we finally arrived back in Cusco, we boarded another bus to take us back to our hotel. I turned to my friend and said "Well, just 15 more minutes and we will have survived the day!" when suddenly the bus driver slammed on the brakes! Everybody screamed. I looked out the window and saw boulders all over the road...there had been a landslide! It was an extremely memorable day, and I am happy to say that...I survived!