This is really what Machu Picchu looks like. I took that picture. That's crazy, and it's crazier to be there. The place is so much bigger than you expect—pictures don't really do it justice. It's also supposed to be an energy vortex, a place where a considerable amount of positive energy emanates from the earth. I can believe that. It was a very peaceful, take-a-deep-breath kind of place.

Anyway, our guide led us into Machu Picchu and showed us a good view, a better view, and a best view of the ruins (the above picture is from the best view). We were happy that our guide rushed us pretty quickly past good and better, because by the time we got to the best view most of the other tourists—it was kind of sad to be a tourist again—were stuck at the previous two spots.

Actual Machu Picchu.

Along the walk to the best view Cosme, our guide (who has written books about Machu Picchu), told us about some of the interesting history of the ruins. Probably the most interesting tidbit is that we know very little history. When it was found in 1911 the natives who showed it to Hiram Bingham had only come across it 7 years earlier, in 1904—and they were only that far up in the mountains because they were avoiding taxes. They didn't know what it was, when it was made, or what the city was for. In fact we don't even know it's real name; Machu Picchu is actually the mountain in the picture to the left. Everything we know about Machu Picchu has come from archeology and good guesses.

What we've got so far is that the city was a place where the elite lived as well as couples who were planning to get married. For the couples, the city was a testing ground. In Incan culture you had to live together for one year before you could get married—Machu Picchu was one such place that you'd live together because obviously a potential-married couple isn't going to go out and find their own plot of land just to test their relationship. After the year, if you made it, you would actually be given a plot of land and other Incans would come and build you a house on it. As for the elite, they were what you'd think: political and religious leaders as well as very skilled people.

We also know that the city would have been brightly colored in red and yellow because archeologists have found evidence of paint near the walls and buildings of the city. It would have been an even crazier-awesome place at its height, which coincidentally was only 500 years ago. Because Machu Picchu is only 500 years old!

After hiking up to Machu Picchu.

After walking through what seemed plenty like a real-life Disney World, we arrived at a bridge which looked like something out of Jurassic Park. No dinosaurs though, only men asking to see your ticket and passport. This is when I'd usually realize that I forgot my ticket, except on this occasion I had checked maybe 20 times to make sure I had that ticket over the past 2 days. I pulled out the ticket, the passport, and then walked across the bridge.

By this time it was about 5:15 or so and there was very little light. Everything looked blue and black. Thank goodness I had my headlamp—and I'm serious about that; it's a really good headlamp and I really needed it.

We began our ascent. And it was, to my knowledge at the time, quite an ascent. There's a reason that the actual road up to Machu Picchu is home to so many switch-backs—it's a steep climb up. We had steps on our climb, but not the steps you're used to. It's stone steps, ragged stone steps, all the way up. The altitude isn't quite as bad at Machu Picchu, but it still gets to you a bit. And I'm not going to pretend like I didn't get winded.

So after about 25 minutes of climbing I was wishing we were at the top, and about this time the sun was coming up as well. I got through it and at about 35 minutes in the sun was really making its way into the picture. No rays yet, but I didn't need my headlamp anymore.

I took this picture at about 35 minutes in as well. I tried a few tricks but without a tripod I couldn't really capture how sweet the coming sunrise was. Everything was purple and blue as the sun started climbing behind those mountains and it was pretty awe-inspiring to be at the same level as the tops of other mountains.

Just 15 more minutes and we arrived up at the top of our climb by about 6:05 am. The hike up is supposed to take an hour and a half. We did it in an hour. Boom.

After catching our breath and admiring the view we'd achieved through our own labors we waited just a few minutes until our guide, Cosme, arrived. He took us to the line (the back of the line) that leads to the actual gates into Machu Picchu.

Way out of focus. Way early.

After arriving in Aguas Calientes and getting to the hotel we didn't waste much time before having a little supper and then going to bed. The next morning was super early. The alarm went off at 3:55 and was snoozed, then was again snoozed at 4:00 but at 4:05 am we got up to eat breakfast of yogurt, bread, granola, and granola bars. It was early, but the food was pretty filling. Plus you can't be that lethargic when you're about to see Machu Picchu.

By about 4:40 we met with Dom and Lauren in the lobby (pictured above) and from there we walked towards the foot of the mountain. After walking over a train track then a bridge things started to get Disney World-y.

Off to my left was a running river just below a mountain. Everything smelled and looked and sounded (in the dim light of 5:00 am) like Disney World. Animal Kingdom maybe. I then realized that the difference between Disney and where I was was that there the sounds and sights were real. Really real. For a second I thought about how great Disney is to have made places that seem so authentic, then I got back to reality where I was enjoying the base of Machu Picchu in real life. If Disney World is magical, well so was walking to the bottom gates of Machu Picchu.

When in North Dakota you're not too surprised if you run into a few people that you know. You might be in Bismarck at a hotel and run into someone you didn't know was going to be there. This doesn't rock your world though, because it's North Dakota and these things happen all the time. I'll come back to this idea.

Before I came to Peru I knew that one of my Spanish professors, Kemerly Moorhouse, would be also be here this summer. She brings students from U Mary down every summer because she's a Spanish professor and native of Peru. Thinking that it would be cool to meet up with her and her students, we talked ahead of time to figure out when they would all be in Peru. It turned out that they were around the beginning of this week and part of last week.

They invited Brandon and I out to dinner with them last Sunday. We were to first meet them at their hotel and then walk to restaurant.

Once we got to the hotel we waited a little bit before my professor appeared. And shortly after my professor appeared… SO DID MATT JOHNSON, who part of my professor's group of students (I found out). I couldn't believe it. Remember when we talked about running into people in North Dakota. The same ins't supposed to apply to Peru. There are just too many people, plus it's in South America where North Dakotans are a novelty.

It was great to see people from home and our dinner of calzones was fantastic, even if it did take an hour for us to get our food. The calzones and company made up for the wait.