Peru and Ecuador 2026
Pages
Introduction.
May
29,
30,
31.
June
01,
02,
03,
04,
05,
06,
07,
08,
09,
10,
11,
12,
13,
14,
15,
16.
Home.
2026-06-06
We took a van to a train to Aguas Calientes, the town near Machu Picchu,
dropped our things at a hotel, and took a bus to Machu Picchu. (They check
passports on the train, partly because there are different fares and rules for
tourists versus locals.) The road up to Machu Picchu has seven switchbacks and
has a constant stream of buses passes each other on the narrow road. There is
also a hiking route with staircases I think would have been faster than the bus
on the switchbacks.
The first photo below is of reflective visibility tape on a van. It is on lots
of vehicles all over Peru, mostly commercial vehicle, so I asked our guide, and
it is apparently required on many vehicles. In spite of the crazy traffic I saw
in Lima and Cusco, Peru has fewer traffic fatalities per capita than the US. Is
the tape helping?
Aguas Calientes the town is on a hill on two sides of Aguas Calientes the river.
It is hugely a tourist town, lots of tourist shops and restaurants.
“Machu Picchu” means ancient mountain, so it is actually the mountain that the
settlement of Machu Picchu is on. Next to it is Huayna Picchu, young mountain.
In the photos showing some walls of the settlement from above, you can see there
are double walls with stone on the outside and material between them. That
filling is modern, to prevent rainwaiter intrusion.
In the evening there was a fancy tasting-menu dinner at the hotel.
 |
| Reflective visibility tape. Apparently required on many vehicles. |
 |
| Train to Aguas Calientes. |
 |
| Aguas Calientes train station. |
 |
| Aguas Calientes. |
 |
| Aguas Calientes. |
 |
| Aguas Calientes. |
 |
| Aguas Calientes. |
 |
| Huayna Picchu. |
 |
| Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Mountains at Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Trail on/to Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Huayna Picchu. |
 |
| Machu Picchu, the mountain. |
 |
| Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Before. |
 |
| After. |
 |
| Valley at Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Valley at Machu Picchu. Notice the trails visible on the mountainsides. |
 |
| Valley at Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Machu Picchu. |
 |
| Sumaq welcome chocolates. Left to right: Citrus cream, chocolate ganache, a fruit caramel. |
 |
| Aguas Calientes. |
 |
| Aguas Calientes. |
 |
| Aguas Calientes. |
 |
| Aguas Calientes. |
 |
| Aguas Calientes. |
 |
| Aguas Calientes. |
 |
| Dinner at Sumaq: Bread and butter. |
 |
| Dinner at Sumaq: Cream of Choclo (corn). Mild cream of choclo from the Urubamba Valley with cilantro aromas, pieces of fresh cheese, and an Andean cheese snow. |
 |
| Dinner at Sumaq: Quinoa Tabouli. Quinoa, andean paria cheese, white onion, tomato, olive oil, and lime juice. |
 |
| Dinner at Sumaq: Hot Stone Ceviche. Cubes of fresh trout served on a hot stone from the Vilcanota River, and tiger’s milk made with yellow pepper. |
 |
| Dinner at Sumaq: Hot Stone Ceviche. The stone worked better than I expected to cook the fish. |
 |
| Dinner at Sumaq: Avocado Risotto. Avocado risotto accompanied by tomato confit, grilled alpaca, and grilled oyster mushrooms with mushroom foam. |
 |
| Dinner at Sumaq: Picarones. Traditional Peruvian dessert: crispy homemade fried doughnut rings made with butternut squash sweetened with fig syrup and whole cane sugar, served with homemade butternut squash ice cream. |
 |
| Dinner at Sumaq: Inca Bracelet. Replica of an Inca bracelet filled with api and yogurt cream with lemon grass. |
© Copyright 2026 by
Eric Postpischil.
