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Train to Machu Picchu
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Our wake-up call really did come at 4:45am. We actually got up a little earlier so as not to rush and went down to the breakfast buffet. Daryl needs a little something in the morning so had a couple of slices of toast and some juice, while Rob had some coffee. Others in the group loaded up on eggs, etc. The train station in Poroy, a suburb of Cusco, was unavailable as there had been a landslide, so we went in our small bus to another station a 1 1/2 hour drive through Cusco and the Sacred Valley. Rob and Daryl had read a great book, Turn Right at Machu Picchu by Mark Adams, so all of these names were known to us. We got on the Vista dome train at a very small station for the 2 1/2 hour train ride. Again our tickets and assigned seats were provided. We sat with Toni and Hector from Claremont, who we had actually seen on the ship and had spoken with during the early part of the post-cruise activities. The Vista dome train is also 5-star with a glass roof and luxurious seats with a wooden table between us. When we pulled in to Ollyantambo Station, they brought food aboard and set the tables with woven Peruvian table runners and provided a breakfast snack of fresh food, small ham sandwiches, a type of puffed rice cereal, small pancakes with honey on them and a choice of drinks. Daryl and Hector tried Inka Cola which is sort of like cream soda in taste.
The scenery through the mountains and canyons was unbelievable with a river running alongside the tracks and only a few small communities and single houses. We could see the snowy glaciers in the near distance.
When we reached the Machu Picchu Town end stop, we had to walk through a large area of shops, restaurants and lodgings to board another bus to the actual site. Our two gentlemen with health issues had some difficulty with this whole procedure. Machu Picchu is at least 3000 feet lower than Cusco in altitude, but they were still having problems.
