Day 2 in Peru-The Train Ride To Macchu Picchu

Homes are scattered along the hills.

My wife and I woke up at 5 am to catch a bus which her father had ordered for us to take to the train station for out train ride to Macchu Picchu. Unfortunately, the bus we were waiting for never came and we quickly needed to find a taxi to take us to the station. The train for Macchu Picchu leaves very early from Cusco around 6:30 am.  I suggest taking the train early to experience a full day at one of the most beautiful places in the world. The tickets which include the cost of Macchu Picchu and the ride home are approximately $160.00 per person.

You really gain a feel for how the people of  Peru live.

The train ride out of Cusco to Macchu Picchu takes 4 hours each way and passes through beautiful Peru landscape scattered with small villages, beautiful rivers and mountains. The very beginning of the trip is extremely interesting because the train goes through a series of switchbacks in order to get out of the city. The switchbacks slowly take you out into the country side.

The amazing part of train journey is seeing the wonderful people of Peru and their small villages. Small children wave as the train passes through their villages. They are extremely proud of their culture and heritage. The train makes several stops along the way to Macchu Picchu and locals sell corn, cocoa leaves and other snacks. In some of the trains there is a beverage cart service which serves coffee and Inca Cola.

The landscape viewed on the train ride is amazing. The snow capped mountain ranges and raging rivers really make the time fly by. The anticipation mounts as you become connected to the landscape by being enveloped by mountains on each side of you and raging rivers and farming steppe systems from the time of the Incas.  You also begin to understand the international draw of Macchu Picchu as you are surrounded by people from all over the world. I remember across from us was two Brazilian girls, to our side were some Swiss people and as you walk around the train there is a heavy European influence and multiple languages.