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While visiting Peru I stepped outside my comfort zone to talk to locals, give them a compliment, and ask for their portrait. You can read the full story here: www.contiki.com/six-two/lauren-randolph-photographer-kind...
Machu Picchu (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈmatʃu ˈpiktʃu], Quechua: Machu Picchu [ˈmɑtʃu ˈpixtʃu], "Old Peak") is a pre-Columbian 15th-century Inca site located 2,430 metres (7,970 ft) above sea level. Machu Picchu is located in the Cusco Region of Peru, South America. It is situated on a mountain ridge above the Urubamba Valley in Peru, which is 80 kilometres (50 mi) northwest of Cusco and through which the Urubamba River flows.
Most archaeologists believe that Machu Picchu was built as an estate for the Inca emperor Pachacuti (1438–1472). Often referred to as the "City of the Incas", it is perhaps the most familiar icon of Inca civilization.
The Incas started building the "estate" around 1400, but abandoned it as an official site for the Inca rulers a century later at the time of the Spanish Conquest.
Although known locally, it was unknown to the outside world before being brought to international attention in 1911 by the American historian Hiram Bingham. Since then, Machu Picchu has become an important tourist attraction. Most of the outlying buildings have been reconstructed in order to give tourists a better idea of what the structures originally looked like. By 1976, thirty percent of Machu Picchu had been restored. The restoration work continues to this day.
Since the site was never known to the Spanish during their conquest, it is highly significant as a relatively intact cultural site. Machu Picchu was declared a Peruvian Historical Sanctuary in 1981 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983.
In 2007, Machu Picchu was voted one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in a worldwide Internet poll.
Machu Picchu was built in the classical Inca style, with polished dry-stone walls. Its three primary structures are the Intihuatana (Hitching post of the Sun), the Temple of the Sun, and the Room of the Three Windows. These are located in what is known by archaeologists as the Sacred District of Machu Picchu.
In September 2007, Peru and Yale University almost reached an agreement regarding the return of artifacts which Yale has held since Hiram Bingham removed them from Machu Picchu in the early 20th century. In November 2010, a Yale University representative agreed to return the artifacts to a Peruvian university.
Juliaca is the largest city in the Puno Region located in Peru's Alitplano (highlands) at an altitude of 3825 m. It is not far off the Northwestern corner of Lake Titicaca. It is located on the Puno to Cusco highway and railroad where both branch off to Arequipa.This makes Juliaca a major trade and transportation hub and an industrial city.
Cusco, a city in the Peruvian Andes, was once capital of the Inca Empire, and is now known for its archaeological remains and Spanish colonial architecture.
Plaza de Armas is the central square in the old city, with arcades, carved wooden balconies and Incan wall ruins.
The San Blas neighborhood is the heart of the city of Cusco. People who have been in this neighborhood say that a mysterious energy is felt through its streets.
The Central Market of Cusco or Mercado de San Pedro was built in 1925 and is the oldest in the city.
Peru is a magical destination, abundant with ancient ruins dating back to the Incas.
Peru is the third largest country in South America, after Brazil and Argentina.
There is one thing the photograph must contain, the humanity of the moment.
Taking an image, freezing a moment, reveals how rich reality truly is.
Photography is an austere and blazing poetry of the real.
The best thing about a picture is that it never changes, even when the people in it do.
Lima Peru
You can read about my experiences in Peru, including Lima, Inca Trail, Machu Picchu, Aguas Caliente, Cuzco, SAS Travel, Dead Womans Pass and more in my travel blog:
The Saqsaywaman (known as Sexy Woman) Inca ruins above Cuzco. Some believe the walls were a form of fortification, while others believe it was only used to form the head of the Puma that Saqsaywaman along with Cuzco form when seen from above. Like much Inca stonework, there is still mystery surrounding how they were constructed. The structure is built in such a way that a single piece of paper will not fit between many of the stones. This precision, combined with the rounded corners of the limestone blocks, the variety of their interlocking shapes, and the way the walls lean inward, is thought to have helped the ruins survive devastating earthquakes in Cuzco. The longest of three walls is about 400 meters. They are about 6 meters tall. The Spanish harvested a large quantity of rock from the walls of the structure to build churches in Cuzco, which is why the walls are in perfect condition up to a certain height, and missing above that point
Village children stand on a lane in this poor Quechen village in the Cordillera Blanca. The village had no electricity.
Today was a very hard day. We hiked up 2000 feet in the jungle, then descended 3500 feet. Going up was very humid. We saw huge spiders and centipedes along the way.
Shortly after the pass we stopped at a nice plateau that had some Inca ruins. From here, we could see our first glimpses of Machu Picchu.
At the bottom of the hike, we said goodbye to our assistant guide Juri and jumped on a train to Aguas Calientes.