Olympus XA | Lomography 400, Kodak Portra 800
On the morning of Day 3, we woke up to the most breathtaking sight. Behind the clouds and the first rays of dawn, there in front of us as we stepped out of the tent, bleary eyed and shivering, was Mount Veronica. Surrounded by low hanging fog, it towered tall above us. If I was still in that sliver of space between sleep and semi-consciousness, the voices of our morning wake up call blurry and distant, I was suddenly snapped back into reality; everything, from the ground I was standing on to my bladder threatening to release, felt so clear and sharp that it was impossible to confuse this moment as anything but real. I was awake, and I was witnessing the most beautiful sunrise I’d ever seen.
Of course, I grabbed my camera…after having the presence of mind to quickly go use the toilet. I spent the entire night before holding it in, fear of the cold and a supposed puma roaming nearby kept me inside. (Our guide later told us he was joking about the puma!)
After breakfast, we said goodbye to the chefs and horsemen who made our trip a total luxury (there may have been a few tears), and then descended to the Kachiqata quarry and Kachiqata town in Ollantaytambo to catch a train to Aguas Caliente (also known as Machu Picchu town).
Machu Picchu itself, as amazing it is and was to visit the next day, couldn’t match Mount Veronica.
P.S. I’m the one in the red scarf. :)
