The warm tropics of the eastern slopes of the Peruvian Andes Mountains are home to is home to Machu Picchu.  It is positioned on the continent of South America at an altitude of 2,430 meters (7,970 feet) above sea level.  The climate is warm and humid during the day, but the temperature cools off at night.  Machu Picchu’s temperature can range anywhere from eleven to twenty-seven degrees Celsius (fifty-two to eighty-one degrees Fahrenheit).   
Machu Picchu was announced as one of the seven wonders of the world in 2007.  It is one of the most visited and famous locations within the country of Peru.  One of the factors that contributes to its popular status is the rich history behind it.  Machu Picchu was created by the Incas in 1450.  It was believed to have been a royal, sacred, and religious site for important Inca leaders and their people.  Made up of 150 buildings, more than 3,000 steps, and covering a five-mile distance (80,000 acres), the remarkable wonder of the world still remains a mystery.  Historians wonder why it was deserted only one hundred years after the completion of its construction.  The main two theories are that the smallpox epidemic caused the Inca people to flee or that the Incas did not survive the fall of the Inca Empire to the Spanish in the 1600s.  The Inca Empire controlled most of Western South America during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries; but were eventually wiped out by Spanish invaders in the sixteenth century which led to the fall of their empire. 

The site of Machu Picchu was discovered by Hiram Bingham during the summer of 1911, which is shocking considering that the site was abandoned about 400 years before its discovery.  One would think that in that large time period, someone would have seen or come across Machu Picchu before Bingham.  There were disputes over whether Hiram Bingham was the first person to discover Machu Picchu.  History states, “that missionaries and other explorers reached the site during the 19th and early 20th centuries.”  But the reason why Bingham was credited with the discovery of Machu Picchu is because he was the first to spread word of his findings, and tell people about the existence of Machu Picchu.  Bingham stumbled upon the world wonder while he was actually looking and hoping to find Vilcabamba.  Vilcabamba is also located in Peru and is known as the “Lost City of the Incas”.  It was named this because it was a city that was also abandoned due to the Spanish Conquerors; it was the last Inca location to fall to the Spaniards. 

Hiram traveled by foot and mule when making his 74.7 km journey to the Andes Mountains, where he met a local farmer.  The farmer told him about some ancient ruins that were up in the Andes Mountains.  He referred to the ruins as Machu Picchu, meaning “old peak” or “old mountain” in the Quechua language.  The Quechua language is the main language spoken in the area, as well as Spanish.  From there Bingham started climbing the mountain in cold and rainy conditions, and came in contact with a small group of locals that offered to show him the rest of the way.  Determined to make his discovery, he followed closely behind the group of strangers, which was unbelievably led by an eleven-year-old boy.  After a long and difficult journey, he finally arrived at the site of Machu Picchu.  He was in awe of what he had found.  He decided to spread word of his finding by writing a book called The Lost City of the Incas.  Bingham’s book was titled with the same phrase that is used describe Vilcabamba because even though he had discovered Machu Picchu, he was still under the impression that he had found Vilcabamba.  The publication of his book caused many tourists to flee to the site, which led to a huge increase in Machu Picchu’s popularity.  In order to prevent tourists from damaging the ancient location, Bingham had all the artifacts removed from the site and transported to Yale University in the United States.  There, they were inspected and examined so that researchers could begin to attempt to piece together the puzzle pieces that make up the history of Machu Picchu.  Unfortunately, the removal of the artifacts caused a major one-hundred-year dispute (between the United States and Peru) over the possession of the precious items.  The argument finally ended after the Peruvian government had filed a lawsuit against the United States, and Yale University agreed to return all of the artifacts. 

Another very distinct characteristic that sets Machu Picchu apart from other ancient ruins is the way all of the structures were built.  Machu Picchu was built using a technique called ashlar, which means all of the stones were perfectly cut and sanded in order to fit and stay in place without anything holding them together.  According to machupicchu,  “not even a needle can fit in between two stones.”  A second remarkable technique that makes the creation of Machu Picchu unlike many other structures is that it was fully built without using any wheels in the process.  Meaning that the Incas did not use machines or even wagons to transport and haul the heavy stones during construction.  This shows that the Incas were remarkable engineers that used inimitable techniques to build whatever they desired.

The site of Machu Picchu today is divided into a farming zone, residential neighborhood, royal district, and sacred area.  The farming zone is located on the southeast side of Machu Picchu, and is the only fertile soil in the area.  It also includes a highly sophisticated irrigation system that brought water to the crops as needed, without eroding the land in the process.  The residential neighborhood is where the common people and the lower class citizens lived.  The royal district is where the upper class citizens and priests lived.  The sacred area is where the holy structures were built, and where most of the population gathered for religious celebrations and rituals.  It is also where the most famous structures of Machu Picchu are located.  The Temple of the Sun, the Intihuatana Stone, and the Room of Three Windows are the ancient buildings that get the most attention within the establishment of Machu Picchu.  The Temple of the Sun was where the Incas had many religious rituals to celebrate the Sun.  The Intihuatana Stone is a sculpted granite rock that is believed to have been used as a solar clock or calendar.  The Room of Three Windows is located on the lower part of the residential neighborhood and consists of three windows that were used to indicate the exact location of the sunrise.  This structure was built as another spiritual place where the Inca people could worship, but was later used to hide the Inca civilization from the Spanish Conquerors when the Empire was under attack.  

Machu Picchu is currently a UNESCO World Heritage Site and has been since 1983, meaning that it was listed by the United Nations as a place in the world that shows a special cultural significance.   Machu Picchu is also home to several endangered species including wild llamas and alpacas, the spectacled bear, and many species of birds.  The site is also under the protection of the National System of Protected Natural Areas (SERNANP), which is an organization that helps to protect and preserve biodiversity in many different environments.  The ruins are located within the Machu Picchu Historic Sanctuary, in order to safeguard and reserve the ancient site as much as possible. 

Therefore, Machu Picchu is a very unique and interesting place to add to your bucket list due to its excellent representation of the Inca culture and its past, its beautiful and tropical location in the Andes Mountains of South America, and its stunning stone structures that played a huge role in history.  If you are ever looking for an exceptional and irreplaceable adventure, travel to Machu Picchu, and enjoy the wonderful experiences that will last a lifetime.