The longest day! In Ollantaytambo, I had met 2 Swiss girls and 1 French guy. I caught up with them in Aguas Calientes. After a good diner, a few drinks and a short sleep, we woke up at 4.30am and climbed the 1,600 steps of the ascension, in the dark.And finally, here we are! The sacred city of Machu Picchu! The Inca citadel, built in the 15th century, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the New Seven Wonders of the World (along with the Great Wall of China, The Colosseum in Roma, the Taj Mahal in India, the Christ Redeember in Rio, etc…).We joined a guided tour, important to understand the history, the construction techniques, etc…The white granite stones were not imported, but found on site.The city was abandoned before the Spanish conquered the Inca Empire and the Spanish never found it. The jungle recovered the construction and it is only in 1874 that a German historian managed to map it. Clearing started in 1912.After the 2 hours guided tour, I stayed wandering around for another 2 hours, getting lost in the ruins. I then walked back down the mountain as quick as possible, then along the rails to Hidroelectrica where the moto was parked. I drove again on the dangerous side cliff road, over the 4,300m cold and steep pass, and then all the way back to Cusco, where I arrived at 10pm. The longest day…I had a great time with Fred, Amadine and Jeromine, thanks to them!And with my new girlfriend too:Yes, the Machu Picchu is wonderful, very well conserved. Its location in the middle of the mountain makes it magical and mystical at the same time. It is, however and as expected, very touristic. The mountain is fenced and closed at night, there are thousands of tourists (limited at 4,000 per day: during the high season, book your tickets in advance! It costs 40USD) taking the same way up. In the middle of the night, climbing up the numerous steps, we were simply queuing… Don’t take me wrong, it is splendid, one of the things to tick off in life. But it is not what I like the most. I like the wild, the unknown, the unexpected.