Picture of the day - April 30, 2007

Machu Picchu

Photo courtesy of Mike Nelson. At 7,970 feet, Machu Picchu sits high on a mountain ridge among the clouds in the Peruvian Andes. This "Lost City of the Incas" wasn't really a typical city at all, but rather an exclusive country retreat for Inca nobility. Evidence shows that the area was inhabited from its creation in about 1440 until 1532 when the Spanish conquistadors took over Peru. Today, Machu Picchu is an official Peruvian "Historical Sanctuary" and one of the country's most popular tourist attractions. One of those tourists was photographer Mike Nelson who took today's highly intriguing picture, and the following is his story behind the image: "If you've ever been to Machu Picchu you know that this is a pretty unique picture. Why? Because there's no one in the park at the time it was taken. While in Peru, our high school instructor had planned for us to visit Machu Picchu because that's what you do in Peru. Well, on the day of our trip up there, there was a downpour, a HUGE downpour. Consequently, they closed the park to the public the day we were scheduled to visit it. Well, our local tour guide (who was with us for the two weeks we were there) talked to some people who worked at the park, pulled some strings and got us, and only us, into the park. And, lucky for us, just as we pulled up to the park entrance the rain subsided and the sun came out. We were totally alone! It was quiet, peaceful, beautiful and amazing! We (there were 10-15 of us in our party) roamed the park without having to deal with all the tourists and got a very intimate look at the ruins. We then climbed Wayna Picchu (the mountain in the back of the ruins) and spent an hour up there simply taking in the park. Everyone in our group was simply awe-struck and it was an amazing experience to say the least! This photo was taken after our climb down Wayna Picchu and I flat-out ran to this location to get this picture because the sun was just about to set behind the mountains (you can see the shadows creeping up the left of the ruins). It was taken with a simple 3mp Kodak point and shoot camera." Visit the POTD Archives for previous "Pictures Of The Day"!     Submit a photo of your own!            Why I publish the "Picture of the Day"