Mancora

I flew into Tumbes near the border with Ecuador in north-eastern Peru. It's really quiet up here, but the sun's shining and I'm making the most of my few days left before coming home.

Huayna Picchu

I climbed to the top of Huayna Picchu - which is the mountain that overlooks Machu Picchu in all the photos you see - to the Sun Stone and to see if I could make out the condor shape of Machu Picchu.

Quite a hairy climb. Steep as f*ck and slippery all the way. The closer you get to the top, the more it becomes like climbing a ladder.

Machu Picchu

Yes, it was worth the climb.

Ollantaytambo

Huge and really impressive with another temple of the sun at the summit.

There's a god's face carved into the mountain opposite. You can't really make it out at this resolution, but I'll show this one when I get back.

Urumbamba

Pisac

Stopping-off point on the trail.

Puca Pucara

Check-out the view of the Andes.

Tambomachay

Beautiful.

I spent two hours perched on a rock overlooking this site and got burnt to a crisp.

I drank the sacred water. Sweet.

Q'enqo

Built for the sole purpose of sacrifices.

I found part of a fossilised human leg bone (methinks - might've been a cow for all I know) in the field next to the site.

All carved out of solid volcanic rock.

Sacsayhuaman

Incredible.

Sacsayhuaman means 'House of the Sun'.

I'm in the Sacred Valley of the Incas ('Yucay'). There's lots of pre-Inca ruins as well (some dating back to 5000 BC).

Next stops:
Q'enko ('Labyrinth' - for sacrifices)
Tambomachay ('Waters of the Gods')
Puca Pucara ('Red Fort')
Pisac ('Partridge')
Urumbamba
Ollantaytambo ('City of General Ollantay')
Chinchero ('Brave man')
Machu Picchu ('Old Peak of the Gods')
Huayna Picchu ('Young Peak of the Gods')