The diverse vegetation together with the fickle climate makes every turn in the trail unpredictable. We have to trek over three high passes to get to Mach Picchu with the highest pass being at an altitude of 4, 200 meters. As I walk on the stone path laid by the Inca about 700 years ago, I can only wonder in amazement at the foresight of these people and the extent to which they appreciated natural beauty. The location of Machu Picchu itself, surrounded by towering mountains clothed by dense cloud forest jungle, must have taken a genius to envision and construct. Home to about 1200 inhabitants it its heyday, Machu Picchu has over 200 buildings mostly being residences. This site considered to be one of 4 main Inca cities may have likely served the purpose of a royal estate and a religious retreat. Unbeknownst to the chief architects, their workmanship and strategic positioning of the ruins thankfully hid Machu Picchu from the destructive eye of the cruel and unappreciative Spanish conquistadors; otherwise, the Spanish megalomania might have turned this priceless and sacred site into a church or cathedral – what a ghastly thought.