I walked alone. The sky was getting darker as the raindrops began to call my name. I couldn't hear anything though, just the deafening silence of my own silence... .
I began hallucinating as fear and exhaustion consumed me. Why was I here, why didn’t I pay that fucking $85 one-way train ticket to Aguas Calientes, the town below Machu Picchu. You can only go there either by train or by walking the other route through another railway track, from Hidroelectrica to Aguas Calientes. It seemed like a never ending path that I’ve been following for almost 3 hours straight now. It was getting late. I’m not a whiner usually. I’m always ok with walking, but after spending most of the day inside the bus throwing up due to the endless serpent roads, and not being able to enjoy the stunning view of the Peruvian Andes mountains along the way, I was not ok anymore.
Like a normal tourist I was, I was prepared...
X Flashlight
X Lighter
X Raincoat
X Food
X Bug Spray
X Altitude or Motion Sickness Pill
..to get me into trouble. I had none of the above actually. It happened to me many times that I didn’t prepare for all nature activities like this and I hated myself for that. What was I thinking?
There was no way I could turn back, this was supposedly a popular travelers’ path, or for those who couldn’t afford the luxury train. “So where are the others? Who are the others? There are no others...stop fooling yourself.” That was probably my alter ego.
Perhaps I didn’t care. I didn’t care because I’ve always believed that nothing will ever happen to me. Or if something happened, I would not have cared at all. Stop.
I was battling with my mind again, I had plenty of time to think and talk to myself as I walked. I felt my skin being eaten by nasty bugs cannot be seen with the naked eye. (That was weeks of bug bites on my skin later on by the way) I was a stranger in a strange land, why did I always underestimate the power of nature. I’m weak, I should have prepared. I should have cared. It was the addiction of putting myself in a dangerous situation. The feeling of dying is the way to feel alive.
I looked at the sky and the path ahead of me. Long way to go. I saw big gaps on the railway tracks, with some leading to some small streams down below. What would I do if I couldn’t see anymore through the darkness? All just for the ruins.
“I am a forest, and a night of dark trees: but he who is not afraid of my darkness, will find banks full of roses under my cypresses.”
― Friedrich Nietzsche
I defied the darkness my whole life. I have traveled the world, welcoming colors. It is nice to be alive, can you imagine all the sorrow, pain and all the trouble that you wouldn’t want to miss? Color my life with chaos.
I saw a piece of hope as I continued walking. A small house from a distance, maybe they have a raincoat for me.
The universe has always been sending me an angel who walked beside me the whole time, protecting me like his little darling through all those difficult times during my travel. Some more love and more time on earth with me perhaps? Anyway, I’m all grown up now, doing all these crazy things and you must be proud. I’ll send you the postcards from my travels to wherever you are in the cosmos…
I saw another piece of hope as I continued walking. A group of Mexican friends emerging from the darkness. Am I dreaming? Nope, they were real. They accompanied me as we all walked towards the town. Unlike me, they were all prepared and everything. They were going to the Machu Picchu ruins the next day as well. I was thankful for their company, for helping me reach the destination unharmed by the obstacles along the way. I went to the Machu Picchu ruins the next day, it was amazing just like in the photos, and more tourists around as expected.
I guess I could only remember the journey more, and all those unforgettable thoughts. In the end, “ It’s the journey that teaches you a lot about your destination.”