My Dad's Photos of Machu Picchu in 1970 and My Photos of Machu Picchu in 2016

in photography •  7 years ago 

My dad was backpacking through Latin America in the 1970s, and spent some time in Peru. He knew he wanted to get to Machu Picchu, so he headed over to Cuzco. From there, he took a train to the ruins. He said that there were only a few small villages along the way, and one hotel at the base of Machu Picchu. The hotel was on the pricey side, so he decided to sleep in the ruins (which was not allowed). He hiked to the end of the Inca Trail, and waited for the guards to go down for the night. Once the guards were gone, he entered Machu Picchu through the Sun Gate and found a ruin to sleep in. He said that he has never felt a place so alive with spirits, and that it felt haunted with the ghosts of another civilization. When he woke up the next morning he started to explore the ruins, and said that there were only two other people there the whole day.
















My experience of Machu Picchu was very different than my dad's. I wrote about my journey to the ruins in another post here. Victor and I stayed in Aguas Calientes, the town below Machu Picchu. It was a huge tourist trap, and it was pretty overwhelming. We took the bus up to Machu Picchu at around 6am to catch the sunset, however it was so misty that morning that we couldn't see anything until around 11am. The hours between 6am and 11am were actually my favorite hours of our day. Most tourists hadn't arrived yet because they had checked the weather forcast. We explored little nooks and cranies of the ruins, and sat huddled against the stones to keep ourselves warm, or ran around the trails to get our blood pumping. It was peaceful, and I could tune into the energies that the ruins carried. When the mist lifted, the sites were breathtaking, however the crowds were not. There were thousands of people. There were so many people that we were coralled around in certain directions so that foot traffic wouldn't back up. It became pretty overwhelming, and we ended up leaving around 1pm. Despite the crowds, Machu Picchu was an experience that I'll never forget, and it was one of the most beautiful structural intersections of human living and nature that I have seen.



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Thanks a bunch for sharing such great memories with us all!

Some of your dad's pictures are priceless and made me wonder what I could do with them if I was to retouch them!?! Some of them are absolutely brilliant!

It is quite something to see the contrast from then and now clashing with one another...

Namaste :)

Hey @eric-boucher!
The would be cool to see! They have definitely faded, with the slides sitting in storage for the past 40+ years...

That's sweet that you could follow you're father's footsteps. Awesome looking experience and nice pics. Any ayahuasca available?

Thanks :-) I don't know any shamans in the area of Machu Picchu, but I am sure that the plant is growing around there and used in ceremony :-)

:-)

What an amazing journey!! I am so travel envious... my Peru trip got cancelled at the last minute. To follow in your Dad's footsteps is what you should cherish and for that I applaud you!!

Thanks @tammyp! I hope that you get to travel to Peru in the future :-)

I plan on it! For now I once again appreciate the ability to live vicariously through your adventures!

Very nice picture, one of the places i want to visit. thanks for sharing

Thanks so much @liberian!

Amazing photo set!! Thanks for sharing!!

Thanks @paradise-found :-)

Tremendously cool pics of Machu Picchu. Thanks for digitizing the older pics!

Thanks @nandibear! The slide converter to digital images was a fun christmas present for my dad :-)

Thank a lot @anwenbaumeister=) It is historical photos=) I think it is very interesting=)

Thanks @gsdalex!

"Aliens!"

:-)

Nice pictures , I was there in May this year this place is Amazing. nice that you have your dad's picture that is priceless..

nice...your post deserve upvote and resteem...

Thanks @lautenglye!

you are welcome my friend

Awesome post! Followed

Thanks @drewley!

Love your dad's pics..really nostalgic.

Thank you @immarojas :-) Seeing his photos makes me nostalgic too, though I wasn't alive when he took them.

I think anything from him will make you feel nostalgic :)

always wanted to go there. Thanks for the great photos.

I hope you get to go to Peru some day!

Cool pics. One of the many places I dream about seeing.

Thanks @roswellrockman! I hope you get to travel there someday, it is magical!

Very nice pictures ✌🏼

Thank you @bkdmr :-)

One of the few places i've never been that i've always wanted to see! Beautiful!

It is beautiful! Even with all of the tourist, it was still completely jaw dropping :-)

Absolutely Amazing :O this place is on my list

Thanks @aleister :-) It is an amazing place :-)

Some of those shots by your father were pretty risky shots! He is not afraid at that height, or at least he makes it seem so? Great pics and something that connects you two so many miles away from home. I think that is awesome and a lasting memory. Thank you for sharing!

They were definitely risky shots! He wasn't afraid of heights, but he described the climb up Wayna Picchu, the peak above the ruins, which was basically bouldering at some points.
Thanks for the comment :-)

So lucky for you to have your dad's photos of Machu Picchu before it became a tourist destination. Must have been so exciting to follow his journey so many years later.

It is! He just dug the photos out last Christmas, and it has been amazing hearing all of his stories.

Wow, love to see the now and then photos! I often get inspired by old pictures like these from your dad! Keep going

Thanks so much @soldier! I am inspired my his old pics as well :-)

love it

Thanks @esriwi :-)

A to do on my bucket list. You did not mention the face looking at the sky. See your photo with your girlfriend on your back. The backdrop is the face looking toward the sky as if the mountains are looking to heaven.

wonderful!! Upvoted and resteemed

Thanks @humoalex!

It was a pleasure!!!

The power of the images are interesting. It may be projection on my part, but your father's photographs seem to capture the spirit of Machu Picchu as it was before it became a tourist attraction. However, the last image in the collection haunts me in a wonderful way. Thank you for showing me a part of the world that has captivated my attention since childhood. Please keep shooting.

Thanks for your comment @hotdiggitydog :-) Yes, I definitely think that my dad's photos capture the spirit of the place before it was a tourist attraction :-)

Thanks for sharing .. these are such great memories. . hope you check out my travel photos too.

That is Rad!

Thanks @cryptosight!

Love this, amazing photos, both his and yours! Beautiful! <3

Thanks so much @fit6ix :-)

Did he take any other pictures in Peru? It would be very interesting.

He did take other pictures! I'll post them soon :-)

Really great thought behind the story.. you are following your dad.The way your guardians are showing to you. Please motivate all buy such good thinking. A big thanks to you

Thanks so much @indiantraveller, that means a lot :-)

It's great to see that the ruins haven't changed much at all, just everything around them. It's also interesting how differently you and your dad felt visiting the ruins (you said he felt it was almost haunted, but you found it peaceful?).

Thanks for the article! Both sets of pictures are amazing :)

Yes definitely!
He said it felt haunted when he was sleeping in them by himself, especially with all of the mist around at night time. We had very different journies and experiences of the place, but the spirit of the ruins was felt by both of us :-)

What a pity it is so touristy now... it's become a 'bucket list' destination. Most of the people who go there now will not appreciate what it actually means or represents. Still, if one gets something out of visiting a significant cultural site then it is worth it.

It is...and also I am glad that so many people are traveling and hopefully opening their minds to different cultures and parts of the world :-)

Really cool...I wish I could afford to go there.

I hope you get there someday!

i will

@anwenbaumeister great post with some lively pics !! keep it coming UP and RS

Thanks so much @smart0mind! I will be posting a few other photo sets in the near future :-)

Simply surreal - thanks for the digital memories anwenbaumeister! I was originally planning on visiting Ecuador this summer.....I'm inspired now to check out Machu Picchu in Peru instead!

Love the story and the poetry in the vintage of your dad's pics. Your last pic is very nice too! Congrats.

nice place, wish I could be there once

A smell of pictures is different however penetrating into consciousness… some civilizations cannot survive, some remained but both the form and content changed …

I'm heading out to Cusco this October. That is one place to visit. Thank u for sharing. Aloha!

Very nice pictures and following in the footsteps of your father makes the trip special for you. Thanks for the share.

I always wanted to go there! I love your pics! Definetly following you. Hope to see more of your post. Hope you follow me too as i love traveling

I'll start some posts similar to these sharing some photos from my parents visit in Morocco

Wow this is great content! Thanks for sharing! Upvoted, followed.

hey nice pictures, I am travelling too. check you my pictures. :D

@anwenbaumeister This is Beautiful :D

Wow. Your Dad's photos are amazing. You're a lucky gal, he seems like a super cool dude! I've never been to Machu Pichu and it makes me sad that my experience (if and when I go) will be much like yours. Overwhelming and a bit tainted.

You're a great writer by the way! Followed!

Well, it feels somehow nostalgic. Yes you didn't visit there earlier but you have seen pictures and made some memory of the place foe sure. And when u finally visit you get to know the actual place.

For me, yes i visited one or two places with dad which were earlier visited by my Dad alone. It felt nostalgic to me.

Coming to the place, from the photos it looks really awesome. I liked your version of the photos better than the old ones. (maybe because yours are of bettee quality and more colorful)

Anyways, Keep updating nice stuff. Following you :)

What a precious memories your dad have. And it is such a wonderful trip you could follow your dad's footstep.

Your dad was incredible to go there in 1970s...and took the pic standing on the cliff..

Great photos like the old steam train as well as the ruins

Thank you for sharing the photos! I've always wanted to visit Peru and go to Machu Picchu. I love the old photographs. Such a beautiful place!

Great pics. When I go shooting I try to go as early at possible. After the crowds show up. Light is better and I get better pictures.

I would like to travel there! I like pictures especially the old ones whats a nice memories ;) I follow you to read more about your journey . Upvote and resteem You welcome to follow me as well maybe you will find out anything interesting. Have a wonderful day :)

Wow nice story and awesome pictures. Thanks for sharing!

Amazing post! Thank you!
I like the photos of your father, at that time there were just tourists. Now is very crowded but is still beautiful.

I am puzzled how precisely they arranged the wall stones

Such a fantastic place to visit. I have a great interest in that area. Your Dad's photos and yours are amazing. How brilliant to follow your Dad's footsteps.

Thanks for sharing amazing set of photos

thats an amazing place to be . must visit

Bella experiencia, y lo bonito lo antes y el después, es hermoso vivir de recuerdos y sobre todo compartirlos

An awesome post. Should make a great family album from these pics.

Beautiful! It's on my bucket list. I wonder when best time would be to visit when the fewest tourist will be around...Your dad seems like a cool dude. I bet he has tons of stories about that backpacking adventure.

great blog and beautiful pictures.

Thanks @desmarvlogs, I appreciate it :-)

That's so freaking cool!

I absolutely love the look and feel of vintage photos with the purple shadow tones!

Stunning pictures

Nice pictures. It's great to see your dads pictures.

Very beautiful!! Good to see!

love the photos! My next stop will be South America! Anyone got any tips? Routes? Hidden places where it's not too touristy?

Amazing images: thank you for posting.

i just love the beutiful photos that you posted

Powerful.

One time I have to go !!!
Incredible photos

This is amazing!

Thank you for sharing your experience and your dad's! I heard they limited the maximum amount of visitors per day to 800 people now. It's still a lot but hopefully it get's less crowded from now on.

Amazing! I hope I'm gonna see it one day. Epic idea to put it tigether!

Thanks @lonia! I hope you get to see it one day :-)

Incredible. I've been twice and it never ceases to amaze me.

Twice?! Awesome :-)

I absolutely love the photographs that your dad took.... rustic with no photo effects or retouching...... a great reminder of how photography has changed over generations!!! Thanks for sharing xxx