THE INCA citadel of Machu Picchu reopened yesterday, two months after torrential rain swept away its rail link.
Up to 1,000 tourists were expected to travel to the ruins on buses and the repaired train service, heralding what Peru hopes will be a swift recovery for its devastated tourism industry.
Machu Picchu, Latin America’s most visited site, lost an estimated $1 million in revenue every day it was closed – a major blow to the city of Cuzco, where tourism employs half the labour force.
Authorities raced to repair the rail link – the only way of reaching Machu Picchu apart from an arduous trek on foot – not only for the sake of tourism, but also for national pride. The rail link from Cuzco was reinstated, but as a precaution only the last 17 miles resumed service yesterday. Buses to the town of Ollantaytambo filled the gap. Authorities flew in the actor Susan Sarandon to lend some Hollywood glamour to the reopening, declaring her the “godmother” of the event.
Known as Old Peak in Quechua, Machu Picchu, a world heritage site, sits on a remote mountain ridge 50 miles northwest of Cuzco.
It is believed to have been built by the Incas in about 1400, but was abandoned when Spanish conquistadores carved up the empire, possibly because smallpox had wiped out the indigenous population. The ruins were largely unknown to the outside world until publicised in 1911 by the US historian Hiram Bingham. With 400,000 visitors each year, Machu Picchu beats the Galapagos Islands, Argentine glaciers and Aztec and Mayan ruins as Latin America’s most popular attraction.
In January, heavy rains and landslides reportedly killed at least five people and washed away the rail link stranding thousands in the town of Aguas Calientes, at the foot of the ruins. – (Guardian service)