Machu Pichu is one of the ten architectural wonders of the world. It was one of the only sites from the Inca Empire that remained hidden until about 1924 when Hiram Bingham helped to rediscover the site.  It was badly over grown and is still in the process of rediscovery.  It had theoretically been abandoned from about 1600 but was probably used as a site for astronomical observations that were connected with planting and harvesting of the areas crops.  Although Bingham thought this was a tomb, only one body has been discovered after years of excavation. 

It is a major destination for tourists to Peru which makes it a supporter of thousands of folks working for the tourist industry throughout the country.  It is visited by thousands each year.  We fortunately visited on one of the most perfect days of the year but the biting flies still found us even with deet.  We also had a wonderful and extremely hard working tour guide, Miguel ........ who had worked against incredible adversity.

This panorama was put together with five slides using Photoshop.  The original construction is 14 x 48" at 300 dpi. Oct,  2015