Machu Picchu day 4 (5km)

YES!!!!!!!!! The day was here! We finally we're going to see one of the seven wonders of the world!!!!We had to wake up at 3 in the morning :| yuuuuck... But I think the adrenaline and anticipation made everyone accept the facts and wake up without a fight. We had to reach the check in point by 5:30am so we could hike to the sun gate to be one of the first to lay eyes on Machu Picchu when the sun rose. Since there are so many allotted hikers per day, and the rain was relentless, we knew we had to be one of the first at the check in to guarantee a spot. Once we were past the gates, the race was on!We had hiked like we never hiked before. With blistered feet and sore muscles and joints we hustled up the mountain for a quick 4k to reach the sun gate. Once we made it up top, we were breathless. I literally thought I was going to cry. All our hard work had paid off and we were finally laying eyes on one of the most infamous, ancient archeological sites in the world!!! the view from the sun gate was unbelievable. We were lucky enough to snap some pictures and revel in the moment before the fog rolled in and the site was tucked away behind the fog. So we continued to hike the final kilometer until we would reach Machu Picchu, our final destination.WE MADE IT! The first steps onto the site was unreal. This place was huuuuuuuuuuge!!! It is hard to imagine that this was built thousands of years ago, without any modern technology. It really makes one wonder about life. Anyways, as all tourist attractions, there were a lot of tourists. Fail. But then again, what should have I expected. It was hard not to despise those people who they pushed past us, or gave us weird looks for smelling weird. Like, "Hey, I just hiked four days to get here, you just rode a train and smell nice. Go away and let me get my picture". The experiences with the nice smelling tourists made me appreciate our journey SO much more. It also made me appreciate myself and realize what I had just accomplished.After we all had our moment of awe, we convened as a group and got a history lesson from our guide. We were then free to walk around and explore. Camden and I got lost in the ruins and after some time, made our way to the bus that would bring us to a small city alongside the Amazon river. We had lunch, and got to use proper western toilets!!!! Words can not express how happy I was to have a porcelain throne again. We them caught a train to Ollaytaytambo, where we first began our Incan journey. We had a few more hours of transport before we were back in civilization with showers and fresh clothes.Later that night, Camden and I went out to celebrate our accomplishments! We danced the night away in Cusco until our weary legs couldn't any more.This experience was life changing. The history we learned and the culture we experienced opened our eyes to the Peruvian people and their way of life. The intensity of this hike proved that Camden and I can do anything we put our minds to. Even our love shone through this experience; we encouraged each other to push harder and waited for each other to experience it all together. As Camden said to me as he waited outside of the sun gate, (he was much further than me since I had to use a green restroom), "I came here with you, I'm leaving her with you too". I couldn't have said it better myself.If you couldn't tell by now, I HIGHLY suggest taking the road less traveled and taking advantage of this experience. We learned that Machu Picchu is sinking due to the high volume of traffic it experiences. Thankfully, the Peruvian government is taking the necessary precautions to save their ancestral history. I would definitely check it out before its too late.So take the time, explore your world, there's a lot out there for us to experience; we only have one life, we should use it.