Welcome to Planet Sleep. I'm your host, Josh. And tonight, we're back for another

journey to one of the most beautiful and mystical places on the entire planet. Tonight, we'll

be traveling all the way to South America, up into the mountains, to see the once thriving

city of Machu, Pichu. Before we go, I wanted to remind you that Planet Sleep is

available anywhere you listen to podcasts. We also are available on YouTube. If you're looking

for a video version of the show, make sure you're subscribed to our YouTube channel and following us on

Spotify and Apple Podcasts. I'd really appreciate it. Let's sit back or lie down, close your eyes,

or open your eyes and watch the beautiful scenes unfold before you. Take a few deep breaths in through

the nose and out through the mouth and just breathe for a few moments. You're gonna need your strength

or the long journey ahead. Now that you're relaxed, let the journey to Machu, Pichu begin. A gentle

rain covers the mountainside. A warm breeze sweeps through the valley below or a bright muddy river

flows at its lowest point between mountains. Once hot and humid, the jungle surrounding you begins

to cool and the long climb to 8,000 feet of elevation is not as daunting as it once was. You cut

away at the thinning trees and swinging vines until you reach the edge of the overgrowth. You track

through a narrow clearing in between the thinning vegetation. A series of switchbacks open up along the

base of the mountain and you begin your ascent. The higher you climb, the billowing trees fade to

scrub and grass laying soft beneath your feet. You follow a winding footpath carved ages ago by

scarce villagers and the grazing wildlife of the Andes. Although you see none, from the route of

rubble and mudcar through the Highland, you know many have traveled here. From the present to the past,

the thousands of years of Incans have set foot before you. A civilization has risen and fallen

between these mountains. Although fog settles into the valley, although this landscape seems

hidden and desolate with mysteries behind each outpropic, every inch has been surveyed by an

...