Machu Picchu is an Inca settlement located in the High Andes of Peru in the Urubamba Valley, north of Cuzco. The site, perched high above the Urubamba river, has been variously described as a fortress, imperial retreat and ceremonial precinct. It was founded by Pachacuti Inca Yupanqui in c. 1450 CE, had capacity for around 1,000 residents at its peak, and ranked amongst the most sacred of all sites for the Inca. Following the collapse of the Inca empire, Machu Picchu was abandoned and forgotten, only to be rediscovered in 1911 CE by the explorer Hiram Bingham. Machu Picchu is listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.
Purpose
Machu Picchu (meaning 'old hill') was an imperial estate founded by and belonging to Pachacuti Inca Yupanqui, the Inca ruler, in the mid-15th century CE. The ownership of the site was later passed to Pachacuti's successors. On its rediscovery by the explorer Hiram Bingham in 1911 CE (although local residents in the valley had always known of the site's existence) it was claimed as the last capital of the Incas. However, this proved to be untrue when the actual final capital was discovered at Vilcabamba, further downstream in the Urubamba Valley.
Another hypothesis concerning the site posed by early historians was that Machu Picchu was a fortress and the strong walls, large towers, and dry moats were cited in support of this theory. The need for fortification perhaps sprang from a series of severe droughts which made the competition for resources fierce. This would also explain why the site was not occupied for very long as when the water situation improved the necessity for such citadel sites declined.
Once again though, further study has revealed that most of the architecture was designed for religious purposes and the fortifications may well have been put in place to ensure only a select few could enter this sacred site. In further support of this interpretation, a road was discovered which linked the site to several residential settlements dotted along the valley. The most likely purpose of Machu Picchu, then, was as a sacred site, probably to the sun god Inti and with the additional purpose of reminding the recently conquered local population of the power and might of Pachacuti and the Inca empire centred at its capital Cuzco.
The site was abandoned by the Inca shortly before Pizarro and the Spanish conquistadors arrived. The invaders never reached Machu Picchu, though, and the site would remain unknown to the wider world for 400 years.
Full Article by Mark Cartwright https://www.worldhistory.org/Machu_Picchu/
From UNESCO https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/274/
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Seems like a horrible thing to complain about but does anyone have any advice on how to handle parents who love you and want to be in your life but are just a complete drag to talk to? Like even on the phone every minute is draining? My parents have a guilt/pride duality going on where I am always doing great and never doing other things right. I want to stay in touch because I care about them but them and I are way too different to be anything like friends or to even remotely understand each other beyond the parent/child thing.
find common ground interest which is new to both of you. like say, my grandma could talk about soap operas or news shit, which was just aggravating, while i would probably talk science/tech/cinema, which was fine if she didn’t forget it next time. so instead i agitated her to read some rome history, which im also just passingly familiar, and had to read as well, and to argue about grachii bros over the phone/in person, over different books interpretations and stuff. arguing about vaguely conceptual stuff with no relation to reality is easy.
it can be anything of course, but with age gap, you unlikely to interest them in something transitory/too modern or them having interest which is reasonable for younger folks. history or classic cinema are kinda fine, if not talking hands on hobbies, where possibility are endless but older folks dont uptake them so good, so that would have to be your effort (teach me to knit/solder/cook/whatever) and obviously in person works much better
I got him to watch some parents lectures because he got into 50 year old guy youtube at some point. We have some common things to talk about but after years and years some things just don’t change about parents. We agree on a lot of current events topics but he’s just unflinchingly racist so it clouds any conversation about that stuff. I’ve tried over and over and don’t feel any closer to him or my mom as people beyond “parents”
to clarify, does this mean they very openly appraise your choices when they talk to you? if so, that's not a small deal and isn't appropriate/isn't unharmful behavior in a relationship with an adult child (albeit extremely normalized). i'm possibly misinterpreting though, lemme know if so!
but my measly 2 cents is the first thing i'd do is try to reign in the tendency to guilt or shame yourself for being bothered by other people's behavior toward/around you, even if they are your parents. sounds like your concerns are totally legitimate and you deserve to let yourself give voice to them.
yeah i know it’s normal but im over educated and have lived a very different life from them so there’s not a whole lot of sagely advice they can bring to me so it comes off as condescending or misinformed when they try to give me advice. We just want each other to be happy but there’s really no connection beyond that despite our attempts.