Machu-Picchu-Nude-Tourists
Machu Picchu, a Peruvian Historical Sanctuary in 1981 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983. One of the New Seven Wonders of the World. Anton_Ivanov/Shutterstock

Machu Picchu has become a popular tourist location over the past few years, as Peru has seen an increase in tourists to the iconic heritage site. But now the Peruvian government is facing a unique problem with its tourists: Nudity.

According to Peruvian daily El Comercio, a video of two tourists streaking through the Incan ruins was uploaded last month. After going viral, several copycats have been spotted and upon further investigation, it has been revealed that tourists have been getting nude at the historic site for a while now. In fact, there are blogs and Facebook pages devoted to it.

A police report, posted to the Ministry of Culture's website, the two tourists in the video are Australian tourist Sydney Rudevies Liam Timothy, 18, and New Zeleander Topp Mathew Jared, 30. According to the report, the tourists were forced to delete their nude photographs, but the video suggests that someone else had taken a video as well.

"Before the publication of a photograph showing two naked people in the National Archeological Park of Machu Picchu, the Culture Cusco clarified that the photographic material was recorded illegally in November 2013 and the tourists involved were operated immediately by park rangers who reported the incident to the Joint district Attorney Machupicchu, Maria Teresa Huaco Kateriana," wrote the Ministry of Culture in response to the video.

In light of these events, the guards at Machu Picchu have been ordered to step up surveillance. The new regional director of culture, Ricardo Ruiz Caro, has revealed that the increase in surveillance will help "avoid these unfortunate events that threaten cultural heritage."

While the government officials find the nudity to be offensive and disrespectful, some of the tourists are claiming otherwise. Israeli tourist Amichay Rab, who chronicles his nude adventures on his blog, "My Naked Trip," told BBC Mundo that posing nude is not meant to be disrespectful. "I did it while no one was around and with the clarity that this is a sacred place for Peruvians, before all, with much respect," said Rab.

Machu Picchu was built by the Incas in the 15th century and is located 2,500 meters above sea level in Peru. While locals always knew about the Incan landmark, it was put on the international radar by US historian Hiram Bingham, a professor from Yale University, in 1911.

© 2024 Latin Times. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.