Bloggers' note: we relize how long it has taken us to get our Peru posts all up and ready for your hungry eyes. We apologize to our patient readers.
Cusco is the ancient capital and current heart of the Inca Empire. It is the starting point for all things Machu Picchu. It has the potential to be a mess of tourists and cheap, shlocky crap for those tourists. However, Cusco avoids being cheap and fake and instead is wonderfully quaint and beautiful. Cusco is built in a series of interlocking plazas, the main plaza being the Plaza de Armas (shown above). Each area of Cusco is kept, for the most part, amazingly clean and despite what the guidebooks tell you, it is a very safe little city.
We stayed right on the Plaza de Armas and were therefor in a central location that allowed us to go exploring the city with a great amount of ease. We got in to Cusco fairly early on the 3rd and were able to go check out a large selection of the cathedrals and churches in the area. We also went to check out the local market.
Our first stop was Qorikancha (Cory Kahn Cha) an ancient Incan temple that has been converted into a Catholic monistary. There were beautiful ruins of ancient temples as well as an amazing Incan harvest calendar right next to its corresponding Incan ritual calendar.
We spent a lot of time wandering the church/ruin before deciding it was time to have some lunch. One of the great things about Cusco is that if you get away from the Plaza de Armas you can eat and be entertained for a lot cheaper than expected. Meals in Cusco come (for the most part) in a set menu that includes soup, a main course, and some form of fresh juice/beverage. Most of the time we had no clue exactly what we were eating, but it was always good and always very fresh and, most importantly, usually no more than 3-5 bucks.
We toured some of the other churches but none were as amazing as Qorikancha. We also hit up the local market where we tasted fresh cheese, saw fruit smoothie stands apleanty and, oddly enough, saw a bucket of live frogs next to a bucket of not-so-alive, skinned frogs. No one was manning the buckets so we could only guess what they were for.
When we returned to Cusco from the Inca Trail we were fortunate enough to do it on Good Friday and the Saturday before Easter. No one parties better than Latin American Catholics on a religious holiday. We saw huge processions on Friday night of the Virgin and Christ being taken in to one of the cathedrals. On Saturday we were treated to a parade celebrating the cultures of the Andean people and their customs and history. It was, by far, one of the coolest things we have seen. The parade went for hours and involved dancers and warriors, bands and the clergy.
Everyone was welcome at the parade, Cuscoian and Tourist alike. We were not hounded by street hawkers or stared at by the locals. We were simply a part of the festivities. That sums up Cusco in a nutshell; you're not a tourist, your a global member of their community.
As always, there is so much more we could share about our trip. We simply do not have the time to write out all of the stories. Jo has had an article published with
Donne Tempo about Cusco that you should all read. I will do my best to get the rest of the pictures posted shortly. This is the last of the Peru posts, we have had other adventures and we are planning even more. Until then...
Peas!
-Cory
