Cusco - High and Tough

After reading some books about the Inca’s and their conquest by the Spanish, we were really excited to go and see the former Inca Capital. The city is in a small valley and ringed by numerous hills and mountains.

Front row seats on the 22 hour bus coming into Cusco

After a tiring trek around the city we found a rather basic hotel on Calle Suecia for 80 soles a night - Hotel Cusco Royal Suite.

At 3400m Cuzco is very high. Having trekked up Volcano Santa Maria in Guatemala which is around 3700m we though Cuzco would be a piece of cake and pretty much dismissed all warning to the contrary. Well, 10 minutes after taking the mickey out of altitude sickness, Mish started feeling faint and needed to sit down. The obvious remedy and what would become our drink of choice over the next 5 days was coca leaf tea. Coca leaf is one of the planet’s wonder drugs, and due to its’ relation to the highly synthesized cocaine, illegal in most countries. It is, however, an integral part of Andean life, due to its ability to help cope with altitude as well as headaches and hunger suppression. Use of the leaf dates back to Inca times. We never quite found our feet in Cuzco, any short distance of walking was tedious and exhausting, and one or two drinks and we were plastered. We were very happy to descend into the Sacred Valley after four nights in the clouds.

First (of many) coca teas on tour

Cuzco Wanderings:

• Checking out the original Inca architecture around town, in many of the old streets. It was amazing to see the supreme stonemasonry displayed by the Incas in fitting massive stones absolutely perfectly so that no gaps are present through the entire length of wall. Even more impressive is that these walls have withstood multiple earthquakes - far better than modern or colonial architecture;

Streets of San Blas

Grey with Inca wall

• Visiting the underwhelming Inca museum and Qorikancha museum;
• Checking out the Sun Temple (Qorikancha) which was taken over by a Catholic Church, but the Inca temple remains intact within the church built around it, as well as a massive Inca wall on the western wall of the church;

Sun Temple - Qorikancha

• Market meandering – Cuzco has a great market, which, while many tourists are present, seems to be geared sufficiently to locals. On our first day we enjoyed coca tea and hot chocolate. We returned on day two for a freshly squeezed fruit juice and chicken soup (caldo de gallinha) for brunch, and on day 3 we stocked the backpack for our picnic to Sacsuahuaman;

Fruits at the market

Rina - our fruit juice lady

Llama face ... good for soups

Caldo de Gallinhas - about $1AUD

Market flowers

Market vegetables

• Underlying sadness – reading about the amounts of treasures plundered from the Incas – often with complicity – was hard enough, but the fact that the conquistadores melted down all the precious metals which they encountered in the Golden City means that a massive artistic dearth has been left. Among the treasures which were melted into gold bars was an entire golden garden from Qorikancha, complete with delicate golden insects, taking pollen from golden flowers. The main square of Cuzco, once occupied with Inca Kings’ palaces, now stands testament to the force of the church - 2 massive churches, one Catholic and one Jesuit stand where palaces once stood and dominate the Plaza de Armas;
• Sacsuhuaman – site of an amazing Inca fortress. Even today it stands imposingly atop the hill above Cuzco, and its main citadels have been completely raized to use the stones to build up the city of Cuzco. It is most famous in history as the site of a great rebellion of the Incas to Spanish Rule. Manco Inca occupied the fort and massed Indians from throughout Peru in an attempt to throw the Spanish out of Cuzco. The fort itself is amazing, with huge blocks making up the bottom terrace level (one of the blocks ways over 350 metric tonnes). Before climbing the steep Cuzco alleys we stocked up with a picnic lunch from the market. We had bread, olives, avocados, tomatoes and smoked cheese. We ate it perched high above Cuzco with a great view, a top the foundations of the great citadel;

El Burro

Huge stone (380 tonnes) 

• We also had lots of fun eating and drinking our way around town – our favourite places were Jacks café, Paddys Pub, Chez Maggy and Los Perros.

Backgammon at The Cross Keys Pub

THE CHICKEN MAC

Cute...

We returned to Cuzco again after our meanderings in the Sacred Valley and stayed at a cheap but nice hotel on the same Calle Suecia. We had a couple of reasonably quiet days, before boarding a 21 hour bus back to Lima. 

Overlooking the town

It is really difficult to say no to these women...