This morning started with an early flight from Lima, East to Cusco. Cusco is a town of about 500,000 people at an elevation of 3400m nestled in the Andes. It was the historic centre for the Inca people from the 13th to 16th century, and is considered the historical capital of Peru. It’s a beautiful town, that obviously values and respects it’s history.
Our first sight of the Inca stone work surrounding the Inca headquarters took us by surprise. The wall was so perfectly formed and smooth that it was hard to imagine it had been standing for hundreds of years. The design and engineering of the walls is magnificent – truly built to last. It is said that the design of the walls, with slopes on all planes means that the walls dance in the case of an earthquake… move around, but return to their place.
The walls also contain features that provided a sun dial and calendar – you can see the ridges in the stone work in this photo. It’s remarkable that the Inca’s thought of this, and were able to place the ridges in exactly the right location.
Like many cities, the town square is a key feature in Cusco. The Plaza de Armas de Cusco is a large park surrounded by the Cathedral of Santo Domingo and the Church of the Society of Jesus. The remainder of the square is lined with high quality shops and restaurants – definitely doesn’t feel like a cheap tourist area! Being Easter Sunday, most of the museums were closed.
Our day finished with a briefing for the Inca Trail section of our trip. There are some tough days with big climbs on the trail, but the key message was to take it slow and enjoy the view… the journey is more important than the destination.
We continue to sample the local food, and have been so impressed with the quality and presentation. We’ve had Aji de Gallina a couple of times – a chicken and potato stew with a quail egg and olive sauce. Exceptional! Wondering if there are Peruvian restaurants in Brisbane?
We also had our first experience with Coca Tea, the local drink that is mean to help with altitude sickness. Andrew and I are fans, the girls not so much. Whether its the coca tea, copious amounts of water, or the drugs from home we’ve all managed to dodge altitude sickness so far.
Tomorrow we start our two days of mountain biking into the Sacred Valley. I can’t decide whether to be terrified or relieved that it’s downhill!
Love, M & theBunch x
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