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It was only a matter of time until we noticed the little tin robotic style motorized taxi scooters zipping people around town. They almost didn't look real and resembled a children's toy car that had been blown up in scale. We had only just crossed the border into Peru and already things were looking different…
In the comfort of our trusty bus, we arrived in Cuzco about ten hours after leaving the little town of Copacabana behind us. From Argentina to Brazil, Bolivia to Peru, we had now crossed into our fourth country within three months. Although our comfy trusty bus was not so comfy after all, we were starving! …. Our bus had not stopped anywhere along the way to buy food and our banana for breakfast and packet of biscuits did not sustain our hunger.
Arriving in Cuzco late at night, we checked into our hostel and hit the town straight away in search of our first meal for the day. We had heard that the food here was amazing, and amazing it was! Following the road down to the plaza, we made our way through narrow streets and up the hill where we found a fantastic little curry restaurant. Walking through the streets opened my eyes again to a whole new city waiting for us to explore. Lights were flickering down the mountains which led to the main city plaza that is glowing at night. Cuzco was looking more fascinating the more we looked around and when daylight rose, it took on a whole other perspective.
Through ancient Inca walls, grand churches and narrow cobbled stone streets lies a city full of intriguing stories to tell and flavours that could satisfy any taste bud. During the first morning I was fascinated by the simplest of things and what caught my eye were the big blue bright doors painted across town. Bright cobalt blues standing out against the grey and white walls. Some were worn and fading away, some were vivid and decorated with fine wood carvings, yet however old or new, behind these doors were the homes, cathedrals, galleries, shops, gardens, junk yards and places that made up the city of Cuzco.
On the steps of the cobbled stone streets, local women and men are working with their creative skills selling all sorts of handcrafts. Women are weaving intricate patterns and knitting colourful wrist bands and belts, men are twisting threads together and looping beads through into all sorts of bracelets and necklaces. People will work with whatever skills they have to make money, and thrive on the tourists passing through. Some women dress in traditional clothing and have Llamas with them too! They are hoping to exchange a few soles for a photo of them and every day I hear, "photo miss! photo, photo, you would like photo!". Too many times I heard the words, "Senorita pasé, whenever I was in eyes sight of a shop owner. Passing through the fascinating stores full of amazing textiles is great, however each store owner has hopes for you to buy something and the slightest touch of some fabric or the glance at a poncho instantly gets their hopes up. One market we wandered through had one lady call out to me "Senorita, Senorita, come and have a look at all of these things!"
During our visit we tasted so many flavours and probably ate more than any other time on our trip so far. There are restaurants and cafes serving up cuisines from many countries around the world, and of course many Peruvian dishes too. We were spoilt for choice with places to eat. The choice goes far beyond anywhere else I have been, however some places were soooo good that we went back many times. It was here that we tasted our first Pisko Sour, a delicious and refreshing Peruvian cocktail. Traditional dishes we tried were pork and rice dishes, the guinie pig and cows' hearts didn't make its way to our table. Set meals were also very good value, my favourite usually being their traditional stuffed avocados as an entrée. While we were here we tasted Peruvian, Indian, Chinese, Italian and some dishes very familiar to home.
We spent about two week in and around Cuzco, taking in the sights of the city, hiking to Machu Picchu and taking a side trip to the Sacred Valley. Our visit fell over Easter and the city moves to a different rhythm at this time of year. The Monday before Easter is the day when the people of Cuzco come together around the main Plaza, and wait to be blessed by the statue of Jesus. The procession began many years ago when Cuzco was plagued by earthquakes and so they took an image of Jesus out on to the streets in an attempt to get them to stop. This procession continues today and a black Jesus statue (originally blackened from the smoke) is carried around the city on the cross until he is bought to the front of the Cathedral. By the time he arrives, it is already dark. That night it was raining and there was a sea of umbrellas and ponchos across the plaza. People are waiting and waiting and within time, the Jesus statue was bought to the front of the crowd where the city is blessed. Church bells are ringing and there are also fire engine alarms going off in the background that are deliberately played to add the atmosphere. During Good Friday and Easter Sunday, we were already hiking to Machu Pichu so this was the only procession we saw.
On our return from our hike, we visited La Cathedral and inside it is absolutely stunning, known to be one of the most beautiful cathedrals in the world and took over one hundred years to build. It was not until I stepped inside that the grand scale of this building really came to life. Through religion and the history of the Inca's, there is so much rich history in Cuzco. Many museums, churches and galleries represent this, all nestled within the lush mountain ranges surrounding the city.
A visit to this fascinating city wouldn't quite be complete without a day trip to the Sacred Valley. Just like Machu Picchu, an ancient Inca world still standing today. It is here that we ventured into the mountains for one night, creating our own itinerary rather than following a tour group. The first stop Pisac is just about an hour out of Cuzco. To arrive here we caught one of the local buses, also referred to as combis. Arriving at the stop, we see that these busses are really like a family van and they wait until they are full before leaving. There is room for two more and the only gringos on board, we manage to squash in and travel like the locals do for five soles each. People jump in and out along the way, sometimes at little towns and sometimes in the middle of nowhere. Sometimes it gets so full and not everyone has a seat. It is hot and cramped and people are going about their daily lives in all sorts of different ways. One lady had big bags of plants and herbs on top of the bus, one little boy got on by himself and was covered in mud and some people are dressed up looking like they are about to hit the town. With the radio bopping along in the background and all the bodies cramped in, we get to our destinations safely.
The drive through the Sacred Valley winds its way through mountains and small towns. We spent the night in Ollantaytambo, expecting to arrive in a quiet tranquil town deep in the mountains. This was the location however it was not quiet when we got there. The one main road through town is also the route for many trucks and buses. So many that the town was polluted and our throats copped the worst of it. Finding somewhere to stay off the busy road took a few visits to all sorts of accommodation, some charging way too much for a room. But with a little patience we found just what we were looking for and for a great price. The advantage of creating our own itinerary meant we could stay here for the night and visit the Inca ruins at our own pace. Or so we thought…
The next morning we visited more ruins in town where we saw gigantic rocks that the Incas had carried from the mountains across the valley. There were also carvings on some of the rocks that had been carefully sculptured. A place with many stories to tell through the stones walls that remain. We were also interested to see the Moray ruins but the local bus we caught there didn't yell out our stop and we missed our opportunity. Getting off the bus was harder than figuring out which one to catch and the driver gives you about two second to get out of your seat and out the door!
Earlier that day we arranged something I have long wanted to do sine we arrived in South America… horse riding! We thought it would be a nice area to jump on a horse and try something different in the outdoors. It was all too easy to arrange this in town and within a few hours we were on the back of two…. slow horses….. Dustin's horse ate all the way and mine had ummmm a lot of gas all the way. For two hours the horses took us on an interesting ride, and only galloped when they saw home in the distance about fifty meters away. The scenery was great however the ride was a little slow…
Arriving back into Cuzco bought us to our last night here. These are just some of the stories we have to tell from our time here. We enjoyed this city for everything it has to offer and as much as we loved it, we were ready to move on. The past two weeks has been an adventure in the outdoors and an interesting experience wandering through the cities laneways and little worlds of wonder behind the blue wooden doors.
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Ken kemp Sending you both my love. I'm very impressed with your photos and happy to see you doing so well. Love from KK