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It took us 15hrs to get from Nazca to Cuzco. We opted for the 'luxury' bus so the overnight journey was pretty comfortable. Our first choice of accommodation was full so we hunted around for an alternative, stumbling across hostel Resbalosa north of the main square. We were given a very warm welcome of Coca tea (to prevent altitude sickness) on the roof terrace. Drinking our Coca tea and overlooking the city below was a great start to the day after our long journey.
Cuzco is located in the sacred valley, high in the Andes mountains. It's the birth place of the mighty Inca empire, who ruled much of South America before the Spanish arrived in the 1500's. Tourists flock here in their thousands to visit the fascinating Inca ruins - Cuzco is the continents undisputed archaeological capital.
We spent the next few days exploring the city's sites. Many of the original Inca temples were destroyed by the Spanish. The fine stone used to build churches, often on top of the original Inca foundations. The Inca people were masters with stone, carving elaborate blocks (some weighing hundreds of tonnes) and fitting them together so perfectly mortar wasn't needed.
As we marvelled at the amazing stonework we spotted a couple of local ladies in traditional dress with a lama - a great photo opportunity! We clicked away but they spotted us and rushed over shouting "foto foto, you wanna foto?!!". As the ladies posed we took their photo thinking "I wonder how much this is going to cost". The answer was 10 soles (about £2.50)!! We handed over 5 soles and tried to walk away but they were having none of it. They demanded the the full amount. We didn't have change so handed them a 20 sole note, expecting 15 soles change - but they only gave us 10 soles and ran away! The photo had now cost us 15 soles (£4)! They were good business women and knew how to con the tourists. We spent the rest of the day avoiding innocent looking local ladies with lamas!
Check out ‘Peru - Cuzco & the Sacred Valley’ at http://gallery.me.com/peterjprice/101784
- comments
Adam Hey - them old ladies look like Grandma, you sure she's not stocking up on Bingo money!!! x x