Cusco and Really Big Rocks

After a terrifying drop down to sea level (think switchbacks on a narrow road in the front seats of a double-decker tour bus), we finally arrived in Lima. A short overnight there and we were back at the airport for our next destination: Cusco!

The thing Cusco is most well known for is its Inca connections (it was their capitol) and the ruins that surround it. We booked a half day tour to the four major sites: Saqsayhuaman, Tambomachay, Puca Pucara, and Qenqo. 

Saqsayhuaman is actually a complex of religious sites that sits on a hill above Cusco. It includes the zig-zag "lightning wall," the sun temple, a circular water temple, terraced gardens, and really big rocks. When Pizarro showed up, he was so convinced that a pre-wheel culture couldn't have built the structures that he thought the devil must have been involved. The walls and towers were torn down and the rocks rolled down the hill to build the colonial houses, cathedral, and other structures. 

Photo by Jone

Llama llama llama!

Plaza de Armes from Saqsayhuaman (photo by Jone)

Tambomachay and Puca Pucara are nestled in a crevice asking one of the entrances into Cusco. Before you could enter the sacred, royal city you had to purify yourself in the spring at Tambomachay. The spring still flows today. 

Intricate stonework (photo by Jone)

The final site, Qenqo, was partially carved from living rock. It was the site of the Inca's connection to Pachamama, mother earth. A stone table was used for sacrifice and mummification. Mummies from the 19 founding families say in niches in the outer circle. Unfortunately, a priest destroyed most of the site in the 1500's. 

I wish we would have had more time at a couple of the sites, but overall it was good prep for our trek to Machu Picchu the next day... 

Photo from Jone's iPhone