Cusco

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After an uneventful journey we arrived in Cusco about 6am and headed for Hostel LoKi that had been highly recommended. After helping ourselves to their complimentary breakfast (whilst waiting for reception to open) we unfortunately found out that the hostel was fully booked for the next couple of days, this despite it not having found its way into LP yet. Fortunately they were able to recommend Hostel Qorichaska which was just round the corner and equally nice. Our first good showers for at least a couple of weeks felt fantastic!

As we headed out to explore Cusco, the contrast with Arriquipe was immediately obvious. The massive increase in the number of tourists was accompanied by an equivalent increase in the number of people trying to sell things to us. After completing our most important job of the day (paying the balance on our Inca Trail trip) we took a wander around the centre of Cusco. I had longer to do this than Toni as she spent quite some time having a ´memorable´ leg wax (ask her for details!).

After this, it was off to the first of many Inca ruins in the Cusco area. These were Tambomachay a short bus ride out from the centre. From here we walked back towards Cusco, stopping at 3 more Inca sites - Puca Pucara, Qenqo, and Sacsayhuaman (all of these seem to have multiple spelling variations). At the last of these we took the services of a local guide which proved to be a great decision as we certainly left having seen much more of the ruins that we might otherwise have done and with a far better appreciation of why this temple had been built. As we arrived back into Cusco, the light was starting to go and we were pretty surprised to find the Plaza de Armas (central square) illuminated with Christmas lights. I guess it is December but it just doesn´t feel ´Christmassy´ here walking around in t-shirt, shorts and sandals! Dinner that night was Curry from the ´Cusco Curry House´ very near to our hostel - something I´d been missing for a few weeks.

The following morning we headed down to the bus station to book our onward bus ticket to Nasca. This was a truly farcical experience due to the sheer number of sales desks (including multiple desks for the same operator), the difficulty involved in getting a straight answer to our questions and the fact that the quoted prices seemed to vary each time we spoke to them. In the end we made a decision but when we tried to book it turned out this sales desk was only an agent. He took us across to one of the operators that we had already dismissed because they were charging 20% more. Anyway this didn´t seem to matter as we got the lower price despite the involvement of a 3rd party.

After this, it was a relief to jump on the local bus to the market town of Pisac about 30km away. Here we ´enjoyed´ the best part of a full day´s shopping in the market. Bartering was essential here as the final sales price typically seemed to be 50%-67% of the initial price quoted and it was amazing to see how the price fell as you started to move off towards another stall. By mid afternoon I was exhausted so I rested at a fresh orange juice seller´s stall while Toni found her final bargain of the day. Unfortunately we had to stand all the way back to Cusco as the bus was full of singing school kids! Dinner that night was at the very quirky ´Fallen Angel´ restaurant. A bit indulgent as it was by far the most expensive meal since leaving NZ (although still only 10 pounds each) but worth every sol. After that it was back to the hostel to pack ready for a 05.30 departure on the Inca trail the following morning...

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