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After our hike I think it was probably necessary to relax for a few days in Cusco. This we did, and as Laurence slowly ploughed his way through the “South America Explorers” library I dreamt of fried breakfasts and relived my dreams every morning at “Jacks café” with a big “Gordo” fry up. Cusco is basically a good place to recuperate, eat food, drink and dance (if the occasion really calls for it). The town is an interesting blend of Inca and Spanish masonry, the highlight of which is a twelve-sided stone, much frequented by tourists. After a few days of fried breakfasts we headed back to the sacred valley to visit Pisac and Ollantaytambo. The ruins at Pisac were fantastic. It was easy to make a good days hike out of them. It was quite a large site constructed by the famous Inca Pachacuteq who was responsible for the mass expansion of the empire and the construction of many of the more impressive sites. According to our guide book “Exploring Cusco” by Peter Frost it was likely that Pisac was a Royal estate of Pachacuteq but since no one really knows what the role of these estates actually was it has made the site rather enigmatic. Even though the stonework was impressive probably one of the nicest bits was the small ritual bath that was near the temple. According to Peter Frost there are small “ curved hand-holds for hauling oneself in and out” but I think in reality they were probably for soap as they seem to be in the wrong place for hauling. We arrived in the village on a Saturday night and as we sampled the wine on the edge of the town square stall holders gradually began erecting canopies and tables around the giant tree that filled the square. The next day we strolled towards the market expecting a few stalls and were suddenly confronted by a square of canopies with no tree in sight. It was a fantastic Sunday market and was quite a good blend of products for tourists and products for locals. There were loads of tourists taking photos of ladies selling potatoes. It covered the centre completely and for once I managed to loose Laurence quite easily.

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