City of the Puma

Day One:

This morning we got up early, got on the bus and drove straight to the airport for our trip to Cusco, where we will spend the next several days. The city of Cusco was the capital of the Inca Empire and is built in the shape of a puma, an animal worshiped by the Inca. The word Cusco means "navel of the world" in Quechua.

Upon arriving at the Cusco airport, we got on our bus and headed right to our hotel, the Novotel. Before even checking in, they had a breakfast buffet waiting for us! My favorites were the flatbread with elderberry jam (so good!) and the tecquenos, fried dough with cheese in the center, with a side of guacamole. Mmm... We also drank coca tea, a tea made from cocaine leaves that is a remedy for altitude sickness.

Cusco has an altitude of about 11,000 ft. and both Bryan and I felt a little weird after arriving here. Even though we were taking Diamox to help, I still felt light headed and dizzy. Also, we climbed two flights of stairs and both of us were completely winded!

After breakfast, we checked out our room. It was not as nice as in Lima, but not too bad. Sadly, they did not offer complimentary bottles of water (you can't drink from the tap in Peru!). So, we had to walk down the street to buy water--4 bottles for 6 soles ($2).

At 2 PM, we met up with our group in the lobby for a walking tour of the city. We started out at an old church with Inca influence, the Church of Santo Domingo. It was neat to see and learn a bit more about Inca culture. Also, the views of Cusco were stunning!

Next, we walked to the Plaza de Armas, the main square in Cusco. There were two churches there, along with several restaurants and shops. We got to go inside the Cathedral. Unfortunately, we were not allowed to take pictures here either because it was the most ornate, beautiful church I've ever seen! It was built by the Spanish and each of the three alters is covered in gold and silver. Amazing!

After exploring the Cathedral, we had the rest of the evening to ourselves. Bryan and I decided to grab dinner in the Plaza. We went to the Andean Grill. I ordered the local specialty, cuy or roasted guinea pig. Bryan got pizza.

They brought out the entire guinea pig when it was cooked, so we could take pictures. Our waiter named ours Manuel. Then, they took him back to the kitchen, carved it and re-served it. However, there were still organs I had to move out of the way to get to the meat--that was the gross part! I thought the meat would taste like chicken or pork, but it did not. It was really salty and tasted like nothing I'd eaten before. Overall, I'm not a fan of cuy!

After our adventurous dinner, we went to the only (brand new!) McDonald's in Cusco for a hot fudge sundae. We also discovered they had free wifi, so we used Bryan's phone to email home. :)

Our hotel was only about two blocks from the Plaza, so we were easily able to walk back there. In the pretty lobby/atrium, we relaxed with some more coca tea. Then, we went to bed with the anticipation of another busy day ahead.

Day Two:

After breakfast, we started our tour for the day. Our first stop was the Inca ruins at Saqsaywaman (pronounced "sexy woman"). The Spanish thought the place was used as a fortress, but it was really a religious site, complete with human sacrifices. Some of the rocks the Inca used to build the structure were huge! The largest one weighs 128 tons. There was a natural rock structure shaped (loosely) like a rainbow. Then a flat field area. On the other side, facing the rainbow, was a zig zag shaped area that represented lightning. Both the rainbow and the lightning represent "heaven" and "earth" because they flow up and down. It was amazing to see the ruins and ponder how the Inca built them. The site also had a look out spot where you could see the entire city of Cusco below. It was beautiful!

We briefly visited two more sites of Inca ruins, Q'enqo and Puka Pukara. Q'enqo was another religious site, a tribute to Patcha Mama (Mother Earth). It was interesting to see how they arranged these sites and learn about the Inca's religious beliefs.

On the way back down to Cusco, we stopped at a baby alpaca store. The clerks taught us how to tell the difference between real baby alpaca and the acrylic rip offs. Baby alpaca is the first shearing of the animal, so it is very soft. Real baby alpaca feels silky and a bit oily from the lanolin in the fiber/skin from the animal. We also got to feel real vicuna fur. Vicunas are similar to llamas, but prettier. :) Their fur is super soft and costs thousands of dollars. Of course, after the presentation, we got to shop in the baby alpaca store. They had some gorgeous sweaters for about $95, a good price, but we didn't buy any.

At our hotel, we freshened up and then walked to the Plaza de Armas for lunch. We wound up at McDonald's again (free wifi!). We split a Big Mac meal for 14.50 soles ($5). It tasted much like in the States.

At 3 PM, we joined the group again to tour a silver factory, and of course, store! We briefly saw the workshop where they make the silver. It's 950, good quality, that is mixed with copper and created into mostly jewelry. They had many beautiful pieces in their shop.

When we got back to the hotel, I took a short nap. I had a splitting headache and still felt exhausted and nauseous from the altitude. Also, the dizziness and tingling in my fingers and feet were really getting annoying! After my nap and a shower, I felt much better.

Our group walked to the Plaza for dinner at 7 PM. The restaurant was La Retama and there was a buffet waiting for us. Dinner was delicious! We started with the specialty drink of Peru, a pisco sour. Then, for appetizers, we had: avocado, tomatoes, corn soup, spinach quiche, roasted potatoes with cheese sauce, bread. The main course included cumin chicken, rice, marinated fish, cilantro flavored corn, orange flavored sweet potatoes and alpaca meat. All was so yummy! For dessert, we had our choice of chocolate cake, coconut flan, purple corn sauce and an apple pastry. Of course, Bryan and I had to sample everything! :)

After dinner was a music/dancing show to highlight Peruvian culture. There were 4-5 people playing guitars, pan flutes and recorders. The even performed the William Tell Overture. Then came the dancers, 2 men and 2 women, dressed in authentic costumes. They performed several dances and even got the crowd up and moving around. It was a fun time!

Bryan and I walked around the Plaza a bit after dinner. However, it was really chilly (38-40 degrees maybe). So, we headed back to the hotel. We had to pack for tomorrow's overnight trip to Machu Picchu, which we were so excited about!!

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Part of trip: Adventures in South America

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