Ingapirca Ruins - March 20, 2015

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Today we went to Ingapirca to see the ruins. Braulio invited us to go with him, Chanel and Mandy to celebrate his birthday.

Ingapirca is a town in Cañar Province, Ecuador which is named after an Inca archeological site just outside the town. These are the largest known Inca ruins in Ecuador. The most significant building is the Temple of the Sun, an elliptically shaped building constructed around a large rock. The building is constructed in the Inca way without mortar in most of the complex. The stones were carefully chiseled and fashioned to fit together perfectly. The Temple of the Sun was positioned so that on the solstices, at exactly the right time of day, sunlight would fall through the center of the doorway of the small chamber at the top of the temple. Most of this chamber has fallen down.

The two hour drive was mostly in a light rain with very low clouds. On the way home we were actually driving through the cloud.

The normal charge for access to the ruins is $6 per adult. But if you have a cedula (Ecuadorian ID card) then it is only $2. Better yet, if you are old like us it is only $1. So, for what could have been $24 it was only $6. We love all the discounts here.

As you can see by the pictures, I love all the flowers here. I have no idea what they are called. I have never seen any like them in the States. But they are just beautiful.

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