Blogs from Cusco, Cusco, Cusco, Peru, South America - page 68

All in all, Cuzco is a pretty rad place. After Bolivia, Cuzco was a lovely, refreshing breath of Spanish air, with cobbled streets and little, twisting roads that actually lead to somewhere - my hostel. My few words on Cuzco in my last blog to no extent give the place justice. Sure, its full of tourists, but the architecture and the city itself, Plaza de Armas and of course, the churches give it such a great atmosphere that I found the place really quite addictive. Not to mention the cobbled streets, which provide a spirit that no number of twisted ankles could dampen. The hostel that I stayed at was, as I said, at the end of a dark little alleyway, down from this twisting one way street with half a metre of side walk on ... read more

Eng Ver below Cusco bylo glownym miastem imperium Inkow. Wg legendy, pierwszy Inka, Manco Capac, zyjacy w XII wieku, odnalazl pepek swiata i w tym miejscu zalozyl Cusco. W dalszym ciagu istnieja tu wzniesione przez Inkow mury (zbudowane z idealnie do siebie pasujacych blokow i bez spoiwa) i stanowia podstawe dla wielu kolonialnych budynkow. Miasto jest przesliczne. Admosfera, waskie brukowane uliczki przypominaja mi Krakow, arcady wokol Plaza de Armas przywodza na mysl Kazimierz. Na Plaza de Armas znajduje sie znakomita Katedra, wzniesiona w miejscu inkaskiego Palacu Wirakoczy. Miasto oferuje wiele. Z przyjemnoscia mozna tu spedzic kilka dni, odwiedzajac liczne koscioly, spacerujac uroczymi uliczkami z kafejkami i rekodzielem peruwianskim. Zycia nocne jest rowniez bardzo urozmaicone. Niesamowita jest roznica temperatur w ciagu dnia i noca. Kiedy swieci slonce, koszulka z krotkim reka... read more

The train from Cusco to Machu Piccu is officially the most expensive public transport, per Km travelled, on the planet. The only way to get to M.P. is the train - no flights, boats, buses, cars; your only other option is a 4-day hike, booked out 8 months in advance. You COULD go cross-country with a stolen Llama, but if Cusco's anything to go by, you'd have to pry the reins out of the gnarled grip of one of the 100 year-old Peruvian ladies who shuffle around the tourist district extorting money for photos from travellers, who want to pat the funny little creature ('You choose, same price: the Llama or the Lady!'). I actually thought she was one of those irritating 'Living Statue' performance artists dressed as a pre-Incan mummy in traditional clothes until she ... read more

Cuzco Day 40 We arrived last night in Cuzco, the ancient Inca capital said to be founded around 1100AD. Today, we needed rest so we sleepily wandered around the town taking in very little but organising our next few days. The town is kept very well that is obvious and for the first time on our trip we saw a concentrated mass of tourists. The seething masses were now unfamiliar to us and we felt that our travels had almost become invaded, exposed to the public! - however we are now on the Inca trail and tourists were a sight in Peru we had to get used to. The City Tour - Day 41 During our morning stroll around our local neighbourhood of San Blas we stumbled across a little museum displaying the artisan works of ... read more

Eerst maar het vervelende nieuws. Afgelopen week is een Nederlandse vrijwilligster plotseling overleden. Ik kende haar niet persoonlijk, maar had wel eens met haar gemaild voor ik naar Peru ging, omdat we allebei door SIW uitgezonden werden. Ik had gehoord dat ze in Cusco was en dat ze ziek was, maar ik ging er vanuit dat ik haar vanzelf wel tegen zou komen. Helaas bleek haar conditie een stuk ernstiger dan gedacht. Ik zal hier verder niet in detail treden, maar mochten jullie vragen of zorgen hebben, dan ben ik natuurlijk via de mail bereikbaar. --- Verder hebben we hier twee goede weken gehad. We hebben flink wat feestdagen gehad. Koniningedag is geweest. Groot feest in het enige Nederlandse restaurant dat Cusco rijk is (de ambassade betaalde voor hapjes en bitterballen). Diezelfde week hadden de Peruanen ... read more