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Published: January 26th 2011
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Hola todos !
This morning I arrived In Cusco, the gringo city.
After my trip to the Colca Canyon, my legs hurt soooo much that I cant walk anymore !!
So, 1st impression of Cusco is that it is really a gringo city. You almost see more gringos than peruanos. And the peruanos are all trying to sell you something: A tour, a hat, some weed, some coke, a free-drink in the bar, the best dinner in town, and so on.
The funniest part is the crowd of gringos. You split them into 3 categories: 1st, the wannabe explorers dressed with brand new gears straight from North Face. They spent more money in equipments for 1 week than the flight ticket price. 2nd, the over-cool backpackers. They are dressed with dirty and torn clothes, with flip-flops and over dirty hairs with a barb. Plus the peruvian hat to be a bit local... 3rd, only 10%, are regular dudes.
Well, I have to admit the city is very beautiful but it relies totally on tourists. Every corner around the plazza de armas is a restaurant or an hostal. Or a tour agency. And prices are obviously 3 times higher than anywhere
else in Peru !!
But around you will find some nices places to visit, either by yourself or cheap tours. In my case, I visited Maras and Moray with a tour for 25sol and I booked a taxi for 6h for the other sites, for 50sol.
Salinas of Maras:
At 3400m of altitude, around 40km from Cusco, are the salinas of Maras. This site of salt production was built by the incas and used after by the spanish conquistadors.
Moray:
At about 10km further is the site of Moray. This is an experimental center for agriculture built by the incas. Thanks to the several level (13) of terraces reaching a depth of 150m, this site has various microclimates which helped to grow various types of vegetables (depending of the temperature, sun inclination, water etc..).
Pisaq:
At 3000m of altitude, located 50km away from Cusco, is Pisaq. This is an Inca site which is built on a hill in the heart of a valley. This site is very impressive, gigantic. It consists of several small villages spread everywhere around the hill. I found it super impressive, but strangely enough it is underrated compare to the famous Machu-Picchu. Try
to go early because at 11h, all tour operators arrive and the quietness is gone.
Tambomachay:
At 3700m, This (super small) site is a sanctuary dedicated to the cult of water. A bit disappointing because not much to see.
Puka Pukara:
Opposite the street of Tambomachay, Puca Pucara was a checkpoint and military and administrative center. It was used to control the venues of people in the valley (located above the inca trail) as well as a resting areas for travellers. Pretty small.
Q enqo:
This site was a ceremonial and religious center. It is actually a very big rock with inner galleries and meeting rooms.
Saqsayhuaman:
The brits call it "Sexy woman". This is one of the biggest site neat Cusco. Only 1 "temple" remains out of 33. It is gigantic and extremly impressive. One tunnel reachs 20m length !
Well, I understand the description are pretty poor, but the best, as always, is to check the pictures !!
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Andrea
Felt the same! But loved it.
I think you summed it up the best with this paragraph...."The funniest part is the crowd of gringos. You split them into 3 categories: 1st, the wannabe explorers dressed with brand new gears straight from North Face. They spent more money in equipments for 1 week than the flight ticket price. 2nd, the over-cool backpackers. They are dressed with dirty and torn clothes, with flip-flops and over dirty hairs with a barb. Plus the peruvian hat to be a bit local... 3rd, only 10%, are regular dudes" Happy Travels!