Goodbye Jungle, Hello Cusco

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There is no way you can sleep in when there are no curtains, temperatures of over 25 overnight and lots of bird noises so I was up early to have a wander around the grounds and take some photos before we headed back downstream to Puerto Maldonado. After a change of clothes at the bus station we were on the pane back to the heights of Cusco.

It is a lovely city with a population of about 1 million. It was the capital of the Incan Empire before the Spanish came in 1532 or so and took over. The Incan temples and shrines were overbuilt with Catholic churches and cathedrals and they dominate the city. However there are many signs of the original religion, the bulls on the rooftops facing the sun, the signs on some of the headstones in the cemeteries, the two religions seem to co-exist.

There are many beautiful plazas with green areas and fountains. The pace of life seems gentle but quite tough with lots of women in traditional costume, babies and all sorts of other stuff tied to their backs making their way through the tourists.

We visit the chocolate museum where you get lots of samples of chocolate, spreads, liqueurs and of course to drink. In the evening we go to a local restaurant where Linda and I try alpaca steak. It is nice, a little like lamb.

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