We arrived in Lima, Peru two weeks ago; more on that in a retroactive post, though.
Cuzco
Cuzco is unlike anywhere else we’ve been, although it shares lots of elements with places in Guatemala. It has the syncretic mix of Incan and Spanish cultures, in language, dress, religion, food and people, so we have seen the two very distinct sides of the Andean culture. Cuzco is a relatively large city (350,000) situated at the high altitude of 3300 meters. (I have never been at this altitude, and it took some adjustment for both of us the first few days. Coca leaf tea is a life-saver. Too bad we can’t bring it back to Canada!). The Plaza de Armas, the main square, is a gigantic open space with benches and flowers. It is surrounded everywhere by narrow cobblestone streets leading up steep hills, interspersed with old Spanish churches built with Incan stones. There are a lot of tourist and trekker-oriented shops, touts, and restaurants in the main area, but anywhere outside the square the city feels surprisingly authentic. Modern Peruvians in business attire mix in with Incan descendents in traditional skirts, top-hats and multi-coloured shawls carrying goods or babies (or both). Cars zip between people on narrow 400 year old streets beeping noisily in codes that we still don’t understand.
Besides the amazing cultural experience of wandering around the city, our two main activities in Cuzco have been eating and shopping. How is this different from any other place we’ve been? Both activities are cheaper and more delicious! The amount of beautiful weaving and knitting in the area is overwhelming. Anything you can think of is made in every colour, size and style...and the best part is, it comes in baby alpaca wool. So soft! The cold weather here definitely encouraged us to buy more than we normally would have...but that’s really just an excuse, because how many alpaca scarves can one wear at the same time?
And the food. Both Lima and Cuzco have been pleasantly surprising in terms of food. As with the rest of their culture, their food is an intriguing mix of old Andean and Hispanic. Imagine mixing the possibilities of 4000 kinds of potatoes with Spanish cooking styles and flavours. We have tried lots of interesting dishes (and narrowly avoided a few that are stewed in peanuts!), including alpaca, skewered beef hearts, and stuffed local peppers. They are also masters of soup. And best of all, there are all sorts of popcorn! Big, little, partially popped, blue, red…it’s popcorn heaven with over 150 types of maize! What we have not tried so far is cuy (guinea pig), mainly because it seems to come roasted whole. With the fur.
Cuzco also offers all sorts of non-Peruvian dining experiences. We spent a lovely afternoon drinking pints and watching Champions League soccer in Norton Rats, the motorcycle-themed British pub. Other evenings were spent at Paddy Flaherty´s (the self-proclaimed highest altitude Irish pub in the world), and in a tiny restaurant with a mini wood oven for some delicious pizza and Chilean wine. The drinks of choice here are beer (the local beer, Cusqueña, is one of the best we’ve had all trip) and the pisco sour. If you haven’t tried one of these, you should. It’s kind of like a mojito on speed, but substitute the mint for frothy egg whites.
We decided to try out the massages offered on every corner of the main plaza. How can you go wrong at $8 an hour? And, they are offered by nice young Peruvian girls...no hint of the creepy Indian mustachioed men here! It is a funny experience overall, with the massage beds set up with only curtains between them, girls running in and out, and cold wind blowing in off the street. It got even better when they started their atmosphere music: pan-flute versions of Celine Dion, the Beatles and Toto. Yes, Toto's Africa in pan-flute. But you still can’t go wrong at $8 an hour.
The Sacred Valley
The Sacred Valley runs in the Urubamba river valley between Cuzco and Machu Picchu, about 50 km away. It comprises several of the main Andean Incan sites, as well as their modern village equivalents, along with stunning scenery. We visited several of the ruins on a combination of group and self-tours.
The closest site to Cuzco is just 2km up the hill: Sacsaywaman. This doesn’t seem far, but between the altitude and my bad directions that took us double the distance, it was quite an outing! It was amazing to breathe in as we walked through imported eucalyptus trees that have turned into an important industry. Anyways, Sacsaywaman (insert James Brown emphatic scream here) is quite the place. It was both a religious site and a military stronghold for the Incas. Many of the boulders used to create the walls weigh hundreds of tons each. Even more amazing is that they created the site to resemble the head of a puma (with giant teeth), as they had built Cuzco in the shape of a puma. Equally as exciting as visiting this ancient wonder were the roaming llamas on top of the site. It’s hard to get as excited about old rocks as it is about cute furry beasts with long necks giving their best Blue Steel looks.
Many of the other sites we visited were impressive examples of agricultural terracing making the best use of microclimates, as well as highly sophisticated hydraulic engineering. In 300 short years, drawing on knowledge and specialized skills from some of the pre-Inca groups that they conquered, the Inca built phenomenal sites. Their use of aqueducts, drainage systems and irrigation is apparently unparalleled. Most of these systems are still functional today, giving a substantial advantage to the local populations in terms of agriculture. The famous terracing systems that the Incas put in place are also still functional, as evidenced by plots of various grains, legumes, potatoes and vegetables throughout the Sacred Valley. Respecting the Inca history, today clean water is still free to residents, and hopefully will be into the future.
One of the most impressive sites we visited was Ollantaytambo. Originally an Incan town, the modern village still uses all of the original stone foundations for their houses and stores. Towering above the village is a mountain of terraces with structures on top. Some of them are religious or ceremonial (temples and baths), while others (more impressive in my mind) are storehouses. They constructed these storehouses on mountainsides with strategically placed windows for the wind and sun to move through to help preserve all of their food after the harvest and their seeds for the next planting. Genius.
We visited one of the villages in the Sacred Valley known for its textiles. Representatives from a women’s cooperative demonstrated how they wash, card, dye, spin and weave wool from sheep and alpaca. They use all traditional, natural, labour-intensive methods. One of the most fascinating things is how they dye the wool with natural ingredients. They use a variety of leaves, flowers, bark and other parts of plants for most of the colours. For red, they use the same method as the Mayans in Central America: they pick the cochineal insect from a cactus plant and squish it. It creates the most beautiful shade of red dye, which they then alter with either lime juice or salt. It is a truly beautiful form of art.
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