To the sound of pouring rain on the roof I woke up on my first day in Cusco, the continent’s oldest continuously inhabited city and the hub of the South American travel network. Like other travellers, we had come here not just to visit a unique destination but to experience an age-old culture very different from our normal everyday way of life.
Cusco was once the majestic mountain capital of the Inca Empire and many believe that the city was planned as an effigy in the shape of a puma, or sacred animal. The first Spaniards arrived in the city in 1533 and destroyed many Inca buildings, temples and palaces. The buildings constructed after the invasion have a mixture of Spanish influence with indigenous Inca architecture, which I found evidence of all around the city. My hostel was The Cusco Plaza II and was located on Saphi street, about five minutes’ walk from the main square, the Plaza de Armas.
With only one day to explore the city before setting off on the journey to Machu Picchu, I made sure to fit in as much as I could. First stop was the Inca Museum, which contained artifacts that traced Peruvian history from pre-Inca civilisations and Inca culture to the impact of the conquest and colonial times on these native cultures. I particularly liked the mummies on display as well as the elongated Inca skulls, which were created by head binding between two pieces of wood – distorting the normal growth of a child’s skull by applying force from about a month after birth for about six months. I couldn’t believe just how elongated some of the skulls were, they looked quite strange! I read up on why this process was carried out in the first place and found it was to create a shape that was more aesthetically pleasing or associated with desirable attributes such as intelligence.
After the Inca museum I took a wonder around the Plaza de Armas to look out for a bus I had heard stopped there that would take tourists up to the huge white Christ statue – or Christo Blanco, on top of the hill. The square itself was beautiful and had once been surrounded by palaces of the Inca rulers; now in their place stood various cathedrals and churches. The square was buzzing with the hum of the traffic and I walked around under the covered parts above the shops and restaurants to avoid the cold rain, being stopped every few seconds by various people trying to entice me into their shop trying to sell me a hat or a poncho, or some artwork. Small girls held out very cute baby goats or lambs wrapped sweetly in blankets for me to hold in exchange for some money – I resisted however as I’d heard that the baby animals often die being wrapped up and handled like that and I didn’t want to encourage it. Still, this didn’t stop the girls following me in hot pursuit around the square, I think they’d figured out I was an animal lover and therefore might be an easy touch! In Inca times the Plaza de Armas was mainly used for ceremonial purposes, and it is said that it was once covered with white sand, transported from the coast by llamas for the emperor’s pleasure.
After waiting for a while, eventually a small brown antique-looking wooden tram-like bus rumbled slowly into the square. I figured that it must be the tour bus I was looking for as it was the only one in sight and although I had been expecting a more modern bus, I really liked the different look of this one. I paid my fare and hopped on, finding a seat at the back on a wooden bench which thankfully had a soft cushion, making for a more comfortable journey. Once some more people climbed on board off we set, rattling across the cobbles and out of the square through the streets of Cusco. The city was much bigger than I had realised, with lots of little squares and big markets selling various wares and fabrics all richly decorated in every colour of the rainbow. Brick red roofs sat atop white washed walls and we passed numerous colonial churches. A woman sat at the front of the bus with a microphone and barked out first in Spanish and then English information about different points of interest we were passing, although she seemed to like pointing out the various private schools the most for some reason!
Slowly and surely the bus jogged up the hill, passing higgledy-piggledy little houses and lazy-looking dogs and alpacas on the way. When we got to the top we stopped at the Christ statue which stood with arms wide open, towering over all of Cusco. Three crosses stood on the hillside to the left of it draped in fabrics. The view was amazing, the whole city stretching before me like a mosaic of orange, red and white. There wasn’t much time to take it in however because it had started to rain again and the bus was ready to leave. We all got back on board and began the slow descent back down the hill, enjoying the scenic views along the way.
Back in the square I decided to go on another tour to some of the famous Inca sites and met a guide arranged by the hotel who had a huge grin and introduced the tour group as ‘his family’ to me. Our first stop was the Santa Catalina convent which opened in 1610, built over the Inca ruins of the Acllawasi (House of the Chosen Women). Here I saw for the first time examples of the classic Inca mortar-less stonework, fitted together like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. We then jumped on board a big modern tour bus and again climbed the hill as I had done earlier in the day in my little antique bus, this time destined for an extremely exciting place…Sacsayhuaman.
When we arrived it was heavily raining, so sadly in all my photos I am modelling an extremely unattractive blue poncho – however the rain didn’t destroy my enjoyment and for the first time I could see exactly how big some of the stones were along the three large terraces of the fortress. The enormous granite ramparts stretch about 985 feet with stones as high as 17 feet, and some weigh as much as 350 tonnes! So perfectly aligned are the stones that Spanish chroniclers recorded that even a fine knife could not penetrate the joints. No mud mixture was used to bind the stones and legend has it that about 20,000 Indians hauled the largest stone into position with thousands crushed to death when it toppled over at one stage. It was an impressive example of Inca military architecture and so exciting to see it in real life after watching it at home in England on the TV show Ancient Aliens!
The next few stops took us to the ruins of Tambomachay with each location illustrating the artistic and architectural skills of the Incas. The site of Puca Pucara, meaning ‘red fort’ in Quechua, was more like a rest stop than a military post and was comprised of rooms, plazas, paths, aqueducts and lookouts. Salapunco, also called the Temple of the Moon or Lago was a large rocky outcrop comprising several small caves with rock carvings, platforms and niches. There was also what looked to be a sacrificial altar inside one of the caves which was carved out of the rock and very well-preserved and didn’t look old at all, probably because it was inside and protected from the elements.
Finally, Tambomachay was a series of platforms, niches and functioning fountains testifying to the Incas’ worship of water as a key life force. It is believed this site honoured the water deity. As it so happened, by this point the heavens had really opened and the rain was coming down in buckets which then turned into hailstones, so I didn’t stay long or get a chance to really study the site which was a shame.
The bus then dropped me back at my hostel and the tour was over. Tired, I went back to the hostel to pack a duffle bag with a few bits as I was only allowed to take about six kilos on the trek, and to get an early night ready for the journey the following day to our next town. After the trek to Machu Picchu we would be returning to Cusco for a couple of days so I knew I would have more time to take in the city then. For now, I wanted to save my energy for the trek and leave the late nights and fun times that the buzz of Cusco promised for after we were back.
