Cusco and city tour
The overnight bus trip from Nazca to Cusco took 15H instead of 12H planned. Luckily, we were in good company :)
Cusco (from Quechua Q’osqo) means belly of the world, as it was at the capital and center of the vast Inca empire, spreading from south of today’s Ecuador to north of Chile and Argentina. It is located in the mountains, 3350m above sea level. To cope with the altitude (difficulties with breathing, headache, etc.), we tried the coca tea, which is served everywhere here. It is advised to spent a couple of days to get used to the altitude before taking any trekking, so we rested the first day and went on a city tour on the second.
The city tour included visit to the Cusco Cathedral (built on top of an old Inca temple), the Sacsayhuaman (sacred temple and fortress, built under the rule of Pachacutec, by 25,000 men in 75 years), the Qenq’o (temple dedicated to the Condor god), the Puca Pucara (red fortress, located at the crossing of the main roads, to defend Cusco), and the Tampumachay (sacred fountain).
Cusco is a bit nicer and wealthier looking city than the ones we’ve seen so far. Temperature is obviously quite different from the coast, and one might need many duvets at night, especially since there isn’t any heating system. Showers, like in the rest of the country, give warm (not hot) water at random.
Photos