4-09-2011
The group has now broken up into three for the next five days. We are seven of us doing the Classic Inca trail, today is a sightseeing day.
First stop at Saqsahuaman ( sounds very much like sexy woman), Inca ruins. Massive stones make it a lovely ruin, one even weighs 130 tonnes, to think they moved them without machinery. They were quite innovative, round stones and sticks were used to move them, wood was placed in holes and then wet to break the rocks. Gold and silver templates were used to cut the rocks so they fit each other perfectly. To save the buildings from collapsing in earthquakes they were angled and smaller rocks were places between the boulders. Great view of Cusco from the top, a large cross on a hill is in remembrance of the Pope's visit. Great celebrations took place on June 21st and a Llama was sacrificed, even now it is celebrated with people dressing up, auditions for the Inca is held but the llama is spared.
We stopped at a wildlife sanctuary on the way, pumas, condors and a wild cat (supposedly the most ferocious animal of them all).
Next was Pisac, the laboratory of the Incas. The mountainside is filled with terraces and the Incas grew varieties of crops and studied them here. There also tombs on the other side which have been looted so are now represented by holes. Also temples, canals and houses were present.
Great lunch before our last ruin of the day at Ollantaytambo. It was the temple of the sun. There were ornamental terraces and ramps to get the stones up to the temple area. An adjoining mountain has colcas and naturally formed faces (on of a God and the other of an Inca) on the side. At the equinoxes the first rays of the sun shines on the Incan face and then the temple of the sun.
In our free time we climbed the other mountain, got on top of the face and explored the colcas. Dinner was at the Heart's cafe, all profits go for charity work and the food was great.
Staying at a lovely place before we start our roughing out tour.
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