CUSCO

After leaving Lima in the dust we eventually turned east away from the costal desert at Nazca and into the hills. We were on a 22 hour night bus on the top deck with front row seats of this new part of the world. Never ending winding roads lead us through lush Interlocking Andean mountains with scattered tiny villages and farming communities. An old lady with a dark creased face wearing a bright turquoise skirt and a tall brimmed hat chases a number of rolling mangos that have fallen off a truck turning the road polka dot. Further on, an old scruffy dog lies on the warm tarmac. The bus honks its horns as we draw close, the dog slowly gets out the way in the nick of time, then returns to the same spot and flops back onto the road. On the road near by a two men carry a large bundle of chopped thin tree trunks. A young boy walks a little further ahead carrying one little trunk.

I didn't sleep much due to the crazy winding roads. The low hum of the bus kept changing volume following the regular cracking of my ears popping as we climb higher into the mountains. Helen wasn't coping well with the constant hairpin corners and sheer drops. Neither was someone else down stairs who was loudly filling the buses supply of sick bags after each twisty section of road.

Cusco sits at 3400 meters above sea level near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It was a lot bigger than we had expected. We found a cheap hostel called Hostel Ultima up a quaint cobbled street. It was up a small flight of stairs which at this height was a big challenge. We were really feeling the effects of the altitude as even the smallest task left us breathless. Unlike the Himalayas where we gradually ascended over many days, the overnight bus brought us up a lot quicker. It must be quite a shock flying an hour or two from Lima at sea level. Our first day was spent snoozing, drinking coca tea (good for altitude) and exploring the closest streets and main square. 

Old town
You can do free (free-ish... leave a tip or forever feel guilty) walking tours of the old town. We walked with Elvis from 'Free Tours By Foot' he was brilliant and gave us a good overview of the rise and fall of the Inca empire. At one point the empire stretched from parts of Ecuador, Bolivia, northern Argentina and Chile and of course Peru. They are famous for their intricate stonework and ground breaking farming techniques. They would channel water from rivers on to steep terraced hillsides. They also were one of the first empires to live together in city's and even irrigated water through the cities. Some say they even made it over to Easter Island which explains the similar stonework on the Ahu's (Stone platforms to support the Moai Heads). Their fall came when the Spanish rocked up with their guns in the 1500s. After defeating the Incas they built on top of their sacred buildings to demonstrate their power. 13 Inca Palaces were destroyed and built on in Cusco, which explains why a lot of Cusco's colonial buildings stand atop of sturdy Inca stonework. The Spaniards also brought Catholicism putting an end to traditional Inca beliefs.

All the buildings and cathedrals here are pretty low rise, this is apparently to be stronger against Earthquakes that often rock the city. In 1950 Peru suffered a monumental quake which rocked Cusco to the core. In the aftermath most of the Spanish colonial buildings had been destroyed however the Inca stone first floors / foundations were untouched.

Outside one of Cusco's oldest schools was a Donkey carrying some books with a football under his hoof. Apparently it's a well known Peruvian football mascot. Elvis our guide said that Peruvians love football but don't want to win the World Cup... they just want to qualify.

After walking through a couple of the city's main plazas and past a handful of handsome cathedrals, we explored the old market in a purpose built building designed by Mr Eiffel.

Women in colourful striped attire sat blending into their colourful stalls. Many of the local women often wear their hair in two long plaits and don a traditional white top hat or bowler hat. This fashion came from England when a shipment of bowlers meant for Europeans working on the railways arrived but were too small. Instead they were sold to the local women and nowadays the hats are the crowning piece of everyday dress for many women.

The first part of the market is souvenirs, then it's into the fruit section with smiley ladies sitting atop of bright fruit towers. Moving further in you get to the fruit and veg section. The amount of different varieties of corn are mind boggling. The Incas were pioneers when it came to corn and potatoes with roughly 400 varieties of corn and 4000 varieties of potato now known in Peru.

After fruit and veg you get to the meat section but the cuts are like nothing I have ever seen. Five cows mouths (I think they belonged to cows) give a big toothy grin as we passed.

Then in the bottom corner you can sit at tables in front of large jolly ladies stirring large pots, who will cook you up a two course lunch for about £1.25.

As we left the market we passed a bunch of hanging dried Lama foetuses. It's tradition to burry them under a new buildings or hang them up to bring good fortune (and a bad smell)

We returned a few days later to sample the food, buy some souvenirs and try some of the interesting exotic fruit (we gave the cow heads a miss)

Towards the end of the walk we slipped through a little doorway in an alley to find a paddock of Llamas. We are not sure why they were part of the tour but they had great hair.

Saksaywaman
Above Cusco is an unfinished Inca ruin called Saksaywaman or 'sexy woman' as most tourists pronounce it! When the Spanish arrived many Inca sites were in the middle of being built and work stoped instantly. This is the same in Machu Picchu and many other sites.

We panted our way up the steep cobbled streets behind our hostel eventually making it to the entrance. On route up a narrow pretty street we started talking to a quiet old lady who disappeared into a pile of knitting. She was hand-making really lovely Llama hats and showed Helen her technique, using three strands of wool for warmth. Unlike many of the sellers in the main square selling the same stock this was the real thing. We chatted for a while in our broken Spanish before adding to my hat collection.

We carried on up the slope and soon we were surrounded by a mass of interlocking stone blocks. The stone work is incredibly satisfying as all the blocks in all shapes and sizes perfectly slot together like a giants 3D jigsaw puzzle. Apparently this was to strengthen the walls against earthquakes and is why the Inca stone work is such an achievement.

We walked over to a mirador overlooking the red roofed city. You could really get an idea of the size of it from up here. After a little rest to catch our breath we went to explore the rest of the ruins. It's a massive site of interlocking walls, terraces, roofless buildings, arches and a shaggy llama.

Just as we were leaving a whole heap of llamas arrived with two fluffy babies. Baby llama wool is the softest, and the wool from the first time a llama is shorn is the most expensive and most sought after.

A little walk away on the next hill along was the infamous Cusco Jesus statue... Rio de Janeiro eat your heart out!!

San Blas
Unlike the old town round the Plaza de Armas (Main square) the little church, square and tiny cobbled streets of San Blas are much more tranquil. I say tranquil but they are on a steep hillside and until you acclimatise will have you stopping every five mins for a break. Luckily these little lanes are crammed full of little bars, gallery's and cafes. It's got a kind of Dubrovnik feel but a bit more crumbly.

We enjoyed pottering about this part of the city and even got talking to an awesome guy playing some beautiful music on a 16 string 'guitar' after he complimented Helen on her new hat.

If you have some cash you could find some beautiful places to stay here. But it's not all pricey. We found a great French restaurant called La Caverne del Oriente, overlooking the city where we could get a really good three course meal for £3.75. It was so good we went twice however one evening we went a bit overboard on Cusco's favourite tipple Cusquenia (local beer) and ended up buying loads of llama ties. It seemed like a good idea at the time but no one we know wears ties any more and a jazzy llama tie probably isn't appropriate for a wedding or a funeral.

Guinea Pig
The cute cuddly guinea pig (or Cuy in Spanish) is a Peruvian and Incan delicacy, often eaten on special occasions. There is even a village just outside Cusco that specialises in barbecuing these little critters. We drove through on a day trip to the Sacred Valley to see the streets lined with lots of rigid crispy creature slowly turning over hot coals via a pole up the arse. We have eaten many weird and exotic things on our travels, it only seemed right to add a family pet to the list.

After a bit of googling we found a restaurant called Kusikuy tucked away mid way up a steep flight of stairs in the labyrinth of Cusco's back streets. It specialises in roast guinea pig and the owner Luciano gave us a quick lesson in guinea pig etiquette via charades (We didn't learn any guinea pig cuisine vocabulary in Spanish school). When it arrived the chef had made him a little headdress out of herbs and a tomato. It did look like a sorry site and would give any English child nightmares. On the flip side it smelt amazing.

Thankfully they took it back to the kitchen to slice and dice it ready to be eaten. If they hadn't I don't know where we would have started. When it came back our crispy pet was now headless and in four sections, it was also accompanied with Tamal (a corn paste cake thing), a roast pepper stuffed with beef and guinea pig meat, a crispy potato and some traditional sauces. There actually isn't that much meat on a guinea pig, I guess that's why there was a lot of extra bits on the side. It was a delicious meal but rather fiddly. I know everyone says that any exotic meat tastes like chicken, but this really did, maybe with a hint of duck. If you're in town it's definitely one for the bucket list and the restaurant is a lovely place however I'd be weary of the cheap guinea pigs in the markets as once they have taken off their fur coat they don't look too dissimilar to many other rodents you may find around town.

Cusco was our launchpad for many trips in this region, see our next posts for where we ended up!