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Andean Peru
After a few days in Lima, Corina and I took a flight into the Andes to Cusco. It was a total change to go from fog bound sea level Lima to Cusco up at 3300m in the mountains. Here it was bright and clear every day but cold at night. And having come so high so fast we had to deal with altitude affects for the first day or two. This meant taking it easy and rest with lots of coca leaf tea.
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Once upon a time Cusco was the capital of the Inca Empire. But it had been overthrown and built upon by the Spanish. Today it would be just another pleasent colonial town but for its history. However its past, and its proximity to so many Inca ruins, makes Cusco a major tourist centre. One person described it to me as the backpackers capital of South America. This is a mixed blessing. This is the Plaza des Armes (every Peruvian town has one). Its ringed with travel agencies, guides and more than a few tourist bars.
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Corina and I stayed in a hostel on the hill here, the San Blas district.
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This was a nice part of town with narrow streets winding between whitewashed houses.
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As you walked around the city you would spot signs of its pre-Hispanic past. Quite often the Spaniards built their houses on top of the ruins and foundations of the Inca buildings. The give away sign was these large cut stone blocks.
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On the hills above Cusco (which we were not fit to climb until we had a day's acclimatisation behind us) are the ruins of Susayhuaman. This was a huge Inca temple complex. It also was the site of a major battle where the Spanish slaughtered huge numbers of Inca soldiers when they overthrew the Inca emperors. These days its also the location of the Inti Rayma festival, a recreation of the Inca winter solstice festival. Its probably the biggest event in the area each year.
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The ruins are a good showcase for Inca construction. They had no iron so all the masonry work was done with stone tools. Some of the blocks were up to 30 tons in weight. You see many of these characteristic trapezoidal stone doorways. These are the hallmark of Inca architecture.
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