We hung out in Cusco (or as non-Spanish speakers spell it, Cuzco), both before and after the Inca Trail and ended up spending more than a week combined in the former capital of the Incan Empire. It's Peru's biggest tourist destination as the gateway to Machu Picchu, but even so, it is a beautiful city and I felt like we could have stayed a month in order to get to know all the ruins located near Cusco and in and around the Sacred Valley (see the next post). (Fact: Cusco, or Qusqu in Quechua, means belly-button, because this city was the center of the Incan Empire.) The center of the city has beautiful cobble stone streets and some original Incan walls with stones carved to fit together perfectly without mortar. Their masonry is definitely more impressive than the Spanish built structures after Francisco Pizarro arrived and conquered the Incas.
Plaza de Armas
The cathedral
Incan walls
Machu Picchu cocktails
The best papas rellenas in all of Peru are sold from this little cart outside of this woman's home
Chicha Rosada, a corn beer in a local chicheria with about 10% alcohol content. This is cheaper than beer and has been brewed since Inca times.
View of Cusco
Cuy! Guinea pig is a specialty in Cusco, and most people enjoy it only on special occasions like birthdays.
We had to try it! There's a first and last time for everything.
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