Day 10 - Cusco
Today we got to sleep in! As usual, I was awake at 6:00am, so I got up and had a cappuccino in the courtyard of the hotel. It was a bit chilly, so I was glad for the poncho I had purchased as a souvenir . It kept me very warm! The hotel was originally the Seminary of San Antonio Abad. It was built on the foundations of Amaru Qhala’s Inca palace. It is now a five star hotel. It has multiple courtyards where you can hear the sound of singing monks piped in.
After breakfast, we toured the old part of Cusco. We started with the Convent of Santo Domingo. As with most of the buildings here, it was built on the foundations of the “Inti concha”, the Inca Temple of the Sun. This was one of the most sacred and respected building of the Inca Empire. The Catholic temple had been built over it to demonstrate the destruction and annulment of the ancient culture.
Inca and colonial architecture fused together.
However, the temple was not totally destroyed, many parts were left intact and the church was built around it (with the exception of the Sun Temple). It is very interesting to see these two architectures fused together. Many local earthquakes destroyed the colonial buildings and churches, but the Inca foundations remained intact. A testimony to the craftsmanship if the Incas.
Example of Inca engineering. Another block would be carved to fit into this block. This is how these Inca buildings survive earthquakes with no damage.
This video shows other engineering techniques used by the Inca to interlock the stones.
The Incas even studied astronomy. They used the stars and dark spaces in the Milky Way to track celestial cycles. This was important to their agriculture planning, religious and social structures. They even had constellations in the shape of animals familiar to them such as lamas, snakes and partridges.
Cusco was the Inca Empire’s former capital and the continent’s oldest continuously inhabited city, Cuzco bears the marks of its mixed Spanish-Inca heritage. In this archaeological hub of the Americas, colonial and modern buildings incorporate Incan walls, arches, and doorways.
Bacillica De La Caterdral
Then we went to the Bacillica De La Caterdral. This is the main Catholic temple in the city of Cusco and is the headquarters of the Archdiocese of Cusco. It was built on the foundations of the palace of the eighth Inca king.
What makes this place interesting is the artwork. The Spanish hired Peruvian painter Marcos Zapata to recreate classic Christian paintings for the church. One of his most famous works is a recreation of the Last Supper. He combined Christian stories with indigenous culture onto his art.
Peruvian “Last Supper” in Bacillica De La Caterdral
In the Last Supper he incorporated Andean foods such as cuy (guinea pig) and Chicha, a fermented corn drink in the place of the wine. He also put the face of Francisco Pizzaro, the Spanish conquistador that defeated the Incas on Judas.
Black Jesus in Bacillica De La Caterdral
There is also a cross with a black Jesus on it. It was not originally black, but brown like the native people. It was covered in Llama skin to give this color and texture. It turned black over time due to the candles burned around it. In 1650 a strong earthquake hit the city. Fearing the worst, this cross was removed from the church to prevent it from being crushed if the building were to collapse. As soon as the Jesus cross was taken to the street, the earth stopped trembling. From this day forward, the figure is known as Lord of the Earthquakes and has developed a cult following. Every week, the clothing on the figure is changed and new human hair is placed on the figure. Locals volunteer to make the clothing, so none of it is used twice. Currently there is a wait of two years to reserve a week to make clothing for it.
After we left the Bacillica, we entered the Plaza De Armas which is the main public space in Cusco. There was a celebration going on with dancers in traditional costumes and Cuy (Guinea Pig) costumed people.
For lunch, our tour guide took us to a local restaurant called Pachapapa. Here they serve native foods eaten by the Incas for over 600 years. One of these dished is cuy, known in America as guinea pig. We were able to sample the cuy. It tasted a bit like duck.
Pachapapa Restaurant
For lunch, our tour guide took us to a local restaurant called Pachapapa. Here they serve native foods eaten by the Incas for over 600 years. One of these dished is cuy, known in America as guinea pig. We were able to sample the cuy. It tasted a bit like duck.
Best cuy (guinea pig) in town!
Typical street in Cusco
The streets of Cusco are narrow. Only room for one car. The “sidewalk” is even smaller. (Note curb in photo). When a car came, you needed to turn flat against the wall. Once, I did not turn flat against the wall and got my elbow smacked by a car mirror!
We had the afternoon to wander the city on our own and check out the local shops. I was able to pick up some Mara’s Salt from the salt mine we had seen on our bus ride.
Mara’s Salt mine.
Muse Del Pisco
We came across a Pisco bar where you could try different piscos as well as have a demonstration on how to make a pisco sour. We simply enjoyed the pisco sours and took in the ambiance.
We ran into our tour guide and he gave us a recommendation for dinner. Dinner was not included with the tour tonight, so we were on our own. We headed back to Plaza De Armas. It was very different at night.
Sagrado Restaurant
We went to a small local restaurant called Sagrado. It was not one if the fancy restaurants, but the food was incredible. I had the blue alpaca. It was an alpaca steak with blue cheese melted on top of it. It was a different experience from the alpaca sample we had with dinner the night before.
I also tried an Andean gin and tonic. The gin is made locally and comes in different flavors. I had the original clear gin. It was served in a proper gin glass (see my blog on the Cotswolds) and was garnished with a cinnamon stick, star anise, cucumber and fennel leaves. It was very good. I am going to try to get some at the airport in Duty Free when we leave Peru. Sandy ordered a Apu Punch. It had an orange peel with the Inca Condor design branded onto the peel.
Andean Gin and Tonic.
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Hotel Beldmond Monisterio Bar
The hotel had a wonderful and cozy bar off the lobby. The vaulted ceiling, comfy chairs and warm fire made for a great way to end the evening while sipping a glass of wine.
