Sunday -- Chincheros and Urubamba

  Sunday morning, many of us had the opportunity to attend Sacrament meeting at a chapel near downtown Cusco.  J. Lynn had had a bad night, so opted to stay at the hotel.  She missed the opportunity to play for the meeting, so they had to settle for me.  With two stakes in Cusco (and a second temple announced for Lima), I was struck by the fact that the Church really is world-wide!  Our leader translated the talks for us over our radios, and it was interesting to hear a sister missionary from Chile (if I'm remembering correctly) speak about the importance of family history and temple work.

  After church we left for Chincheros and Urubamba.  Saw some beautiful Andes peaks en route.
  In Chincheros, we were treated to a demonstration of how alpaca wool is cleaned, dyed and woven. The red dye comes from a parasite.  Put juice in it, and it turns more purple.  They washed the dirty alpaca hair in a juice that turned foamy, and it came out clean.  Then they dyed it.




We stopped by the market.  No shortage of food.

Heading on toward the valley

Loved the valley and the Andes peaks.

Some Inca work on the hillside above us.  Plus some cute kids fundraising for the family.

Had a lovely lunch at this place before heading into the valley to see the Inca ruins in Ollantaytambo.

A bit of ancient rock work.

 

Note the face carved in the mountain, as well as the dwellings to the right.  Larger version below.

Our guide

explaining the Inca rock work.

At the top.

After our visit there, we boarded the train to Aguas Calientes at the end of the valley below Machu Pichu.

Almost there.

The square at night.  Statue is of the Inca conqueror.

Cusco

  We landed in Cusco shortly after noon on June 10, and after lunch at our hotel, we were given a little rest time.  Cusco's elevation is a bit over 11,000 feet, so we were told we needed to adjust.  Dave Webb gave us a very interesting lecture later in the afternoon about the early history of the area from pre-Inca time to the Spanish conquest.  Cusco was the Inca capital and dates back to around 1100 AD.

  In the evening, we walked around the Plaza des Armas, a block from our hotel.  The winter solstice is a major holiday dating from Inca times, so there were mobs downtown each evening with school groups from kindergarten through high school practicing for the major event.

Following the walk around, we had dinner here:

 After breakfast the next morning, we headed up to Saksaywaman above Cusco to look at the ruins dating back to pre-Inca times.  

Here we saw our first (but not our last) alpacas (left) and lama.

Our tour leader Dave Webb and his wife Melody in front of the Utah rock.  Note:  this fortress was put together around 1100, before the Incas took over.  Amazing rock work!

Next we stopped at the statue of Christ above the city.  (Copied from the statue above Rio.)

The view of Cusco from above.

The Plaza

En route Urubamba (Sacred) Valley and Pisac, we stopped to see and pet some lamas and alpacas.

Terry feeding an alpaca (must be the origin of dreadlocks!).

Lots of varieties of potato, corn and couscous grown locally.

Above the valley

Across the valley we walked up to the Inca ruins.

Lots of terracing done by the Incas.

Some of us hiked on up to the top of the ruins.

We stopped briefly at the market in Pisac, then returned to Cusco for the evening.  Lots of activity around the Plaza.

Many costumed dancing groups.  Here's the view from our restaurant.

Loved the crowds.

That concluded our day on June 11.

More from the Amazon basin

  I finally accessed my camera pictures.  On the way to the lodge.

Terry & Angela

Base of a walking palm

Copybara at night

Heading for Lake Sandoval



Saw some bats on the trees.

Nice, cool afternoon on the lake.