Although all the travel agencies in Cusco advertise a 'city tour', very little of it is actually within the city because most of the Inca sites visited are up on the mountain to the north. Our intention had been to hike between these sites but that morning the weather looked very ominous so at the last minute we booked ourselves onto a bus tour (managing to get a very cheap price into the bargain). In the end the threatened rain did not come and we would definitely recommend the hike by taking a cheap public bus out to the furthest site (Tambomachay) and then making the (mostly) downhill hike past each of the sites to end up back in the city.

However, we started with a visit to the Qorikancha complex that is actually within the old city. This was originally an Incan temple of the sun and the name refers to the solid gold capping that once covered the top of all the outer walls. Needless to say, the Spanish removed this some while ago. What the Spanish also chose to do was to build a monastery over the top of the Inca site, incorporating several sections of the temple into their building. So now you can walk through a colonial courtyard and cloisters and into a substantial set of Incan rooms and a sacrificial altar. In the past these incan walls had been plastered and decorated with Christian images but now they are now stripped back to see the immaculate quality of the stonework. Because this was a very important religious site, the quality of the stonework is extremely high, with each stone carefully and accurately fitting to the next with no spaces between them. This is particularly evident where the monks at one stage decided that they really did not need one of the walls and removed a section. Despite the enormous thickness of the wall, the close fit between stones is clear all the way into the centre; these Incas didn’t just make the fit accurate on the outside! When you see this quality and the massiveness of the stonework you realise why so much Inca stonework around the city has not been removed but simply incorporated or built on top off. It would be too massive a job to take it down! The wisdom of this is also apparent when you realise that the Incan stonework has managed to survive many earthquakes that have toppled more modern buildings. If you’ve got Incan foundations it’s worth keeping them!









One of the interesting things that we saw here was another version of a picture that we have seen many times already. It is a copy of an old spanish drawing which purports to show 'the inca cosmology' and the interconnection of parts of Incan beliefs. Basically it shows the duality of man/woman, sun/moon as well as a number of key concepts such as water, lightning and the southern cross. However, here the description pointed out that the drawing was actually made over a hundred years after the spanish had conquered Peru and systematically oppressed the Inca religion. So the artist was reliant on hazy recollections passed down through generations. It also noted the resemblance to a Catholic altarpiece and speculated that the artist may well have been interpreting the ideas quite loosely! Nonetheless it appears everywhere else (including elsewhere in Qorikancha) as a factual record!

Next we set out on the route northwards and out of the city, passing our hostel and then going past much more evidence of the recent landslides and fallen rocks in the road. Our first stop was the fortress of Sacsayhuaman, which forms the head of the mythical puma that the aerial view of Cusco is supposed to show (not easily seen now that the city has sprawled in every direction). This site has a series of parallel zigzag terraces made from massive stones (the largest in ancient Peru), many shaped in situ. As usual, the three levels are supposed to represent the three levels of the Incan world; the underworld (snake), our present world (puma) and the higher world (condor). One recent suggestion is that these are not really so much defensive walls but instead form part of a temple to lightning, although this wasn’t offered by our guide as an explanation. Certainly the site is huge and there are signs of a full-blown city here. It seems that the building work took the best part of a century to complete and a writer soon after it was finished estimated that 20,000 men had been involved in the construction (local legend says that 3,000 lives were lost dragging one single massive stone). Whatever the original use, the stonework is enormously impressive, particularly with the sunlight bringing out the sharp angles of the zigzags. The massiveness of the stones and the incredibly fine workmanship using no hard metal tools leaves one in awe. Although the site was originally surmounted by three towers, these have long gone; the Spanish having used the site as a relatively easy way to collect stone to build many of the colonial buildings in Cusco. However, the views from the top down to the city remain spectacular.

A little further up the mountain, Q'enqo (the name is derived from a Quechua word for labyrinth) is quite different. Here a rocky outcrop has been carved out into a series of steps, caves, seats and altars that seem to relate to the Incan cosmology which attributes life to all aspects of the earth including rocks. The underground section may well have been used for spiritual contemplation and communication with the forces of the earth. Part of the tunnelled out interior of the site includes a number of niches that may have been used to house the mummies of lesser nobles. There are also some suggestions that at the summer solstice the sun shines through some ‘windows’ in the rocks onto a particular ‘throne’. Outside the main channelled section lies a semi-circular amphitheatre or perhaps a temple area with a number of seats facing towards a standing stone that shows the shape of a puma’s head (but in the words of an earlier guide ‘you may need to use your imagination’).

Still rising up the mountain, the next significant site is Pukapukara or ‘Red Fort’. This certainly looks like a defensive position, perched on a hill with a commanding view overlooking the Cusco valley. It may therefore have been a guard post between Cusco and the sacred valley. It would certainly be easy to defend on three sides and it has a good view of the Inca road that passes below the tower before taking a diagonal path to ascend the next mountain. However, it seems a bit small for any substantial garrison, although there are enough grain storehouses here to suggest they wanted to be self sufficient. Another suggestion is that the site was more likely to be some sort of hunting lodge for the Emperor Pachucutec. Thus, in true Inca style, pleasure and comfort for the elite was effectively combined with control of the masses and a bit of useful defence.

Our final stopping point was Tambomachay, which was a temple to water and has an impressive range of fountains. This was evidently a place for ritual purification as well as basic cleansing. The very high quality of the beautiful Inca masonry suggests that it was constructed for the higher nobility, who probably used the site only on ceremonial occasions. We walked up a steep but sheltered gully beside a small stream flowing from a single fountain head and reached an open area flanked by ‘artisan’ sellers. A little further on, the main part of the ruins is in three tiers (guess what they are supposed to represent). The top tier has three arches, possibly to hold thrones of some kind. From the next level spring water is channelled into a series of fountains down to ground level and away down the gully we had just come up. Of course local legend has imbued the water with mystic powers; it is said to promote fertility and women drinking the water will ensure that they have triplets. Jen immediately took a big gulp (joke). Beside the water feature there is a path leading up to the remains of a small tower, from which you can see Pukapukara, the previous site. This may confirm the belief that these were watchtowers as they would have been able to communicate with each other.

Bathed in the warm glow of the sunset, we made our way back to the city (thank goodness they didn't actually make us sit on a hill waiting for the sun to set, says TP). We finished the day by eating in one of the three cafes called Chez Maggy in the same small street. They do actually seem to belong to the same people although each has a slightly different menu. However, chores seem to be shared because from time to time meals from one cafe are shuttled up or down the street to a different cafe. As so often happens, we were serenaded during the meal but this time it was different. Rather than the usual 'do two numbers then pass the hat' routine, the musicians really seemed to be enjoying themselves and performed a really long and lively set. Jen was so impressed she bought their CD (but as we have nothing to play it on, it might well be blank for all we know!)

Despite not being able to get to Machu Picchu, we have really enjoyed our time in Cusco. We're off to Arequipa now, but aiming to return later in the year to get another crack at Peru's most popular tourist site.