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Honeymoon Part 1 - Cusco, Peru
Penny and I got married Sept 1 2007. Our honeymoon included a 4 day trip to Peru followed by a 7 day cruise in the Galapagos Islands. We took 3500 photos, so I'll be breaking our journey up into seperate threads as I proof through ... and to keep them a little smaller...
The first day after traveling landed Penny and I in Cusco, Peru. Cusco is located in the southern part of Peru near the Andes Mountains. The city population is 300,000, its at ~11,500ft elevation, and was the old capital of the Inca Empire before the Spanish conquered Peru in the early/mid 1500's. Going from living at near sea level to carrying around luggage in air thats contains a little more than half as much oxygen is pretty noticeable! A staircase with a backpack and two 40lbs suitcases can get your heart rate going! The locals recommend drinking coca tea, or chewing on the coca leaves themselves, to help with the altitude adjustment.. Yes, the same leaves used to produce cocaine (roughly 1kg of leaf yields a "dose"). Anyways, Penny and I fell in love with the stuff! I ended up buying 200 teabags of it from Bolivia after returning to the states
The main square in Cusco is called the Plaza de Armas and is home to two large churches, shops, and restaurants. Its also one of the few places I saw in the city with an actual lawn with maintained grass. The people maintaining it were using weedwackers to cut the lawn too. Most labor done is all manual including the road work. Its not uncommon to see small crews working on the roads with pickaxes or hammers and chisels! No, there are no construction signs... the workers simply move to the curb when traffic comes by!!!
Plaza de Armas with the Church of the Society of Jesus in the background.
We were not allowed in this church, but the outside stonework is quite spectacular. This church was build in around 80 years, but badly damaged in 1650 by an earthquake. It was officially opened in 1668 after 17 more years of reconstruction.
The Cathedral is the other main chuch in the main square. Its contruction took over a century, delayed by lack of funds, and finished in 1669. The structure was constructed in the shape of a Latin cross, the three-aisled nave is supported by only fourteen massive pillars. It contains nearly 400 colonial paintings and massive gold and silver leaf covered alters. The size, age, and detail of the work inside is astonishing. No photography is allowed inside.
Down the street a few blocks is another popular tourist site. The Qorikancha was the largest and most spectacular Incan temple in Cusco used for worshiping the sun. After the Spanish conquered the empire, they tore down the top half of the Qorikancha and built a chuch on the foundation. Inside contains some of the Inca's finest stonework that has endured numerous earthquakes over the years with little damage. The perfectly hand cut and polished stone is atestament to Inca masonry.
Sacsayhuaman is one of the most amazing Incan constructions for tourists. Its Quechua name means "satisfied falcon", it was the falcon that guarded the capital of the empire, since it was possible to overlook Cusco from the hill in where it was erected. If, as it is known, Cusco was designed with the shape of a lying puma, Sacsayhuaman would be its head, and the Qorikancha would correspond to the feline's genitalia. The methods used in precision cutting and placing the massive stones is still a mystery today.
Tambomachay Ruins is located a few miles to the northeast of Cusco. It is located at a foothill near the main road to the Antisuyo, over the Tambomachay River. This at roughly 12500ft elevation at the top, this is the highest our trip took us to. It was one of the favorite resting and bathing places of the Incas, It was also a site used to worship water.
The ol elevation sign at the bottom of the foothill on the way up to the ruins.
Like usual, there are people selling stuff anywhere the tourists go. If you ignore them, the view is quite spectacular!
Cusco, Peru just past sunset on the way back from the Sacsayhuaman ruins.
More Photos from Cusco Peru are located here: http://photos.tallmanphoto.com/gallery/3484828
The next part will include the scenic train ride to Aguas Calientes and Machu Picchu. Thanks for reading! :thumb
The first day after traveling landed Penny and I in Cusco, Peru. Cusco is located in the southern part of Peru near the Andes Mountains. The city population is 300,000, its at ~11,500ft elevation, and was the old capital of the Inca Empire before the Spanish conquered Peru in the early/mid 1500's. Going from living at near sea level to carrying around luggage in air thats contains a little more than half as much oxygen is pretty noticeable! A staircase with a backpack and two 40lbs suitcases can get your heart rate going! The locals recommend drinking coca tea, or chewing on the coca leaves themselves, to help with the altitude adjustment.. Yes, the same leaves used to produce cocaine (roughly 1kg of leaf yields a "dose"). Anyways, Penny and I fell in love with the stuff! I ended up buying 200 teabags of it from Bolivia after returning to the states
The main square in Cusco is called the Plaza de Armas and is home to two large churches, shops, and restaurants. Its also one of the few places I saw in the city with an actual lawn with maintained grass. The people maintaining it were using weedwackers to cut the lawn too. Most labor done is all manual including the road work. Its not uncommon to see small crews working on the roads with pickaxes or hammers and chisels! No, there are no construction signs... the workers simply move to the curb when traffic comes by!!!
Plaza de Armas with the Church of the Society of Jesus in the background.
We were not allowed in this church, but the outside stonework is quite spectacular. This church was build in around 80 years, but badly damaged in 1650 by an earthquake. It was officially opened in 1668 after 17 more years of reconstruction.
The Cathedral is the other main chuch in the main square. Its contruction took over a century, delayed by lack of funds, and finished in 1669. The structure was constructed in the shape of a Latin cross, the three-aisled nave is supported by only fourteen massive pillars. It contains nearly 400 colonial paintings and massive gold and silver leaf covered alters. The size, age, and detail of the work inside is astonishing. No photography is allowed inside.
Down the street a few blocks is another popular tourist site. The Qorikancha was the largest and most spectacular Incan temple in Cusco used for worshiping the sun. After the Spanish conquered the empire, they tore down the top half of the Qorikancha and built a chuch on the foundation. Inside contains some of the Inca's finest stonework that has endured numerous earthquakes over the years with little damage. The perfectly hand cut and polished stone is atestament to Inca masonry.
Sacsayhuaman is one of the most amazing Incan constructions for tourists. Its Quechua name means "satisfied falcon", it was the falcon that guarded the capital of the empire, since it was possible to overlook Cusco from the hill in where it was erected. If, as it is known, Cusco was designed with the shape of a lying puma, Sacsayhuaman would be its head, and the Qorikancha would correspond to the feline's genitalia. The methods used in precision cutting and placing the massive stones is still a mystery today.
Tambomachay Ruins is located a few miles to the northeast of Cusco. It is located at a foothill near the main road to the Antisuyo, over the Tambomachay River. This at roughly 12500ft elevation at the top, this is the highest our trip took us to. It was one of the favorite resting and bathing places of the Incas, It was also a site used to worship water.
The ol elevation sign at the bottom of the foothill on the way up to the ruins.
Like usual, there are people selling stuff anywhere the tourists go. If you ignore them, the view is quite spectacular!
Cusco, Peru just past sunset on the way back from the Sacsayhuaman ruins.
More Photos from Cusco Peru are located here: http://photos.tallmanphoto.com/gallery/3484828
The next part will include the scenic train ride to Aguas Calientes and Machu Picchu. Thanks for reading! :thumb
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Comments
The one of the fountain is my favorite!
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I love seeing photos from countries so different from home. Thanks for sharing
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