Day 2 Cusco

woke up at 4:30 AM, which felt even earlier because eddie and i had stayed out until after midnight with his gradeschool friends. good peeps.

we got to the airport in the nick of time to board without waiting around. of course, i promptly fell asleep and woke up to views of cusco. a little town tucked away in the mountains set against a blue blue sky. touching down i noticed two things: (1) a slight headache and (2) shortness of breath. . darn, guess i would not be immune to the effects of high altitude.

the inn owner picked us up from the airport and inundated eddie with trivia about cusco. cusco- shaped like a puma- represented the earth. according to incan belief, there are three worlds: the heavens, the earth, and beneath the earth. after a short drive we arrived at llipimpac where the owner gave us some coco matte (tea made from coco leaves helps alleviate the effects of high altitude) while we waited for our room to be cleaned. a short nap later, we ventured out for lunch at pucara where we feasted on a delectable lunch. sopa a la criolla (mildly spiced creamy noodle soup with beef and peppers), broiled fish, and assorted veggies, corn (did you know there are over 20 types of corn and 18 are grown in peru?), and potatoes.

the tour started at 2:30 and the rest of the afternoon was a blur of sighseeing: convento desanto domingo del cusco, la catedral, saqsaywaman, q'enqo, pukapukara, and tambumachay. the sacred structures that the incas built were simply amazing in its precision, care, and design. every aspect of the architecture seemed to be brimming with symbolism and/or purpose.

i was struck by the beauty of the land and the sense of calm/peace i felt there. what's more, i loved the fact was that the essense of cusco did not seem to be lost by the barrage of tourism that has flooded the town. it was not at all hard to imagine what cusco was like long long ago.