September 28: Off to Cusco

The Lima traffic once again made what is really a rather short trip in miles into a 45 minute slow crawl from the hotel to the airport. I was glad I left when I did, as I once again had believed that a Saturday morning couldn’t have so many cars and buses and micro buses on the road! And the airport was a zoo — so many people traveling in so many different directions. But, as luck would have it, I ended up in the line to drop off my bag right behind 3 people also traveling on this tour to Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley with me. I identified them from the luggage tags that REI had so helpfully provided. So I had some company as we snaked around and around the stanchions to the counter.

Two sisters and one husband; the couple from Atlanta and the married but without spouse single from Eugene. It was nice to have some people to chat with and to locate our REI representative together.  It was a short ride to the hotel from the airport, which was good because the sun was blazing and the A/C in the van was pumping out heat! I noticed the elevation immediately — 10,800 feet — and despite taking the medicine to help with altitude illness, I feel the difference just climbing the stairs in the hotel.

Cusco was the center and headquarters of the Inca empire and it’s the third largest city in Peru, with 350,000 inhabitants. While those who live here speak Spanish, the native tongue, still spoken by many is Quechua. Cusco is also home to many traditional Peruvian crafts, especially woven goods made from alpaca. And if you’re really rich, Vicuña ($4,000 for a sweater, if you can find one). Vicuña is a relative of the llama and perhaps an ancestor of the alpaca, but unlike those two camelids, it is in the wild and can only be shorn every 3 years for it’s fine wool coat. So I’ll probably stick with finding something alpaca before I leave!

Having just arrived I’ve saved a full day of touring Cusco for tomorrow, but I did walk out to the main plaza because I believed the light would be lovely and I hoped that a little walk might get me acclimated a bit to the elevation. The square was full of families and people enjoying the last sun of the day and many people selling local handicrafts. The cathedral is the main focus of the square and it was quite something. It was built in 1560 and took over 100 years to complete and has been named a UNESCO site.

I’m happy to have dinner tonight with the three from the tour; as I may have mentioned in other posts, dining alone is the one aspect of traveling alone that I don’t enjoy much. So until more on Cusco tomorrow, here are a few photos to enjoy.

  1 comment for “September 28: Off to Cusco

  1. Catherine Washburn
    October 1, 2019 at 6:39 am

    What a magnificent basilica! So excited to follow your adventure in Peru and to one of my dream destinations-Machu Picchu. I have always loved the colors and designs of Peruvian art. The Inca culture fascinates me and I can’t wait to read more about your trip. Enjoy, my dear friend!

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