The Sacred Valley of the Incas

Entering the Sacred Valley of the Incas

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Unimpressed with the guide from the previous day, we joined the Polish couple of a day-long tour of the Sacred Valley...and what a day it was. 

We drove into the mountains where after a while, fertile green valleys emerged.  We learned that in Peru there are 4200 kinds of potatoes harvested in the numerous Andean communities and 3000 kinds of corn (or maize).  These are all planted on beautifully designed terraces that decorate the mountain slopes throughout the trip. 

Our first stop was Pisaq, a bustling town of 2400 along the Vilconato O Wilcamayu River. A sixteenth century colonial town, it had an unbelievable market with everything from freshly backed empanadas to local jewelry to fine Alpaca clothing.  (I resisted to urged to buy anything as I understand things are less expensive in Boliva). 

Vendors at a stop along the way

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Next was Uribamba...

The second last stop of the day was the quaint town of Ollantaytambo, a area developed by a successful military leader of the Inca.  To this day, the local farmers use the Inca terraces and irrigation systems to grow maize.  The town itself still contains main of the original buildings with angled doorways, narrow streets and stone foundations, experted carved and constructed, and most of residents speak Quechua, the language of the Inca. 

As a place of rest, the area includes a number of residential ruins as well as the temple of 10 windows.  Climing up steep terraces to examine the architecture more closely, one is able to enjoy a hands-on appreciation for the precision of Inca buildings.  The stone blocks, carved out of huge stones lugged over the montains, fit exactly with one another like large lego bricks.  The degree of detail and the sheer size of the task to transport these emmense rocks is mindboggling.

Pisaq Market

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Exhausted, we traveled to Chincero, our final stop of the day.  As the sun was going down, we visited this ancient town, one that has as its centrepiece a church with various paintings and figures, items used to prosthelized to the native Indian population, as they did not have a written language.