Cusco

Musea de Historia Natural
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An overnight bus from Nazca took us to Cusco, an ancient Inca capital that is said to have been founded around AD 1100. It has since developed into a commercial and tourism center of 275,000 inhabitants, most of whom are Quechua, which is also the official spelling.

Cusco was the capital of the Inca empire - one of the greatest planned societies the world has known - from its rise during the 11th century to its death in the early 16th century.

Almost every central street has remains of Inca walls, arches and doorways: The perfect Inca stonework now serves as the foundations for more modern dwellings. This stonework is tapered upwards (battered), every wall has a perfect line of inclination towards the center.

Plaza de Armas
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The center of Cusco is quite small and can easily be explored on foot. We found a great hostel west of Plaza San Francisco. The first two days we spent planning the rest of our stay in Peru as well as our trip to the Galapagos Islands. We also met up with Daryl and Ran after saying goodbye to them in La Paz. They would go on the Inca Trail the next day.

Cusco is a great place to relax and wonder around. We found a great and cheap restaurant (where we would eat most of the time) and also discovered the many good cake places in town!