I am like a new woman today after 3 doses of Diamox...wow, what a world of difference it makes to not have a constant horrible headache. Andy and I set out early...we were up around 6 am and couldn´t fall back asleep so eventually decided to get up and get the day started. First we decided to hit up the Mercado San Pedro for some fresh jugo...Andy met Rena yesterday who was one of the many juice ladies in the market...we had to politely refuse everyone else just to get to Rena´s stand. She made us jugo de naranja y mango (orange-mango juice) and it was delicious! We walked through the rest of the market which was similar to a farmer´s market in the US...stands of fruits, vegetables, grains in huge bags, meats...you name it. There were little children running all around. It was fairly busy for 7 am!
Then we moved on to Jack´s...the breakfast place we were trying to find yesterday. It was recommended in Lonely Planet which was quite obvious when we got there and it was filled with Westerners and Europeans. Not to mention the group of women out front selling their handicrafts...Andy got pancakes with carmalized bananas and I got juevos rancheros which put Honey´s to shame! But it was sooooo much food! I also had a whole pot of coca tea which was a little pot brimming with coca leaves...I sure felt it this time, in fact was fairly tachycardic to 110bpm after breakfast!
After desayuno we headed out onto the streets...where we were harrassed by an old woman with a llama. Of course we had to stop and take a photo but then she kept telling us she needed more money which was annoying. And then she continued to follow us up a very steep hill...I don´t know if she forgot we took pictures with her already or if she really wasn´t happy with the 3 soles we gave her! Andy wanted to stop in this art store and he showed some interest in one particular piece of artwork...well this prompted the woman there to get on the phone with her colleague because she didn´t speak enough English to negotiate with us. She kept saying ´cinco minutos´so we waited and then finally this poor woman had literally run up the hill to talk to us. They eventually settled on a price of 200 soles and we are to pick it up next week...on Domingo. I bought some more postcards and a pack of coca candies for altitude sickness...why not?
Then these young girls grabbed us...wearing traditional clothes and holding what we have come to find out are baby pacas (not goats or lambs as we previously thought). They were so cute so we got more photos but they seriously try to rob you blind afterwards...begging for un mas sole por favor...
So Peru doesn´t seem to need any laws regarding breastfeeding in public. Women everywhere are breastfeeding while they are selling their arts and crafts, etc. Speaking of, we saw several more of those virgin Mary photos breastfeeding Jesus...they are everywhere. This time, I got a pic :)
We kept walking up this very steep cobblestone walkway where men work working in the middle creating some sort of rail system it seemed...pretty impressive. It was drizzling a little so we ducked into a small cafe and Andy had a pisco sour and I got a cafe mocha...yum. Between the coca tea, coca candy and espresso I was practically floating down the streets after that!
We decided to hike up to the top of Cuzco to see Sacsaywoman...an immense Inca ruin of both military and religious significance. En route we passed through an area of Cuzco known as San Blas...there was a beautiful fountain and a square with the Iglesia de San Blas. I decided to pay the 15 soles to check it out while Andy hung out outside playing with the kids and getting talked into buying finger puppets of llamas. Once inside the church, I paid another 5 soles for a private tour. Maria told me all about this famous wooden carving inside...it was carved from one tree (reminded me of the alter in Meet the Parents). The carving was enormous and was apparently carved over a period of 20 years by a man who was sick with leprosy. The bottom of the carving represents hell and the people in it...which mostly consisted of Henry VIII and all of his wives because they were sinners. Their arms were twisted backwards because they had to hold the weight of the world on their shoulders for sinning during their time on earth. Above them were demons holding fruits that were native to the area...including grapes, oranges, etc. Above them were babies whose arms were also twisted backwards. Apparently these babies were born and died before they had a chance to be baptized so they were stuck in percatory (sp?). Above them were depictions of San Blas himself, the patron saint of ear, nose and throat. His feast day is February 3 where you can go to the churches and be blessed with crossed candlesticks to cure ailments of the ear, nose and throat. Higher up were doctors of the church...I forget who exactly and Jesus was depicted at the very top. Most disturbing was a skull next to Jesus´ feet...I asked Maria about this and she explained that the Virgin of Good Success (whoever that is) appeared to the artist every night to motivate him to keep up his carvings on this piece...and when he was almost done he realized just how much money he could make from this and had agreed to sell it for a certain amount of money...that night he fell off the top of the carving to his death and his skull was placed at Jesus´ feet...what a lovely story huh? The Catholics are pretty morbid...
The alter was doused in 22k gold and had the Virgin of Good Success who looked like every other depiction of the Virgin Mary to me...along with San Blas. There were paintings all around the church that were depictions of different periods in San Blas´ life. Finally at the back of the church, Maria showed me a painting that was used to sway the Incas into Catholicism. She explained that originally this church was a temple for the Inca god of lightning...but when the Spaniards invaded Cuzco they forced the Incas into believing in Catholicism and some creative artists painted these pictures of the Virgin Mary and Jesus sitting on top of a moon with coca leaves in the background...it was basically a hidden message that the Spaniards didn´t even catch onto...
After my visit to the church and paying off all the children outside because they were ´so hungry´, now how could you say no to that? We ventured up the longest staircase I have ever seen en route to Sacsaywaman (aka sexy woman). We had to keep asking school children and their parents if we were going the right way and sure enough we were...dios mio, so many steps! The views of Cuzco and the surrounding hillsides were amazing though from that height...When we got to the top there was a small store, thankfully so we could get some agua mineral...and then a super store with only products made from paca, baby pacas and llamas. Sweaters, hats, gloves, scarves, rugs, bedspreads...you name it. And all woven from these poor animals. I tried to ask the sales woman in Spanish if the animals were hurt in the process and she assured me they weren´t, but seems hard to believe...anyway, we tried on some hats and took some photos but left without purchasing anything. Prices were muy caro anyway (too expensive).
We continued our trek to sexy woman and ended up at this huge Jesus statue on the hillside which was pretty cool. At first it was just us and a handful of European tourists who we were chatting with, and then suddenly three tour buses stopped off and the site was overcome with people...we continued on to Sacsaywaman which was good practice for our upcoming trek...The name translates to ¨Satisfied Falcon¨and basically served as a fort during the Spanish conquest. It dates back to 1536 and only about 20% of the structure remains...the stones fit together perfectly, it was built by the Incas but the Spaniards eventually overtook them and stole many of the rocks to use to build their own homes in Cuzco. Most of the Incan forces were killed although the leader, Manco Inca survived. The dead were eaten by carrion-eating Andean condors which is why they include eight condors in Cuzco´s coat of arms...there´s a fun fact for you!
We actually decided not to go in because they charged the equivalent of $35 USD. I guess we´re cheap. We headed down a winding path and stumbled upon another market...the first booth we approached sold Choclo con queso which is apparently one of the traditional foods in Cuzco...it´s a certain type of corn, boiled and served with a huge chunk of cheese...it sounds kinda strange but it was delicious. Andy also bought a wool hat from this woman that she had to mend on the spot...a young pit bull also approached us while we were eating and as many of the dogs around here look rabid, I decided to keep him on my good side and shared my comida.
This only brings us to about 3 pm today but I have to run...tonight we are meeting up with our group at the hotel and we need to pack up our stuff for the rest of the week. Tomorrow we are headed with the group to the Sacred Valley and then onto Machu Picchu on Wednesday...
I´m so glad I finally got to experience Cuzco, it was miserable acclimating to this altitude but I think I am finally there...more later!
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