Cusco , a city I have heard so much about. Some said it is very touristic and over-rated but others gave great feedback. I can see that it is a beautiful city and I am truly enjoying my stay here. We got here after a long long bus ride from Puno. The original bus-ride was supposed to be 7 hours long, but then it was 11 then 15 and then 20 hours long. There was a strike going on and due to that we could not take the regular route and besides, the public buses would not even run. So, we took a private bus to use different route to get to Cusco. We had several obstacles, some were human chains, some were with tree logs, some were actual mud walls and several of them were big rocks laid down on the roads by the locals. We had to get down from the bus, join the locals and walk with them to their main square. We had to even paint on our bus window that the strike should live long and that we supported the strike. Our bus had to be empty several times, we had the locals finally helping us digging the mud walls but it took us good 4-5 hours and then again another barricade. It was not a fun experience at all, people are fighting for their rights, that is understood but what did we, the travellers do?????? Anyway, we finally had to cross a wooden bridge with our luggage on foot and the bridge was almost half broken, it was 3 am in the morning and next day we saw the picture of that bridge on the newspaper. It was scary, cold and not pleasant at all. I could barely carry my luggage myself, my back was killing me. So, Loui helped me carrying mine, he was one of the team members, nice guy from England but his parents are originated from Egypt, he is a physiotherapist by profession, was traveling with his friend Anna. I owe him big time for that favor he did, probably I will buy him a drink later.
The getting there part was a huge experience for all of us, but then we are finally in Cusco and safe!
On our first day in Cusco, we had a great brunch at Jack´s near the main square as we all missed breakfast that morning. The food was great, thanks to Manuel our new team leader. He suggested us the place in the main square. To get there was a mission as there was some festival going on and it was very crowded everywhere. We also went for a nice dinner and went out dancing in a club which had very random music but good catchy ones to dance though. I had a blast in dancing and it was a great night out, we stayed until 4 am! Next day, we were leaving for Sacred Valley.
I did lot of walking around after coming back to Cusco from Sacred Valley. I did some major damages as I bought some nice and fine silver jewellery for my family and for myself. I spent a lot of money that I totally did not plan for, but then I felt good to do some shopping after all I cannot deny the fact that I love shopping! I almost forgot to have food for lunch. Manuel suggested a good place for dinner, so I went to that place, called Trotamundos (means Globe Trotter, cool, isn´t it!), it was very good food, I had a beef skewer, it was a bit pricy but great though. I took a taxi to the main square and got back the same way. I have been enjoying people watching in Cusco, having all time for myself really was a good idea. You know, the team thing after some time gets you pretty bad and you want to get some space for yourself. So I was really enjoying my own time and space in Cusco. It is an easy city to spend time with yourself.
The following day I took a horse back riding tour which included some snack and a tour to four different archeological sites and it also included some hiking, walking and scrolling through few interesting caves. I met a bunch of American tourists and a guy from London. It was a nice group, we had lots of good conversation and the horses were amazing. My horse was a smart one, his name was Wizmer and he would not follow others, he would like to go first. Well, he was a great horse to ride on and I thoroughly enjoyed my time with him. Sometimes I think, if I had a pet, I could get a horse, may be. I have enjoyed my first horse riding in this trip in Bariloche, Argentina and I loved my horse then, his name was Ishpita (not sure if I mention it in my post for Bariloche!!!).
I went for dinner to the main square but it was so crowded that I could not get through with my taxi, so walked down for some distance but I could barely pass the crowd. So, I was almost determined to be back to the hotel. Then I saw this really nice looking restaurant and the crowd inside looked quite upscale. I was a bit hesitant first, but then I went in and took a table. The food and the service was simply amazing, probably the best meal and the best service I have got so far in the entire South America during my 2.5 month trip. It was a bit pricy but definitely very classy, the name of the place is Tupananchis. I would suggest it to friends for fine dining in Cusco. I had no money left with me after the pricy dinner, so I walked back to the hotel, it was almost 11 pm but the streets were not empty and I felt quite safe walking back on my own.
June 24th was a big day for the Inca people as it was their festival of the Sun called Inti Rymi. I was not sure when the ceremony was supposed to start in the main square, but I happened to walk there at the very time when it was being started. I captured some great shots of the ceremony and I was so happy to see it all without any kind of planning. The colorful custumes, the dances, the offerings and the entire crowd - oh, it was quite a grand experience! I managed to get a great spot for viewing the ceremony and to take all the pictures that I captured. There was this security guard of one store, he put a stool for me at the door of the store and allowed me to stand on that so that I could see everything, over the people and take pictures as much as I wanted. The place must have had a million people, at least that is how it seemed to me!
Today is my 4th day in Cusco and I was thinking of doing some pampering again after Sucre, Bolivia. I was thinking of a massage or a body treatment, but somehow it did not happen. Almost everything was closed for the Cusco day. I would still like to do a massage and straighten my hair on the last day in Cusco. Manuel and I had to go back to Ollantaytambo and stay overnight to catch the train to Aguas Caliantes for going to Machu Pichu for visiting and to meet the rest of the team after their Inca-trail.
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