It feels somewhat decadent to sleep in this morning until 7:00 a.m. WooHoo! I wake up at 7:00 only because there are fireworks going off very close to our hotel. So much for church bells. This is the way the local churches let parishioners knows that the mass on Easter Sunday is about to start.
Our guide Renaldi lives in Cusco, and has been away from 1 year old son since the start of this trip in Lima. Happy to be home now, he will collect us at 9:00 am for a walking tour of the city in the morning and the afternoon is free.
I drop off laundry at 8:30 a.m. , but first I must negotiate the narrow street. Fortunately it isn't too busy.
I have only packed 1 pair of long pants and have worn them or a couple of days as we have traveled to higher elevations where it has been cooler. We will be at higher elevations for three more days and the rainy season is not quite finished. This is the last chance I will have to get the pants and other laundry washed and dried before we leave.
I have only packed 1 pair of long pants and have worn them or a couple of days as we have traveled to higher elevations where it has been cooler. We will be at higher elevations for three more days and the rainy season is not quite finished. This is the last chance I will have to get the pants and other laundry washed and dried before we leave.
It's Easter Sunday, but the laundry is open for business. The owner assures me that the laundry will be done by 5:00 pm. I am hoping the day will be warm enough so that I can wear my knee length pants. If I pick up the laundry at 5:00, I'll have time to change into the long pants before dark when it will be cold.
Our group meets, and we walk to the area that is the Inka street outside the remains of the Inca King's palace, now the walls of a church and convent...the irony of it all.
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| Reny points out the Inca construction perfection. |
The Catholics tried to destroy the Inca walls, but they are so strong and built with such long lasting precision, that the remaining walls have been incorporated into the Catholic Church. Since Easter Masses will end around noon, the Convent that was once the Temple of the Sun God will not open until 2:00 pm.
We marvel at the wall construction and the amount of craftsmanship and labor that must have been involved. The Andes to the Sea areas of South America (Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia, Argentina, and Chili) were all a part of the Inca Empire in the early 1500's. The term Inca really referred the King and government. The upper class administrators of the military and government lived in Cusco, and the finest artisans were brought here to build the palace and the city.
Before the Spanish invasion and destruction of the Empire in 1520, the empire consisted of numerous indigenous tribes that had been become a part of the empire either through peaceful assimilation or conquest, but they still referred to their own tribal name. (Similar to Californians belonging to the United States of America). It is estimated that at the height of the Inca Empire, there were 13-30 million people!
After touring the main squares and streets, photographing people enjoying Easter morning in their church finery and sitting in the park,
we went to the local market and took notice of the special Easter breads and pastries, large round loaves and flat breads with colorful sprinkles and the little pig who wanted to go wee wee all the way home, but didn't make it.
The breads were a bit suspicious in terms of cleanliness, but this was over the top and I could barely eat meat the rest of the trip.
we went to the local market and took notice of the special Easter breads and pastries, large round loaves and flat breads with colorful sprinkles and the little pig who wanted to go wee wee all the way home, but didn't make it.
The breads were a bit suspicious in terms of cleanliness, but this was over the top and I could barely eat meat the rest of the trip.
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| Easter Guinea Pig anyone? |
After our guided walking tour, we were on our own the rest of the day. Russ and I stopped in a little cafe for lunch, meandered through the city streets, visited the Temple of the Sun God, and the handcraft market before returning to our hotel for a rest. Russ is still not up to his usual energy level.
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| Russ oblivious to Street Vendor |
So while he rested, I attempted to walk to the laundry and met up with part of our group who had just returned at 5:00 empty handed. Clothes were not ready. Come back in and hour they were told. I went down to the laundry at 6:00 pm, and the clothes were still not ready please come back at 6:30. I think the family was celebrating Easter and didn't get back in time to have the clothes ready. No worries. We picked up our clothes at 7:45 on our way to dinner. I was a bit chilly on the legs, but we weren''t walking far, so it really didn't matter.
We returned to the hotel after dinner, and discovered that the socks were still damp, but the rest was nicely folded. I picked up the stack and laid it in the suitcase, and hung the socks on our radiator type heater. The room was nice and toasty, and we retired for the evening. Tomorrow, we leave at 9:00 with the same quick pack into the bus, and head to Olliantyotambo with some interesting archeological stops along the way.
All is Well With the Worrall Travel R's in the Highlands of Peru
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