Time
for more hiking, so we headed for Pisac (or Pisaq), around half an
hour away from Cusco, crammed into a combi (a van) that
wouldn't set off until all seats were taken. This is a common system
in Peru.
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| views from the combi on our way to Pisac |
Pisac
is divided into two parts: the tiny colonialist village, down in a
valley, and the Inca site, a former royal estate, up on a hill. We
first walked around the village and approached the main square,
well-known for its vivacious outdoor market. It is the only touristic
attraction, along with the archeological site. It is a shame that
polluting tour operator buses have to invade its main street and
square (rather small for the big buses), breaking the locals'
harmony, to drop off lazy tourists right there instead of them
walking from the entrance of the village, which only takes 2 minutes!
The
ruins are 5 km (3.1 miles) away uphill, so we decided to take a taxi
– after bargaining hard for a while - and then hike back down
through the footpaths. We thought we would only see some ruins (not
without good reason) but we didn't expect the landscape to be so
great as a whole. The site is not very big and the ruins are
scattered around in between the hills and terraces that overlook the
valleys. Though a bit dizzying sometimes, having to walk paths and
climb up steps by the precipice, it was a pleasure to descend with
such spectacular views, turning more breathtaking at every step and
enjoying background music played by some local flautists. The best
thing about it was us being the only ones doing it (thanks to those
lazy tourists).
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hiking dowm. Q'allaqasa, the citadel, in close-up
and Pisac in the background |
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| Intihuatana, the Temple of the Sun |
Once
back in town after hours of delight, we had lunch in a small but
cozy, local restaurant. A typical Peruvian dish (and expensive) is
cuy, that's to say, Guinea pig. They served it fresh in
this place. They were so fresh that they even had many of these
inocent lovable rodents still alive in a kind of farm, with a castle,
paths and everything. Such a cruel ending...Of course we didn't try
it. As the experience seemed to be all about animals, a feral female
dog in heat came in through the open doorway and hid by our table,
trying to hide from several desperate randy dogs, also feral, which
followed her in from the street...What a romantic lunch!
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| cuys |
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| chicha |
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| woman baking small pasties |
We
had to be back in Cusco by 19.30 because we were going to be
instructed by a guide for the trip to Macchu Pichu in two days' time:
how the trip was going to be, the roads, things included...But we'll
cross that bridge when we come to it.
We
were starving so we went to fill our bellies at a charming restaurant
near our place that we happily discovered days before. Again we had
one of the heavenly soups, sopa criolla. We were becoming big
fans of the Peruvian gastronomy! We spent the rest of the dinner
crying with laughter over a squatter prairie dog (sorry, only few
people will understand this) that lived in our hostel...
Time
to sleep. More hiking the following day!
I understand the prairie dog thing XDDDDDD
ResponderEliminarNice pictures!