Cusco, Peru

view from the city from atop a hill

Next stop on the Laura and Vandria adventure tour was Cusco, Peru. Cusco is an obligatory stop before Machu Picchu in order to acclimate to the altitude- the town is at 3,300m (10,800 ft). Trust me you can tell the difference! Laura and I spent a day wandering around town and immediately noticed our shortness of breath when we attempted to climb a small hill to look at the city from an aerial view.

Despite the obligation- I am SO glad we came to Cusco. It is such an adorable city with such a Latin American feel to it.  I loved how the women all dressed in traditional clothing!  Some I think dress like that in order to have tourists pay for photo-ops, but many were just walking around the streets going about their normal lives.  

necessary photo opportunity

LOVE the colors!!

Everywhere we turned there were markets selling bright Incan textiles. I’m not sure if you know this about me but I LOVE markets. Well, I was in market heaven in Cusco! I could have spent hours walking around the different stands – even though the majority of them sell the same items. Here is a list of the things I purchased: llama sweater, llama socks, llama gloves, a bright colorful blanket, a purse, a coin purse and a neon beeanie. Did I mention I LOVE markets?

HEAVEN!!! modeling my new hat... it's neon so clearly I needed it!

Plaza de Armas

Cusco is filled with gorgeous plazas and so many churches, Plaza de Armas being the largest of the former and holding 3 different churches along its coordinator. We didn't understand how one small town would need so many churches. I know that Latin Americans tend to be devout Catholics- but this was bordering on a little insane. No way are there enough people to fill each church. We learned later from our Inca Trail guides that our assumptions were correct. Most of these churches are completely empty all of the time. The sad fact is they are not there because Peruvians are so religious... they were placed in town by the Spanish conquistadors to cover up Incan temples and monuments. It is so sad how such a beautiful city is a facade for such destruction on an ancient race!

Amber and I have been friends for 20 years

After our trek we spent another two nights/one day in Cusco. My childhood friend Amber surprised me at our hostel in Cusco the night I returned. I completely forgot that she and her boyfriend Ryan were currently in Peru (in the middle of a four and a half backpacking month trip through South America). Upon seeing her I immediately asked, “Wait… what are you doing here?!” She told me that Leah (who was in town about to do the trek the following week) had told her I was staying there. This response confused me even more as Amber and Leah don’t know each other. I guess Amber had seen a post on my Facebook wall from Leah saying that she would be waiting for me at our hostel. Amber then sent Leah a message explaining who she was and asking where we would be staying. Oh that wonders of Facebook! What did we ever do before it existed? It was SO great to spend a day with Amber!!

 

Team Squeezy!!

After arriving back in Cusco, we were invited the following day (Easter) to a BBQ and futbol match with our guides and their friends and families.  It was really neat to experience an authentic Peruvian celebration and something that I will not soon forget:  lying in the sun, watching the locals play soccer, while eating with my hands…love.

On our last night in Cusco we went out with friends Emily and Charlotte from our trek. We originally planned to only go out for dinner and few drinks. Well, things didn’t go as planned. We were having such a great time that we ended up deciding to continue the night at their hostel bar and then at a local nightclub, Mama Africa... who needs sleep before their 7am flight? Not Laura and I! Deciding it would be stupid to just sleep 2 hours we ended up staying out until the sun rose and then returned to our hostel to grab our bags and head immediately to the airport. Needless to say I was passed out on my flight home. Laura was heading to Europe from here. I can only imagine how hellish her flight must have been! 

Laura, Emily and I on our last night together