I struggled to not just focus on Machu Picchu because although it is beautiful and complete the other ruins have a lot to them...
This one is Tipon:
Tipon has one of the oldest functioning irrigation systems, it still funds the town below, also by the name of Tipon.
There are U-square shaped channels that run from the mountain to the the bottom, I followed one as far as I could go. I think it ended a spring but I didn't find it.
Looking back down
Sitting close to the bottom
Saqsaywaman is a ruin at the north end of Cusco limits, that you can walk to in about an hour from the Plaza de Armas.
It was a fortress/temple that staged on of the more important battles between Pizarro and the Spaniards against the Incans, the Incans came close to winning here.
The stones used in construction were massive. Supposedly a gigantic tower sat here, there were two total.
Cubby Holes
Just north of this one was a couple more minor ruins Q'enko and Tambochay. The first was a temple and the later used predominately for irrigation.
Big rock typically worshiped at Q'enko
Unquaried stone? I like the way it looked...this was Q'enko again
Fountains at Tambochay....the framing is off because of the touristies hogging up my space.
Tambochay looking back towards the valley. To the left was a sort of fountain I believe or a vantage point.
Chinchero was a temple site where the Spaniards built a Church directly over and also contains one of my favorite pictures...
As a photographing hobbyist one of my favorite spots for pursuing the art was in the town of Cusco itself, the cultural differences had me turned around for a couple days. With children they sort of remind me of America in the 50's even though I wasn't alive, and by that I mean that African saying 'it takes a village to raise a child' in that people look out for the kids. They were playing all the time in public spaces, seemingly unwatched although you would notice parents in the distance.
Driving is another and altogether separate issue, the smog was a killer...a lot of older buses. The air was thin to begin with so trying to breathe on the first couple nights was tough. The scent of diesel was burned in my nostrils for a while after that. They have traffic lights, signs, cops, and markings but none of this seems to dissuade drivers from pretty much doing whatever they want. Everything flows towards one seeming disaster after another with the grace of taking coffee. People pull out in front of other people, cut into other lanes and beep at pedestrians trying to cross the street.
Below are some photos...
Looking at Cusco from the North...that square in the middle is the Plaza de Armas, the tourist area and main square, which looks like this:
The Band Stuck up a chord
New construction
Kind of a 'rebuild the community' deal....I think.
That kid was friggin' cute
This lady charged me a dollar for this picture
These were worst polluters.
..soo many people...packed...like this many people:
Taxi Driver, this was actually in one of the surrounding towns...
Then there were the kids:
he had a key in his hand
And dogs:
And storefronts (some abandoned):
And the scariest manikin even, the thing had teeth:
And signs:
And statues:
And food:
This was an authentic Pervuian dish, a creole style shredded chicken...
This was called a Pisco Sour...a sort of Wiskey Sour with a type of Peruvian brandy.
One of the best glasses of wine I have had.
And withered hands:
And kittens:
Who doesn't like kittens?
The Prototypical Shot of Machu Picchu
To be honest, I thought that Machu Picchu was a bit over romanticized before I went. A gigantic, beautiful tourist trap, and it is that, but it is for a reason. It is one of the most complete examples of Incan way of life...and it is kind of mind blowing.
Map courtesy of http://www.machupicchu.org/machu_picchu_sanctuary_map.htm
This one is my favorite for a sense of scale, that red speck is a lady inspecting the ruins.
This is the Temple of the Sun or number 3 on the map...below is the Urubamba River...
View from below, I really liked the curved face
It was foggy the day I took this, but had the fog not been there this would have shown the exact outline of the mountain behind it.
Looking back towards the agricultural terraces and off to the right is part of the quarry.
Part of the Prisoner's Quarters, that long winding road behind it in the distance is the road the bus I rode in on played chicken with all the other buses coming the other way. It was a 1.5 lane road. This was after the 4 hour train/bus ride to the city below. (Agua Calientes...hot water)
Industrial Sector Building...it was two stories...
The Main Temple
Did I mention it was raining? Like straight down pour for a straight hour? Ha.
Last but not least I have a video
One of my more brilliant and stupid maneuvers was to rent a motorbike and take a stroll through Peruvian countryside which was absolutely beautiful...below are some encounters...
It should be noted that while meandering through the countryside you may encounter: dogs that chase after you, police checks where the officer does not speak a lick of English, and finally, rain.
This last shot is the shot known as the 'shot that cost me 45 dollars' because behind me my hog fell down and broke the mirror that I later had to pay for...
(so say you like that one the best)
I didn't want yammer on about my trip and I wanted to surprise the Xangan public...so here you go. The first of many posts on Cusco, Peru and the surrounding Incan defunct empire.
This is a picture of Pisac the town, looking at from Pisac...the Incan Ruin noted for its agricultural terraces.
The entrance to the right leads down a cliffside path to a couple temples that look like this:
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