Cuzco, Qenko, Sacsayhuaman
We arrived in Cuzco (3300 meters or 10900 feet) on December 8th and left for our trek on the 9th. We returned to Cuzco on the night of the 17th and left for Puno on the 19th, before returning to Cuzco on the 21st. All our nights in Cuzco were spent in Hostel Marani. Although Marani is more expensive than a dormitory style hostel, we all thought it was excellent value. We visited some Cuzco museums and these were generally a let down. Even the Inca museum wasn't very good and the only exhibit they have worth the 10 sole admission fee is the mummy display. We have no photographs on the museums because they did not allow photography.
While in Cuzco, we visited the Inca ruins at Qenko and Sacsayhuaman, both of which are within walking distance of Cuzco. We thought these smaller ruins would be a anti-climax after visiting the grander sites at Machu Picchu and Choquequirao, but we were pleasantly proven wrong.
City
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| Date added: 29 Dec 2004
Cuzco is a pleasant pedestrian city and we had a good time walking around. We found the cheapest alpaca products in the San Pedro market, which is next to the train station with trains arriving from Machu Picchu. There's a wholesaler-like store just outside that we got really nice and cheap alpaca products. We had many excellent breakfasts and snacks from a cafe called El Buen Pastor near San Blas; I can't recommend it highly enough for its great empanadas and hot chocolate.
Qenko
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| Date added: 29 Dec 2004
We visited the Inca ruins at Qenko and the nearby site of Sacsayhuaman on our last full day in Cuzco. We took a short taxi ride to Qenko and walked back to the city through Sacsayhuaman. Qenko apparently means 'zigzag'. The name probably comes from the zigzag channels in the site. This site is unusual in that it has a cave with altars carved from the rock.
Sacsayhuaman
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| Date added: 29 Dec 2004
Sacsayhuaman is a short 10 minute walk from Qenko and even though only about a fifth of the original structure is left, it is still an extensive site with many Inca structures. The most striking feature is the zigzagging fortifications constructed from large stone blocks. There are fine representations of a llama, a snake, and a puma paw arranged from the stones within the fortification walls.