Tambomachay Elevation: 3,700 m [12,139 ft]

This was our second day in the Cusco area to help us acclimate to the higher altitudes before we started the main hike. And it turns out, a short hike up hill to the Tambomachay ruins was a good test to ensure that we all would be OK over the next several high altitude days.

We started out driving just out of town (took forever - a big festival was going on with some streets closed off and a lot of people enjoying themselves everywhere) to visit some of the local Inca ruins. We started with Sacsayhuaman - the walled fortress. It sits on a hillside overlooking Cusco. We were able to observe up close the amazing stone craftsmanship where massive stones (up to 9 m [29.5 ft] tall with the foundation stones coming from a quarry 15 km [9.3 miles]) fit perfectly together. They even included drain channels through the stonework for water.

Next stop was aways up the mountain side at Tambomachay which included a short, at times steep hike up a road - good training. This structure provided water to the nearby sites and also included Inca baths through the masterful stone canals even 600 years after they were built.

Heading back down we stopped at nearby Qenqo (labyrinth), another Cusco temple. Unfortunately the Spanish tore down many of the stone structures at this sight to use for their own building materials. But the large stone ‘amphitheater’ structure remains along with some underground tunnels and altars. While the site was likely built before the Incas, it was used extensively by the Incas for ritualistic sacrifices and other ceremonies.

On the way back down to Cusco we stopped by an Alpaca farm where we were able to see a wide variety of the animals. They of course were happy to accept our food for them. I almost forgot to mention that young Alpacas were seen in town. Our hotel in fact had several local ladies with a couple of children in full garb accompanied by baby Alpacas in one of its courtyards to all our delight.

Once back in town, literally next door to our hotel, we were able to visit the remains of the Oricancha (Inca Temple) and the Church of Santo Domingo (Basilica de la Catedral, Cusco Cathedral) which had been built on top of it. Again the base stonework of the church and many of the surrounding buildings were the original Inca perfect stone work. Unfortunately the Spanish were intent on replacing the local religions with Christianity so it was common for the Spaniards to tear down temples and construct beautiful and ornate churches in their place.

We were able to visit the church but no pictures were allowed. To say that it was ornate can not start to capture the feel of the place - the detail, extravagance, and riches were amazing. Luckily some of the original temple structure was still found so we were able to visit that. One interesting things is how the Incas lined up windows and other features to match perfectly with the winter and summer solstices. The last picture on this page shows how several windows were perfectly lined up and the summer solstice sun could go through all of them at the same time.

While I did not take a lot of pictures on this day, the links I supply have some very good photos to complement the photos I am including.