Cusco City aka: Cuzco City

Every part of the world has a story, a history – this place is for ever eternal, you only realize what this means once you enter the city and wonder around, set out for Macchu Picchu and you will realize exactly why it was referred to as the center of the world in Inca times.

Timeless.

When in Cusco, don’t miss a visit to Qorikancha. It’s fascinating for many reasons including that the Incans considered it the center of the universe and because the Spanish literally built right on top of it.

Voy a visitar todo este sitio y mas! No puedo esperar! Ven Julio 2008!!!

I’ve been here with 19 other students from my school, 5 teachers and 2 people who recorded a part of the trip. My stay in Peru was 22 days, of which 12 in Cuzco itself. What an amazing place. Completely shocking offcourse, are the slums around the city, but the people that live there (we’ve actually been in teh sulms) are extreamely kind and helpfull. The rest of Cuzco city is beautiful. All the old Inca-temples have been destroyed, and replaced with churches, but the first floor is almost always still in Inca style. Mostly because the Inca’s buit so strong, that the buildings survive alomst every earthquake.

Finding places to eat is very simple as well, and the food is (almost) everywhere very good. Not so adventurous, try Jack’s Café. An Autralian Café with such big portions of food, that it’s hard to eat everything, but it’s the food we’re used to (Milkshakes, hamburgers). Don’t go looking for an McDonald’s, since Lima has the only one in the whole of Peru (if I understood it right when our guide told us). And off course eating in Peru isn’t expensive (for us). For 16 sol or less (4 euro’s when I was there, no idea how many dollars) you have a complete meal and drinks etcetera.

There’s lots of stuff to see:

• Saqsayhuaman: Go during the solar turn (or how it’s called) because then there’s a festivity (forgot the name….) with loads of dancing, music and teksts that are in Quechua, but that has got a charm aswell
• Lovely area to walk (guide recommended off course)
• Loads of stuff in the city itself
• And probably much much much more, since I’m no expert.

Anyway, I would go back anytime, if I had the money, and the company. If you’re doubting whether to go or not, stop and pack your bags!! It’s a true lifetime experience. I’m not this crazy about places very easily, but I’ve locked Cuzco deep in me, and still love it, eventhough it’s been almost 2 years since I’ve been there.

We had great food for $3 dollars at a little restaurant in CUS. It was a small restaurant, i forgot the name but the owners were very friendly and they had some musician who came in and played music with his charango and the wooden flute (forgot that name). then he sold his CDs to the customers for $10! it was a little crazy to buy a CD for $10 USD and pay peanuts for a great dinner that was worth more than $10 USD.

Then the next night i found a street vendor selling Alpaca grilled on a stick (anticuchos de alpaca), it was delicious, tasted like steak but just a little different. I think it was like 1.5 soles (which was like $.50 USD).