Anyway, where were we...ah, right, Greg and I were wrapping up the first leg of the trip in Lima and about to fly out to Cusco....
Denver, Colorado is 5,690 feet above sea level at its highest point and considered one of the highest major cities in the U.S. A few years ago when I visited Breckenridge, a ski town outside of Denver that sits at 9,600 feet, I suffered altitude sickness with headaches, vomiting and overall discomfort.
Cusco, Peru, where we flew to on Monday nearly doubles the altitude of Denver at approximately 11,156 feet. So, according to my calculations, I'm fucked! Both Greg and I procured some altitude pills in Lima and have been popping those every 6-8hrs, so we shall see.
Our flight was at 10am and we landed in Cusco around 11:15am. We checked into our hacienda style hotel in the heart of town and sorted out our Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu tour for Wednesday and Thursday. Once we were set, we headed out to explore Cusco.
Flight 809 from Lima to Cusco.
Cusco from above.
A guy at the baggage claim area had a sign with my name on it...I'm a big deal in Cusco.
Greg outside of Hotel Marqueses, our humble abode while in Cusco.
It was a traditional Spanish style hotel with a cobble stone patio and the rooms around the outside.
Cusco was the capital of the Incan civilization for over two centuries (1400s, 1500s and some 1600s) and served as the dynasty's administrative, religious and military hub. It sits in the heart of the Sacred Valley making it the ideal central location for Incas from all over the region to meet, trade, and worship. It continues to serve as a cultural thoroughfare today as travelers from all over Peru, South America and the world come to experience the Incan homeland.
By far the most beautiful aspect of Cusco is its 16th and 17th century architecture. From the main cathedral to the museums to the plazas, they are all so big, sturdy and beautifully designed. In fact, in the 1600s the Spanish arrived and built a wide variety of their own structures along side or on top of the existing Incan buildings, but in the earthquake of 1650 most of the Spanish buildings were heavily damaged while the Incan foundations remained in tact.
For some reason, Irish pubs are a universal concept in cities around the world. No matter what city - big or small - you visit, you're guaranteed to find a pub with the name O'Malley's, O'Brian's, Malloy's, etc. They may not be the most authentic, but they serve cold beer and traditional tasty bar food. With that said we bounced into one of Cusco's Irish joints called Paddy's Pub (unfortunately Dennis, Mac and Charlie weren't working). We were going for a drink, but found ourselves in the midst of a crowd of soccer fans watching Champions League matches...perfect.
Once the final whistle blew, we were back to the streets to continue our Cusco exploration. We popped in and out of shops, all of which were selling pretty much the same souvenir trinkets.
Night time rolled around and we ventured out to find a dinner spot and perhaps some extra curricular activities. We stumbled upon a cozy back-alley place called Kushka...Fe. It had seven tables and a small bar and the menu was predominantly traditional Peruvian, which is exactly what we were looking for.
After dinner we jumped back to Paddy's for drinks - Cusco is small, so everything is within walking distance. Paddy's was lively with patrons including a group fresh off a four-day Inca Trail hike. We made friends with them pretty quickly as they were eager to share their hiking battle stories with anyone willing to listen. The group included Irish, English, Aussies, and Canadians - pretty much every English country except the U.S. - so we rounded out the bunch. After some beer boat races, lots of laughs, and exchanging of email addresses, we shut the bar down and went our separate ways.
By far the most beautiful aspect of Cusco is its 16th and 17th century architecture. From the main cathedral to the museums to the plazas, they are all so big, sturdy and beautifully designed. In fact, in the 1600s the Spanish arrived and built a wide variety of their own structures along side or on top of the existing Incan buildings, but in the earthquake of 1650 most of the Spanish buildings were heavily damaged while the Incan foundations remained in tact.
The Cusco Cathedral is at the center of town on the east side of the main plaza, Plaza de Armas.
The Cathedral was renovated from 1997-2002.
The Cathedral pays tribute to Renaissance on the outside and Baroque on the inside.
A view of Plaza de Armas which is the main square in Cusco.
Like Lima, Cusco is filled with color all over the city; Greg also adds a bit of color to any city he visits.
For some reason, Irish pubs are a universal concept in cities around the world. No matter what city - big or small - you visit, you're guaranteed to find a pub with the name O'Malley's, O'Brian's, Malloy's, etc. They may not be the most authentic, but they serve cold beer and traditional tasty bar food. With that said we bounced into one of Cusco's Irish joints called Paddy's Pub (unfortunately Dennis, Mac and Charlie weren't working). We were going for a drink, but found ourselves in the midst of a crowd of soccer fans watching Champions League matches...perfect.
Paddy's Pub touts itself as the highest Irish-owned pub in the world.
Footie watching at Paddy's; it was really cool because there were fans from all over the world there watching and cheering on their teams, it was kind of a mini World Cup vibe.
Once the final whistle blew, we were back to the streets to continue our Cusco exploration. We popped in and out of shops, all of which were selling pretty much the same souvenir trinkets.
Night time rolled around and we ventured out to find a dinner spot and perhaps some extra curricular activities. We stumbled upon a cozy back-alley place called Kushka...Fe. It had seven tables and a small bar and the menu was predominantly traditional Peruvian, which is exactly what we were looking for.
Cusco at night; houses line the surrounding mountains making for a beautiful night time view.
The streets of Cusco are mostly cobble stone giving it that colonial look and feel.
On our hunt for dinner we came across a Cusco food truck, but opted to skip it this time.
Greg went with the Pollo Saltado, which is a stir fry of meat, onions, rice, potatoes, and more.
I went with Alpaca steak in a stroganoff-style mushroom sauce.
Kushka...Fe was a great find in the back streets of Cusco and filled us up.
After dinner we jumped back to Paddy's for drinks - Cusco is small, so everything is within walking distance. Paddy's was lively with patrons including a group fresh off a four-day Inca Trail hike. We made friends with them pretty quickly as they were eager to share their hiking battle stories with anyone willing to listen. The group included Irish, English, Aussies, and Canadians - pretty much every English country except the U.S. - so we rounded out the bunch. After some beer boat races, lots of laughs, and exchanging of email addresses, we shut the bar down and went our separate ways.
The Paddy's Pub group.
On Wednesday we hit the trails on a 3-day, 2-night Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu tour. It's time to get out our hiking shoes and walking sticks and see just how out of shape we are.
