Today started well. The altitude sickness is gone and I have a new room at the same hotel with a much better Wi-Fi connection and location. The breakfast buffet was nice, had pancakes with local honey and lots of coffee. After breakfast, I relaxed a bit in my room to let the weather warm up outside ( the temperature ranges between 30s in the morning to the 60s in the afternoon). At around 11:00 I decided to get out and start my Cusco adventure. First off Cusco is very safe during daylight hours, after dark well it depends where you are. A block away from my hotel was this amazing market where everything is sold. Things I have never seen in my life, foods, vegetables, meats, spices, clothes, just name it and it is there! There is a food court, but I wouldn't dare touch anything there as hygiene is a big concern! Food just sits there in the open, that's how some tourists get sick from food!!!
Cusco is an amazing place, fascinating and takes people back in time.. Some of the sights reminded me of my childhood! There is no way I can do justice to Cusco trying to describe it in words it is just simply AWESOME!!
Enjoy the pictures....
A church in a plaza near my hotel
Spices sold in the covered market of San Pedro
The flower section
The food court where you see food containers just wide open! Did not see any tourist venture there!!
One of many little plazas in Cusco
A church on a square
Another church on a square
Nice buildings with arched walkways around a nice square
A nice water fountain in a square with plenty of cafes and restaurants
A cobble stone street in Cusco
Another old looking building in a square
Another small square with a nice fountain
Two native women posed for a picture, their colorful dresses reminded me so much of Berber women in the Atlas Mountains !!!!
At the end of my first day in Cusco, I am exhausted both from walking and the effect of altitude. I am also glad that I am not finished with Cusco, I will be back on Thursday night from Machu Picchu and will spend another three days here, one of them with nothing planned so I can explore the city more. There is so much to do here and today I just scratched the surface. I will be off bright an early tomorrow for Aguas Calientes where I will spend the night before going up to Machu Picchu on Thursday and if all goes well I will climb Wayna Picchu, the highest peak on the site and take some amazing pictures of Machu Picchu proper and the surrounding Andes mountains!!!
