Cuzco aka Cusco aka Q'osco

Cusco is a city of aobut 325,000 people situated at over 11,000 feet elevation. If Denver is the mile high city, this is the two-mile high city. And the Andes mountains only go up from there. The first thing they give you when you get to Cusco is tea made from coca leaves. That's right, the plant that cocaine is extracted from. It's supposed to help with altitude sickness. More on coca later.

In this region there is a custom to top one's house with a cross (to procted it from evil) and a pair of bulls. Formerly, the size of the bulls indicated the prosperity of the house. The cross is from Catholic influce. The bulls...?


Before the Spanish conquest in 1532, the city was the capital of the Incan empire for several centuries. The Spanish destroyed and built over many Incan buildings, although the city still contains and is surrounded by Incan structures. Here is Richard in front of a wall at Sacsayhuamán, just outside the city. The joke about this place is that its name sounds like "sexy woman." You can see the Incan stones fit perfectly together. Many more pics like that to come!

In a cave underneath an Incan ruinQenqo, there was an alcove carved into the wall. Richard was very impressed with the rectilineal depression in the solid rock wall. It does seem like a particularly difficult thing to do-moreso than splitting an individual rock into two, for example. The area was presumably used for mummification and burial rites.

In the Qoricancha in Cusco, the rocks are even more perfectly fit together. The Incans never used mortar. Yet, when the city was struck by devastating earthquakes, the Spanish colonial structures were damaged, but the Incan structures were not! The Qoricancha contains temples to the stars, the rainbow, lightening, the moon, etc. However, the Incas were technically monotheistic. They believed in a supreme being named Wiracocha who created the world and the other divinities. Hey look, I'm married. ;) (Why yes, that is a gratuitous ring shot.)

The Incans were big on finding a site with a natural spring and building fountains from it. The fountains we will show have been flowing without interruption since they were built many centuries ago. This particular fountain is at Tambomachay. Legend has it that if you drink the water of this fountain, you will have twins. We tried to take a picture of us pretending to drink the water, but Richard's camera refused to cooperate. Hm.