About the time you're pretty sure you've seen most of what the Sacred Valley has to offer, more will be revealed. For instance, today the group began by visiting Convento de Santo Domingo located on Santo Domingo Square in Cusco. Like so many other places in the Sacred Valley, the church and convent of Santo Domingo hold an intriguing history. But, as in all things in this area, the story begins with the Incas and their Sun God ... and even prior cultures.
Possibly the most important and sacred building in the entire Inca Empire, Koricancha was the name given to the Inca Temple of the Sun. When the Spanish conquerors arrived in Cusco, the temple was demolished and all the valuable contents taken (as in Gold). Both the church and Dominican Convent structures sit on top of the original Koricancha foundations, but inside many of the original temple buildings remain. Another site I consulted said the Catholic temple had been erected on the same temple as the Inca, to demonstrate the destruction and suppression of the ancient Incan "cult."
Original Incan stonework.
Korikancha (kori meaning gold) and kancha (meaning open ground or space) was dedicated to the worship of the Sun God: Inti. Ancient chronicles describe Korikancha's walls as being lined with solid gold sheets that reflected the sun, life size llamas made of gold, and other gold and silver objects. There's much more to read on this, if you're interested. Google can get you up to speed. BTW, there are several spellings of Korikancha: Coricancha, Koricancha, Qoricancha or Qorikancha.
Only part of the ancient curved wall (above) can be seen from outside.
After the fall of Cusco to the Spanish, the riches of Koricancha were plundered, and the Spanish were keen on removing all traces of the Incans, and replacing their temple with a Catholic Church and Convent. In 1534 the Order of Santo Domingo arrived in Cusco and within a few years the church and convent were begun.
Altogether a marvelous edifice, no matter which way you look at it.
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We laughed at the pronunciation of Sacsayhuaman -- sounds like "Sexy Woman!"
After Santo Domingo, the group went on a field trip to the Sacsayhuaman Ruins. The bus ride alone up to the ruins was outstanding, but then ... then we're faced with this extensive grassy area with huge boulders placed systematically, and what to make of it? A citadel located on a steep hill overlooking the city at 12,142', with the earliest occupation dating to about 900 AD -- wow, another marvel.
I'll simply have to quote from our Road Scholar information: "The fortress of Sacsayhuaman forms the head of the Puma design of old Cusco. It's a wonder of technical achievement and a testament to human will. How it was constructed is a mystery since the stones aren't found in the region and most of the blocks weigh more than a ton. The largest rock weighs more than 300 tons! Sacsayhuaman is constructed of huge polygonal blocks which interlock with one another. These stones are so precisely placed that a knife blade cannot be inserted between them." There. Just look at these pictures. How does this come to be, we all wondered. And we have no answers.
The walls are angled.
I climbed stone steps on the opposite side, another site of ruins, to get the photos, above and below, and labored climbing the steep steps. One more time I can't grasp the hows and whys of what I'm seeing. I'm sure I'm not alone on this.
What a gorgeous day we had for this outing.
L-R: Ellen, Pauline, Mary Ellen, me, Debbie, Caroline, Linda, Sharon, Kari and Mary D.
So, what's a girl to do when she's overwhelmed by what she's seeing? Form a chorus line! We tried to coordinate our "kick" to the right, but (haha) that didn't work, so here we are on a warm, sunny day in Cusco, enjoying our Road Scholar trip to The Best of Peru.
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Returning to Cusco, we wandered around some and stopped in at the Inka Museum.
Everywhere we go, we learn more and more and more.
If only one could retain it all!
Cusco's narrow streets!
Lunch was at Incanto. My entree was the fish (below), but I didn't favor the green sauce on my potato. I like almost all of the food at the restaurants we frequent. Peruvian food is tasty and flavorful, but not spicy hot. And some variety of potato is served per meal in a one of a million different ways!
Jimmy in front of the Casa Andina Hotel where we're staying in Cusco.
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This evening's lecture wasn't a lecture in the true sense of the word, but more of an entertainment, showcasing Inca instruments. Most were replicas (some of them 100-200 years old, as opposed to 500 or a thousand years old), and "Tito" could and did play each one. We gave Gustavo "Tito" Leon, a university professor, a double thumbs up.
Fascinating instruments.
Top left is a guitar with armadillo hide, and top right is a "feather flute."
Bottom right and left could be played, too, but I don't remember their names.
Nighttime in Cusco glows warmly.
After the musical "lecture," we walked to our dinner venue: La Feria.
Salt and Pepper shakers. Cute.
Before our dinners were served, Elias, our guide, ushered us into a back room where we could play a game called Sapo. Each person gets ten "coins," to throw toward the frog's mouth (top of the table, left pic), and if the coin went in, that would be a BIG winner. None of us threw into the frog's mouth, but some came close. Various scores are achieved if a coin makes it into another hole (top). I did okay, but Pauline was the big winner with a score of 2200 (it was also her birthday!). Nice diversion to pass the time till dinnertime. Fun competition, and the Sexy Woman were the winners.
Yum!
We had a wonderful dinner. One or two of our group ordered the roasted guinea pig ("Cuy"). Jimmy and I tried a piece, but didn't much care for the taste ... or maybe it was because we were eating guinea pig! So ended another very full day, chock-a-block filled with all things Peru.
This would be our last day in the Sacred Valley. Tomorrow we fly to the Galapagos Islands for a whole new and different kind of adventure! From the mountains to the seashore; awesome to sublime, literally. I'm really looking forward to the second half of our journey.
