More Peru: Cusco, the Sacred Valley, and… a CONFESSION
Still more pics to share – visuals of my romp around the Sacred Valley, as well as some highlights of Cusco. Plus a zany “stow-away” confession along the way…
First up – my cozy digs at Janaxpacha Hostel in Ollantaytambo – just $15 sgl. private room with shared bath including… I dare say breakfast with my own personal French press coffee? I’ll TAKE it! 😉
Exploring the Sacred Valley
As noted in my “9 Tips for Your Machu Picchu Trip” post – while there are a myriad of $30 round trip tours of the Sacred Valley originating in Cusco, alas the reverse is NOT TRUE. Luckily I met a couple of fellow gringas at breakfast in Ollyantaytambo, and they’d already hired a private taxi (for $65) to take them back to Cusco (with stops at Moray, Maras, etc. along the way). Split three ways – it was just $22 each.
Chinchero
Chinchero was one of the (customary on most all Sacred Valley tours) stops we made. Though the Interpretation Center of Andean Textiles was a good bit touristy, nonetheless it was fascinating to see the natural dye process and weaving up-close.
Speaking of “touristy” (a condition that the TravelnLass generally strives to avoid in her travels), after visiting the textile cooperative, it was nigh time for lunch. (Naturally) our taxi driver chose to take us to the most gringo-centric restaurant in Chinchero (no doubt – like every other touristy corner of the Planet – because he gets a commission for bringing us there). But when I saw the white linen table cloths, along with the overpriced (a.k.a. “gringo” priced) options on the menu – I couldn’t help but ask him to please take us to an authentic “almuerzo” joint instead.
Ten minutes later we were all happily seated in a tiny restaurant nearby – surrounded by working-class Peruvians and enjoying a full lunch (incl. soup, salad, the requisite Latin American rice ‘n beans, plus a freshly fried fish entree) for just *5 soles* (about $1.50). Needless to say, my fellow gringa companions were delighted to experience an authentic Peruvian almuerzo – far from the tiresome tourist-trap restaurants.
My Main Quarry: The Maras Salt Flats
Ecuador has remnants of the Inca too: the Temple of the Sun at Ingapirca, Ecuador
The truth is, I’m honestly not all that keen on making sure I see every blessed Inca ruin on the Planet. We have a lovely Inca Sun Temple not far from my home amid the Andes mountains in Ecuador – and indeed, a beautiful Inca site (Pumapongo) within walking distance of my front door in Cuenca. Thus – especially after gazing upon THE most spectacular Inca ruins at Machu Picchu – I really had but a single must-see quarry within the Sacred Valley: those ancient pools of salt at Maras.
Since pre-Inca times, salt has been "mined" in Maras by evaporating salty water from a local subterranean stream.
The flow is directed into an intricate system of channels constructed so that the water runs gradually down onto several hundred ancient terraced ponds.
Almost all the ponds are less than 13 feet square in area, and none exceeds a foot in depth.
The system of monitoring the flow and extracting the salt is a community effort established nearly 1,000 years ago by the Inca (and possibly earlier).
A trail of salt…
That's a LOT of salt!
Of course I had to bring home a small bag of it.
Pisac
And two final Sacred Valley collections – the Inca ruins and the amazing souvenir market at Pisac. Pisac is yet another customary stop on the standard $30 Sacred Valley tour, but I opted to DIY for but $3 (the price of a collectivo taxi to take me there):
And even better – but a small sample of the colorful assortment of goodies at the huge Pisac market (the best place to bargain for all those yummy Peruvian textiles):
The Pisac market is HUGE – here you'll find the best prices for souvenirs.
Llamas, llamas, everywhere!
Prices at the Pisac market (especially if you bargain) are less than HALF what you'll find in Cusco.
Yeah, um… I bought not one purse, but TWO!
An assortment of colorful dyes for Peruvian textiles.
My precious pillow covers (bargained down to $8 each)
Which leads me to…
O.k. so… first, bear in mind that I was mainly only interested in the Pisac market – not personally gazing at yet another terraced slope of minor Inca ruins. Still… stepping out of my $3 collectivo bus in the dusty town of Pisac, I was (naturally) swiftly Turns out – even the partial “Boleto Touistico” costs 70 soles (about $25) and I had no interest in visiting a boatload of museums and minor ruins. I was mainly interested in browsing the nearby Pisac market, and only (mildly) interested in taking a peek at Pisac. So with this new information (that the “tour” would actually cost me $43 for a single ruin) – naturally, I declined the persistent lad’s offer. Ah, but clearly he wasn’t about to let his $18 tour fee so easily fly away. He swiftly countered with – at first I didn’t quite grasp the rapid string of Spanish, but eventually… I gathered that he was offering to HIDE me in the back seat of his SUV so that we could pass the ticket booth – without paying the entrance fee! Now seriously. I’m not THAT desperately poor that I need to stow-away like a common criminal just to save a few bucks. I mean, I wasn’t even all that keen on seeing the Pisac ruins, and I really only wanted to browse the nearby Pisac market. BUT, I *AM* ever up for a little adventure, and this poor tour operator clearly didn’t want to lose a sale. Sooo… long story short? We hopped in his SUV and took a little drive up to the ruins, and when we neared the entry ticket booth… Yup – he instructed me to duck down in the back seat and we sailed on through without paying!
Seriously. Not unlike hiding in the trunk with our cousins at one of those ancient Drive-in movie theaters when we were young – am I the only one that’s this C-R-A-Z-Y???
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A Peek at Cusco
First up – a little collage of the usual fast-food suspects. Note that I didn’t actually eat at either Cusco’s McD’s or the Mermaid, but I did succumb to the lure of a Big Mac while waiting to board my flight to Cusco at the Lima airport:
Which leads me directly to – a pictorial assortment of my local Cusco eats. Circular image at left: salmon pizza (y.u.m.) Collage below – clockwise from top right: cuy (a.k.a. guinea pig); “Rocoto Relleno” stuffed peppers; (several) dinners plus cervezas overlooking the twinkly lights of the magnificent Plaza de Mayor (a.k.a. Plaza de Armas ); alpaca steak (hadta try it, no? Um, meh.); and grilled “anticuchos” (spicy beef heart kababs – on most every menu, delish, really!)
The Maxima Laura Textile Museum
Just around the corner from the Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of the Assumption on the Plaza de Armas, entry to this tiny gallery filled with exquisite tapestries is free, and not-to-be-missed!
Just around the corner from the Plaza Mayor, entry to this exquisite textile museum is free!
Upstairs there's a small demonstration area.
The ultimate Peruvian souvenir – eeew!
The Mercado Central de San Pedro
And finally – a potpourri of pics of the central market, filled with all manner of local eats, fresh produce, and cheap souvenirs (including… yup, a most gruesome desiccated llama fetus hanging from the rafters!)
Be sure to get there in the morning, and approach the mercado from the south (Calle Trinitarias) so as not to miss the bounty of indigenous lasses selling bundles of medicinal herbs and bouquets of flowers.
A lovely family selling orange juice – the kids enjoyed the bitty stickers I keep ever handy for such interactions.
The south entrance street is lined with indiginous lasses selling medicinal herbs and flowers.
Go early – they pack up their wares by noon.
(Understandably) the lasses aren't keen on tourist photos, so do be discreet when taking pics.
ugh.
Looks a lot like my own neighborhood 9 Octubre Mercado here in Ecuador.
Th-th-that about does it for my inaugural skip to Peru. Still plenty of tales and pics waiting in the wings from my epic 6 week solo backpack through the Balkans and Turkey of course (I left off at Slovenia, but have boatloads of pics from Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro and Turkey – including a video of my amazing balloon ride at dawn over the fairytale landscape at Cappadocia). Hopefully I’ll get to those over the next couple of months – before I head to…
…my 50th country come April: Japan – Woo-HOOO!
P.S. But seriously – about my nutso criminal caper at Pisac. Raise your hand if you too, would have stowed-away – just for the fun of it.
About the Author
Dyanne Off-the-beaten-path travel is my passion,and I’ve always lived life “like-a-kid-in-a-candy-store” – eager to sample as many flavors as I can. Indeed, my life motto has long been: This ain’t a dress rehearsal, folks!
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Off-the-beaten-path travel is my passion, and I’ve always lived life “like a kid in a candy store” – eager to sample as many flavors as I can. Indeed, my life motto has long been:
Sounds like a gringo price to me, Dyanne, so I’m (shamefacedly 🙂) raising my hand in solidarity with you, especially since you didn’t want to see the main attraction! As a former quilter and knitter, I’m always fascinated by textile exhibits and would have gone to the Interpretation Center of Andean Textiles no matter how touristy it was. And OMG, I’m totally blown away by the skills and artistry displayed at the Maxima Laura Textile Museum. Dazzling!
Whew! Glad to hear I’m not the only one that’s loony enough to stow-away in an SUV for the sheer scandal and adventure of it.
And OMG – so you’re an ex-fabricaholic too? That settles it Anita, we are clearly nomadic soul-sisters. In another life, I was an obsessed art quilter (see this post for a peek at but a handful of my creations: http://www.travelnlass.com/2013/05/12/more-laos-ock-pop-tok-natural-dye-workshop/)
So yes, yes – you too would ADORE drooling over the Maxima Laura collection.