Potatoes, Guiena Pigs and Corpus Christi Celebrations all in the same day in Cusco

Corpus Christi Festival-One of the Seven "Floats" from various churches

Wow!  We only had five hours in Cusco, but what an amazing five hours!  Thankfully I had time to write about it before heading into the jungle.
Our driver from Urubamba to Cusco wasn't Luis as we had hoped.  It was a nice gentleman named Christabel.  He was very friendly and his English was about as limited as Luis.  He delivered us to the Palacio del Inka, which is the sister property of the Tambo del Inka, where we stored our bags.
The hotel is located on the edge of the "historic district" so it is a short five minute walk to the cities main plaza, the Plaza de Armas.  It was a huge plaza surrounded by churches, shops and restaurants.  We enjoyed checking it out for a few minutes before heading to an area just a few blocks off the plaza that the concierge at the hotel suggested.  On our way up the street we met a small parade of dancers, a marching band and around 20 young men struggling to carry what was obviously a very heavy statue of what appeared to be a saint.  We enjoyed watching the procession pass us on a street so narrow the crowd could only be one person deep.  We didn't give it much thought other than thinking to ourselves, "that was nice".  We had no idea what was to come!

We weren't sure what was going on at this point.  This was the first parade which was actually a parade to get down to the parade route

As we made our way back down towards the Plaza de Armas we noticed the crowds in and around the plaza were growing.  The party was just beginning!
As we rounded the corner we ran into the first of three festivals all taking place on the same day in the same area.  This festival was "National Potato Day".  Yeah, it may not sound like much to most people but there are over 1,500 varieties of potatoes in Peru. That's something worth celebrating.  Some were easily recognizable as potatoes while others didn't look like any potato we had ever seen.  I'm not sure they had all 1,500+ varieties on display but there were a whole lot of them.

National Potato Day........yeah baby!

A few of the different types of potatoes on display.  We heard at the airport that there was also a potato growers convention going on.  Who knew there was such a thing?

As we moved up the street we ran into the most interesting of the three festivals, the Festival del Chiriuchu.  To those not familiar with this dish, you're certainly not alone, we had no idea what it was either.  Chiriuchu is a dish consisting of corn covered with chicken, a meat similar to jerky, sausage and Guinea Pig.  For good measure it is topped off with a regional cheese and a type of bread that looked similar to cornbread.  There were hundreds of booths set up all serving this dish.  Outside the booths all the food was on display.  Of course for us one item stood out, baked Guinea Pigs.  They were everywhere.  Sometimes displayed in stacks, sometimes decorated but always with their little Guinea Pig teeth sticking out.  I'm sure it tastes like chicken but we opted for lunch at a restaurant that had been recommended by the concierge.

Baked Guinea Pigs 

A festively dressed little baked critter

As we made our way up the street towards our final destination, the market, the crowds had grown.  It now looked like all 500,000+ residents of Cusco had made it to the plaza and that they had brought someone with them.  The Festival of Corpus Christi was introduced by the Spanish in an effort to replace the Incan Festival of Inti Raymi.  From what I understand the Festival of Inti Raymi which is held in June is still going strong, so now there are two major festivals held within a few weeks of each other.  We were fortunate enough to be here on the day it was taking place.

Corpus Christi Parade.......following in Dad's footsteps!

Dance troupe in the parade.  Those are stuffed Alpaca's on their backs. 

Big crowds were on hand

Dancer in the parade

Members of the marching band had the music on their backs for the guy behind them

It took a lot of effort for these young men to keep moving down the street.

We weren't quite sure what we were seeing but there were bands, dancers in festive costumes, huge statue floats that had been brought from various churches throughout the area.  The floats looked very heavy and took 20-30 men to carry them.  The crowds were huge, the atmosphere was festive and it was great to see this part of the Peruvian culture!

Plaza de Armas before the start of the parade

A Cuban Sandwich from Moderna...........it could hold it's on with any of the Tampa Cubans.

Peruvian Stir Fry

Churros for desert!

Amazon Bound!

Urubamba plaza and church.  The only fountain I can recall seeing with an ear of corn on the top

In a few minutes we'll be checking out of the hotel and heading for Cusco.  We're not certain if Luis is going to be our driver.  It would only be fitting since he is the one who drove us here and toured us around.
After a lot of sightseeing the past two days we spent our final full day in Urubamba relaxing around the hotel and city.  Our hotel, Tambo del Inka is a Starwood property.  It's quite nice and the staff are all very friendly and helpful.  It was a good use of some of our points!  We also talked to quite a few fellow travelers while we were here.  It's always fun to share experiences and learn from each other.  There may even be a few of them that are now reading this blog!   If so, nice meeting you and please stay in touch.
We have really enjoyed Urubamba .  It's small, safe and clean.  It's not overrun with tourists but there are enough passing through that outsiders don't stand out.  In the market which is really geared for the locals you are welcome to look around.  Buy something if you'd like, but you're not going to be hassled.  There are numerous places around the world that could learn from these folks!
Yesterday was a typical "Tucker do nothing special" kind of day that we love so much.  We roamed through the market and again marveled at all the colorful fresh fruits and vegetables.  From there it was back to the plaza and a bench in the shade to watch the world go by.  We had a little extra treat today.  Unlike our first visit to the plaza today was a weekday.  We happened to be sitting there as the local schools were dismissing for the day.  We really enjoyed seeing all the children from different schools decked out in their uniforms, including wide brimmed hats for sun protection.  I wish I would have learned that sun protection lesson a little better in my youth, although there are several dermatologists that are appreciative of my negligence.

Stall after stall of colorful fresh fruits and veggies.  It looked like there was enough to feed the city several times over

Not quite as colorful but these are some of the many different types of potatoes grown in the area and sold at the market

Love the different uniforms, especially the hats!

We had a very nice and relaxing lunch at a restaurant called PACA PACA.  We really like the colorful and random decorations on the walls and hanging from the ceiling.  The food (Sweet Potato Soup and Peruvian Stir Fry) were outstanding.






PACA PACA!

We loved the décor!

We loved the food also.........Sweet Potato Soup with Grilled Croutons

Peruvian Stir Fry.  The beef was so tender you just had to look at it and it would break apart

Roaming around, sitting on a park bench and great food.  Only one thing missing, yep we got in a little hot tubbing as well!
So now it's on to Cusco.  We're going to check our bags at Tambo del Inka's sister property in Cusco.  Once those are secure we'll spend the day exploring the historical district before heading to the airport for an evening flight to Lima.  Tomorrow morning it's on to Iquitos to start the Amazon part of this South American adventure.  We may not have internet at our two lodges so it might be a week or so before the next entry.  Keep checking just in case we get lucky. 
Everyone stay safe and be nice to one another. 

Thanks Hiram!

Some places along the journey don't live up to the hype, Machu Picchu isn't one of them.  Getting to the iconic site required a train ride, bus ride and a little standing in line but it's all part of the experience.
It is widely believed that Machu Picchu, which means "Old or Ancient Mountain", was built as an estate for the Incan Emperor Pachacuti.  It was built around 1450 but abandoned around 100 years later during the time of the Spanish Conquest.  Let's just say they did a whole bunch of work for a little bit of time.  While a small number of locals living in the area knew of it's existence, it was unknown to the outside world until 1911.  That's when a Yale University professor on a South American expedition, guided by locals, was led to the site.  At first he mistakenly identified it as Vilcabamba, the "Lost City of the Incas".  He shared the news of his discovery through books and lectures.  On future explorations he figured out that what he had discovered in 1911 was Machu Picchu and not Vilcabamba. Peru is full of historical Incan sites, but 100 years after it's discovery it is certainly the crown jewel.
We took an early train (6:50 AM) from Urubamba (Tambo del Inka Hotel Station) to the small town of Aquas Caliente which is also known as Machu Picchu Pueblo.  The train ride was a real treat.  The route followed mostly along the river and through mountainous thick jungle.  Along the route we saw part of the Inca Trail which you can do a 3-4 day trek to reach Machu Picchu.  Sounds like fun but the train is quicker, reaching the town in a little under three hours.
The town itself is a combination of quaint and touristy.  It's small and definitely worth spending a little time in either before or after seeing Machu Picchu.  We roamed around the city a little before catching the bus, as well as at the end of the day.  It was good to see it both times and it was certainly more lively in the evening.

On board the Vista Dome train from Urubamba to Aquas Caliente

Aquas Caliente.........the river runs through the town

The main plaza in Aquas Caliente

The plaza in the evening

To get from the town to the actual site is about a 30 minute bus ride.  The buses run continuously but there can be a bit of a line to purchase both the tickets as well as to board the buses.  Lines start forming as early as 4:30 AM for those who want to see the sunrise.  I talked to one person who was in line at 5:00 and was on the 16th bus of the morning.  That made me think, you've really got to want to see the sunrise, and that there isn't much to do while waiting in line but count buses.  I'm sure it's a fantastic experience for those who put forth the effort.............unless you get up there and the sunrise is blocked by the clouds.
Entrance tickets into Machu Picchu are sold as "morning entrance" which starts at 6:00 AM and "afternoon entrance" which you can actually use beginning at 11:00 AM.  We had the afternoon entrance tickets so a little before 10:30 we got in line and within about 15-20 minutes we were on the bus and heading up.
The entrance was a little crowded. Be patient if you make the journey because you're in for a real treat soon.  If you want a guide there are plenty of them available at the entrance.  The literature actually says a guide is required, but it isn't.  Makes me wonder who wrote the literature!  We opted not to hire a guide.  We've come to the realization that the less we learn the less there is to forget.  Besides, we like moving at our own pace, which involves a lot of stopping and soaking in the sites.
We headed up to one of the highest points ( past The Guardhouse) overlooking the site and were soon free and clear of most of the mass of people. The view down to the plateau was amazing.  It was so amazing that we spent the next couple of hours moving around to different places on the terraces.  The mix of sun and clouds gave us constantly changing views and the Llamas that hung out with us added to the ambiance.

The view from the Guardhouse area

Hopeless Romantics!

Hopeless Romantics or Helpless Hillbillies!

Beth and her new best friend!

Me and my new best friend

After taking in all we could take in from up high, we headed down and walked through the ruins.  The complexity of the construction spoke volumes of the ingenuity and intelligence of the Incan people.   Of course a little manual labor was required as well, and it's doubtful there were many labor laws in effect in the 1400's.

The terraces are along the south side and were used for growing crops.  They could grow enough to sustain around 1,000 people

Even without a guide providing all the details the walk through gave us a deep sense of appreciation for what was built.  Parts of the grounds have been reconstructed to give an accurate look at what it looked like when it was originally built.  It's quite a site now and it must have been quite a site back then.
We finished the day doing something a little out of the ordinary for us.  Something we like to refer to as "fancy pants".  We took the Sacred Valley train back to Urubamba.  This was a two car train (a dining and a club car) with sixteen passengers last night.  Along the three hour journey back we were served a three course dinner............pretty "fancy pants" for a couple of traveling idiots!

Let's Eat!

Pumpkin Soup

Beef Cheek Stew

Baked Pineapple

Tips for visiting Machu Picchu:
You're not going to be the only one there.  Breathe deeply, or as deep as you can because you're still pretty high.  It's worth the effort.
When you go to buy the bus ticket there is a ticket booth alongside the river.  We discovered there is another one that is "cash only" behind the bus boarding line that is much shorter.
From the town you can also walk to the entrance.  It's takes about an hour and a half to walk.  You follow the same route, and at times share the road with the buses.  You can hike it both up and down.  If you were only going to hike it one way I'd recommend the downhill route back to the city.
Don't forget your passport.  You won't get in without it!
You won't necessarily need hiking boots but comfortable walking shoes with good ankle and foot support are highly recommended.  There are a lot of uneven steps throughout.
Go up beyond the Guardhouse area for a great view and less crowds.
At the present time you do not need a guide even though you may be led to believe you do.
You can take water bottles. Although food is not permitted inside, we along with most folks had snacks that we munched on throughout our visit.  (Food and water are not sold inside)
The morning tickets show you are permitted inside from 6:00 AM until Noon.  Once inside they are not checked and if you come on a morning ticket you can stay as long as you like.
If you have an afternoon ticket you will be allowed to enter beginning at 11:00 AM.  The last bus down is listed as 5:00 PM.
The most important tip...........my tips are subject to change!  Do a little research before your visit and be prepared for an amazing day.
That Yale professor that I mentioned earlier was named Hiram Bingham III.  He must have been quite a guy.  In addition to his academic position, he went on to be a US Senator from Connecticut.
In his bio it shows he was a Republican and that his degrees were from Yale, Harvard and Cal. Berkley................not exactly hotbeds for producing Republicans these days.  His gift of introducing Machu Picchu to the world may only be topped by the fact that the character Indiana Jones is believed to be based on this great South American explorer of the early 1900's.  Thanks Hiram!