The Sacred Valley of the Incas

Going to the sacred valley of the Incas was a bit like going back where we'd come from, as we'd passed through on the chug chug train to Machu Picchu. Going by taxi to Urubamba, our base for the next few days, took only an hour, and we wondered why we'd picked the train to get there at all. Well, it's all part of the experience isn't it! We were to be staying in a hotel complex called Kuychi Rumi, a collection of little cottages in beautiful gardens within the valley. I had no idea what it would be like before we got there, and I couldn't believe our luck when we were given the keys to our little house and left to our own devices. This is the first time we've had any semblance of a 'home' in two months, our own upstairs, kitchen diner, lounge with fireplace, too exciting for words. I was quite happy to stay in and do nothing but enjoy our new house, which we did for the first day. The climate in the valley was beautiful too, like a warm English spring day every day, perfect. Leo got some good rolling around in the grass time too, only hampered by an overbearing mother stopping him from munching on dead leaves and by being whisked away from the attentions of the friendly but big and inquisitive hotel dogs.

I mention two months as it holds some significance. Firstly, we celebrate Leo's 8 month birthday. As our baggage weight situation is getting ever so more tricky we could only give him a new pair of trousers to replace some that had got lost and a kiss and a cuddle for presents. I'm sure he was not all too thrilled. Second, we mark our half way point in this South America trip.

Things I miss are
Family
Friends
Being able to do my own laundry
Hampstead Heath
Being able to wear anything other than my staple basic wardrobe

Things I don't miss
English weather
London prices
My mobile phone

We did have to remember our main purpose for visiting the area from time to time, to check out some more Inca archeological sites in this very picturesque location. The sacred valley is so named as it was a very fertile as well as beautiful land and the Incas believed in worshiping mother Earth and the gods of the mountains for the riches the area possessed. A guide we had one day said that some people believed the 'sacred' name had another significance, that Jesus at some point in time had (posthumously perhaps?)visited the area(hmm).

Our relaxed days took us around the local area, to Urubamba town, to Ollataytambo and Piscac for the Sunday market.

Ollantaytambo was a particular highlight, the site of an Inca town and some preserved Inca streets and houses still being lived in today. We hired a guide who provided us with expert detail into the workings of the area, the site of one of the last battles between the Inca and the Spanish. The ruins displayed the telltale stonemasonry and left temples and walls unfinished, giving modern day archaeologists clues as to how the Incas built on such and impressive scale with such large and heavy stones. He also filled us in on a little missing detail from Machu Picchu, much to our satisfaction. I as ever tried to maintain my concentration and poise at all times, though Ari came a bit unstuck when our dear guide recounted tales of the the Quechua peoples named the Wankas (Ari got uncontrollable giggles). A slightly befuzzled guide continued on as best he could, as I tried to apologise through my eyes. If you want to know more about the Wankas check out the link here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wankas

Moving swiftly on.. As luck would have it, as we descended from the ruins we happened upon a wedding celebration between a local girl and a Western looking man, undergoing a ceremony that blended old Inca traditions with more modern Peruvian customs. We looked on as a spectacular feast of colour, dance and music passed before our eyes. Apparently this kind of public event only happens twice, maybe three times a year.
A quick stroll along an old Inca road took us to a typical house, preserved in the Inca fashion by family living the Inca way. Their house was a museum of Inca household items including human bones and a population of guinea pigs (cuy) scuttling around on the floor. It is quite usual to keep a herd of guinea pigs as a sort of living larder, for sumptuous feasts such as religious festivals and birthdays, where one is served as the dish of the day in honour of the saint/birthday boy/girl. As one taxi driver gleefully told us, "A birthday ain't no birthday if you ain't got no cuy on your plate" (narrative licence used a smidge).
And so it was back to our taxi for our next stop, some Inca agricultural terraces out in the valley. What was special about these terraces was there concentric circle design, which is believed to have created little microclimates on each level allowing over 1000 types of potato to be farmed. Good job I'm a fan of the old spud. Quite amazing and once again, set in the most breathtaking scenery.
As by now we were near wilting and our taxi/guide combo were on the clock we bid them farewell as they dropped us off at what was now our favourite restaurant, not far from our little home. They were pleased to see us (by that I mean Leo) and whisked him away to greet the kitchen staff as we refreshed and replenished. Leo at first had not taken to the owner Ricardo at all (most embarrasingly), it's a tendency we've noticed with a few loud, mustachioed Latino men, well, Leo is a ladies man after all. By now he had been won over and everyone was happy.

Another day, another day, another Inca ruin, this time a temple in Pisac. After a late start on the tourist trail (we loved our house too much) we visited the local market, made a botched haggling attempt on buying some souvenirs and proceeded to the ruins, lying on the mountain side. It was late in the day and there were dark clouds overhead but this made it all the more atmospheric and as there were not many people about, gave the ruins a kind of eery quality. A few snaps and it was time to head off home.


Our time with the Incas was at an end, and it was time to head back to relative civilisation the following day on a flight back to Lima. We were genuinely sad to leave, but left feeling revived, relaxed and ready for what we hoped would be more amazing adventures ahead.