It's happened. Both of us are in Cuzco, and it's better than we could have hoped -- hence not much time for blogging. But now that we have a moment to rest in our baller hotel (the slide show is exactly what it looks like, except it doesn't show our balcony and me reading a book on it), I can give some updates and stories.
First off, Patricia just arrived a few hours ago, three days later than expected. Because of this, we're probably canceling the Titicaca expedition, but it'll give us more time to explore Machu Picchu (can you say "sunrise hike" in Spanish? If you can, please email me) and the surrounding Inca areas.
So as I was awaiting the Wagon's arrival, I decided to put my knowledge of the Inca empire to good use. I've been studying up with the help of Kim MacQuarrie's epic historical saga, "Last Days of the Incas," in which he vividly describes the workings of the empire, the Spanish conquistadors, and the political maneuvering that eventually led to one of the world's great civilizations. That, and there's lots of good war stories.
So upon my arrival, I was expecting a pretty legendary place, and it totally lived up to the hype. No, it didn't just live up to the hype. It was magical. Seeing the Plaza de Armas, Cuzco's main square measuring 100 yards across, and realizing it used to be twice that size, filled with Incan merchants and military leaders, was pretty exhilarating. Watching the rainbow flag waving high above the square, symbolizing devotion to the sun (no, not gay rights) was a good reminder that Peruvians are still really into the Incas. Any tour guide I talked to would always describe Incan customs, recount a story of the Spanish destroying it, and then give a heavy sigh -- not to me, but to themselves. They took their history seriously. I wanted to discover some of it.
After checking myself into the cheapest hostel in town ($6 per night), I was ready. I have more to write, but I'm going to try to break these posts up for your sake. Read on if you like.
