Don't Drink Water From the Tap and Don't Flush Toilet Paper Down the Toilet: 6/13

Today we left the hotel at 9, and went on a tour of a couple places in the city of Cuzco, and then went and saw four Incan archeological sites. The first place we went to was called Templo de Sol Koricancha. It was located in the center of the city and was a monastery that was a combination of Incan and Spanish architecture. A lot of the original architecture was still standing and there was a beautiful view of the city from the monastery. After this place, we walked to Basílica de la Catedral del Cusco. This was another Catholic Cathedral. There were many large gold shrines with statues of Jesus, priests, and virgins. After that we got in a bus and drove to ancient Incan archeological sites. The first place we stopped was a place called Saqsayhuamán. Saqsayhuamán was center of the town during the Incan times. When we climbed up the rocks we saw a beautiful view of Cuzco, and there were alpacas at the site! I’ve included pictures of it below! After that we went to a place called Pukapukara. Pukapukara was a military/administrative center during the Incan times. After that we traveled to a place called Tambomachay. At Tambomachay there was a beautiful irrigation system that was used by the Incans. And after Tambomachay we traveled to the Adoratorio de Qenqo which is where the Incans would sacrifice llamas.

After visiting all the archeological sites, we then traveled to an alpaca and silver store and learned how to tell the difference between real alpaca sweaters and fake alpaca sweaters. Real alpaca sweaters are heavier, smooth on the inside and outside, and are relatively cold.

After visiting the store, we went back to the hotel, rested and got dinner at Papacho’s, a burger place nearby. On the way back to the hotel we stopped at a supermarket and got some water and snacks.

Later that night, a few of us went to a club nearby called Mama Africa. They were playing mostly American music because most of the people partying on a Monday night were tourists. We danced until about 1 am and then made our way back to the hotel.