Sacred Valley

The Sacred Valley of the Incas is 15k north of Cusco as the condor flies or 33k by paved winding road. The valley stretches from Pisac to Machu Picchu and is the best maize growing area in Peru.

For most of the week, colonial Pisac is a quiet, rural Andean village, but on Sunday the famous weekly market takes over.


Furthur along the valley is the town of Ollantaytambo safeguarded by a massive Inca fortress above with temples, hillside farming terraces and walls. The ruins mark one of the few places where Spanish conquistadors lost a major battle. Pizzarro's men were showered with arrows, spears and boulders from atop the steep terracing and were unable to climb the fortress. We can certainly understand that! We hiked/struggled to the top with no arrows or spears in sight.



Known to the Inca as the birthplace of the rainbow, the typical Andean village of Chinchero is at an elevation 400m higher than Cuzco. We were here to see weavers. These people still use pre-Columbian methods including dying.

Fascinating weaving demo, but I found something more interesting to take pictures of. I found a castillos de cuyes or minature castle inhabited by guinea pigs. It's very difficult for me to pass up a good animal picture.