As the nearest big city to the renowned Inca ruins at Machu Picchu, Cusco was my base while doing the Inca Trail. I had a free day to acclimatise and pick up last minute supplies before setting off on the four-day trek. My blog entry for Cusco was one of a few that were lost when my BlackBerry randomly decided to wipe all my messages so I don't have many details beyond what is in the photos...

I pottered around town and stumbled upon a market of sorts taking place on the railway tracks - people selling chickens, guinea pigs and dogs out of sacks and boxes. I initially thought it was a pet market but with hindsight some of it may well have been for food! Apart from the dogs...

There was also a parade through the middle of town with fantastic costumes and music.

As we travelled into the Sacred Valley to the starting point of the Inca Trail, we stopped at the small town of Chincero and explored the vibrant market there.

We rested over night in the pretty little town of Ollantaytambo, which was a strange mix of rustic houses and uber-touristy hotels, restaurants and markets stalls catering to the hundreds of tourists and porters that set off on the Inca Trail every day. There were also some impressive Inca ruins there but I didn't have enough time to investigate them.