Cusco has a long and interesting history dating back to 1200AD and linked to the first Inca ruler Manco Capac. However the city saw its expansion in the 15th century under the rule of the greatest Inca Pachacutec, who led a drive that spread the boundaries of the Inca empire as far south as Chile and Argentina, and north to include Ecuador and Columbia. This rapid expansion abruptly came to an end on the arrival of the Spanish Conquistadors, led by Francisco Pizarro who, following the murder of the Inca Atahaulpa in Cajamarca, marched into Cusco in 1534 and added it definitively to the realms of King Charles V. This invasion opened the gates to a cultural mix that has left its imprint on every aspect of Peruvian culture, especially in the ancient Andean capital of Cusco.  Today we are having our own private tour of the city with Edith. 

As we were walking I started to sneeze. Edith said in Peru they say if you sneeze 3 times it brings you love, money and business. If 1 time you get love or money, 2 times love & money and more than 3 times you'd better see a doctor. Back to Cusco. 
 
The Plaza de Armas (main square) was the centre of Inca Cusco and, today, still remains the heart of modern Cusco. During Inca times the Plaza was known as Huacaypata (the Palace of Tears or the Weeping Square) and was a place of military parades and ceremonies including sacrifices and executions, thus the weeping place connotation. There was a river running through it in Inca times. It has been said that when the Inca's conquered new lands they would bring back some of the soil to be mixed with the soil of Huacaypata, as a symbolic gesture to incorporate the newly gained territories into the Inca empire. The Plaza was once lined with Inca palaces. The remains of the ancient walls of Inca Pachacutec's palace can still be seen on the northwest side of the square. The northern and western sides of the Plaza are now lined by arcades with shops and offices. There are lots of restaurants, bars and coffee shops with beautifully carved balconies overlooking the Plaza. The Plazas north eastern side is dominated by the Cathedra and has El Triunfo church on one side and La Compania Church de Jesus with its impressive pair of belfries on the other side. 

We made our way to the San Blas district which is located on a hill to the northeast of the Plaza de Armas. The area is known as Cusco's artisans' quarter since many of the best craftsmen have their workshops and small art galleries in the cobbled, narrow streets surrounding the 16th-century church of San Blas. This area is dotted with Colonial houses featuring Inca stone walls. Craftsmen include Hilario Mendivil, Santiago Rojas, Maximiliana Palomino & Edilberto Merida. It is believed that this area was also the artists' district even during the Inca times, with the streets filled with the best gold and silver-smiths, potters, painters and carvers from throughout the Inca empire. San Blas church, founded in 1562, is of simple adobe construction but it contains an extraordinary wood pulpit carved from a single massive treetrunk. At the top stands Saint Paul, his foot resting on a human skull, believed to belong to the craftsman who made the pulpit. We did not go in as Edith wanted to show us more of the city. It is Saturday and there was a handicraft market in the square so we looked around and then set off for San Francisco (area in Cusco). 

We paid a visit to the chocolate museum and learned about every step in how they make chocolate. We got to taste cacao tea and various types of chocolate and spreads. Mmmm. There was a chocolate sculpture of a penguin that some kids messed with. We pointed it out to the cashier and she didn't notice anything amiss. See if you can find what's wrong in the picture. 

The San Francisco area is located right before the arch that marks the beginning to old Cusco. This area has a square that has all the trees of Cusco growing in it. There are also some vendors on one side of the square. Today is Halloween and it is celebrated in Cusco,which surprised me. I thought it was a North American tradition. One tradition in Cusco for Halloween is the parents buy the kids a special loaf of bread. For the girls it is shaped like a swaddled baby and for the boys it is a horse. I'm told the kids are just delighted by this and carry it around until it gets too heavy and the eat it. .Can you imagine one of our kids excited about getting a loaf of bread?!?

The dressing up starts in the afternoon and they trick or treat at businesses not homes. They get one small candy and are soooo happy to get it. They have small pumpkins they put their treats in. They are about 4 inches in diameter - a big difference to the pillow cases our kids use! The people seem so grateful for whatever they have, however meager it is. It's nice to see. 

We passed through the arch, near San Francisco Plaza, that separates the old section of Cusco from the new section and went to a local market, San Pedro. In it was huge with everything you could possibly want - clothes, meat (from EVERY part of the animal), vegetables and fruit, herbs, and even a food court. A lady was selling frog juice (yes, she blends up frogs) and the locals drink it. It is believed to cure cancer and be good for the brain. We tried it and it wasn't too bad!! Not!!!! We did try some fruit - lucuma & chirimolla. The latter was really juicy and sweet and I liked it. The first one was like a dry mango. It was hard to swallow. Yuck!  

Then back lack to the Plaza for lunch on a balcony overlooking the square. They had the road blocked off to teach kids how to drive. The driving age here is 18 and they start teaching them at age 5. They should stop because Peruvians are some of the worst drivers I've ever encountered. 
 
Hatun Rumiyoc ("the Street of the Great Stone" in the Quechua language) is a narrow pedestrian alley near the Cathedral, which runs to the north of the palace of Inca Roca, the sixth Inca. The massive Inca wall of the palace is well preserved and contains the famous 12-angled stone which is located about halfway along the wall. The stone is famous for its size and incredible workmanship since it fits perfectly with its neighboring stone blocks. The 12-angled stone can also be seen on every bottle of Cusqueña beer!! We've seen it a few times, needless to say. No one is allowed to touch it. There have "stone police" that blow a whistle if you go too close. That was thecndvifvour tour and we had the rest of the day to explore on our own. 

After a a brief rest at the hotel we went to the main square to tour the Cathedral. The Cathedral dominates the north-east side of the Plaza de Armas and sits squarely on the foundations of the Inca Viracocha's palace. The Cathedral was begun in 1550 and completed nearly 100 years later, constructed in the shape of a Latin cross. The three-aisled nave is supported by only fourteen massive pillars. It contains nearly 400 colonial paintings including the Last Supper by Marcos Zapata showing Christ and the Apostles about to dine on guinea-pig, washed down with a glass of chicha! They say this was meant to bring some Andean influence to the religion and give the people something to identify with. In the sacristy there's a painting of the crucifixion attributed to Van Dyke. Ten smaller chapels surround the nave, with the Chapel of the Immaculate Conception, and the Chapel of El Senor de lots Temblores (The Lord of Earthquakes) are beautiful. The Cathedrals magic lies in the mingling of history and legend. They say that when the Cathedral was built an Inca prince was walled up in one of the towers and that when the tower falls the Inca will emerge to claim his birthright and free his people. After the earthquake of 1950 thousands of believers waited hopefully for the tower to collapse, but despite severe damage it did not and it was later repaired. Unfortunately no pictures are allowed to be taken. This Cathedral ranks up there with one of the most beautiful I have ever seen. 

We left the Cathedral to watch the festivities. It was crazy! There were wall to,wall people laughing and having good old fashioned fun. All this good, clean fun was too much for us so we decided to go to a restaurant with a balcony, to have dinner, and watch the activity from there. 

There were still people arriving at the square at 10:00 pm young and old alike. We heard the festivities all night from our hotel. People were coming back to the hotel from celebrating right into the wee hours of the morning.