Elevation, baby! - Blogabond

The day began after a 21 hour bus ride from Lima, Peru. I could have flown from San Diego to Japan faster thn I could have taken a bus from Lima to Cusco. When I stepped off the bus in Cusco we had climbed from sea level at Lima to around 10,000 feet in elevation. I hailed a cab and had him take me to a hostel at the top of town. We sped over coble-stone streets, past white, colonial-looking buildings. I flipped the cabbie some coins for the ride and stepped into a hostel at the top of the city.

Cusco is situtated in a cradle-like valley. Rocky mountains surround the valley. In the late 16th century Cusco was home to the Incas. One day, Francisco Pizarro charged into the valley of Cusco along with a gang of about 57 other Spanish Conquistadors. They were equipped with Guns, Steel, Domesticated Horses, and Disease. These land pirates had gotten word that the Incas had enough gold to make a large mountain. So the legend goes. The Incas main "base" was Cusco. Led by Attapultatec (spelling might be a bit off), the 200,000 plus Incas in the valley welcomed Pizarro and his troops with open arms. Within a couple of days the Spaniards had taken Attapultatec hostage (eventually killing him) and raped, pilaged, and burned the town. So, 50 plus Spanish soldiers were able to defeat hundreds of thousands of Inca warriors. Even though the Incas heavily out-numbered the Spaniards, the introduction of steel, guns, domesticated horses, and foreign disease, were too much for the Incas to handle. The result: the Spanish murdering hundreds of thousands of Incas, the Spanish acquiring the gold, and a story to tell present day tourists.

The first day in Cusco was carried out at the pace of a Sloth. I didnt want to do anything rash after having gone from sea level to about 10,000 feet in 21 hours. The altitude would bite me in the ass if I pushed things the first day. I met an Israeli fellow from London named Paul. A large majority of the afternoon was spent sipping Matte tea, talking philosophy, and politics. Paul is a 25 year old lawyer from London and damn, can that man put up a decent argument on any topic ranging from the best Cook Book to buy to what is the best land mammal. I mean anything.....well-trained dude.

We walked the cobble-stone streets and people watched most of the day. Cusco had the air of a romantic, Venice-style city, and the grounded history of ancient Rome. I was eager to let this city sink into my senses and give me a true feeling of what this city could offer to the passing traveler....

written by

kipmaddog on September 18, 2009 from Cusco, Peru

from the travel blog: adventures from down south

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