Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
afternoon to hike through the ruins above town. Take an early morning train to
Aguas Calientes
and hop on a bus
to
Machu Picchu
. Wander through the marvels of Machu Picchu all day; get a guide for the inside story. Return
to Ollantaytambo. There's still time to take local buses to the spectacular salt pans of
Salinas
on the way back to
Cuzco.
One Week
Follow the Cuzco day of the two-day itinerary. On the second day, follow the
walking tour
up through arty San
Blas to the impressive fortress of
Sacsaywamán
. Flag down local buses to the nearby ruins of
Tambomachay
,
Q'enqo
and
Pukapukara
. On the third day, start trekking the spectacular, rugged
Salkantay trail
to
Machu Pic-
chu
.
CENTRAL CUZCO
Plaza de Armas
In Inca times, the plaza, called Huacaypata or Aucaypata, was the heart of the capital.
Today it's the nerve center of the modern city. Two flags usually fly here - the red-and-
white Peruvian flag and the rainbow-colored flag of Tahuantinsuyo. Easily mistaken for
an international gay-pride banner, it represents the four quarters of the Inca empire.
Colonial arcades surround the plaza, which in ancient times was twice as large, also en-
compassing the area now called the Plaza Regocijo. On the plaza's northeastern side is the
imposing cathedral, fronted by a large flight of stairs and flanked by the churches of Jesús
María and El Triunfo. On the southeastern side is the strikingly ornate church of La Com-
pañía de Jesús. The quiet pedestrian alleyway of Loreto, which has Inca walls, is a historic
means of access to the plaza.
It's worth visiting the plaza at least twice - by day and by night - as it takes on a strik-
ingly different look after dark, all lit up.
PLAZA
