Goodbye to Cusco, Peru

Sadly after spending three weeks here at a Spanish language school (ECLA) we had to say goodbye and recommence our travels back to Bolivia and then down to Argentina. Cusco is a great place to explore the history of the Inca empire. It was also great to stop in one place for a while to relax and meet other travellers. Although trying to learn Spanish is hard work and I have to say  that while my Spanish has improved it is still pretty basic

Here are some photos from our visit to Cusco:

Cathedral in the Plaza de Armas - The central square. Every town has one here

View of the Plaza de Armas

Stone work built by the Inca's. These structures do not use mortar and are so well built they have survived earthquakes. The Spanish destroyed many of the buildings built by the Inca's or used them as a foundation to build on as is shown here.

Close up of the stones cut by the Inca's and fitted together perfectly without mortar.

Street scene

Concert of traditional music and dance. The costumes were amazing.

Learning to Salsa dance. Even Sue came along to some of the classes to learn. I also went to a spin class in Cusco which was even harder work than normal because at this altitude you have less oxygen to breathe.

Dogs roaming the streets in Cusco. They are everywhere and stepping in dog shit is a major  hazard!  Many don't even have owners but locals feed them so they look pretty healthy.

Apart from the tourist zones everywhere you go there is rubbish dumped on the side of the road  even in the countryside.

Isobel (our Peruvian Mother) and Sue. We stayed with Isobel and German in there house for three weeks while we went to a Spanish language school.  Isobel and German do not speak any English. We also had another room-mate, Mary who is a young student from North Carolina who was also in Cusco, studying Spanish.

Juliette (from UK), Priscilla ( from Los Angelos) and me celebrating our last night together in Cusco.  We met Juliette and  Priscilla at the Spanish language school.
There were quite a few vegetarian restaurants in Cusco being a tourist town and we tried as many as I could find.  Generally it is hard to find food without meat in it unless you like to eat a lot of pizza! Pasta and pizza are the most common foods at restaurants. However the delicacy here is Cuy  (guinea pig).