Sacred Valley

Another early morning meant that I had to drag myself out of bed and onto another shuttle. Luckily, this time, I would spend significantly less time on it and more time exploring sites. It started with a wool making demonstration completed by local women that shows how they obtain the wool and how they dye it using natural resources found in the area. We had some time to explore their store before getting back on the bus and heading for the Chinchero archaeological site. This was a kind of interesting site, mostly because it was one of the last sites to have been found by the conquistadors. Our guide explained that the locals are said to have destroyed all the paths to Machu Picchu and even burnt sections of their village. Showing they'd rather have nothing than let it get into he hands of the Spanish. Yet, it worked as Macchu Picchu remained undiscovered for hundreds of years thanks to their decision. We then made our way to Moray. Moray is an interesting site as it was a form of real-world laboratory that was designed to develop new strains of corn, maize, and potato's, as well as determine at what altitudes these strains grow best. The biggest challenge that faced the ancient Incas was the fact they had to be capable of growing their own food well above 2000m. This site showed they had strategically and pragmatically figured out the best crops for each environment. The result was over 900 varieties of corn and 2,500 varieties of potato. Though the Incas got a lot of the credit, once again the Wari and Nazca Empire had already developed similar strategies and technologies, the Incas just used this to develop their own understanding. Our final stop before lunch was the Maras Salt mine. This was a salt water spring that was found many centuries ago that is created from a large underground salt vein that water runs through before reaching the surface. As it springs to the surface, the ancient peoples of Peru managed to be able to effectively control the flow and ensure that they could extract the salt by letting in settle in tiny ponds. Unfortunately, it is not as pretty nor functional in the wet season when they salt water spring is contaminated by regular rain water, making the capturing of pure salt very difficult. Nonetheless, it was an interesting site to learn about and cool to see. The second to last site we saw was the Ollantaytambo ruins. They are situated along a mountainside, and so it was quite a brutal walk to the top. But, once there, the views of the 3 valleys that conjoin right at the site of the city, plus the adjacent city limits on the other hillside, made for an impressive and beautiful view. Before long though, we were running out of time and had to move to the Pisac ruins nearly 2 hours drive away. These were the best of the lot, however. The agricultural terraces with the royal residences at the top of the hill made for an amazing site. Conversely, the view of the view of the poorer areas of the city from near the palace was also incredible. Unfortunately, our tour guide spoke for too long when we arrived, and as we tried to enter the palace, they had closed it. I'm not sure why he didn't do his little speech inside the grounds, but it was frustrating to miss out. We could explore the rest of the ruins, but the royal palace at the top of the hill would have had the best views. After this, it was time for the long journey home where we had a brief stop to witness a jewellery demonstration and once again have an opportunity to explore their store. By this point, though, we were all tired and ready to go home, so we didn't stay for long. Once home, we had a very easy evening and had an early night, and tomorrow, we would finally get a sleep in.Read more