The morning after thanking our Lima host families and saying goodbye at the despedida, we left for Cusco, the capital of the Incan empire and gateway to the Sacred Valley, a valley that we would soon follow en route to Machu Picchu.
Bryan, Max, Armando and Trevor relax outside their hotel room in San Jeronimo, outside Cusco.
We reserved free time for most of the first day in Cusco, whether taking naps or just taking it easy, giving our bodies time to adjust. Although Machu Picchu looms larger in most imaginations, Cusco actually claims a higher elevation. Cusco sits at around 3,400 meters in the Andes, or 11,200 feet, compared with about 2,430 meters, or 8,000 feet, for Machu Picchu. In either case, it’s a challenging transition for the body after spending five weeks along the coast in Lima.
In the evening, we welcomed Amadeo Valer Farfan, an archaeologist and guide, to the upper room at the Hotel San Jeronimo, where we were spending the first night in Cusco. He provided a thoughtful overview of Incan history.
We also met Abraham Quispe Corrales, a 33-year-old trilingual speaker (Spanish, English and Quechua) who was born and raised in Cusco. He would be our guide for the next four days as we explored important Incan sites en route to the one that made it on to the list of the New Seven Wonders of the World.
In the early 16th century, the Inca Empire extended over all of modern-day Peru as well as parts of Colombia and Ecuador to the north, Brazil to the east and Bolivia, Chile and Argentina to the south. Twelve million people lived in what was called Tawantinsuyo, the quechua word for “four parts together.” Cusco was the capital of this empire and was widely referred to as the “navel of the world.”
Cusco’s Plaza Mayor, or central plaza, and la catedral del Cusco, with storm clouds rolling in. The rainy season is beginning!
On a hillside shouldered by Cusco, we visited Sacsayhuaman, once home to the Incas temple of the sun and, later, the site of a fierce battle between the Spanish conquistadores and Manco Inca’s army. The stonework, with precise fittings, is among the finest (and largest — one stone placed in a wall weighs more than 300 tons). Before returning to our bus, many of us tried out a set of natural rock slides and then passed through a dark cave.
Lydia, Trevor, Frances, Jessica, Danielle and Willy head into a cave at Sacsayhuamán.
That evening we enjoyed a presentation on traditional Andean music by Americo (Amaru) Mejia Suñiga and another member of the band Hijos del Sol; these talented Cusco musicians are adept at playing many instruments, including the quena and other wind instruments. Before the music stopped, we were dancing to their lively music, encouraged by a young woman in traditional dress who made it all look easy.
Posing with musicians from the group, Hijos del Sol, and a dancer following a demonstration on traditional music.
We were fortunate to spend the next two nights, a Saturday and a Sunday, in the homes of Mennonites from the towns of Lucre and Huacarpay, a half hour or so by bus from downtown Cusco. Local and regional were to be held on Sunday, which posed a challenge, since Peruvians are required to shutter regular business (including church) and head to the polls.
The Mennonites in this area chose to hold early services, before the polls opened at 8 a.m. So before the sun came up, at 5 a.m., many of our students were in church in Lucre, worshipping in Spanish and in Quechua; the Huacarpay students could sleep in a bit; church there began at 7.
Students sit in front of the first Mennonite Church in Peru in the town of Lucre.
The first Mennonite church in Peru, La Iglesia Evangelica Menonita de Lucre (Lucre Mennonite Evangelical Church), was founded in this small mountain town of a few thousand people in 1990. We traveled together that noon for lunch at a trout farm owned by the pastor of that church, Eloy Sullca Bombilla.
We spent the afternoon climbing at Tipón, a marvel of waterworks. A series of canals provide fresh water to what was once a private estate of the Incan leader Pachacutec, looping across a series of terraces. The Incas corralled the water for both personal use and irrigation, finding ways to incorporate striking lines of stone into the natural landscape.
Photos and editing by Karen Stoltzfus
Four GC chicos line up outside their hotel room in the town of San Jeronimo outside Cusco.Bryan, Max, Armando and Trevor relax outside their hotel room in San Jeronimo, outside Cusco.Lydia with Emily, Duane and Karen’s daughter, currently volunteering at a school in San Jeronimo.Historic church of San Jeronimo, near our hotel.A sign at Sacsayhuamán, or Saqsaywaman (Quechua), a walled complex on the northern outskirts of Cusco.Visiting Sacsayhuamán.Some of the many walls of stone at Sacsayhuamán.Students listen to our guide, Abraham, before exploring Sacsayhuamán.A group photo at Sacsayhuamán.Bryan and Danielle pose by one of the largest stones at Sacsayhuamán, which they say weighs more than 300 tons.Lydia poses by one of the largest stones at Sacsayhuamán, which they say weighs more than 300 tons.GC women pose for a group photo at Sacsayhuamán in front of one of the largest stones.A view of Cusco from Sacsayhuamán.Laura and Trevor perched at Sacsayhuamán.Max and Armando pose overlooking the city of Cusco from Sacsayhuamán.Duane and Karen pose at Sacsayhuamán.Climbing at Sacsayhuamán.Students explore the rocks at Sacsayhuamán.Lydia slides down the rocks at Sacsayhuamán.Lydia slides down the rocks at Sacsayhuamán.Laura slides down the rocks at Sacsayhuamán.Laura reaches the bottom of the slide at Sacsayhuamán.Abby slides down the rocks at Sacsayhuamán.Elizabeth slides down the rocks at Sacsayhuamán.Elizabeth slides down the rocks at Sacsayhuamán.Mariah slides down the rocks at Sacsayhuamán.Mariah slides down the rocks at Sacsayhuamán.Trevor slides down the rocks at Sacsayhuamán.Bryan slides down the rocks at Sacsayhuamán.Bryan slides down the rocks at Sacsayhuamán.Lydia, Trevor, Frances, Jessica, Danielle and Willy head into a cave at Sacsayhuamán.Adriene enters a cave at Sacsayhuamán.Abby and Max at Sacsayhuamán.Laura leads the way down the hill at Sacsayhuamán.Plants that provide natural dyes for local weavers and knitters.Plants that provide natural dyes for local weavers and knitters.Plants that provide natural dyes for local weavers and knitters.Students are given a lesson on how to tell fibers apart.Danielle walks through the streets of Cusco to our lunch location.We walked through the historic main plaza in Cusco after lunch.The main plaza of Cusco.Cusco’s Plaza Mayor, or central plaza, and la catedral del Cusco, with storm clouds rolling in. The rainy season is beginning!A child in the gardens of the main plaza of Cusco.Traditional Andean instruments on display prior to our evening lecture.Our presenter, Amaru, is able to play several instruments at once.Amaru performs with a friend on different sizes of pan flutes.Amaru and friends play and dance.One of our presenters plays a charango.A performance on another type of flute.Frances poses with two of our presenters. Armando poses with two of our presenters.Posing with musicians from the group, Hijos del Sol, and a dancer following a demonstration on traditional music.Lydia and Shina pose with their host family in Huacarpay.Students sit in front of the first Mennonite Church in Peru in the town of Lucre.Trevor and Armando posed with their host family in Lucre.A view of the trout farm in Lucre from the road.Bryan, Danielle and Adriene make their way to the trout farm for our lunch in Lucre.Walking across the stream to the trout farm.Frances and Trevor feed the fish.Students waiting for their lunch at the trout farm.Lydia and Adriene wait for their lunch.Lydia is ready to dig in!Abby and Elizabeth pose with their food before eating.Shina and friends are excited about eating trout.Other families came to enjoy their lunches and the lovely sunshine as the afternoon passed.Willy caught a trout!It’s important to keep the water moving.Pastor Eloy Sullca Bombilla, our host at the trout farm.Sheep take a drink from the river running by the trout farm, an area where there was severe flooding in 2010.A view of the towns outside Cusco from the Archaeological site of Tipón..Climbing by irrigation channels at Tipón.Adriene takes the Inka steps at Tipón.Climbing up at Tipón.Listening to our guide, Abraham, at Tipón.Abraham, our guide, at Tipón.With Abraham at Tipón.Danielle soaks up the sun at Tipón.A view at Tipón.A view from above at Tipón.A view at Tipón.Ruins at Tipón.Lydia and Jessica at Tipón.Frances at Tipón.Frances, Willy and Lydia after their climb at Tipón.A group photo at Tipón.Frances, Trevor, and Max pose by an irrigation channel at Tipón.Laura and Shina at Tipón.First ones to reach the top at Tipón.Terraces at Tipón.Terraces and ruins at Tipón.Duane poses at Tipón.Terraces and Inka steps at Tipón.Duane, Karen and Adriene at Tipón .One of many irrigation channels at Tipón.An irrigation channel at Tipón.The sun sets at the San Jeronimo Hotel.The view from our rooms at the San Jeronimo Hotel.The main building at the San Jeronimo Hotel, where we ate our breakfast and listened to our 2 lectures.A view of the pool at the San Jeronimo Hotel, though it was a bit too chilly for swimming!Abby and Maddie with their host mother in Lucre before leaving to visit the Sacred Valley.Frances and Jessica with their host family in Lucre before leaving to visit the Sacred Valley.Danielle and Elizabeth with their host family in Lucre before leaving to visit the Sacred Valley.
