We spent most of our day in Cusco around the Plaza de Armas, a beautiful square in the city’s center. Cusco has a mix of architectures, ranging from original Inca walls to Spanish-influenced cathedrals. The cathedral Iglesia de la Compañía de Jesús began construction in 1576. Similar to old cities in Europe, street vendors wander to hawk their wares, most commonly cloth items made from alpaca wool and art work.

Just a block from the town square was Casa Concha Museum, which includes many items initially discovered by American explorer Hiram Bingham in 1911. The Inca mummies were quite interesting. The museum had hundreds of artifacts like cutting tools, weapons and pottery from the Inca civilization.

We had a great meal mid-day, and Deb actually tried the cuy (guinea pig). Our whole group gave it a try (except for me), and all agreed that it tasted like chicken, although there didn’t appear to be much meat.

Once we landed in Cusco, we had a 90 minute shuttle ride to our B&B in Urubamba. The Cusco street markets were interesting, and I couldn’t identify much of what was for sale. Dogs were everywhere, many of which were strays digging through garbage to survive.

In Urubamba, many people get around town with the aid of a Tuk Tuk, or auto rickshaw. These little vehicles can transport a few people quickly through crowded and narrow streets.

We didn’t sleep much the first night in Urubamba. Barking dogs kept us awake much of the time, and the roosters began crowing around 2:45 AM. Ear plugs will be on the shopping list today. I’m looking forward to exploring more of Urubamba today and getting some much-needed rest before we head to Machu Picchu tomorrow.