This was the sacrificial altar for both animals and humans. Usually they would pick young girls at age 3 or 4 and raise them specifically to sacrifice when they were 16 or 18. This was a great honor to them and their family.

Then we got to Q'enqo, an old temple.

Great view as we rode down the hills. This is my desktop background now.

Our guide walked beside us instead of riding.

Then we hopped back on to go down to Q'enqo. My horse's name was Apatico, which means apathetic. I could have kicked bruises in his sides and he would still just wait for the others to move and plod along behind.

There's a natural spring there, and the water system is still in use.

Then we went over to the ruins of Tambomachay. This was a sort of outpost along the Inca trail as it came out of the mountains into the city. It had a lot of extra rooms for travelers who would stay the night and take the trail all the way in the next day.

Your average country home around Cusco

Fat cow crossing

The next day I had free, before the Machu Picchu hike, so I went on a horseback tour. We started out near the Cristo Blanco and headed up into the hills.

These guys were great. Their voices blended well and they had a cool sound, so I bought their cd. 10 soles. About 3 bucks. I'm all for supporting good musicians.

There were street performers - music, tumblers, magicians - and all the kids dressed up, holding out bags for candy saying "Halloweeeeeen." Trick or treat doesn't tranlate well, so they just say "Halloween."

Now, Peruvians know how to celebrate. Halloween was a huge festival. The Plaza was full, as well as the 4 or 5 blocks all around it.

Here's a lady and her llama. The llama looks bored. Not a city llama I guess.

I didn't mean to make it look like Temple Square, but...

They still chime the bells three times a day.

This is my meal of Cuy. Great view. Gross food. I tried, I really did, but there's not much meat, so you have to dig around the inside of the cuy (prepared only by dipping in boiling water to remove the fur, then cooked whole) and pick out the meat, which tastes... like I imagine a rat does.

The original Cusco, stone-built by the Incas, was in the shape of a Puma. Now the plaster and adobe buildings fill the valley.

The Cristo Blanco overlooking the city.

This room was where they held the Inquisition in Cusco. Notice the skull and crossbones over the archway. Now it's a painting store.

This is an archway over the road (yes road- carts and mini cars drive along it) between a cloister for nuns and an abbey for monks. They found out decades after it was built that there's a secret tunnel in the archway. They were not supposed to have contact with anyone, especially of the opposite sex, but... the call it the arch of the union.

This was on "la calle de los siete serpientes." Seven Serpent street. How'd you like to have that address?

Me and a llama.

The religion in Cusco held a belief in the "triologia," or tri-ology; the puma for strength, the serpent for wisdom, and the condor for peace. You see those three carved in a lot of buildings, like the serpents over the door here.

The Spaniards destroyed part of this wall and tried to rebuild it. You can tell their part has sunken in, crumbled, and been patched.

The Incan buildings are all still standing as originally built- no mortar, no cracks. These stones are perfectly shaped. The smaller ones at the bottom absorb tremors from regular earthquakes. All the Spanish buildings have fallen at least once.

This is "the rock of 12 angles." Fairly famous, first for its religious significance, but also as the trademark for Cusquena beer.

I arrived in Cuscu late at night, but found that my hostel that I had reservations at was just off the plaza, about 20 steps. Cusco was my favorite town.

These are the Spanish guys I met on the boat.

The Plaza de Armas in Puno

I went to talk to these guys, thinking it'd be a great chance to learn some more of the culture of the islands- all they wanted to talk about was the election.

Right as we left the island it began to rain. By the time we hit the mainland it had stopped. That was one of the two times it rained my entire trip. How cool is that?

She's spinning thread.

...where we hike to the top of the island. This was the first serious walking I'd done, and the elevation was killing me.

Then the 2 hour motor boat ride (Lake Titicaca's huge!) to the island of Taquile. No, not Tequila.

Freddy's wife is the one in the red jacket. I'd like to think that when they sang to us as we left the island it was very authentic, but I'm sure they do it for all the tourists.