Days 112 & 113: Cusco (April 29 & 30, 2011)

I spent the last two days of my time in Peru in and around Cusco.  And, frankly, more time than average just lazing around in my hotel room or nearby cafes.  I've been ready to return home since I left Easter Island, I think, although I'm glad I saw Machu Picchu and other Andean ruins, and I certainly didn't mind the stops in Santiago, Lima and Cusco.

Yesterday I went to four museums whose admissions are included in the master tourist ticket most people get when they visit something other than Machu Picchu (like Ollantaytambo).  As I expected, they were all rinky-dink, but they were either colorful or informative or both.

Two were art museums, and the majority of their collections were either garish and tacky, or religious icons, or both.

Carried by a bunch of jerk europeans when they slaughtered a bunch of indians.  :(

I'd like to point out that the figure to Jesus' left is a woman.

The other two were about pre-Incan and Incan societies.  Among other things, I learned that the Incans used to shape their babies' skulls to denote social status, and that they also performed brain surgery.*  Or at least they drilled holes in people's heads.

And yesterday must have been a holiday of some kind -- or a special day or schools at least -- because there was a parade of school children all through the main square.  There was a band playing U.S. military tunes (go figure) but the kids themselves were just marching around the square.  I have no idea what it was all about.

Training to join the North Korean Army, maybe?

This morning I awoke at 5am -- I just woke up, nothing disturbed my sleep.  And I was treated to this conjunction out my window:  The Moon, Venus, and Mercury.  Too bad those buildings were in the way.  I learned after looking up info on the night sky that Mars and Juiter are just off to the left.  So if you wake up early over the next few days and have a clear view of the eastern horizon, go look at the conjunction of four planets!

Moon & Venus up top, Mercury near the horizon.

My main outting of the day was to Saqsayhuaman (pronounced "sexy woman"), a group of ruins just outside Cusco.  I was able to walk there, and it was up some really steep hills, so I got another good workout today.  Cusco has no funiculars, but it sure could use some.  Saqsayhuaman isn't as grand as Machu Picchu or Ollantaytambo, but it was a fine place to explore for a while this afternoon.

And it was just across a small valley from that large statue I first saw hovering over the city, so I went to investigate.  He's Jesus.  With these creepy staring eyes, like a zombie Jesus.

After stopping for lunch, I wandered back to my apartment to cull all my stuff and pack it one last time.  As I knew I would, I wound up throwing away a few shirts that just can't be worn anymore, due to stains or tears.  I also tossed out stuff like the plastic utensils I've been carrying around, and the emergency toilet paper I've been hoarding.  I'm leaving behind a few other items, like a slightly broken umbrella that I found in Australia.  And I managed to ration a number of my toiletries just right, so I'll have fewer bottles to bring home.  This week I ran out of mosquito repellant and 30 sunscreen, and transferred my 70 suncreen to a smaller bottle.  And I have one (well, maybe two or three) application left in my second stick of deorderant, which I will apply tomorrow morning, then toss out.  Lest you think I skimped on the deoderant during the second half of my trip ... I didn't, really.  It's just been so much cooler than the first half that I haven't had to take 2-3 showers each day, so I didn't have to constantly re-apply it and use it all up.

My entire day on Sunday will be spent traveling... unless I miss one of my three flights and end up stuck somewhere.  :(  I've been scared from the get go that something would go wrong with my planes on the last day of my trip.  I've grown more paranoid since only one (one!) of my 21 flights so far was delayed, and that was by only one hour.  Can my good luck hold out for one more day?

So this may be my last post for a couple of days, since I may do nothing but sleep on Monday.  But eventually I'll write my thoughts about Peru and the trip overall.  If there's anything you want to know, let me know and I'll answer any questions!

*  I've linked to a lot of Wikipedia articles when I talk about educational or weird stuff.  I am aware that a few months ago, the government of Louisiana was mocked for posting Wiki printouts alongside some of their historical sites.  I hope no one mocks me for relying on Wikipedia, since I'm doing this for fun and free, and not to, you know, educate the people who elected me to office and expect me to spend their tax dollars wisely.