Page 136 - South America

City of Kings & Kings of the Andes
7 days
Lima, Cusco, Sacred Valley, Pisac, Awanacancha, Chichumbas, Moray, Maras, Ollantaytambo, Chinchero, Machu Picchu, Koricancha, Sacsayhuaman, Tipon, Pikillaqta
PERU Downtown Providing Fascinating Travel Experiences
Cusco’s main square, which was called Huacaypata (Warriors Square) by the Incas. While the guide tells you more about the history of this special place, you can admire the city’s cathedral that was built between 1560 and 1664 with the red granite stones from the Inca Fortress of Sacsayhuaman. The cathedral is without doubt one of the most impressive buildings in Cusco, and not only from the outside: the historical buildings hosts one of the most significant collections of gold and silver work of the colonial period. Next, you continue to Koricancha and the Convent of Santo Domingo. The convent was built on top of the most important Inca temple dedicated to the worship of the sun, with walls covered with gold leaf. Wandering through the streets of what once was the capital of the Inca Empire, you feel like you are traveling through time.
After exploring Cusco, you head to the nearby ruins, such as the Sacsayhuaman Fortress with its immense temple walls made out of huge stones constructed in a zigzag pattern; the red fort Puca Pucara; the Qenko Amphitheater, and Tambomachay, the Inca baths. Full of new knowledge about the history of the Incas, you return to your hotel in Cusco. In the afternoon visit Tipon, an archaeological group located at an altitude of 11,483 ft., which highlights the large capacity of the Incas to
distribute the water for irrigation in the sectors of culture, with horizontal and vertical irrigation canals that are distributed by all the staggered terraces, a center of agricultural production, very important to the Inca empire and one of the more impres- sive samples of Inca hydraulic engi-
neering. Continue to Pikillaqta, an archaeological pre-Inca group, to appreciate the constructions of narrow streets and stone walls cov- ered with lime and clay. Return to the hotel for overnight. [B]
Day 8: Cusco, Lima, USA
At the appointed time you’ll be picked-up and transferred to the airport for your connecting flight back home. [B]
Your Tour includes:
F Airfare New York/Lima/Cusco/New York
F Required transfers per itinerary F 7 nights’ accommodation
F Breakfast daily
F Tour of Lima
F Visit of Huaca Pucllana ruins
F Excursion to Pisac archeological site F Visit Chichubamba Agroartisans
village
F Tour the Sacred Valley
F Excursion to Machu Picchu
F Tour of Cusco
F Excursion to Inca sites around Cusco F Entrance fees for sites visited
F English-speaking local guides
F Transportation be A/C vehicle
F Voyager train tickets
F All local taxes
134 For prices and other details visit www.holidayswithdowntown.com