Note: We had dinner at Cafe Punchay (I typed Pachay by accident, in the video!). Oops.
We got up rather early and had breakfast at the hotel. It was mediocre. At 8am we went across the street to the airport and hit the atm/money exchange for some soles. We waited for 3 hours for our plane. It was really late.
When we boarded, we realized we were in the business class and we were the only ones. It was amazing. We had the entire front section of the plane to ourselves. Neato. They made us check our bags, so it was a little odd we thought, considering all the space. Oh well. One nice thing about business class was the service. We were pampered and we got a nice brunch to boot!
The flight was quite smooth. We couldn’t see much down below because there was a blanket of cloud cover below. After about an hour, there was a break in the clouds and we could see some mountains. Neato!
About 1:30pm, we landed in Cusco as the plane maneuvered through a tight valley nestled between very high mountains. The last 10-15 minutes of our flight was not for the faint of heart. It reminded me of a moderate ride at Disneyland (maybe Pirates?), with a bit of a dip and a sway but not so much that you are looking for a parachute.
Our bags came off the plane in a matter of minutes and soon we were looking for our driver. We saw an Exodus sign and were whisked away to the hotel by Oscar, who gave us a brief overview of the of Cusco. About 15 minutes later we had arrived at the Andean South Inn.
Hotel Room Art!
The Andean South Inn is in the San Blas district, on a hill just above Cusco. Room 104 was on the ground floor and had two beds and a small bathroom. Room 106 is a little bit larger, still with two beds, and is on the interior (less noise and light disturbance). There are other rooms, but these were the main ones we encountered.
At Andean South, there is also an internet room with a very slow connection. There were two computers and one had a messed up keyboard. (For internet, one is best to use one of the Cafes strewn about town…) They also offer breakfast with the price of a room; it’s a continental sort with bread, fruit, cheese, sometimes eggs, and very good fresh coffee. They also have complimentary coca tea and other teas, in the lobby.
We decided to walk around Cusco as it was such a lovely day. We left the hotel and was immediately confronted by a local peddler named Isadore. She sold us some hand made woven items and we were on our merry way.
Brenda in San Blas Square
By the time we made it across the San Blas Square, we had probably been approached by a dozen or so people. We had to constantly repeat, “No Gracias”.
We had an enjoyable (downhill) stroll to the Plaza De Armas. It was very pretty and clean. We really enjoyed walking around down there.
We toured the Koricancha (Santo Domingo).
In my Eyewitness Guide it says, “Koricancha, meaning the “golden enclosure”, was built to honor Inti or the Sun God. It was the richest Inca temple and had gold plated walls flecked with precious stones.”. So, as Brenda and I walked around, I imagined it in it’s hayday before Pizarro and his men ransacked the place.
Around 5pm we made it back to the hotel (walking this time uphill) and took a break.
We decided to try Cafe Punchay. Cafe Punchay had come recommended by blogger, Globetrooper.com. Thanks to Globetrooper, we were enticed by the Six Potato sampler platter! Cafe Punchay is a nice little eatery above the street level on Choquechaka. It was easy to find.
While we were eating, our server Elvis struck up a conversation with us. Outgoing, inquisitive, and gregarious, Elvis was a happy introduction to the local Peruvian culture.
Tomorrow, Brenda and I were going on a Glacier Travel private tour of the Sacred Valley and we were very excited. Our concierge server, Joseph, at the Andean South Inn hooked us up with Glacier as he had a friend who was a manager there. Networking is alive and well in Peru!
Later that night, it was raining at our hotel and I captured this panoramic shot from our enclosed veranda.
Tags: Cafe Pachay, Cusco, Koricancha, Peru, Plaza De Armas, San Blas, Santo Domingo