In the footsteps of the Inca 2: Salt Pans, Moray Ruins & Ollantaytambo

Lots of images in this post. Trying to cover a lot of territory.

In Peru, the primary language is Quechua, then Spanish. English, German, Chinese, etc. are all 3rd level languages.

These were religious people, celebrating the gods of the Sun, Moon, Sky, Water, the land and the underground, among the many. Nature was interwoven into their daily lives.


Time to explore. Above Urubamba and the Sacred Valley. Elevation: 10,000 feet.

2 lane highway.

Looking down on the salt pans. Here since the time of the Inca, local people still work these pans. Each family owns 25-30 pans.

The pans are shallow. 3 portions of salt can be harvested yearly: a top, hearty salt, a middle layer is pinkish and used for food. The lower is a heavy salt for more industrial use.

This is where it starts. A tiny trickle of water that feeds the entire system.

Gladys and Anne.

Joe & Anne.

This is a pine tree. Yes, a pine tree. Looks nothing like the local variety.

Time to move on.

Heading toward Moray ruins, we went through Mara. The locals are mostly farmers. Tiny streets and well worn buildings.

Local industrial equipment is 4 legged. Machinery cannot work on the steep hills and rough terrain.

Moray ruins.

Stones sticking out of the terrace walls. Steps to the next level.

Lean if you want, but don't expect me to go get what will be left of you.

Anybody remember commercials for Zamfir, the pan flute player? Zamfir needed to take lessons from this guy. In several locations were musicians playing traditional wooden instruments. The sound was beautiful and soothing. The music drifted through the valley and added a magical tone to the location.

Home for someone.

Not much room. I could never determine if there was a system for who stops & waits and who drives by.

Local farming on a relatively flat piece of land.

Inca tractor. In this environment, animals are better than machinery.
1 person leads the animals and another works the till behind the animals.

Local transportation in the Sacred Valley. Called tuk-tuks in India, the local term is mototaxi. Used for short trips in the communities.

Ollantaytambo Ruins. This was a rest station between Incan towns. People traveled by foot and the empire was spread over thousands of miles. 

Granary up on the mountain. The Incan people were expert at storing grain for years when the harvest was not good. The grain was hauled up & down by humans. Alpaca & llama could not navigate the steep terrain while loaded with bundles of grain.

Templo Del Agua. Water came from local springs. 

Note this double doorway. This was an entrance for Incan royalty. Also note the slanting walls.

More local transportation

SkyLodge. One must hike up to spend the night there. I'll stick with a luxury hotel.

In the next post, We'll the hop aboard PeruRail. Destination is the Machu Picchu pueblo at the base of Machu Picchu mountain. 

In the footsteps of the Inca: Cusco to Pisac

Bucket list item: Machu Picchu in Peru

I usually try to limit these photo essays to around 20 photos per post. With this travel series, that theory will be ignored.

There are 2 ways to travel - first class or not. Guess which we selected. Each day we were met by a driver & guide at our hotel.
This was a very active trip. Constantly on the go, we were never in the same hotel more than 2 nights. To get to Machu Picchu, one must travel via multiple airplanes, cars and trains. Then there is the bus ride up the mountain to the citadel itself. More on that in a later post.

Our summer here in the US is winter for Peru. Keep in mind Peru is south of the equator. Temperatures were around 65f during the day. Winter is their dry season, so you'll see a lot of dust. 


Altitude 31,000 feet. If the Andes look close, it's because they are.

After 3 airplane flights, we land in Cusco, elevation 11,000 feet. If you were expecting glamour, try again.

I bet Pepe will drive the car down the stairs for you.

Our driver & guide took us over the mountain & through the town of Urubamba in the Sacred Valley. From there we went up and to the Pisac ruins.
Looking down.

Looking up.

 

One of the local women was kind enough to let us get a photo with her. This was typical dress of the people, much as seen throughout the region.

Proof we really were there.

The Inca people built using stone for walls & thatch for roofing. These structures used mortar. Others we'll see later do not.

 

By US standards, a lot of people would freak out since there are no guard rails or a multitude of safety paraphernalia.

The people took their surroundings and adapted. Well built stone terraces made farm land to feed the population. 

There's always time for a selfie. 

Again, note no rails. Anne & our guide, Gladys were aware of the drop-off. 

The community was wide spread. Buildings and terraces were created where possible. Hard to describe without using terms like enormous and breath taking and awesome.

The road up and down. This was a major highway.

The little kid was not interested in tourist. The llama and alpaca were interested in the kid.

Now in the Sacred Valley. This is rich soil producing numerous crops. The corn kernels are double the size we usually see. We ate lunch at the Hacienda Sarapampa, part of a local farm. 

Touring is hard work. Ending the day at the Tambo del Inca Hotel.

Our back yard.

Yes, that is a glacier on top of the mountain.

 Looking across the river and up the mountain.

A proper way to end the day.

We're getting closer to Mach Picchu.