I was a little skeptical that I would be able to finish seeing everything today, but I think it worked out! I started the day by making my way to the hostel that I've booked for the night after Machu Picchu. It's got great reviews, but the one thing that I hated when I went is that it's basically on top of a hill, with a ton of steps leading up to it. I'm sure I'll be fine, but I was way winded going to it. I haven't written much about the altitude of Cusco, but it is a real factor. I have basically had a dull headache the whole time I've been here, and that makes it a little hard to concentrate when I'm trying to read a sign at a museum or something of the like. The local remedy, the coca candy and coca tea, have been a little help, but it's still tough. Today is the third day that I've been here, and I still feel a little dizzy, and huff and puff anytime I go uphill. On the bright side, the streets near the hostel are quiet and really quite beautiful.
I was in the area of the coca museum, and decided to wander in. The lady running the show was really nice to me and gave me a great rundown of the coca plant in Peru - its relationship with the government and people is complicated. On the one hand, it has been a local staple for centuries, used in rituals and traditional health care. On the other, it's a source of cocaine, which leads to problems of violence and corruption associated with drug trafficking. It was a cute little museum, relatively new, and had snakes for handles along the stairwell?! Yes. Awesome.
It was quite the interesting museum.
I then made my way to San Blas, which is the so-called bohemian neighborhood of Cusco. It's highlighted by this beautiful plaza basically solely for tourist shopping and coffee shops. I would say it lived up to that name.
The Maximo Lauro Museum, which I saw snipets of over the past two days, was right around the corner from this plaza. I decided to walk in that direction in case I did want to check it out, and stumbled upon a tiny little gallery instead. It featured pieces from Edilberto Merida, famous for his sculptures with huge hands and feet. The pieces were interesting, but I did not care for them much.
I then walked around some more and decided to see the Museum of Religious Art. It was a relatively small museum with art that is typical in many cathedrals and other museums - not that interesting, honestly.
I then went to the Inca Museum, which ironically had all sorts of artifacts from pre-Inca times. This was the one museum I went to that didn't offer a student discount, and halfway through my adventures in it, the city of Cusco basically was paused for an earthquake drill. The city puts on huge bells and we all have to stand outside buildings until it's over. I thought that was pretty cool, considering the prevalence of earthquakes in this region. The employee with me at that point shared that the drills happen only once every two years, so it was a cool coincidence that I experienced it! The museum itself shared a lot of elements with the Casa Concha Museum from yesterday, but went in depth a little more on the different historical cultures that occupied the region.
It's been a pretty solid third day in Cusco, and I just met a guy in my hostel that leads "local" tours - his info is at wander2nowhere.com. Apparently the tour group tries to rely on genuine local experiences as much as possible - public transportation, hostels, etc. It looked pretty cool, and I'm excited by all the people and perspectives I'm getting! I think it's a testament to South America that many of the people I've met have managed to make travel a part of their lives somehow, or they're experiencing it in a way that will lead to long-term travel in the future.
Tomorrow, I'm about to get on a collectivo - a shared taxi - to Ollantaytambo. I know very little about the area, the method of transportation, the way of seeing everything - basically, I know nothing. It'll be one heck of an adventure before I get to Machu Picchu on Sunday!
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