Page 117 - WINE DINE AND TRAVEL SUMMER 2019 PORTUGAL

From our digs in the Andean Wings, an 18th
Century home converted into a boutique hotel,
we explored the city for several days and accli-
mated to the altitude. On the second day, we
met up with our guide, Ayul, who led us to ru-
ins in the hills high above Cusco.
But not before he took us to a parade where
dancers wearing colorful costumes and masks
marched up one of Cusco’s main thorough-
fares. The best ones, we agreed, were from his
hometown, Calca.
The highlight of our descent back into the
city was touring the ruins of Sacsayhuaman, an
Inca citadel on the northern outskirts of the
city that included a large plaza designed for
ceremonial activities that could easily have
held thousands.
Though many of the more manageable
stones in the fortress were removed by the
Spanish conquistadors to build their churches
and homes, the largest blocks, some of which
surely weigh tons, remain.
A construction wonder, the monoliths in the
dry stone walls were expertly cut and sanded
so they would fit together without mortar.
Some of the biggest ones had up to nine sides
and appeared to be linked together like giant -
and complicated - Legos.
In 1553, Spanish chronicler Pedro Cieza de
Leon wrote:
“In these walls there were stones so large
and mighty that it tired the judgment to con-
ceive how they could have been conveyed and
placed, and who could have had sufficient
power to shape them, seeing that among these
people there are so few tools.
"All the stones are laid and joined with such
delicacy that a Real coin could not be put in
between two of them,” he concluded.
That evening, we dined at the Pachapapa
Restaurant near Cusco’s main square and ate
ahi de pollo - a chicken stew - and causa rel-
lena - a tasty dish made of layered mashed
potatoes, avocado and tuna.

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