In Cusco we could fulfill a dream. With a lot of luck we got a cheap and good hotel in the neighborhood of Wanchaq. With all the low priced restaurants around we could live for two weeks really comfortable without exceeding out daily limit of 15 $. The city is just beautiful. An ideal scenery for a wedding aniversary (this time we didn't forgot!).
Here in the center of Cusco the Plaza de Armas is surrounded from wonderful restaurated buildings from colonial times. At this beautiful wooden balcony we had breakfast. (mi)

Wow, what did we have a wondeful time. In the amphitheater of the Inkas in the ruins of Saqsaywamán high over the city Markus gave a funny performance. (ma, mi, mi, mi, mu, mi, mi, mi, ma)

In Peru people wear beautiful traditional costumes. Everywhere in Cusco we met women and children who let take pictures from themselves – of course for money. To take an unnoticed snapshot before they pose is not easy. (al pictures: mi)

That's what Cusco makes so fascinating: All the well conserved Inka walls! They just look beautiful and are still a mystery. Nobody knows exactly, how the Inkas could do this precise handwork. The rocks weigh tonns but they fit so perfect that no paper fits into the joints.
Calle Hatuinrumiyoc. (mi)

This fancy cafe named "The Film Movies & Lounge" we declared as our living room and stayed there every day for several hours. They played nice lounge music and served delicious cakes. Furthermore they had many German magazines and we found a lot of new ideas for our next appartement. This beautiful lamp for example you will find in our next home. (mi)

November 2^nd on a cemetery. Early in the morning high activity started to prepare this importand holiday. Graves have beeen painted and decorated with flowers and swags, weeds habe been removed, and even a dead has been moved to another grave. Bat all that is nothing compared to the chaos of the afernoon. In front of the entrance of the cemetery boothes were built up that the celebrating people doesn't miss anything, especially liquer. And then people came from everywhere, familys from every size and stratum. They fill the cemetary until it bursts at the seams. Who couldn't find a place between the graves just sits on top of them. All this we could see in Ollanta in the Valle Sacrada. (mi)

Beer for the deads: every bottle is opened, as if one will make drinking easier for the ancestors. The anyway colorful painted graves and vaults get even colorfuller by this decoration. What a positiv way to deal with the death! (mi)

The whole family meets between graves. We are marveling stunned, and soon we are invited to celebrate with this family. They offer us Chicha, a self made kind of corn-beer, and we were introduced to the whole family. Everybody is very friendly and especially the grandma with the hat is so cute. I only don't feel really well because I sit on the gravestone of the neighbour. (ma)

And another festival! In spite of long investigation we couldn't find out, what they celebrated at that 30th of October 2004 at the Plaza de Armas. "Here they always celebrate something", we ofter heard from the locals. Already early in the morning people started building the racks to be ready for the fireworks at night. All these activities were accompanied by noisy church demonstrations. (mi)

After nidhtfall all the beautiful racks one after the other were set alight in front of the Catedral Triunfo. It was a wonderful fireworks for more than two hours. (ma)

Cusco at night. In spite of the museal character (you can't miss, where they "spruced up" just for tourists), Cusco is an agile, fascinating town with a exciting vital history. Here the church La Compañia at the Plaza de Armas. (mi)