We hired a taxi for the afternoon to take us to the two sites, both of which were build by the Inca and are pleasantly off the beaten path. Salineras was our first stop. It is a shockingly huge series of "salt pans" - big pools - through which the waters of a salt water spring flow. The Inca discovered that if they 
collected the water from this spring in pools (the salt pans), the water would evaporate and pure salt and other minerals would remain that could be harvested for use. They constructed about three THOUSAND salt pans on a cliffside, all connected by little channels that can be easily blocked, obstructing the waters to other pools. The sight is amazing and probably one of the most unique and awe-inspiring things I´ve ever seen. For a small entrance fee visitors can walk along the top ridge of pans, and Sean and I had a blast doing it! Pictures don´t do the scale of this site justice.
After the visit to the Salineras site, we were off to Moray, about 45 minutes away. Moray is the site of what is considered to be an Incan agricultural laboratory. They constructed three "coloseums" into the ground, with many terraced levels in each one. Each level had its
own micro-climate, in which different kinds of crops could be grown and developed. The largest of the three coloseums is still in use. The site was almost completely deserted and it was really cool to be in such a strange place all alone. I especially liked the Indiana Jones-esque stairs sticking out of the terrace walls, which we had to use to get to the bottom and back up again. Again, a truly unique sight and something I´ll never forget!
We were ecstatic to get the heck out of Urubamba and on to Ollantaytambo, where we spent a relaxing day catching up on emails and walking through the old town. We will return there tomorrow and tour the Incan fortress in the mountains overlooking the town. It is the last town that still retains the original Incan street layout, and it had a lot of fun character! While there, we also fulfilled one of my trip goals......we ate cuy. Cuy is a common traditional Andean dish - FRIED or ROASTED GUINEA PIG. The g-
pigs are kept in a pen at the restaurant and (as I found out after I ate it) are killed to order. It is gutted and fried in several differnt oils and differnt temperatures and then served whole - head, claws and all. I knew going in to this trip that I wanted to try it - it is cultural, after all. I shared the cuy with Sean and he shared his alpaca steak with me. It tasted like chicken, but was VERY difficult for us to eat, since it still kind of looks like a guinea pig! As Sean pointed out, the problem is all in the presentation. The g-pig is literally just slapped down on the plate over a few french fries. Definitely a meal to remember.
That´s all for now. Tomorrow or the day after we will post an entry on where we went today............
-- Chris
5 comments:
Cool pics. Looks really neat. On the cuy issue, I think Sean is right, the presentation really is lacking somewhat. I could have told you it was going to taste like chicken, though! Everything different, when cooked, tastes like chicken - rattlesnake, guinea pig, etc. So, moral of the story is, just eat chicken! Love, Mom
i cannot belieive you aate the g-pig. that is sick. i'm here at 'laine and hector's and they agree that you two are sick. i agree with carol...just eat chicken!
The places you have been are unbelievable! I cannot believe those mountains.. sigh...
I love the picture of Chris eating that "g-pig" and of course, that you refer to it as a G-Pig is hilarious. Sean looks quite troubled in his picture. Did you have to pull off the arm and legs? HAHAHAHA!!! Live!
You guys will be dashing for the nearest McDonald's when you get back to the US, after surviving on roast G-pig. It reminds me of the Indiana Jones movie where they were eating snake and monkey brain.
All is well at home.
Dad Welch
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