Walking Tour Continued

We concluded our walking tour in the Plaza de Armas, which at the time of the Inca Empire's rule in Peru was twice as big as it is today. The Plaza is considered the central hub of the old city of Cusco and the place where locals and tourists meet up. The Plaza de Armas wasn't very crowded when we first arrived but Jamie told us that by lunchtime it would be buzzing with activity and quiet crowded. The plaza has several large grassed areas with pretty gardens, seating areas with benches and in the middle of the plaza, a fountain with a statue of an Inca warrior. This statue was placed on the fountain in 2011 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Machu Picchu's discovery. Prior to this since the mid 1900's an inappropriate statue of an "Apache," with a feathered headdress and a bow and arrow adorned the fountain. It had been placed there by an American professor who was also mayor at the time. Before the Spanish invasion the plaza was surrounded by royal palaces and temples to Inca deities and the plaza was the central area where the most important rituals were carried out by Inca priests. Today two sides of the Plaza de Armas are lined with huge cathedrals and several churches erected on the Inca temple ruins and palace foundations. The other two sides of the Plaza area are lined with colonial arcades supporting beautiful balconies with restaurants and bars which have wonderful views all over the plaza and beyond to the mountains which encircle the city. Markets, cafes, tourist agents and souvenir outlets operate in the street level arcades that face the plaza central square.

Standing under one of the arcades we looked across at one of the most important and the main attraction of Plaza de Armas, the Cusco Cathedral. It was built on top of the Inca Palace, using stones from the palace and other ruined sites. Building commenced in 1560 and completed 100 years later in 1656. This massive complex was built in the shape of a cross, covers an area of 1 acre and includes two other chapels. We didn’t go into the Cusco Cathedral because opening time was not until 10am, but our guide described its beautiful a main altar constructed in silver that weighs 400 kilograms, delicately carved choir stalls, 14 huge pillars and 400-plus artworks. We were impressed with the Cathedrals’ Gothic-Renaissance-style exterior which dominates the plaza area with its’ impressive twin domed bell towers and ornate colonial stone carved facade. Jamie pointed out that the carved facade includes Inca icon elements blended with European religious icons. Incas craftsmen were “employed” to build the Cathedral and many other buildings in Cusco and the Spanish included Inca icons as a means of convincing the Inca citizens to convert to the Spanish Catholic faith.