September 6, 2018 – September 9, 2018
Further down the Sacred Valley, in the direction of the famous Machu Picchu, lies the town of Ollantaytambo. We were going to use the town as our base for our train and bus journey to Machu Picchu, but the small village itself became one of our (many) favourite places in Peru.
In Cusco we had met and chatted with a potter, who was selling his high end pottery at a museum. He lives in Ollantaytambo, and he spoke very highly of his town. It is one of the few towns in Peru that wasn’t torn down by the Spanish when they arrived, so some of the streets and buildings from the time of the Inca remain, unchanged.
Channels from the time of the Inca still carry water throughout the town. We would sometimes see pots and dishes from a nearby hostel sitting in or by the channel, awaiting a final rinse.
Beautiful woodwork. You can see the granaries we are going to hike to on the hillside above.
The town is surrounded by high mountains.
We opened our camper door one morning to be greeted with the sounds of a band and could see a parade happening across the river. Some of the townspeople were carrying a platform on their shoulders on which sat a large doll, likely a representation of the Virgin Mary. Later we walked by a church where the parade had paused.
Derek here… just for the record, in my videos I refer to to Ollantaytambo a few times pronouncing it more like “Oyeatetambo” actually that’s not very correct and it sounds more like it’s spelled with the “n” in it.
We hiked up to the first set of ruins that surround Ollantaytambo. We later learned that these were storehouses built by the Inca to store grain grown on the surrounding terraces. They built them high on the hills in order to allow cool dry air to circulate through the grains to prevent mould and decay.
Approaching the granaries.
Derek and Piper enjoying the view and some shade.
Looking over the town to the main archeological site. About two thirds of the way up the slope on the right you can see a temple on the horizon.
That afternoon, we visited the main archeological site at Ollantaytambo while Piper guarded the camper (no dogs allowed at this one.)
Detail of the stone work.
Looking down the terraces and across to the granaries we had hiked to that morning.
View up one of the terraced valleys….
…and down the valley that heads towards Machu Picchu.
Late afternoon crowds at the ruins.
Derek thought this looked like some of the roads that Google Maps suggests we drive down. Bit steep!
Fountain at the “Bath of the Princess”.
A stone bridge over the Inca built channel that takes water to the Bath of the Princess.
The majority of the inhabitants of Ollantaytambo, as with the entire Sacred Valley, are of indigenous heritage, meaning that they identify more strongly as ancestors of the Inca, than of the Spanish. The Quechua language of the Incas, one of Peru’s other official languages, with up to 14 other co-official languages, is at least as common here as Spanish. How strange and wonderful it must be to live beneath the grandeur of what your ancestors built some 600 years ago. I wonder what that does to your sense of time, mortality and identity.
Great photos and story telling! What an amazing place.
Thanks Todd!