We have slept fairly well. The bed is comfortable as are the pillows. Time for our first breakfast here at the JW Marriott El Convento Hotel. The hostess checked off our room number which was #211 and seats us. A server brings over coffee or a selection of teas. I'm overwhelmed by the number of breakfast choices from the buffet area. Pancakes, waffles, scrambled eggs, bacon, steamed vegetables, oatmeal and many more cereal choices with lots of topping options. Sliced meats like ham, turkey, salami, and cheeses. Variety of breads, rolls, muffins, fruit danish, croissants, bagels. Fresh fruit-pineapple, strawberries, melon, watermelon...... Selection of juices. There's also an egg station-egg of the day, poached eggs, omelets, egg white omelets, fried eggs. Hooray!! My daily breakfast will consist of juice, coffee or tea, fruit, 1 egg, and toast or mini danish..... My husband mixes it up at breakfast but he loves the vegetables and making a breakfast sandwich of meat and cheese. We try to avoid overeating at breakfast which is hard to do with all these tempting choices in front of you.
We had been told when checking in yesterday that we could get a free picture with a baby alpaca? in the inner hotel courtyard at 10:00 AM. As we are walking we see this. The owner is all dressed in colorful native attire and there's a hotel staff person with her. We meet Pancha and get our pictures taken. Pancho is adorable and so patient about getting his picture taken. I asked about giving her a tip but the hotel staff person says the hotel pays her for this. We decide to drop off some laundry. The hotel prices are very high but there's a place right across the street that charges by weight. For 2 kg we pay 20 soles. Our freshly laundered items will be ready for pick up on 5/9/17. We'll get them after our tour, before dinner tomorrow.
I inquire at the hotel reception desk about getting a driver to take us sightseeing in town. I can hire by the hour with waiting or by each trip. We opted to hire by the hour. Rate was 30 soles per hour and I have a list of stops which the hotel translates to our driver Emir. He was very good. monterolaemir@gmail.com
First stop-Museo de Sito de Qorikancha which is covered by the Boleto Touristico ticket. No pictures allowed with or without flash. Reached by us through an underground entrance by walking across the garden/grass area. Here there are exhibits of artifacts from the excavation of Qorikancha. A model of the Sun Temple, floor plan blueprints, pre Hispanic pottery, mummies and deformed skulls. Explanations in Spanish only and no guides. Doesn't take long to see. Qorikancha is what I'm most interested in seeing so we take a short walk from the museum to the entrance Qorikancha/Santo Domingo. Cost 15 soles pp with children under age 10 free. Not covered by the BT ticket. No pictures allowed inside. This site is the foundation of an Incan sun temple said to have been covered in plates of solid gold topped by a Dominican church built by the Spanish. Gray brown Inca foundations with lighter beige colonial walls. Beautiful dome. Vaulted ceiling mural painting of Christ's crucifixion. Great carved Moorish style wooden door. Inca chambers. Picture gallery of religious paintings and sculptures from 16th-18th centuries from the Cusco School. Exhibition rooms like high choir for the faith of men, soul/sainthood faith. Solar drum. Sacristy. Milky Way paintings. We spent almost 1 1/2 hours here .
Next is the Pachacutec Monument which is covered by the BT ticket. We enter and start to climb. As you're climbing on each floor there are exhibits with lots of information about this famous Inca ruler. Finally at the top we are outside looking up at this immense statue of Pachacutec as he gazes out at his city. Great views of Cusco.
Center for Traditional Textiles. I really wanted to buy a sweater here as they were absolutely gorgeous but no size large enough for this hefty American! No weaving demonstrations taking place so I should have researched this a bit more. Maybe the demonstrations are only certain days, certain times??
Plaza de Armas area:
Cathedral-Can buy a combo ticket which also includes the Compania de Jesus for 30 soles pp or single admission for 25 soles pp. We bought the combo ticket. No pictures allowed inside. Built on top of Inca ruins. Outside-Renaissance style-very ornamental. Design-Latin cross base. Cusco School paintings-Last Supper, series on the Life of the Virgin Mary. Gold and silver items. Main altar-silver. Carved pulpit. Choir stalls. I bought postcards hoping to remember what I saw. Books are also sold with pictures and information.
Compania de Jesus-right across the street from the Cathedral. Single admission 10 soles pp or combo ticket. No pictures allowed inside here either. Bummer! 17th century built by the Jesuits on top of Inca ruins. Baroque style. Very ornate outside. Sacristy-images of St. Jerome and St. Francis of Assis 17th century carved from a single piece of cedar wood. Main altar piece is 21 meters tall and 12 meters wide made of wood and covered in gold leaf-amazing. Altar pieces: Señor de Burgos-patron of railway workers; Our Lady of Mount Carmel: Our Lady of Lourdes; twin brothers Saint Crispin and Saint Crispinian-patron saints of shoemakers; Our Lady of the Snows-patroness of seamstresses; Saint Isidore the Laborer of Señor de Huanca. Painting-marriage of Sir Martin of Loyola and the last Incan Princess, Lady Beatrice Nustra. One of the most important paintings in Peru.
Museo de Arte Precolombino will be our last stop. Admission 20 soles pp. Open 8:00 AM-10:00 PM. Pictures allowed without flash. There are rooms focusing on cultures such as Inca, Chimu, Nasca, Mochica... Gold, silver, seashells. Ceramics-bowls, vases, bottles. Jewelry-nose and ear ornaments. Viceroyal-paintings. Good signage with lots of information. Great museum. Spent 1 hour here.
We are back at our hotel after 5 hours of sightseeing. Total cost 150 soles. Every evening at 6:00 PM there is a tour of our hotel. We decided to attend it tonight. There are 2 guides-one English and 1 Spanish. They are dressed like monks referring to the hotel's history. We see reception/lobby, seating areas, the piano, library, some items from the original convent used as decor, the hotel bar, the hotel restaurant, the pool relaxation area, and much more. The highlight was seeing the old convent ruins located on the lower level. This was so interesting. It lasted about 1 hour.
Dinner-Nanna Trattoria. This restaurant is about a 10 minute walk down the street next to the hotel. It is known for its wood fired pizzas. The front room has 5 tables and we are lucky enough to get one of the last tables. Others stop but are turned away. There's another room in the back but it looks like a tour group of around 20 arrived and were taken to that back room. There are 2 guys making the pizzas. Sizes are personal, medium, and large. The pizzas range in price from 23 soles to 55 soles. There are some unusual toppings like the tropical pizza which has papaya, apple, strawberry, banana, and cheese. There's over 20 varieties. Menu also has pastas, calzones, salads. Cash only. We order the favorite salad and a personal size margarita pizza. It's enough food for the 2 of us to share. Bill 59 soles without tip. Service was fast, friendly, very efficient.
Another day has flown by! Tomorrow we have a tour with Taxidatum so fingers crossed it goes well.
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| Breakfast dining room |
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| I've grown to enjoy this tea |
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| Toppings |
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| Honey, whipped cream, maple syrup |
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| Cereals |
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| Sliced meats ans cheeses |
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| Muffins, banana bread |
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| Danish, croissants |
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| Breads |
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| Gratin tomatoes |
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| Steamed vegetables |
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| Scrambled eggs |
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| Bacon |
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| Waffles and pancakes |
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| Fruit |
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| Fruit |
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| Rolls |
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| Hard boiled eggs, bagels |
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| Mini fruit danish |
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| Choices on display at the egg station |
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We had been told when checking in yesterday that we could get a free picture with a baby alpaca? in the inner hotel courtyard at 10:00 AM. As we are walking we see this. The owner is all dressed in colorful native attire and there's a hotel staff person with her. We meet Pancha and get our pictures taken. Pancho is adorable and so patient about getting his picture taken. I asked about giving her a tip but the hotel staff person says the hotel pays her for this. We decide to drop off some laundry. The hotel prices are very high but there's a place right across the street that charges by weight. For 2 kg we pay 20 soles. Our freshly laundered items will be ready for pick up on 5/9/17. We'll get them after our tour, before dinner tomorrow.
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| I'm at a loss for words!! |
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| Sweet! |
I inquire at the hotel reception desk about getting a driver to take us sightseeing in town. I can hire by the hour with waiting or by each trip. We opted to hire by the hour. Rate was 30 soles per hour and I have a list of stops which the hotel translates to our driver Emir. He was very good. monterolaemir@gmail.com
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| Our great driver Emir |
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| Map of Cusco |
First stop-Museo de Sito de Qorikancha which is covered by the Boleto Touristico ticket. No pictures allowed with or without flash. Reached by us through an underground entrance by walking across the garden/grass area. Here there are exhibits of artifacts from the excavation of Qorikancha. A model of the Sun Temple, floor plan blueprints, pre Hispanic pottery, mummies and deformed skulls. Explanations in Spanish only and no guides. Doesn't take long to see. Qorikancha is what I'm most interested in seeing so we take a short walk from the museum to the entrance Qorikancha/Santo Domingo. Cost 15 soles pp with children under age 10 free. Not covered by the BT ticket. No pictures allowed inside. This site is the foundation of an Incan sun temple said to have been covered in plates of solid gold topped by a Dominican church built by the Spanish. Gray brown Inca foundations with lighter beige colonial walls. Beautiful dome. Vaulted ceiling mural painting of Christ's crucifixion. Great carved Moorish style wooden door. Inca chambers. Picture gallery of religious paintings and sculptures from 16th-18th centuries from the Cusco School. Exhibition rooms like high choir for the faith of men, soul/sainthood faith. Solar drum. Sacristy. Milky Way paintings. We spent almost 1 1/2 hours here .
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| Museo de Sito de Qorikancha |
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| Here you see Santo Domingo built on top of the ruins of Qorikancha |
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| Qorikancha-this curved retaining wall has withstood all earthquakes and each block is perfectly interlocked |
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| Entrance to Santo Domingo/Qorikancha |
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| Courtyard |
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| Fabulous altar |
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| Carved choir stalls |
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| Inca walls |
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Next is the Pachacutec Monument which is covered by the BT ticket. We enter and start to climb. As you're climbing on each floor there are exhibits with lots of information about this famous Inca ruler. Finally at the top we are outside looking up at this immense statue of Pachacutec as he gazes out at his city. Great views of Cusco.
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| Pachacutec Monument |
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Center for Traditional Textiles. I really wanted to buy a sweater here as they were absolutely gorgeous but no size large enough for this hefty American! No weaving demonstrations taking place so I should have researched this a bit more. Maybe the demonstrations are only certain days, certain times??
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| Probably should have stopped here |
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| Small store with just merchandise for sale |
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| This is practically next to the smaller store. |
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| Can buy goods in the Weaving Gallery and Museum store |
Plaza de Armas area:
Cathedral-Can buy a combo ticket which also includes the Compania de Jesus for 30 soles pp or single admission for 25 soles pp. We bought the combo ticket. No pictures allowed inside. Built on top of Inca ruins. Outside-Renaissance style-very ornamental. Design-Latin cross base. Cusco School paintings-Last Supper, series on the Life of the Virgin Mary. Gold and silver items. Main altar-silver. Carved pulpit. Choir stalls. I bought postcards hoping to remember what I saw. Books are also sold with pictures and information.
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| Cathedral |
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Compania de Jesus-right across the street from the Cathedral. Single admission 10 soles pp or combo ticket. No pictures allowed inside here either. Bummer! 17th century built by the Jesuits on top of Inca ruins. Baroque style. Very ornate outside. Sacristy-images of St. Jerome and St. Francis of Assis 17th century carved from a single piece of cedar wood. Main altar piece is 21 meters tall and 12 meters wide made of wood and covered in gold leaf-amazing. Altar pieces: Señor de Burgos-patron of railway workers; Our Lady of Mount Carmel: Our Lady of Lourdes; twin brothers Saint Crispin and Saint Crispinian-patron saints of shoemakers; Our Lady of the Snows-patroness of seamstresses; Saint Isidore the Laborer of Señor de Huanca. Painting-marriage of Sir Martin of Loyola and the last Incan Princess, Lady Beatrice Nustra. One of the most important paintings in Peru.
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| Entrance |
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| Statue Pachacutec in Plaza de Armas |
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| This is the MAP Cafe on the grounds of the museum |
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| Chimu ear plug ornaments |
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| Chimu silver bottle |
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| Wood Carving Gallery |
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| Wood Carving Gallery |
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| Seashells Gallery |
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| Seashells Gallery |
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| Nasca Gallery |
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| Nasca Gallery |
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| Nasca Gallery |
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| Mochica Gallery |
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| Mochica corn toasters |
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| Mochica humanized deer sculptured bottle |
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| Mochica bottles-cormorants |
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| Mochica Gallery |
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| Mochica Gallery |
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| Huari Gallery |
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| Huari sculptural vases |
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| Huari globular vessel |
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| Huari-feminine representation |
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| Huari-sculpted vessels of camelids/llamas |
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| Chimu globular vessels |
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| Inca cup |
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| Inca war clubs |
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| Inca sculpted bottle-condor |
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| Viceroyal Gallery-paintings |
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| Cupisnique anthropomorphic sculpture |
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| Cupisnique ceramic bottles |
We are back at our hotel after 5 hours of sightseeing. Total cost 150 soles. Every evening at 6:00 PM there is a tour of our hotel. We decided to attend it tonight. There are 2 guides-one English and 1 Spanish. They are dressed like monks referring to the hotel's history. We see reception/lobby, seating areas, the piano, library, some items from the original convent used as decor, the hotel bar, the hotel restaurant, the pool relaxation area, and much more. The highlight was seeing the old convent ruins located on the lower level. This was so interesting. It lasted about 1 hour.
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| Our guide for the hotel tour |
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| Reception |
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| Hotel bar |
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| Original piece from the convent |
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| Beautiful flower arrangements |
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| One of many seating areas |
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| Spa |
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| Pool |
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| Hotel restaurant |
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| Piano and library |
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| Ruins from the original convent |
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Dinner-Nanna Trattoria. This restaurant is about a 10 minute walk down the street next to the hotel. It is known for its wood fired pizzas. The front room has 5 tables and we are lucky enough to get one of the last tables. Others stop but are turned away. There's another room in the back but it looks like a tour group of around 20 arrived and were taken to that back room. There are 2 guys making the pizzas. Sizes are personal, medium, and large. The pizzas range in price from 23 soles to 55 soles. There are some unusual toppings like the tropical pizza which has papaya, apple, strawberry, banana, and cheese. There's over 20 varieties. Menu also has pastas, calzones, salads. Cash only. We order the favorite salad and a personal size margarita pizza. It's enough food for the 2 of us to share. Bill 59 soles without tip. Service was fast, friendly, very efficient.
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| Nonna Trattoria |
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| Menu |
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| Menu |
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| Menu |
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| Menu |
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| Pizza oven |
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| Tasty lemonade |
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| Pizza oven is wood fired |
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| Salad |
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| Margarita pizza |
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| Pizzas waiting to go into the oven |
Another day has flown by! Tomorrow we have a tour with Taxidatum so fingers crossed it goes well.
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