the land of the incas

Fact file
Date: 1438 AD - 1533 AD
Area: South America

• The Inca Empire was an empire centered in what is now Peru from 1438 AD - 1533 AD.
• The Inca conquered a large portion of western South America, centered on the Andean mountain ranges.
  
• The last Inca emperor was killed on orders of Francisco Pizarro, marking the beginning of Spanish rule.
• The empire was divided into four suyus - whose corners met at 'Navel of the World', now the modern-day Peru.
• The official language of the empire was Quechua, although over seven hundred local languages were spoken.
  
• The Inca leadership encouraged the worship of their gods, the foremost of which was Inti, the sun god.
• The Inca people originated in the Cuzco area, and under the command of Pachacuti, they began an expansion.
  
• Pachacuti sent out spies who reported on political organization, military might and wealth of people of surrounding regions.
  
• Pachacuti's son Tupac Inca expanded the kingdom north in 1463 until Pachacuti's death in 1471.
• Spanish conquistadors led by Francisco Pizarro conquered the region in 1526 and brought the Inca empire to an end in 1572.

06 october - 20 october
i have been reading a little about the incas and in particular one mans journey to machu picchu.
we intend on hanging around in lima for a couple of days and then spending the rest on a trail of our own. from lima down to ica and nazca and then over to cuzco to go to macchu picchu. we're going on to bolivia after peru so we will then go down to puno.

its not going to be dry season but it shouldnt be too wet - possibly mostly misty. it should mean that the weather forms an awesome backdrop for the inca ruins. pure natural beauty!

lima
see the site museum, the Inca's temple of the sun ,the chosen women and sun virgin's temple as well as the Pachacamac temple.
hostel adventures house - twin double room - $8us per night

ica

nazca
i had never heard of the nazca lines until this evening. i guess the benefit of having rather a sore back is that i get to spend time on my backside - researching.
nazca lines and culture

cuzco
the administrative, political and military center of the incan empire, and from here we can take the Hiram Bingham train to Macchu Picchu. He was the man who discovered this amazing site.
cuzco accomodation.

puno
drive to Copacabana and visit the remote towns of Juli and Pomata on the way before boarding the hydrofoil to the Sun Island where, according to legend, the first Inca appeared.