The Sacred Valley, Peru

The day first started with a quick breakfast at the hotel. Our guide Jose said he had a special treat for us. Little did I know it would be right up my alley… a covered market in the area near Cusco. First off I went through what they would consider the meat department. My experience in food safety and quality assurance made me really second guess any of the foods I will be eating here in Cusco. There were a few critical control points that need to be evaluated. The rest of the market was fascinating- very colorful and abundant selection of fruits and vegetables, grains and cheese.

Fruit and Vegetable Vendor

Our USDA Meat Inspector would Cringe

Typical Highland Farmer with Potatoes

We boarded the bus and went directly to Chinchero, a small village about 30 minutes from Cuzco, which is at about 12,000 feet elevation. We went to the Center for Weavers of Chinchero and had a demonstration about traditional weaving styles. We learned about how they utilize sheep, llama and alpaca wool and the various patterns in the textiles. There were many women there with the traditional dress. I thought it was great to see this tradition being passed down through generations. With a little bit of time to shop, our class loaded up on various products and piled back into the bus.

The bus then drove down a windy dirt road bordered by many very small subsistence farms and viewed beautiful fields of potatoes, fava beans and wheat. We saw a lot of cattle, sheep and alpacas. There weren’t any fences to speak of, when they wanted to concentrate grazing in one location they would just tie the halter of the animal to a stake at the selected spot. The animal would stay put and eat the grass down to stubble before being moved on. Talk about high intensity, short duration grazing!

We arrived at an Inca site, Moray, tucked in amongst the fields. This site was at 12,500 feet elevation, and would likely be our highest point on our journey. At first getting out of the bus, I didn’t know what I was looking for. We walked over near a cliff and suddenly looked down upon a very symmetrical site. We did not have time to go down to visit the site but the view of it was absolutely amazing.

Next on the agenda we visited the village of Urubamba. Lunch was at the Tunupa restaurant, which was a restored hacienda house that was overlooking the Urubamba River. It had very exotic foods, such as alpaca, skewered beef heart and deep fried chicken livers. Yes, I tried everything (and still feel okay!). The food was a buffet style, with appetizers on one table, main courses on another table, and desserts in the rear. I tried a lot of everything, things that weren’t labeled but everything was fabulous. We were seated on a covered patio and were serenaded by some authentic Peruvian musicians, sipping a complimentary Pisco Sour. Ah, the good life!

The class then visited the Incan site of Ollantaytambo. This site was a very intricate complex of walls constructed into the hillside. On the top of the terraces lies the Temple of the Sun. Many old walls of the Inca village are still intact. One other thing about Ollantaytambo that was fascinating is that when the Spanish arrived, it was still under construction. There were large stones that had yet to be set into place, and they still remain as is. It is as if someone hit pause on construction and then never looked back. The views from the top of the site were breathtaking.

We then got on the bus and headed towards Cusco. I was feeling pretty tired, and did not have much energy the rest of the night. Some of the members of our class have been sick and in and out of the hospital due to the elevation. The Battle of Cusco has been rough on us California agriculturalists, as we have lost many men. Let's hope we all start feeling better as we'll be traveling to the next spot soon.