Machu Picchu - July 2

I came back to Cusco on Tuesday and spent the day catching up with what had been going on here and organized what we wanted to do for the week. Vanessa and mom flew in the next afternoon. I went to the markets in the morning then met up with V and mom to see Qorikancha, a big Inca ruin right in Cusco. Then I went to do an interview with a moneylender and they toured the downtown area. We met up for dinner, tried alpaca meat, and Vanessa tried her first Pisco Sour.

The next day I went early to Chinchero, a town about an hour from Cusco and tried to see what the lending scheme was like there. We found that informal lending wasn't very common. Banks from Urubamba and Cusco have sent representatives to offer loans there, but there aren't any bank offices in the town. Instead, when people need capital for their businesses, they form ROSCAs or lending groups. They all put in a set amount each month (say 10 soles), and one person from the group gets it each month. The pot rotates from person to person. Some groups even pay interest into the pot, so if you got the pot last month, you have to put in an extra 5 soles the following month. At the end of the year, everyone benefits from the accumulated interest. We though this was very interesting, but because they don't have actual moneylenders there, we probably don't need to go back.

Mom and Vanessa spent the day seeing the Sacred Valley (Pisaq and Ollantaytambo), and I met up with them in Ollantaytambo. We stayed the night there, then woke up early the next morning to catch the train to Aguas Calientes. From Aguas Calientes, we took a bus up to Machu Picchu. It was gorgeous. We walked around in the ruins in the morning then hiked to the Intipunku (Sun Gate) and the Inca drawbridge after lunch. It was a lot of fun and a really good day.
The next day we went back to Cusco, then went up to see Sacsaywaman. Only Vanessa could go in because me and mom didn't have a boleto, but they are still pretty from the outside (being my third time seeing them from outside...). On the way home from Sacsaywaman, I almost got robbed! I bumped into a guy on the street and he took my wallet out of my jacket. I yelled at him, and he turned, looked at me, then dropped it and kept going. It was kind of a rattling experience since I have felt very safe here in Cusco, but I guess its a good reminder to always be paying attention.

Mom and Vanessa left this morning for Lima. My research director has been pressuring us to find a new location to do some research, so Heather and I were looking into that today. We're thinking of going down the southern coast, then maybe cutting in to see Puno and Lake Titicaca. We may be traveling for about 3 weeks total, though we're not sure yet.