family cruise vacation ideas

Discover Machu Picchu one of the new 7 wonders

Filed under: cruise — Tags: discover, machu, new, picchu, wonders — libertees @ 10:44 pm January 22, 2010

Machu Picchu

Beyond the Sacred Valley of the Incas, where the Urubamba river leaves the highlands to rush down into the cloud forest, the ancient citadel of Machu Picchu lies amid a verdant tropical landscape scattered with orchids and bromeliads and crisscrossed by a network of Inca highways, where it lay hidden from the world for four centuries until it was discovered by science in 1911. Reached by hikers along the world-famous Inca Trail or via a spectacular railway journey, Machu Picchu has lost none of its mystery in the ninety years since its discovery.

Cusco

With the arrival of the Spanish in 1532, Cusco’s temples and palaces became the foundations for magnificent neo-Baroque churches such as Santo Domingo and the Cathedral, and above its narrow streets rose the wooden balconies of red-roofed, whitewashed colonial houses.

The UNESCO placed the city of Cusco, the ancient capital of the Inca Empire, on the World Cultural Heritage List in 1983; definitely, Cusco is one of the most important destinations in Peru. Nestled in the heart of the Andes, Cusco was the political and religious capital of the Incas, the hub of the greatest empire ever seen in the Americas and a place of pilgrimage for all those who worshipped the sun god, Inti. With many Incan buildings waiting for you to discover them among its stoned streets, ones like the Koricancha and the palace of Inca Roca as well as Andean Baroque structures from the Colonial Period like the Cathedral and the Church of the Company of Christ. In addition, you can visit the charming neighborhood of San Blas where the most talented artisans have set up their workshops. The magical city of Cusco also has an exciting nightlife with cafes, restaurants, and bars for all tastes. Just ten minutes away from the city, there are impressive archeological sites like the Sacsayhuaman fortress, Qenko, Pukapukara, and Tambomachay, Inca buildings made completely with stone.

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Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/travel-articles/discover-machu-picchu-one-of-the-new-7-wonders-1767735.html

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