Sacsaywaman (local ruins)

After taking it easy yesterday to acclimatize to the 11,000+ foot elevation in Cuzco, we were ready to check out some of the local Inca sites. Therefore, we set out on foot to Sacsaywaman, which is located north of Cuzco's Plaza de Armas. We took a breathtaking stroll up a narrow, steep, cobbled street. A half hour later with some sweatiness, we had arrived at the gorgeous ruins.

Sacsaywaman was built to be the head of the puma that Cuzco is supposed to represent and was built as a temple and/or fort. It was a good defense when the Incas were fighting the Spanish in 1536. 2/3 of the perfectly carved and heavy stones were taken to build La Catedral at Plaza de Armas. Anyway, the views were beautiful of the ruins and the city and we thoroughly enjoyed the photo ops :)