Ingapirca

Today we were picked up at 8:30 by our driver and guide, and driven to Ingapirca, an Inca fortress that was established at the northern limits of their empire, shortly before the Spaniards arrived and conquered them. The Cunari, who were there before the Inca, had inhabited that area for over 2000 years, according to the guide and museum, and built much of what we saw. It was a really interesting visit, and I took a lot of pictures, one of which is posted here.






Here is a picture that we took on the way to Ingapirca, when we stopped at a Catholic church poised high up on the side of the mountain, where it looked as though it was about to fall off. However, the view from the church was spectacular, as shown in this picture.













Our guide, Braulio Prado, spoke quite good English, and was an excellent guide for the trip. I wish we could have made contact with him directly, rather than through the travel agency, as he is a freelance contractor with his own SUV, and the travel agency took a hefty cut for linking us up. I recommend him highly if you are in Cuenca looking for a bi-lingual driver and guide. His e-mail is braurojo@hotmail.com, or he can be reached in Ecuador at 098481382.