March 2020 - Explore Cusco

I’ve been working on a post about the situation here in Cusco for over a week now and can’t seem to make myself finish it. So I’ll post something a little different to get me started posting again: My Latin Music Playlist (with YouTube live versions of most to help you enjoy)!

For most of my adult life, I’ve enjoyed “world” music and in the last 20 years or so I’ve focused on Latin music.

Here are some songs that I listen to a lot here. Latin music is certainly not the only music I enjoy. My tastes are very eclectic and range from AC/DC (cranked up loud, of course) to 80’s pop to classic rock to classical/soundtrack tunes, but I love to listen these tunes and they are all played almost daily on my iPhone!

Please let me know what you think with a comment at the end. I especially would love to hear any new suggestions for songs I might like! With all the challenges the world is facing, I thought something light and positive would help us all get through each day a little better.

Note: These are not in any order (except the last one). Just enjoy each as they come!

Enanitos Verdes – Tu Carcel (Live in Mexico)

Despite being recorded 16 years ago, this song by a fantastic Argentinian band is still very, very popular. I hear it all the time while walking in the mall, coming from people’s cars, from speakers that so many stores place at their entrance to get customers’ attention, etc.

Banda Calypso – Ainda Te Amo

I first heard this Brazilian Band about 2 am on Christmas morning in a little hut on the edge of Belen in Iquitos around 2006. If you don’t know, Christmas celebrations in Peru start at midnight and go until morning (or later!). I was invited to a friend’s house where we ate a great middle of the night turkey dinner with wine before turning on the TV and dancing to their pirate DVD of Banda Calypso’s live performances.

Even years later, this song still gives me chills and it’s hard to sit still. I remember a bunch of little kids gathered outside to watch the gringo dance the night away in a place where gringos generally don’t go!

Laura Pausini – Quiero Decirte Que Te Amo

I don’t know where I first heard Laura Pausini, but I immediately fell in love with her voice. If you haven’t heard her before, you really should listen. She has a ton of beautiful songs, but this one is my favorite right now.

David Bisbal – Amar es Lo Que Quiero

I started listening to David Bisbal many, many years ago. He has several song I really like, but this one is definitely my favorite.

Maná – Corazon Espinado

If you grow up in the Southwest US and you don’t know this Maná, then you must be living in a cave. They were the first Mexican band that showed me there was more south of the Rio Grande than mariachis!

It’s hard to pick a favorite song of theirs because there are so many, but this duet with the legendary Carlos Santana tops them all.

Yahir – Te Amaré

This is still my favorite “sing along” tune in the shower. The studio version is better, but this live performance is still pretty good. His recording of “La Locura” is another of my all-time favorites.

Dom Omar – Danza Kuduro

I looked all over to find a really good live version of this song.

Turn up the music LOUD. Don’t know the words? Who cares! I dare you to sit still while listening to this!

Nicky Jam and Enrique Iglesias – El Perdon

I couldn’t find a live version of this with both singers, but the studio version is awesome. Four years ago you couldn’t go anywhere in Peru without hearing this song. I remember it was immensely popular in Iquitos — especially the barrios where the tourists don’t go!

Banda Calypso – Perdeu O Trono

One more Banda Calypso song. It’s a shame they split up. (The lead singer and guitarist were married, but have since divorced.) Though they are still immensely popular in Brazil and the rest of the continent, songs like this always made me think they could have been even bigger outside South America.

Ricardo Arjona – Porque es Tan Cruel el Amor

This another one that I couldn’t find a decent live version, but the original sounds just fine. I used to listen to this when i was in Mexico a long time ago so it brings back a lot of bittersweet memories.

Mocedades – Eres Tú

I saved the best for last. This song is perhaps the best example of Latin music that transcends language and culture. You don’t have to know the words to sing along. Is there another that is so well known and so well loved all over the world?

Can you believe this was first recorded 47 years ago? This live version still touches me in a way that I can’t put into words. Watch the video and you’ll see that I’m not alone.

Please feel free to leave a comment below. I love to hear what people think! If you like this, you can share this page with the links below or even subscribe so that you’ll be notified when I post again. (I don’t sell anything here, so you don’t have to worry about that.)

Last week I went to Machu Picchu for the 6th and 7th times this year to do some research on the citadel. While I’m still working on a project to be discussed later, I thought I’d share some photos from my time up there with a little explanation of most.

Too many times I go places and take a ton of photos, but they never seem to get shared. This time I thought I’d make sure to take the time to post these for others to see. (Be sure to click on each to see the larger version!)

La Puente Inca (The Inca Bridge)

I really didn’t go with the plan to take the short hike to the Inca Bridge on the west side of Machu Picchu mountain, but decided to change plans when I learned the Inca Road up to the Inti Punku (Sun Gate) was still blocked by a landslide.

Hardly anyone takes the extra 30 minutes to get there despite it being an easy walk with some magnificent views of the Urubamba Valley to the west. This is something that should not be missed.

The start of the trail to the bridge is a great place to get some beautiful photos of Machu Picchu with Huayna Picchu in the background.

This hike is along one of the 8 Inca roads to and from Machu Picchu. Most people think there is only the famous “Inca Trail” when, in fact, there were others. Look for the important San Miguel mountain across the river.

That faint green line on the cliff is actually what’s left of the Inca road that connected Machu Picchu with the imporant sister site of Llactapata across the Aombamba Valley.

Inca Hydrology

Without a source of water, Machu Picchu would never have been built. It was certainly the first priority of the Inca engineers who chose this location.

Fortunately a year-round spring was located nearly 800m from the center of Machu Picchu which was able to supply water for its residents.

While the spring itself is off limits to visitors, it still provides the water which flows into Machu Picchu and down the 16 fountains in the center of the site.

Despite visiting Machu Picchu dozens of times in the past, I never noticed the channel along the main entry path that was the citadel’s sole source of water.

This was one of my main focuses on this trip as, like most every other visitor, I hadn’t paid any attention to water and the fundamental importance its management paid to the design, construction, and permanence of Machu Picchu.

I will definitely be writing more about this part of Machu Picchu’s engineering in the future!

The Sacred Plaza and the Inithuatana

The Sacred Plaza is a collection of buildings which defy explanation. I have spent countless hours studying each of the buildings and structures closely. Each time I’m there I see different things which add to my understanding of this important part Machu Picchu.

The Sacred Plaza as seen from the steps leading to the Intihuatana.

I don’t think there’s any Inca construction that holds my attention as much as the Intihuatanas which dominate each of the three remaining locations in which they can still be seen.

Why do am I so fascinated by these? Probably because they are simply unexplained. Their importance can not be understated as they occupied significant places. Indeed, the Intihuatana at Machu Picchu was carved from the massive granite outcrop upon which it sits at the highest point in the main Machu Picchu site.

Bingham named it the Intihuatana from the Inca word roughly meaning “Hitching Post of the Sun.” Traditionally its importance has been related to the sun and even referred to as a sundial or an astrological construction. The truth is, there is no evidence to support any of those beliefs.

More likely it was an abstract representation of the surrounding sacred mountains which the Incas gave the highest regard as they were considered not only their protectors, but also the controllers of life-giving resources.

One of Machu Picchu’s most respected scholars, Johan Reinhard, thinks that the Intihuatana is an abstract representation of both of the mountains that bookend the site — Huayna Picchu and Machu Picchu mountain.

The biggest discovery of the week is something I’m going to hold off writing about just yet because it may be something very significant. Almost by accident, I may have come across something that even scholars who have studied Machu Picchu missed. This is something I first need to discuss with those who know a lot more than I do!

From this spot, I stared at the Intihuatana for quite awhile. Then an idea came to me that caught me by surprise and with some quick reading measurements and some research when I returned home this evening, I may have come upon a relationship that has evaded scholars before.
(Then again, everyone may know it except me!)

Other Interesting Photos

Every trip to Machu Picchu brings lots of new revelations and interesting sights. This trip was no different.

One of my favorite things to do is simply walk very, very slowly. Often I stop and just look around at everything around me — the walls, the floor, the construction, and every little detail that would normally go unnoticed. This is where new things are seen and new things are learned.

Inside one of the rooms known as the “Royal Residence” where the Sapa Inca and his family resided when in residence at Machu Picchu, a horizontal is carved on the lintels above these two niches as well as the massive lintel above the door. The purpose of this line remains a mystery.

Workers are all over the site right now getting things ready for the massive influx of tourists over the next few months.

What would any of my photo albums be without some animals? Llamas graze all over Machu Picchu and provide more selfie opportunities, but most visitors don’t notice the vizcachas — fuzzy rodents who look remarkably like rabbits, but are actually part of the chinchilla family — hiding in the rocks that are even more abundant.

There’s nothing really special about this morning photo of the mountains to the northeast, but I thought the clouds made for a very atmospheric pic!

Please feel free to leave a comment below. I love to hear what people think! If you like this, you can share this page with the links below or even subscribe so that you’ll be notified when I post again. (I don’t sell anything here, so you don’t have to worry about that.)