Cajamarca!

So on Friday morning we bid goodbye to Chiclayo and headed inland and up the mountains on a six-hour bus ride to Cajamarca.  The drive up was beautiful, and as we climbed higher the breeze changed from warm and toasty to cool and refreshing.  Check out the views:

 

When we got to our hostel, right on the Plaza de Armas, this was the view that greeted us from our little tiny balcony:

 

We settled in and wandered around a little bit last night, then saw the sights today.  We started with the Cuarto de Rescate. 

 

Cajamarca is the site where the Spanish first encountered the Inca ruler Atahualpa, in 1532.  Atahualpa and his followers were hanging out in the thermal baths a few miles from town, resting in the midst of a civil war with his brother Huascar over the control of the Inca empire, which at the time stretched from Colombia to central Chile.  The Spanish arrived in Cajamarca and sent someone to request a meeting with Atahualpa. They were extremely outnumbered, so they were hoping to surprise Atahualpa.  He arrived at the meeting, accompanied by his entourage, and the Spanish tried to offer him a Bible. When he rejected it, the Spanish decided they were justified in attacking the Incas and succeeded in taking Atahualpa hostage.  The Cuarto de Rescate is where he was held for eight months, while the Inca empire rounded up tons and tons of gold and silver in an attempt to ransom him out.  At the site, they also have some pictures imagining what this first encounter was like:

Of course, no amount of gold in the world was going to convince the Spanish to free Atahualpa, so they executed him in July of 1533.  Since then, the stones from the Inca buildings were repurposed for the Spanish buildings, so the Cuarto de Rescate is the only Inca building still standing in the city.

We also visited the Iglesia of Belén, which was built in the 1600s and is a typical Spanish colonial church, although it had some extensive wood carvings and elaborate decorations around the dome.

Our other highlight of the day was climbing to the lookout of Cerro Santa Apolonia, which we could see from our room.  To get there, you climb a lovely set of stone stairs:

 

It was a nice walk up, although we took a few breaks due to the altitude (we are at about 2600 meters, or 8500 feet).  From the top, we could check out the whole city in its valley and the surrounding mountains.

 

In this photo, you can see the Plaza de Armas and our hostel, facing you on the right side of the plaza.

 

This is a good view of the mountains and another part of the city.

  

And, of course, JP, checking out things from the top!

We have really enjoyed Cajamarca and the cool weather, but we will continue southward tomorrow.  We are headed to Trujillo, another colonial city with more ruins, and then onto Lima and farther south.