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Local cheese in the market.
Plaza de Armas
View from opposite hillside of the Fortress Ollant
Jaime at Plaza de Armas.the shoe shine boys
The Plaza de Armas of Cusco is perhaps the prettiest square in all of South America, but one a tourist will have a hard time to simply enjoy. I found the best times to do that without being accosted by touts was very early in the morning or evening hours when the majority of them were taking a break. Maybe Cusco is the most beautiful city in Peru and the admitted capital of the former Inca Empire but this has come at a cost with regard it’s being overly touristy. This can be downright irritating at times with wave after wave of touts trying to pry money from your pocket on a daily basis. The best were the shoe shine boys. You couldn’t walk anywhere in the Plaza de Armas without one walking up with his little kit and making his pitch. At first, it seemed cute, that these little kids were so industrious to try and make a buck, but after the twentieth one, it lost all its charm. It was especially tiresome if you were lucky enough to secure a bench in the square to enjoy a view of the illustrious cathedral or lovely fountain. They would descend on you as soon as they saw you. One day, we had the pleasure of three of them at once. One was selling postcards, one a shoeshine boy and the third an accomplice that I pegged as after my camera. They surrounded us and asked where were from. On answering the United States, they went on with a spiel of who was president, the capital, former president, etc. They seemed able to do it for most popular countries. We laughed at their little ploy to put us at ease and become our “amigos,” which was so obviously aimed at alleviating us from our money. I actually needed a shoeshine though I had never paid anyone to do this task for me in my life so I succumbed. That is after asking how much of course. He said one sol, which was about a quarter. We both needed postcards and they were selling them at the going rate in the shops so I figured why not. We picked about twenty-five of them between the two of us while the one boy got to work on my shoes. He told me he was giving me a special shine, which I didn’t pay much attention to, as I was busy with card choices. It actually was funny to me as the kids were real salesmen and I am no easy sell as a rule. I kept my camera under my arm just the same. (conclusion below in My Fondest Memory)
