Samaipata is one of the many...
Samaipata is one of the many beautiful valleys of the eastern Andes of Santa Cruz (others worth visiting: Vallegrande (check out my Vallegrande travelogue), Postrer Valle, Mairana, Pampa Grande, Cuevas, etc.). Samaipata was first founded by the Pre-Inca Indian civilizations who inhabited this green valley, they built a temple carved on the rock 2000 meters (6600') above see level, then the Incas built a fortified city around it, and then the Spaniards build the village on the bottom of the valley that still maintains its original architecture (For more pictures of the ruins check out my Samaipata Travelogues). Samaipata is not you average South American tourist destination, in this little village of only 1500 people you can find a several German restaurants (there is several German families in Samaipata), Bolivian food, the village market just a block away from the main square, where the...
