#55 Machu Picchu #4

We visited this Inca ceremonial center
This area is surrounded by mountains The Incas built roads
connecting this site with Machu Picchu to the west and
the town on Pisaq to the east.  It is located close to the
middle of the Sacred Valley.  

This is an actual Inca street.  It is very narrow and has a waterway
or drain on the side.  

Another view of the street.  

These are the terraces on the ceremonial site.  This steep hill
is called Cerro Bandolista. The elevation here is 9,160 feet. 
The main functions of this site were religious.  The main structure
 of the site is the Sun Temple.

As we climbed the stairs along the terraces this is the view of the
mountain across the valley.  The light colored structures are storehouses.
They are located at high altitudes, where there is more wind and lower
 temperatures.  This helped their contents last longer.  They believe
they stored  agricultural products here.  

This wall of twelve ledge openings is located near the Temple Site.

The view at the top of the terraces.  The site is divided into
three main areas: the Middle Sector where the terraces are,
the Temple Sector to the south and the burial sector to the north.   

This is a door to the temple site.

This is the wall with twelve ledge openings. We all put our heads in
and listened to our voices.  

Our guides name was Ophellia.  She was a member
of the church but less active. 

The stairs we climbed.  

We made it to the top.  This is the Temple site.  

This is the view looking up the Sacred Valley from the top
of the hill.  

The view looking down from the burial area. 

 

We saw wild flowers and cactus growing on the hill 

Brightly dressed Peruvian woman and children sitting at the bottom
of the hill.  

A view of the beautiful country in the Sacred Valley
taken from the top of the hill.