| Ingapirca, which peaked in power around 1400 A.D., is the best preserved Incan site in all of Ecuador. It is a short 2 hour bus ride northeast of Cuenca, and I visited it one afternoon with three local friends of mine. Normally, it is very cold at Ingapirca, as it is located rather high in the Andes, but on this day we were lucky enough to have an abundance of sun, and it was actually hot. | |
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This is a complete view of the ruins as you walk up the winding road to the entrance. |
| Immediately upon entry, we were greeted by several alpacas roaming the ruins. I thought, "Neat, captive alpacas to appease the tourists." But in fact, they were not captive circus clowns at all, but actual wild alpacas that just happened to be there while we were. |  |
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Another alpaca. Alpaca are similar to llamas, but a tad smaller. Their long silky fleece is much warmer than that of llamas, and for this reason the indigenous people use it to make warm clothing and blankets for protection in the high, cold Andes mountains. |
| Two more alpacas cruising around the ruins. |  |
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This is the doorway to the centerpiece of Ingapirca, the castillo (castle), an elliptical fortress known as the Temple of the Sun. Ingapirca is the only site in the entire Incan realm which has a castillo. |
A shot of the castillo from behind. Notice how it is situated on the edge of a cliff, and check out the scenery that surrounds it, including the river just below which you cannot see. It's an impressive view from atop the temple. |
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Marcela and I atop some of the ruins.
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