Ingapirca
Trip Start
Sep 11, 2008
1
30
70
Trip End
Jan 03, 2009
Ingapirca,
Ecuador
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
I could have gone myself on public transport, but I was feeling lazy, so I booked a spot on a tour. I´m so glad I did, because we had a fantastic guide, and I learned a lot about the site, which I never would have appreciated just wandering around on my own.
The ruins are about over 500 years old, and are unique in that they are a mixture of two cultures - Inca and Caņari.
According to our guide, the Caņari inhabited the area before the arrival of the incas from Peru. Unlike other groups, the Caņari proved to be formidable opponents and the Inca were not able to conquer them. Instead, they formed an alliance, so the settlement at Ingapirca is half Caņari, half Inca, although there are similarities between them.
The ruins were much more impressive than I was expecting, and the weather was perfect (most of my time in Cuenca, it has been cloudy and wet), so it was a very enjoyable day out.
