June 7: The Structure and Sturdiness of Walls

This blog entry is all about walls.

Walls are important because they provide shelter and protection. Unfortunately, I have found several walls here that so kindly display warning signs basically saying "Caution! This wall may collapse. This could cause extreme damage. Avoid this wall."  Fortunately, I have not had any personal experiences with collapsing walls, and that is not really the reason I am writing about walls.

On top: Incan build, bottom: Spanish filler

Walls are also very important here because Cusco is old and the structure of the walls provides evidence of the history behind those walls. There are two types of stone walls around here: 1) the beautiful, well-crafted Incan walls made of rocks that are so perfectly carved, there is no need for mortar, and 2) the Spanish walls that look like a pile of rocks filled in with mortar. The picture below features the famous rock with 12-corners, perfectly supporting and supported. No kidding, there are always tourists here taking pictures. It's a big deal.

I think it says a lot that the foundation of the city is literally its history. Cusco is made up of natives who are proud of who they are and where they come from, and their history (partially found in the walls) is literally supporting every component of the city.