Down to breakfast at 7.00 and then had to persuade everything back into our bags as we were leaving the hotel today. Had a long scenic drive to Pisac stopping on the way for photos of the Sacred Valley with the Urubamba River winding through it. Pisachas a famous craft market – lively and colourful - so there were good shopping opportunities Stopped in Urubamba town for lunch in a buffet-style restaurant then on to the home of a local family to taste chicha. This is maize beer and when you see a house with a red plastic bag tied to the end of a long stick you know they are selling it. Went into a primitive bake house and were served chichi from large vats. We also tried a version made with strawberries. The guides explained to us that it is customary to make a little offering to Pachamama, the earth-mother, before you drink. This involves pouring a little chichi onto the ground. Saw the family’s guinea pig collection: about sixty of them in assorted colours and sizes all running around in a stable and eating maize stalks.
Wilfredo told us that families often keep huge numbers (his grandmother had 300) and may share the house with them so that they act like living and edible insulation!.
