Cusco as a theme-park...

One of the things on my mind recently is the different between Cusco and Santiago, with a number of conclusions. One conclusion I reached was that living in Cusco is like living inside a theme-park. Firstly, there’s the feeling that the town and surrounding region is playground for visitors form all over the world (whether they’re just sight-seeing or doing some trekking), not to mention that so much in the town is determined or affected by the number of tourists in town. Whether it’s a restaurant or a tour company decisions are made based on the time of year and the corresponding expected influx of visitors.

Being in Santiago at the moment it feels as though this place has a rhythm of its own, as if this is a place that really is centred on the lives of the people who live here and that visitors are just that, visitors. Don’t get me wrong I don’t have any regrets about living in Cusco and I think it’s a great place to visit. Being there though (and I may have mentioned this already) was a really eye-opening experience.