Two Backpackers

Photo of the Day: 12-Sided Inca Stone

| by Jason | No Comments » | Photo of the Day

Peru, more specifically Cusco (Cuzco) Peru is most famous for it’s connection to the great Inca empire. Today, the city still stands atop an ancient stone work built by the Incas. A great example of their craftsmanship can be found within Cusco city. This stone is referred to as the 12-sided Inca stone. The Incas used several styles of stone work, this one emphasizes the carving of a rock to fit amongst other rocks perfectly without using mortar. The perfect alignment of the rocks is some of the most impressive stone work we have ever seen.

12-Sided Inca Stone in Cusco Peru

Visiting Lost City of Petra on a Budget

| by Miriam | 6 Comments » | Guest Post, Jordan, Middle East

The Lost City of Petra

I’ve always found traveling through the Middle East on a budget an easy feat.  With many of the sites having free entry, easily accessible through public transport and providing cheap food options, it’s a backpackers dream.

I always found this until I decided to go to Petra in Jordan.  Jordan is a vast country that is rich in beauty.  Petra, its most famous site, is known for its appearances in films and its deserted ambiance.  I’m sure when it was first re-discovered in 1812 by Swiss Explorer Johannes Burkhardt there was no entry fee charge.  Now however, things have changed.  Although it can get a bit pricey, I can’t overemphasize how worthwhile a visit is. (more…)

Photo of the Day: Nazca Lines Hummingbird

| by Aracely | 1 Comment » | Photo of the Day

The Nazca Lines are a series of ancient geoglyphs located in the Nazca Desert of Peru. They have been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The high, arid plateau stretches more than 80 kilometres (50 mi) between the towns of Nazca and Palpa on the Pampas de Jumana. Although some local geoglyphs resemble Paracas motifs, scholars believe the Nazca Lines were created by the Nazca culture between 400 and 650 AD. The hundreds of individual figures range in complexity from simple lines to stylized hummingbirds, spiders, monkeys, fish, sharks or orcas, llamas, and lizards.
The lines are shallow designs made in the ground by removing the ubiquitous reddish pebbles and uncovering the whitish ground beneath. Hundreds are simple lines or geometric shapes; more than seventy are designs of animal, bird, fish or human figures. The largest figures are over 200 meters (660 ft) across. Scholars differ in interpreting the purpose of the designs, but they generally ascribe religious significance to them, as they were major works that required vision, planning and coordination of people to achieve. – Wikipedia

Nazca Lines Hummingbird Shape

Photo of the Day: Sillustani Ruins in Peru

| by Aracely | No Comments » | Photo of the Day

Sillustani is a pre-Incan burial ground on the shores of Lake Umayo near Puno in Peru.  The tombs, which are built above ground in tower-like structures called chullpas, are the vestiges of the Colla people, Aymara who were conquered by the Inca in the 15th century.  The structures housed the remains of complete family groups, although they were probably limited to nobility.  Many of the tombs have been dynamited by grave robbers, while others were left unfinished. – Wikipedia

Sillustani Ruins (Pre-Columbian Funeral Towers)

Photo of the Day: Tikal National Park, Grand Plaza

| by Jason | No Comments » | Photo of the Day

Tikal is one of the largest archaeological sites and urban centres of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. It is located in the archaeological region of the Petén Basin in what is now northern Guatemala. Situated in the department of El Petén, the site is part of Guatemala’s Tikal National Park and in 1979 it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Tikal was the capital of a conquest state that became one of the most powerful kingdoms of the ancient Maya. Though monumental architecture at the site dates back as far as the 4th century BC, Tikal reached its apogee during the Classic Period, ca. 200 to 900 AD. During this time, the city dominated much of the Maya region politically, economically, and militarily, while interacting with areas throughout Mesoamerica such as the great metropolis of Teotihuacan in the distant Valley of Mexico. – Wikipedia
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Tikal National Park, Guatemala

Photo of the Day: Machu Picchu

| by Jason | 6 Comments » | Photo of the Day

Machu Picchu is one of the greatest sites to visit in all of South America.  The awesomeness of the Inca ruin can only be understood when you are actually there walking through the ancient city.  It’s a very difficult place to take great photos, often cloudy, raining and swarming with tourists.   A patient photographer would probably visit for several days trying to get the perfect picture, but the entrance fee was too steep for us.

Machu Picchu

Photo of the Day: Pikillacta Ruins Cusco Peru

| by Jason | 1 Comment » | Photo of the Day

The Wari Empire was a pre-Inca civilization that constructed extensive roadwork across Peru. Believed to have been conquered by the Incas, Wari peoples no longer exist. Pikillacta lies 30 kilometers outside of the city of Cusco and covers 2 square miles. It appears very large, but much is still to be excavated and restored.

Pre-Inca Pikillacta Ruins Near Cusco, Peru