This is considered the oldest living city in the Americas
Evidence of ancient civilization covers Cusco, Peru, which was the capital of the Inca Empire.
Updated: 8:20 PM EDT Oct 28, 2024
THE OLDEST LIVING CITY IN THE AMERICAS. THIS IS CUSCO, PERU, THE CAPITAL OF THE INCAN EMPIRE. IT’S ALIVE AND IT’S UP THERE AT 11,000FT. THE ELEVATION IS MORE THAN TWICE AS HIGH AS DENVER. BUT EXPERIENCING PERU’S ANCIENT HISTORY UP CLOSE IS MORE THAN WORTH THE THREAT OF ALTITUDE SICKNESS. NUMBER ONE, ON THE LIST GOES WITHOUT SAYING. THIS IS MACHU PICCHU, A RELIGIOUS, CEREMONIAL, ASTRONOMICAL AND AGRICULTURAL CENTER OF THE INCAN EMPIRE. HERE’S A FUN FACT ABOUT ONE OF THE NEW SEVEN WONDERS OF THE WORLD. WHEN THE SPANIARDS CONQUERED THE INCAN EMPIRE IN THE 1500S, MACHU PICCHU WAS ABANDONED. IT REMAINED AN ACTUAL HIDDEN GEM FOR HUNDREDS OF YEARS. BUT THEN ARCHEOLOGISTS REDISCOVERED THIS INCREDIBLE PLACE IN 1911. BEYOND MACHU PICCHU, THE SACRED VALLEY OVERFLOWS WITH HISTORY. THERE’S THE FORTRESS AT OLLANTAYTAMBO, AN ANCIENT VILLAGE THAT’S STILL BUSTLING TODAY. ABOUT AN HOUR FROM THERE, YOU’LL FIND THE SALT MINES OF MILLIS. ALL THE MOUNTAINS HERE ONCE WERE UNDER THE WATER LEVEL. DURING THE HOT SPRING FEEDS THE WELLS WITH SALT WATER AND THEY’RE STILL PRODUCING SALT. TODAY. YOU CAN SEE SOME PEOPLE WORKING HERE ARE ACTUALLY FAMILIES WHO ARE THE OWNERS OF THIS PLACE. SO THEY WERE WORKING SINCE GENERATIONS AND GENERATIONS BACK IN THE CITY OF CUSCO, THERE’S SAKSAYWAMAN, AN ANCIENT TEMPLE ABOVE THE CITY. CONSTRUCTION LASTED NEARLY 100 YEARS AND INCLUDES A ROCK SLIDE. WHOA! EVIDENCE OF ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS CAN BE FOUND ALL OVER PERU, INCLUDING RIGHT HERE IN THE CAPITAL CITY OF LIMA. THIS IS HUACA PUCLLANA, AN ADOBE AND CLAY PYRAMID THAT DATES BACK TO THE FIFTH CENTURY. WELL, THIS IS ORIGINAL. THIS IS BY HAND. THIS IS NEW RESTORATION. IT’S A TIME CAPSULE OF ANCIENT LIMA CULTURE. TODAY, A FAMOUS RESTAURANT OVERLOOKS THE HISTORIC SITE. THE PEOPLE DON’T LIVE HERE BECAUSE THIS PLACE WAS A TEMPLE. THE COMMON PEOPLE LIVED AROUND THAT AREA CLOSE TO THE OCEAN. 250 MILES SOUTH OF LIMA. THE NAZCA LINES ARE A COLLECTION OF GIANT GEOGLYPHS. WE HAVE DIFFERENT ANIMALS LIKE YOU SEE THE WHALES, DOLPHINS, SHARKS. THEY’RE BEST SEEN FROM THE AIR, BUT YOU CAN ALSO CLIMB THIS TOWER AND SPOT SOME OF THEM. THEY DATE BACK 2000 YEARS TO THE PRE-INCAN CIVILIZATION OF THE NAZCA PEOPLE. THEIR MEANING STILL SURROUNDED IN MYSTERY. I TALK ABOUT THE DIFFERENT MEANS MANY PEOPLE BELIEVE IN ALIENS. OUR LAST STOP TAKES US TO CORRELL, THE MOST ANCIENT OF THE ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS IN PERU. WHAT ARE WE SITTING CORRELL THE SECOND CIVILIZATION IN THE WORLD. IT WAS REDISCOVERED IN 1994. WHEN THEY CAME HERE, IT WAS ALL COVERED LIKE THIS. NO IDEA. BUT THEY CONTINUE TRYING TO LOOK FOR SITES AND FINALLY THEY ENCOUNTER THIS WONDERFUL URBAN SETTLEMENT. NOW I’M CURIOUS, AND I’M SURE OTHERS ARE. DID THE HIGH ALTITUDE MAKE YOU SICK? IT DID MAKE SOME PEOPLE SICK. WE ACTUALLY HAD QUITE A FEW STUDENTS THROUGHOUT THE TRIP GETTING SICK FOR A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT REASONS, BUT DEFINITELY WHEN YOU’RE IN CUSCO, WHEN YOU’RE IN THAT HIGH ALTITUDE, YOU CAN FEEL IT WHEN YOU’RE WALKING AROUND. I TOOK A PRESCRIPTION FOR AN ALTITUDE SICKNESS PRESCRIPTION BEFORE I WENT THERE, AND A LOT OF PEOPLE, INCLUDING MYSELF, DRINK THE COCA TEA WHILE YOU’RE THERE. SO. BUT YOU FEEL IT. YOU DEFINITELY FEEL IT. AND THEY TELL YOU, TAKE IT EASY WHEN YOU GET THERE. THAT FIRST DAY, DON’T GO OUT AND TRY TO CONQUER CUSCO OR YOU’RE GOING TO FEEL IT. DID YOU TAKE IT EASY? I DID, I LISTENED, I LISTENED TO THE RULES. ALL RIGHT, STI
This is considered the oldest living city in the Americas
Evidence of ancient civilization covers Cusco, Peru, which was the capital of the Inca Empire.
Updated: 8:20 PM EDT Oct 28, 2024
Reporting for this episode of Chronicle was done as part of a Northeastern University study abroad program to Peru. Cusco, Peru, is considered the oldest living city in the Americas. No visit to Cusco would be complete without a visit to Machu Picchu, one of the seven wonders of the modern world.Pulse of Peru: Exploring the Cultural Tapestry is an online magazine produced by Northeastern University students who are part of the school’s “Dialogue of Civilizations” study abroad program. The magazine published video news reports and documentaries detailing the students’ month-long stay in Peru.The following students participated in the project: Renee Abbott, Jenica Ashby, Theodore Babbitt, Henry Bova, Lawrence Brown, Celena Budd, Sonel Cutler, Isabelle Elenes, Hannah Escandon, Sofia Garrett, Annika Geiben Lynn, Lila Hempel-Edgers, Kylee Hendrie, Meghan Hirsch, Nikkia Jean-Charles, Aoife Jeffries, Margot Murphy, Ariya Patel, Pedro Portela, Diana Sanchez, Everest Saric, and Sean Wilson.
Reporting for this episode of Chronicle was done as part of a Northeastern University study abroad program to Peru. Cusco, Peru, is considered the oldest living city in the Americas. No visit to Cusco would be complete without a visit to Machu Picchu, one of the seven wonders of the modern world.
Pulse of Peru: Exploring the Cultural Tapestry is an online magazine produced by Northeastern University students who are part of the school’s “Dialogue of Civilizations” study abroad program. The magazine published video news reports and documentaries detailing the students’ month-long stay in Peru.
The following students participated in the project: Renee Abbott, Jenica Ashby, Theodore Babbitt, Henry Bova, Lawrence Brown, Celena Budd, Sonel Cutler, Isabelle Elenes, Hannah Escandon, Sofia Garrett, Annika Geiben Lynn, Lila Hempel-Edgers, Kylee Hendrie, Meghan Hirsch, Nikkia Jean-Charles, Aoife Jeffries, Margot Murphy, Ariya Patel, Pedro Portela, Diana Sanchez, Everest Saric, and Sean Wilson.
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