Week #2 in Cuenca went by quickly with our mornings in class and afternoons free to explore the city. We had the opportunity to watch live the Olympic men�s speedwalking where Cuencan, Jefferson Perez took the silver medal for Ecuador. The city and country are extremely proud of Perez and it was pretty cool to be a part of the celebration.

After school ended on Friday we headed north 3 hours along the Pan American Highway to the small town of Alausi. It is in Alausi where we caught the train to ride La Nariz del Diablo (The Devil�s Nose). The Devil�s Nose is essentially a 330 ft rock face, in which a train descends over a series of switchbacks and then ascends the same way. The Devil�s Nose is a small portion of the railroad that runs all the way from Guayaquil (on the coast) to Quito and was a primary mode of transporting goods. The engineering to overcome the steep face is amazing considering the tracks were laid in the early 1900s. Oh, yeah and the best part is you get to ride on top of the train. No safety regulations here! The view was spectacular and a bit scary at the same time. Picture above is from the bottom of The Devil's Nose, looking back up at the face we just traveled down.

After the train ride we visited Ingapirca which is where the largest Inca ruins in Ecuador are. The Incas came to Ingapirca in 1470 but it is known that a small group called the Canari inhabited the area before then. The Incas conquered the area and today the ruins reveal the only oval shaped sacred Inca palace in the world (it is called The Temple of the Sun). You can see photos by clicking the �Photo Gallery� link on the front page of this site on the right side of the page and then opening the �Ecuador� folder.