Cusco’s Plaza de Armas, with its Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption of the Virgin and Church of the Society of Jesus was also the center of the Incan city. Today it’s a bustling place, where you can see Cusqueñians meeting friends and family, tourists from around the world and street vendors selling everything from chocolates and coffee to sunglasses and hats. Surrounding the plaza are many restaurants, souvenir shops and places to book tours and activities.

Look for the Inca-carved stones (below) that are now part of the landscaping, though they were once part of Inca buildings.

Before the Spanish built the cathedral and church, creating the colonial plaza, the area was used by the Inca. It included two parts: Aucaypata, the “space of the warriors” and Huacaypata the “place of sacred cries.”

Before the Inca developed the Aucaypata and Huacaypata, the area was swampy during the rainy season due to the Saphi River, which now runs under nearby Calle Choquechaka. You can still see the river at the Aqueducto Sapantiana.