Indeed, much can be said about this city. After all, it was the capital of the now defunct Inca Empire. An aficionado of Latin America will henceforth be aware of the mountains of literature available about this city. Guide books, historical annals, novels and academic texts abound on this topic. This is exactly what I assume (correctly?) that the reader is uninterested in hearing about. So instead, how about just a little story, on a town called Cuzco.

Some people I had met in La Paz, who had just arrived from Ushuaia, and were on their way to Alaska, had convinced that it would be "fun" to bicycle to Cuzco, from La Paz.

I think it was their charisma - after all, they were both French. They convinced me in a matter of minutes. And (let me put your mind at ease) it was fun, albeit in a masochistic sort of way.

The trip was definitely not uneventful. Many anecdotes and short stories. Beautiful scenery. But that's another story (next week). Anyway, I was hooked. I quit my job in La Paz as a journalist (I'm still expecting my pay, though), and we were on our way.

I've never been much of an athlete, but let me tell you one thing; traveling with a bike is extremely rewarding. You feel that you actually deserved to arrive at your destination, in this case, Cuzco. The city officials have truly down a marvelous job in the past few years. But, once again, it is at night that Cuzco, like a shy girl, unveils herself (er...pardon me? - Ed.). The few blocks surrounding the plaza, at the center of the city, have been entirely preserved. The plaza itself is huge. A large fountain springs from the middle, and a beautifully manicured lawn, with flower beds parcel the remaining area. Benches are laid out in convenient spots. All around this plaza, the roads are still made from cobbles. The surroundings include two massive cathedrals, dwarfing the rest of the environs. Next to them, two story buildings, with balconies, usually cafes or restaurants, will offer the visitor an absolutely stunning view.

At night, the whole plaza is lit up, by picturesque lampposts and strategically positioned lights. The scenery could almost be described as eerie, but one cannot but feel happy when he/she walks around. The city is literally pulsating with life.Or are those the discotheques which are pulsating? Inevitably, no visitor, even the most determined, can escape Cuzco's night life.

Now, I'll be frank, I love going out (especially at night), but Cuzco was too much. I was seriously considering leaving the city early, due to this "pulse," which was making me feel more nauseus than happy. Cuzco is literally brimming with night life. One of its most attractive features is that to compete, most clubs offer free drink coupons. Within a one block radius of the plaza, I counted nine nightclubs, and this is not including the plethora of excellent or cheap restaurants and bars.

It is definitely a nice change from what can be described as a carencia of such places in La Paz. But, the drawback is that these places in Cuzco are extremely impersonal, catering mostly to the tourist who will spend around a week there. The same goes for daytime. There is a lot to see in and around Cuzco. Most obvious is the Inca trail with Machu Picchu, but there is a large number of unknown and unvisited but very interesting ruins all around the city. The museums are quite good, but I found them lacking in information. It's nice to know that such a pot was used to burn coca during certain ceremonies, but I'd be more interested in learning more about these ceremonies.

If the "cultural" stuff does not capture your fancy, then a myriad of other activities await you. I highly recommend the white water rafting, but there is also mountaineering, paragliding and even canyoning available to the more adventurous. Furthermore, the many villages around Cuzco usually offer festivals, or just plain fiestas at various points during the year. The highlight among them is the "Paucartambo" festival, where the whole town sort of loses its sanity, and at the end of the three-day party you have a re-enactment of the civil war that doomed the Inca empire.