First I went to the Pachacutec Monument.  This is a modern monument to the great Inca leader.

Inside the base of the statue is a sort of museum of Pachacutec's life. He wasn't the first Inca ruler but he was the one who turned their holdings into an empire. 

And the top gives views across the city.

In the heart of Cusco lie the ruins of Cusicancha - this was my next stop. There is very little left but it is believed that this is the remains of an area inhabited by Incan nobility. Some Spanish chronicles indicate that this is where Patchacutec was born. I couldn't enter the funds but could view them from outside. 

It takes quite a walk to get there,  including through streets so steep that even the locals thought "we should really put some steps in here" and at this altitude the journey is especially tiring. I told myself it must be good practice for the Inca Trail.

The journey was worth it from the first sight of the remaining walls.

These ruins are where I spent most of my time this day.  The scale of the site is immense.

Some of the individual stones used in its construction are quite substantial too.

A network of Inca tunnels, "Chicanas" connect different parts of the site. Only one small example, the "Chicana Chica" is accessible to the public - I traversed this by torchlight. 

Continuing on beyond Sacsayhuaman I arrived at the Q'enqo archeological site. This was an important Inca religious site 

Spanish efforts to destroy were hampered as the heart of the temple was carved out of the natural rock formation rather than built on top.

A nearby "mirador" (viewpoint) gives a view across Cusco.

On the way back to Cusco I walked up to the Cristo Blanco statue which watches over the city.