Said to be the most important temple of the Inca Empire, once lavished in gold, there is very little of Qorikancha still standing, and certainly no gold. But don’t think that this is due to the wear and tear of the years, rather it was the Spaniards’ greed and quest for power. You see, the temple was amazing and had an inexplicable significance to the Inca people; it had to be destroyed and replaced with a Catholic cathedral.

The Spanish did keep much of the temple’s foundation however, which has withstood major earthquakes while the cathedral atop crumbled and had to be rebuilt.

Honestly, while I found this site interesting and beautiful, there were so many people inside and taking pictures that I got a little overwhelmed. I focused more on getting out the way than trying to capture the temple. I would recommend visiting this quite early in the morning, to avoid the crowds a bit.