Vocabulary

Video

Transcript

This beautiful place behind me is called Sacsayhuaman. And it is a temple that was part of the ancient Incan capital.

These giant stones here are about eighty tons each. And you would think, “Well that’s impossible to move here. But they rolled them here on this ancient stone rollers, all the way from the hills far, far away.

It was said that it took over twenty years to build this, and about twenty-five thousand (25,000) people to make this giant city.

There were earthquakes thousands of years ago, and they were smart enough to build these rocks so they leaned in a little bit; they’re not straight up. And so they were earthquake proof.

Another thing that they did is they actually had a gutter system, a water system that ran out of the rocks here — you can see these little spouts here and there that would allow the rainwater to flow in and out down the rocks.

 
And in just a few steps is a spectacular view of Cusco. And you’ve got to check this out. You can see the central square, the cathedrals, and these mountains.

This is one of the best views I’ve ever seen.

 
I’ve been lucky enough to see a lot of amazing archaeological sites and temples around the world, but I’ve got to say, this is one of the best: the sheer size is mind blowing.

Questions

Peru. Sacsayhuaman was probably an ancient fort or fortress. True or false?

Bolivia. Is the foundation of the city or temple complex made of hundreds of thousands of bricks and stone about 30 centimeters long and a kilogram and a half each?

Ecuador. Did the stone blocks come from a nearby quarry? Did the builders use cranes and trucks to transport the stones?

Colombia. It took a building team eight years and two-thousand workers to construct Sacsayhuaman. Is this right or wrong?

Chile. Is the Sacsayhuaman complex deserted or are there (many) tourists there?

Brazil. If there were an earthquake there, would the entire structure collapse? If there were an earthquake, . . . .

Venezuela. Is the city of Cusco on a mountain, and is Sacsayhuaman situated in a valley?

Argentina. The presenter loves to (only) visit places like Los Angeles, Sydney and Toronto. Is this correct or incorrect?
 
 
 
Paraguay. I am from Peru. I live in Peru. My friends and I have visited Peru. Yes or no?

Uruguay. Have you visited archaeological sites, monuments or “wonders”? What places would you like to visit?

Suriname. Should tourists visit places like Sacsayhuaman, instead of Las Vegas, Los Angeles, New York, Miami?

Guyana. How do you think Sacsayhuaman was built? Who built Sacsayhuaman? Why did they build it?

Trinidad and Tobago. What might happen in the future? Will the mysteries of ancient sites be solved?