Pisac is a small town in the Sacred Valley, well worth a visit on your way to Machu Picchu. The town is home to a colourful ‘mercado artesanal’ or craft market, a great place to experience a traditional way of life, with villagers coming and going with their wares. The village is perched high in the mountains and surrounded by Inca farming terraces, giving a clear example of how the Ina agronomists solved the problem of planting on the slopes of the hills. Pisac is a Quechua word (sometimes referred to as Pisaq) which means partridge (a type of bird) and as was customary in Inca architecture, the city is designed in the shape of an animal, in this case the partridge!