The changing face of Cusco’s plaza
June 19, 2009 Cusco Guide, Opinion
From sacred imperial capital of the Incas to commercial centre home to American chains like McDonald’s and Starbucks, the face of Cusco is changing with the times.
Quite a stir was caused last year when McDonald’s quietly opened in Cusco’s Plaza de Armas, the historic centre of the imperial capital of the Inca Empire – the Wajaypata square.
Cusco's historic plaza
According to the South American Explorers Clubhouse, who spoke with Barbara Drake, “they sort of snuck in, there wasn’t any word about it”.
This tourist paid the same for a Big Mac and North American fries as he would have a local food in a fine seated restaurant
Some people were aghast. An American fast food franchise in what is undoubtedly one of the most historic city centres in the world, and to others somewhat of a spiritual hub. Starbucks didn’t last long in China’s Forbidden City, so should McDonald’s in Cusco?
Of those people I spoke to, or who commented on my blog, or the blogs of others, the most support McDonald’s could muster was “it’s great that the economy is expanding and a big chain wants to come here… but it should not be in the Plaza de Armas”.
Personally, I avoid the plaza most of my time in Cusco, I can’t afford to eat in many of the restaurants there. How foreigners who can afford the prices pass up all that fancy Nova Andina stuff and go to McDonald’s is beyond me.
Cafe Ayllu
Passions continued to run high when it was announced that a local legend, the Ayllu coffee house that had been a favourite with travellers and locals for years, was to be closed so that a Starbucks could be opened in its place.
Apparently Starbucks could afford to pay a higher rent that “people before profits” Ayllu just couldn’t match. Protests from locals and tourists couldn’t change the owners minds.
So, is Cusco selling its soul to the devil, and if so, who exactly is doing the selling?
It couldn’t be the Catholic church could it?
In an impoverished city where thousands live a squalid existence far removed from the fancy restaurants and solid gold church alters that the tourists see, the Catholic church in Cusco owns millions of dollars worth of prime real estate.
This does not including churches, which should probably be counted separately – though in Cusco churches aren’t all they seem. In Cusco churches are closed to worshippers during all but a few brief moments each day. Generally churches are commercialised tourist attractions, which with tourist entry fees that are hugely overpriced by Peruvian standards, generate vast profits.
Astute businessmen first, religious leaders second
A committee was organised in Cusco who stated its aim to be that of defending cultural heritage in the city. They organised protests and collected 700 pages of signatures in support of the Ayllu. The Ayllu raised the amount of rent they were willing to pay, but it still didn’t match Starbuck’s dazzling offer. The Archbishop of Cusco told the press that the church had “financial differences” with the traditional corner coffee house of 38 years.
Cusqueños continued to strongly object. Perhaps worried about their primary business model – convincing people of the existence of a deity who needs an organised religion to worship it, an organisation that followers must frequently donate to – the Archbishop took time away from his heavenly responsibilities to cut a deal with the Ayllu.
Archbishop Juan Antonio Ugarte
The church would allow the Ayllu to keep functioning if they raised the rent as promised, handed over 10% ownership of the business and paid $200,000 in maintenance expenses. The ageing owners of Cafe Ayllu sadly handed over the keys, unable to make the kind of donation God’s representative on earth had requested.
Archbishop Juan Antonio Ugarte, a member of Lima’s wealthy ruling elite, has signed the deal with Starbucks. The quasi-religious organisation he runs will receive a much higher rent and a juicy 10% of Starbuck’s profit.
Cafe Ayllu closed it doors last week.
These posts on the same subject from these other bloggers may interest you:
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Comments (17)
Just tradgic! Thankyou for this story…..although it it is just so sad. Fancy opening these types of business’ in Cusco. Who is in control of these decisions? I look fwd to visiting Cusco later this year….but it wasnt the golden arches I wanted to see…rather the tradition and rich Peruvian history
Sorry…I just read the lower half of your article. Great reporting! Thankyou!
Archbishop Juan Antonio Ugarte, a member of Lima’s wealthy ruling elite, has signed the deal with Starbucks.
I cant believe some people who claim to be God’s representatives on earth. I am a Christian…..but this is a terrible thing for Cusco.
By the way…….I cant stand Starbucks….or McDonalds. Bad coffee….worse food…..if you can call it that. How about some traditional Ceviche! YAH!!!!
Please tell me who would eat McDonalds while in Peru when the most amazing food in the world is on offer! They could of at least put a Bembos in…….!
Good work, Stu, summarizing the sell-out of some of the Plaza’s most venerated dining establishments to American franchises. It is distressing to see local mom and pop establishments being thrown out of locations where they have fed hungry clientele for decades.
The story isn’t over yet. Now the archbishop is extending his purge to the blocks behind the cathedral, where the Church owns lots of real estate as well. Two weeks ago we ate in a very affordable restaurant with delicious quinoa soup. The owners told us that they had just been handed a notice that their rent was quadrupling, and so, after 20 years, the restaurant would have to leave.
When are the people of Cusco going to stand up for local businesses?
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True story: A man worked in international operations long ago. At the height of the Cold War, ostensibly very communist (he helped set the Nixon visit to China up) he sought refuge in the Vatican. He confided in one of the top attorneys there that he was uncomfortable doing his job, having been raised a devout Roman Catholic. The response: “Son, you should work for whoever pays you the most”.
I gotta say, it’s no big deal for me that there’s a McDonalds in the Plaza.
First of all, there are no “golden arches”, the entrance is very low profile (what you see in Stu’s photo is all there is to it), in fact you’ll never know where it is unless you walk right by it.
Then there’s the inside. This is not your classic McDonalds, I actually like what they’ve done with it. You got tours of the Cusco region and the Inca trail printed in tables in a really cool way. The walls are printed also, with explanations of the Inca’s “cosmovision”, and there are ceramic replicas behind glasses. Not bad for an American franchise.
Now, you may not know it but there’s also a Bembos (the peruvian McDonalds, but with good hamburgers) in the Plaza, and I don’t hear anyone complaining about it.
So what’s really the problem with McDonalds being in the Plaza? I don’t think it’s about the food (Bembos also sells hamburgers, and there are a couple of pizza restaurants in the plaza too) or the prices (Bembos is more expensive than McDonalds, and several other restaurants too). Is this a nationality issue? Wouldn’t that be a bit discriminative? You tell me, I don’t know, I may be wrong.
By the way I don’t work at McDonalds, nor am I fan of its hamburgers (only when short of money I would pick it over Bembos). I just wonder what’s all the fuss about it being in the Plaza.
And by the way, I totally support the general public feeling about the Ayllu being closed. Thanks a lot… starbishop.
Miguel, I can’t disagree with what you have said. The McDonald’s does not stand out and does not take anything away from the plaza visually/aesthetically.
When the first post was written no-one knew quite what restrictions were being placed on the “golden arches” kinda stuff. This second post deals mostly with the Ayllu and the Catholic Church.
To perhaps add a little weight to your comments, encourage debate, and show that the McDonald’s arrival is, like you said, “no big deal”, look at the Cusco plaza that existed in the 1950s (See video here, not far from beginning) and compare it to the one we see now. The charm of the plaza has long since been wiped out by cars, tourism and commercialism, so does a burger joint make any difference?
And as a wise Rachel said on her blog, the plaza was already completely desecrated and vandalised… with the building of Christian churches!
Yes, I’m sure the plaza was glorious during the Inka reign. Unfortunately the vast majority of people living in what was to become Peru would never have got the chance to see it, as access to the city of Cusco was strictly controlled. At least now everyone has the opportunity, at least theoretically, to visit.
Having said that, I am saddened by some of the changes in Cusco during the last few years, the closing of Ayllu especially, as I’ve many fond memories of that place.
Perhaps a silver lining to the recent over-development of Cusco will be to convince travellers to visit a large portion of Peru. Those of us who love the country know that there are many charming plazas to while away the afternoon in, and many archaeological sites other than Machu Picchu for us to rediscover.
Yeah, it would not have been much fun as a peasant in service of the Inca empire knowing you would never been allowed to set foot in the glorious city of the Children of the Sun.
And yes, I wish more tourists would venture out of the confines of Southern Peru. They’d be amazed by the things they’d discover.
When I posted about this [http://peruanista.blogspot.com/2009/06/disgusting-starbucks-and-archdioceses.html] I mentioned your blog.
Carlos (Peruanista),
I see the link now. It didn’t appear in my Trackbacks as it is an old outdated link. The new one is http://enperublog.com/2008/05/15/cusco-sells-its-soul-to-mcdonalds-kfc-and-starbucks/
I also updated the post above. At the end there are links to blogs who also discussed the subject, including yours.
Es una vergÜenza que le iglesia católica encabezada por el Arzobispo se venda como se dice por un plato de lentejas, es que acaso la iglesia no predica la humildad y la pobreza, falso porque se puede ver que en muchas iglesias el lujo es lo que prevalece. Qué lejos están de lo que Jesús predicaba.
Muchos de los jerarcas de la iglesia no pasarán por el ojo de la aguja.
I THINK YOUR STORY HAS A LOT OF BULL AND A HIDDEN AGENDA. I WAS JUST IN CUSCO AND I’M PRETTY SHOCKED THAT THE CITY, AND THE CULTURE THAT IT REPRESENTS, IS MANY WAYS IN A VERY SAD STATE OF AFFAIRS. IT IS BECAUSE OF THE INCA CULTURE THAT PEOPLE PRETTY MUCH COME TO PERU, AND OR CUSCO. BEFORE I WENT THERE I READ ABOUT HOW THE INCA CITY WAS PRETTY MUCH LAID OUT. BUT YET WHEN YOU GET THERE, THERE IS NO SIGNS THAT TELL YOU THE PALACE OF SO AND SO WAS HERE, THIS STRUCTURE WAS HERE, OR THE LIKE. THE PLAZA DOES NOT HAVE ANY SIGNS TO EXPLAIN ITSELF, HOW BIG IT REALLY WAS, WHAT OCCURED THERE, ETC. THERE IS NOTHING ANYWHERE. NOTHING LIKE ARROWS POINTING TO THIS SITE OR THAT SITE, JUST PLAYING NOTHING. STAYED AT HOTEL WHERE ACROSS STREET THERE WAS INCA STRUCTURE, ASKED WHAT IT WAS, ALMOST NO ONE KNEW EXCEPT LADY IN ONE STORE WHO TOLD ME IT WAS PALACE OF TUPAC YUPANQUI. AGAIN THERE IS NO SIGNS TO TELL YOU WHAT IS WHAT OUTSIDE OF CORICANCHA. I DON’T KNOW OF ANYONE WHO IS GIVING MONEY AWAY TO THE CATHOLIC CHURCH TO MAINTAIN ALL THOSE BUILDINGS THAT ARE COSIDERED WORKS OF ART. I WAS IN TOUR GROUPS, AND I DIDN’T HEAR ANYONE SAY, HERE IS A FEW THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR THE UPKEEP OF THESE PLACES. THESE SAME CHURCHES HELP ALOT OF POOR FAMILIES IN CUSCO AND IN SURROUNDING AREAS, AGAIN I DIDN’T HEAR ANYONE DONATING MONEY. YOU PEOPLE TALK BECAUSE YOU HAVE NO NEED WHAT IT COSTS TO MAINTAIN THESE PLACES. IN SOME GIFTS SHOPS I WENT INTO YOU COULD SEE INCA WALLS AND PEOPLE RENTING, OR OWNERS, JUST MOVE STONES OR SOME HOW DAMAGE THE INCA STURCTURES, DON’T SEE ANYONE COMPLAINING ABOUT THIS, BUT THEY COMPLAIN ABOUT CHURCH TRYING TO SURVIVE WITHOUT ANY PUBLIC HELP. THAT IS WHAT YOU SHOULD WRITE ABOUT, THE LACK OF POINTING OUT AND MAINTENANCE OF INCA STRUCTURES.
The good church does much good throughout the world and in Peru, Henry, you and I know this. There will always be critics and those who refuse to follow the word of Christ, best you and I ignore them.
I am not all too happy with these fast food joints, but if they help bring much needed funds into the church, who am I to question that.
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