Inca Empire

Can you imagine living way up high, so high that you can touch the clouds. I am a home made of strong stone paths that climb tall mountains. My gardens are like green stairsteps reaching for the sun. The wind sings soft songs as it blows past my walls, and the sun keeps my stones warm. I am a secret city, a giant home built in a place where eagles fly. So many people lived here, working and playing together under the big blue sky. I am a special place full of wonder. I am the great Inca Empire.

I was built by very clever people a long, long time ago. They were like children of the sun, strong and smart. Around the year 1438, a great leader named Pachacuti helped me grow bigger and stronger than ever. My builders fit giant stones together like a perfect puzzle, with no space in between. They built my heart, a city called Cusco, and a magical city in the clouds named Machu Picchu. To connect all my family and friends, they made long roads that went over mountains and through valleys. These roads were like long ribbons tying us all together. On the sides of the mountains, my people made stair-step farms to grow yummy potatoes and corn for everyone to share.

My time as a busy home for my first people ended a very long time ago, in the 1500s. But my stone heart never stopped beating, and my story is not over. Today, friends from all around the world come to visit me in South America. They walk on my old stone paths and look up at my amazing cities in the clouds. I love to share my secrets with them. I am here to remind everyone that when we work together with our friends, we can build beautiful and amazing things that last forever.