Today I found out why they were there. This morning was some sort of festival/presentation/contest, sponsored by "Educacion Cusco". It's for the children, awwww. Anyway, the street in front of the cathedral was blocked off, and there was a small crowd, and an increasingly large number of dance groups decked out in colorful garb. Over the course of 1 1/2 hours I probably took 100 pictures, as these groups (1) practiced on other street sections, (2) made their competitive performance (there was some kind of trophy at stake).
You can't buy this kind of serendipity. The dancing was often some sort of courting ritual dance, with men and women starting separately, and ending more-or-less paired off. Some were themed around some sort of profession -- one group had men as wood-cutters, another as gauchos.
The moves were similar to some traditional North American native steps, and some of it would have been right at home if played to English Country Dance or Morris music instead of Andean pipe/accordion/strings music. Of course, some moves weren't similar at all...
The proceedings were interrupted at one point by a parade of activists from a political party. They were helpfully followed by a police van carrying riot police (!), probably more as a precaution. In discussion with the tout for one of the restaurants on the plaza, I learned that there are regional elections here a week from Sunday (similar to the just-passed American elections).
This afternoon I'm heading out on a bus tour to a few nearby archaeological sites. Pray to the rain gods (to stay away).
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