woman with red hat

woman with red hat

and a lone untethered horse

on a steep stone street

Late afternoon in a small pueblo near the Temple of the Sun in the Sacred Valley. The narrow stone-paved street, bisected by a rain gutter, is bordered by adobe brick houses built on rough stone foundations. The woman walking away from me up the hill is wearing the traditional costume of this region of the Andes: a saucer shaped red felt hat that perches on top of her braided hair, a red striped k'eperina tied around her shoulders and a full black wool skirt edged with red. The horse watches her approach and slowly pass by. Suddenly, she turns and looks back, but keeps walking, still looking back over her shoulder, until she moves out of sight.