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A rapidly expanding market town, growing fat on coffee, tropical fruits, chocolate and to a certain extent perhaps, the proceeds of cocaine production, QUILLABAMBA is the only Peruvian jungle town that's easily accessible by road, and the main attraction here for tourists is a quick look at the selva. Coming from Cusco, the initial section of road is a narrow gravel track along precipitous cliffs, notoriously dangerous in the rainy season, but after a few hours, having travelled over the magical Abra Malaga - the main pass on this road - the slow descent towards Chaullay starts. From here on, you'll see jungle vegetation beginning to cover the valley sides; the weather gets steadily warmer and the plant life thickens as you gradually descend into the Urubamba Valley. Your first sight of the town, which tops a high cliff, is of old tin roofs, adobe outskirts and coca leaves drying in the gardens. It's a pleasant enough place to relax, and you can get all the gear you need for going deeper into the jungle; the market sells all the necessities like machetes, fish hooks, food and hats. Just ten minutes walk from here, the Plaza de Armas , with its shady fountain statue of the town's little-known benefactor, Don Martin Pio Concha, is the other major landmark. Other than that, though about 4km away at Sambaray , the once attractive river beach is a bit of a dump these days; much nicer and quite a popular resort is the nearby waterfall area of Siete Tinjas .
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