the rooftop garden across the street
from the north side of the cemetery
overlooks one of three pyramids
occupying a landscape
littered with obelisks
between headstones and vaults
beneath the trees
a police Woman rides a segway
through the Plaza de Armas
Cuzco
she steers through
a class of uniforms
school children
vendors sell carved gourds
vendors sell woven hats of alpaca
old men change park benches
to avoid the sun
strings of tour groups vacate
the plaza
the rooftop garden across the street
from the north side of the cemetery
overlooks one of three pyramids
occupying a landscape
littered with obelisks
between headstones and vaults
beneath the trees
day one
it has snowed
wet slushy snow
34 degrees barely cold enough to freeze
melting in sloshy puddles next to curbs
the cemetery is a national historic landmark
it is closed due to inclement weather
a young man stands at the gate
telling people who wish to enter
that they may not pass through
day two
the temperature stated on the weather app is 15 degrees
fahrenheit the wind lowers the subjective temperature even
further the exposed flesh is freezing from the gusts blowing
past it is too cold to move the bare fingers across the face
of the cell phone gloved fingers do not affect touch screens
the guard at the gate said video cameras were not allowed
to be used inside the park without proper authorization
some projects seem too difficult to explain to receive
proper authorization
this policewoman riding the segway
is a projection
inside a shoe box
with a trapezoidal window
cut out of the top
a cardboard sarcophagus
resting on the crystalline flakes