Yesterday after I posted about the relationship of Tiki and Inca, a reader wrote to ask about Inca’s name. Many people assume that she’s named for the inky color of her fur but the truth is she’s named for a place in Argentina. Really.
A few months before we adopted Inca, we were on a travel writing assignment in Chile. One day we traveled across the border into neighboring Argentina. High up in the Andes, we visited a spot called Puente del Inca or “Inca’s Bridge.” Here among gold-tinted rocks, covered with petrified sulfur and other minerals, there’s a natural bridge and the remains of an old spa built adjacent to the mineral waters. The Conquistadors first mentioned this bridge and later took many Inca people captive in their search for gold in this region.
We toured the site, had a great steak lunch (we were in Argentina, after all!) then fed some local dogs their own steak lunch:
And then met another local dog:
It was a very special day with lots of good memories.
And so a few months later when we adopted Inca and saw those gold-tinted eyes, we thought of Puente del Inca. And that’s why our Inca is Inca!
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