During the three days we were based in Cusco, we had a lot of memorable adventures not far from the city. Some involved llamas and alpacas (see photo above). But one feature of all OAT trips that I really enjoy is the Day in the Life experience where we visit with ordinary people and get an insight into their daily lives.
As part of our Day in the Life, we traveled northwest from Cusco one morning for about an hour to the small town of Iskuchaca (Izkuchaca). The town is surrounded by agricultural fields where farmers grow the usual potatoes and quinoa. We stopped in the Plaza de Armas and hopped into the local version of tuk-tuks, called moto taxis, for a drive through the countryside. The rural landscape was beautiful but the clouds of dust we stirred up on the unpaved roads left a stronger impression on me.
You may have noticed the signs painted on walls and buildings. These are signs put up before elections, urging voters to select a particular candidate or party. Anyone is free to post or paint campaign signs anywhere, including on private property. The owner has no right to prevent it.
After switching over to our bus, we visited one of Walter’s friends – a typical farmer who grows quinoa and wheat. In his home, we saw sacks of grain that weighed 230 kg each.
In addition to farming, he has also become an entrepreneur, raising guinea pigs commercially. He gave us a tour of the facilities and told us that he sells 15,000 a year for about 22 soles each.
This business hasn’t made him rich, but as Walter explained, he’s like many Peruvians who live on the land. They may be poor in monetary terms but they have plenty to eat so they’re happy, or at least satisfied. Meanwhile, his wife was busy making sausage from the guinea pig innards and guts.
An impressive snow-covered mountain towered in the distance. This is the glacier named Veronica. At 19,226 feet, it (she?) is the tallest mountain in the Urubamba range of the Andes.
Our next stop was at a public elementary school that serves students aged six to eleven or twelve from a rural Indian community. In first and second grade, instruction is conducted in Quechua, the native language of most of the children. They learn Spanish in school and that later becomes the language of instruction. The Grand Circle Foundation (OAT’s parent company) provides some financial support to the school.
Walter explained that after elementary school, students attend high school for five years, finishing around age 16. They can then take a test to attend one of the public universities. It’s very competitive since there aren’t nearly enough places for all the students who want to continue their studies.
We were warmly welcomed by the 20 students of the sixth-grade class. They ushered us into their classroom, introduced themselves, and then a small group presented a song.
We had brought along some gifts, including a soccer ball. It wasn’t long before we were all outside. One thing I noticed is that the girls stood off to the side of the field while the boys ran around kicking the ball. The girls seemed to be wearing uniforms and their shoes weren’t appropriate for athletic activities. Not surprising, I guess. There’s a lot of room for improvement when it comes to equal rights for women in Peru.
Next on the agenda was a truly special opportunity, a visit to an indigenous shaman in the typical Andean village of Chinchero (elevation 12,500 feet). Shamans perform both religious ceremonies and healing ceremonies. According to Walter, August is the month when ceremonies are traditionally held to honor Pachamama. The shaman informed Walter (in Quechua) that today he would be performing a ceremony for our good health and for world peace. I thought it would be quick, just a minute or two, but it turned out to be quite involved and lengthy.
We watched in silence as the shaman began the ritual by laying out a white cloth on a folded piece of colorful woven fabric and then assembling various items on the cloth. One at a time, he picked up a symbolic item, such as a shell, a handful of dried herbs, a few beans, etc., held it up as if offering it to the gods, and then carefully placed it on the cloth.
Once the pile of items was complete, each of us took a couple of coca leaves and placed them around the collection to form a circle of leaves.
Next, he picked up the textile with its paper-wrapped offering on top. He stopped in front of each of us, held up the offering, and said a few words of blessing in Quechua.
He moved to an open-air spot nearby and placed the offering on the ground so he could turn his attention to preparing a fire. Before lighting the fire, he ceremonially poured several liquids around it, saying prayers as he did so.
Smoke rose once he lit the fire. He then picked the piece of woven fabric off the ground and carried it towards the fire.
He placed the offering directly on the pieces of wood and stood back to observe for a minute or so, as orange flames started to shoot up.
After making a few adjustments to the fire, he stood back and closed his eyes. Within seconds, the paper wrapping was enveloped by flames. I watched, spellbound, unable and unwilling to look away as the fire consumed the offering.
Although I didn’t understand the shaman’s words, the spiritual impact of the ceremony was undeniable.
Our Day in the Life continued with a visit to a weaving cooperative, also in Chinchero.
Since it was lunchtime, we were served a simple meal consisting of steamed choclo and lupini beans, quinoa soup (the thing that looks like a matzah ball is actually a potato), rice, and more lupini beans, this time semi-mashed.
Beautiful textiles with vivid colors and intricate patterns were on display, along with looms and equipment for spinning and dying yarn.
Members of the cooperative demonstrated washing the raw yarn with a plant-based “soap” and then coloring it with natural dyes.
For example, the cochineal beetle that lives on cactus leaves is crushed to achieve a deep red color. A wide range of colors can be achieved with plants, seeds, and other materials.
It was also very interesting to see the process of spinning.
Several women demonstrated different methods of weaving with the very fine strands. The expertise of these weavers is quite impressive.
Before we left, I couldn’t resist buying a child-size hat.
The following day, we continued our exploration of everyday life in the high Andes by first venturing southeast of Cusco. The route out of the city took us through some middle-class residential neighborhoods that we hadn’t seen before. Walter explained that Cusco is divided into 6 administrative districts, each of which is named for a Catholic saint. Each district has a religious festival every year for its patron saint. According to Walter, this doesn’t mean the people are all that religious. In fact, he told us that although Peru is officially a Catholic country, only 20% of the population are regular Sunday church-goers. And about 40% of the population doesn’t participate in religion at all. Yet they may continue to follow some of the pre-Columbian religious traditions and practices of their ancestors.
Our first stop was at Tipon, an Inca archaeological site located about 14 miles from Cusco. The 500-acre site is one of the least visited attractions in the Sacred Valley, so it wasn’t at all crowded. In fact, hummingbirds and butterflies were our only company.
Tipon is sometimes called the Garden of Viracocha (Wiraqucha in Quechua), the supreme deity of the Incas and the name of an early 15th century Inca emperor. The actual purpose of the Tipon site is not clear but some archaeologists believe it may have been a center for the worship of water. The water features include channels, fountains, and waterfalls. It is a testament to the engineering expertise of the Incas that the irrigation system in Tipon is still in operation. There are also multiple Inca terraces and enclosures as well as the ruins of a summer palace.
It was a steep hike at the Tipon site, at an elevation of 10,660 to 12,990 feet. By this point, I was used to the altitude but I noticed a new problem. I’d been experiencing pains in my elbow and hand after using my hiking pole on hikes for several days in a row. Although it helped me feel more secure, I was tempted to abandon it.
Our hike worked up an appetite so I was glad that our next stop was at a Tanta Wasi (that’s Quechua for bread house). We were in Oropesa, the national bread capital of Peru, located not far from Tipon. 95% of the people in this town are involved in breadmaking. The bakery we visited specialized in the big round loaves called “pan chuta.” Often given as a gift when visiting someone’s home, pan chuta is a bargain at 10 soles. We sampled several, of course. The bread was slightly sweet and some versions even had a chocolate filling!
Hunger satiated (at least temporarily), we were ready to learn about adobe brickmaking. It’s backbreaking work. I actually felt guilty watching the brickmaker go about his job, knowing that he’d be continuing his labors for several more hours in the hot sun. He showed us how he mixed the mud, water, and straw to the right consistency – all by hand. He then packed it into a wooden mold. Afterwards, he placed the packed mold next to the bricks he’d formed earlier and lifted the mold off. The bricks then dried in the sun. He told Walter that he makes 350 bricks a day – during the dry season only.
What a contrast the brickmaker’s hut was compared to the hacienda where we ate lunch. In terms of miles, they were close, but they were truly worlds apart. Many of the comfortable hacienda houses (houses built as residences for plantation owners) no longer exist. They were destroyed by angry Indians in 1969 when the government took the land from the plantation owners and gave it to the peasants who worked it. Hacienda Canopata, the lovely 17th century house where we dined, was an exception. It is still owned by the original family and is rented out for events. The whitewashed walls and red tiled roof made me think of the Mediterranean.
On the day of our visit, my lunch choices were Peruvian foods that I’d become very familiar with: choclo, avocado salad, trout, quinoa “risotto” with Andean cheese, and an elegant dessert.
A post-lunch nap at the hacienda would have been welcome, but instead, we headed north and made our way to the Sulca Textile Museum and Showroom. I enjoyed learning about the history of textile production and seeing several examples of antique and modern textile art.
Equally interesting was meeting some of the animals that provide wool for the textiles. I never imagined I’d be getting this close to llamas and alpacas. But I stepped right into the crowded enclosure with handfuls of their preferred grasses, which they greedily gobbled up.
It was mid-afternoon when we said goodbye to our new animal friends. Before heading back into Cusco, we stopped at Sacsayhuaman (also spelled Saqsayhuaman), another important Inca archaeological site that dates back to the 15th century.
Sacsayhuaman is a huge fortified complex on a hilltop a couple of miles north of Cusco and it controlled access to the city during Inca times.
Construction of Sacsayhuaman began during the reign of the emperor Pachucutec, and continued under his successors. According to legend, it was the site of an important battle where the Incas defeated the Chancas, a powerful rival group.
Sacsayhuaman is known for its dry stone (built without mortar) walls featuring enormous stones, some weighing as much as 128 tons. Religious ceremonies probably took place in the great plaza that could accommodate thousands of people. People still gather there every year to celebrate Inti Raymi (Festival of the Sun). Parts of three enormous walls adjacent to the plaza are still standing. Over twelve feet high, they tower over today’s visitors. They also give a sense of the expert workmanship of the Inca stone masons.
After the Spanish conquered Cusco, they used Sacsayhuaman as a source of building materials for their colonial city. As a result, all that remains at the archaeological site are ruins and the largest stones that were too difficult for the Spanish to transport.
By the time we finished our hike at Sacsayhuaman, I was exhausted and would gladly have relaxed for the remainder of the day. But as soon as we got back to the hotel, it was time to pack up. The main tour was ending tomorrow morning. However, I had signed up for a post-trip extension to Lake Titicaca and we were scheduled to leave the hotel at 5:15am. But first there was a special farewell dinner so we could say goodbye to those fellow travelers who weren’t continuing on with us. I was looking forward to trying wok spaghetti – an intriguing idea, and a true fusion dish, something I’d come to expect in Peru. It was delicious!
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