The Travelling Life of Silvan Colani
July 2008 - Peru (con.t)
Meanwhile, Mei and I started our long descent down the Santa Cruz valley. It was a glorious morning with a sky so blue you couldn’t paint it any better. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky until early afternoon and the mountain views were stupendous. Apart from the occasional burro (donkey) train and a few trekkers, there wasn’t a soul around. It would all have been very enjoyable if it wasn’t for Mei’s sore knee which was giving her a hard time, especially in the final steep downhill climb to Cashapampa. Nevertheless, she chose to grin and bear it and after seven hours we popped out at the bottom of the steep gorge that marks the beginning or end (or both) of the Santa Cruz trek.
On the drive back to Huaraz we enjoyed some fantastic views of Huascaran (6768m) which is not only the highest peak in Peru but also the highest in the tropics! You can thus admire this gigantic double-peaked mass of snow and ice from the hot, dry, cacti-strewn comfort of the Rio Santo valley which runs barely 10kms from the summit. Our return to Huaraz – and the formidable steaks and Pisco Sour at El Horno – marked the end of our climbing/trekking trip. All the staff at Peruvian Andes Adventure did a fantastic job in running a very professional and very enjoyable trek while at the same time attending to every whim of our city-slicker needs!
| Get on the bus! I very much enjoyed our 8-hour ride on the Cruz del Sur bus, my first serious bus trip since that last school trip to Ticino a long long time ago. And it was a luxurious bus ride, too, with DVDs, comfy seats, “in-flight meals” and a great view – even though we ‘only’ had second class seats. |
But unimaginable in Tibet, we reached the crashing waves of the Pacific Ocean within three hours of having departed Huaraz! Finding the coastal highway, we then drove another 100kms through desert sands before reaching Lima. Thus, on the very same day that El Dino and Geronimo saw the sun rise from the top of Alpamayo at 5947m, Mei and I saw it set over the Pacific while driving down a sand dune-perched highway! Clearly, Peru’s geography, topography and climate can only be described as crazy, totally nuts or completely insane!
| “Un cuy, por favor!” Despite not being as internationally renown as its Mexican counterpart, Peru features some excellent cuisine. The national dish is ‘cuy’, guinea pig, which might not be to everybody’s taste, but there are plenty of other very tasty dishes on offer. My personal favorite was Aji de Gallina, a unique curry-like chicken with rice – simple but very good. I also loved the fresh salads (which every guidebook tells you to avoid at all costs) and anything featuring Peru’s superb avocadoes. |
The final part of our journey to Peru was a visit to Machu Picchu. I read somewhere that going to Peru and missing this iconic sight was like going to Egypt and not seeing the pyramids. I’ve never seen the pyramids but I was not going to miss Machu Picchu!
The gateway to Machu Picchu is Cuzco, the former capital of the Inca empire. You can read the history yourself, but the way I understand it the Incas, who governed from the 12th to the 15th century, created a huge empire in the central Andes, equivalent to the Angkorian reign in South East Asia or the Roman empire. And Cusco was their Rome. (Today, too, judging from the number of pizza parlors, you’ll be excused for thinking you’ve arrived in the Italian capital!) But then arrived the Spanish conquistadores who, unlike the British colonialists in India for example, basically destroyed the entire local culture and religion – all in the name of Christianity! To illustrate their dominance, they would destroy the Inca temples and build churches over them with the very same stones! Reading a bit of the history it seems to me that the Spanish were the most ruthless of all European conquerors and I’m amazed that there is not more resentment towards them in South America today.
Aside from churches, the Spanish filled Cusco with some amazing colonial architecture, much of which has been well preserved and I can honestly say that Cusco is one of prettiest places I’ve ever been to. Cobblestone streets are lined with guesthouses, restaurants and shops that have skillfully been integrated into the historic structures. And unlike the rest of Peru, here most of the buildings have been painted on all four sides, which makes them a lot more attractive. Walking this maze of alleys and passageways is breathtaking for both its beauty and its altitude (3326m), especially if you’re not properly acclimatized as we were.
Up at 4am next morning, we headed to Machu Picchu by car, train and bus. They call it the Lost City of the Incas because, depending on whom you believe, the Spanish never found it and the Incas abandoned it for no obvious reason. It was rediscovered by an American historian in 1911 and today is South America’s best known and most spectacular archeological site. It was also voted one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.
I’m sure I’ve seen the picture a thousand times before, but nothing beats seeing it with your own eyes. Unlike at Angkor Wat, there are any intricate drawings or unique architectural structures, but it is the sprawling scale and the unique setting among steep mountains (at 2400m) that make it such an amazing sight. Built around 1450 with ingenuity well ahead of its time, it is remarkable that in an earth-quake prone country like Peru, so much of this ancient city remains intact today.
We spent the morning touring Machu Picchu with our intrepid guide before returning to Cusco later the same day.
After a little over two weeks in the country, I found Peru a surprising destination in many respects: unique and incredibly varied landscapes inhabited by unpretentious people with a great sense of humor and a ready smile on their face – and with a curious taste for roasted guinea pig! It’s definitely worth a visit but you have to be prepared for long flights (to get there), long bus rides (to get around), long walks (to go trekking) and long nights (to adjust to jet lag and the altitude). But the rewards will be plentiful. Just ask my wife – but only after her knee has heeled…
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