Last day in Cusco and end of this wonderful 3 weeks journey in Peru

Last day in Cusco (link, enlace, lien)

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I don't think I've said a word of the Peruvian gastronomy. Wherever we have been we ate well, even in the most simple restaurant (said by a native French :) ). One of the best: the lunch at the MAP Café located at Larco Museum. The owner J.L Coque Ossio is well-known not only for his gastronomic talents, but also for his business knowledge as a culinary entrepreneur. He studied both cooking and business and did his internship for Alain Passard at Arpège in Paris. He runs six restaurants in Cusco Lima. The cuisine is all Peruvian, the Head Chef is Manuel Cordova. We were served by a great waiter Jhon (right spelling). He was kind enough to pose for me.

My wife was looking for some special jewels. After looking in many jewelry shops she finally found perhaps the best silver artist in Cusco, Martha Cachi Yupanqui. So the day you visit Cusco don't waste your time go straight to her booth at the “Asociación de Artesanos de Cusco” near the Jesuits Church.

That's the end of trip! Next day back to Lima then Madrid.

Last day in Cusco (link, enlace, lien)

Back to Cusco

Cusco (link, enlace, lien)

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We are back to Cusco for 2 more days. This historical city has so much to offer. Just walk down Cusco streets again with me.

In our visit we saw a photo exhibition of the Peruvian photographer Martin Chambi Jimenez (November 5 of 1891 - † m. September 13 of 1973). He was a photographer Indian born Coaza, Carabaya province, north of Lake Titicaca, he is considered one of the great figures of photography. Recognized for his pictures of biological and ethnic he has been a profound witness of his country; he has deeply portrayed Peruvians, both the Indians and the general population.

I invite you to browse the web for an overview of the work of this great photographer. In Google just type: photography of Martín Chambi Jimenez.

To check his biography go to the following link http://martinchambi.org/

Cusco (link, enlace, lien)

Machu Picchu, the Inca Trail

Machu Picchu day 2 (link, enlace, lien)

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Well just a small portion of the Inca Trail, up to the Sun Gate, Intipunku.

We lodged at Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge which was very convenient to be the firsts to enter the site. A complete different experience from the previous day. From a photographer stand point, getting the early light was quite something. Very few photographs today but I promise they are different from yesterday. Enjoy

Machu Picchu day 2 (link, enlace, lien)

Machu Picchu day 1

Machu Picchu day 1 (link, enlace, lien)

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No need for me to tell you about this wonder. Perhaps just a reminder about its 3 primary structures, the Intihuatana (Hitching post of the Sun), the Temple of the Sun, and the Room of the Three Windows. These are located in what is known by archaeologists as the Sacred District of Machu Picchu.

Machupicchu receives every day 2500 visitors meaning people all over the place, a challenge for a photographer!

You reach the archaeologic site only by train. From Cuszo or in our case leaving our hotel in Yucay at 6 am by car, boarding at Ollataytambo to Aguas Calientes. Then run the remaining 8 kms, on foot or by bus, but mind you a ride a little stressful.

Machu Picchu day 1 (link, enlace, lien)

Sacred Valley day 2

Sacred Valley day 2 (link, enlace, lien)

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Salinas de Maras











Terraces de Moray

Chichero craftsman centre

Sacred Valley day 2 (link, enlace, lien)

From Cusco to the Sacred Valley

Sacred Valley day 1 (link, enlace, lien)

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Písac is a Peruvian village in the Sacred Valley on the Urubamba River, best known for its Incan ruins, known as Inca Písac, which lie atop of a hill at the entrance to the valley. The ruins are separated along the ridge into four groups: Pisaqa, Intihuatana, Q'allaqasa, and Kinchiracay. Intihuatana group includes the Temple of the Sun, baths, altars, water fountains, a ceremonial platform, and an intihuatana, The Inca constructed agricultural terraces on the steep hillside, which are still in use today. They created the terraces by hauling richer topsoil by hand from the lower lands. The terraces enabled the production of surplus food, more than would normally be possible at altitudes as high as 11,000 feet.

With military, religious, and agricultural structures, the site served at least a triple purpose. Researchers believe that Písac defended the southern entrance to the Sacred Valley, while Choquequirao defended the western entrance, and the fortress at Ollantaytambo the northern. Inca Pisac controlled a route which connected the Inca Empire with the border of the rain forest.

Ollantaytambo

Around the mid-15th century, the Inca emperor Pachacuti conquered and razed Ollantaytambo; the town and the nearby region were incorporated into his personal estate. The emperor rebuilt the town with sumptuous constructions and undertook extensive works of terracing and irrigation in the Urubamba Valley; the town provided lodging for the Inca nobility while the terraces were farmed by yanaconas, retainers of the emperor

Sacred Valley day 1 (link, enlace, lien)

Cusco city on a Sunday morning

Cusco (link, enlace, lien)

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Cuzco at 3,400 m (11,200 ft) is a city in southeastern Peru, near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It was the site of the historic capital of the Inca Empire and was declared a World Heritage Site in 1983 by UNESCO. Many believe that the city was planned as an effigy in the shape of a puma, a sacred animal. Too much to be said about Cusco that receives 2 million visitors per year!

One thing though, every Sunday sees a military/police parade at plaza de Las Armas. Are invited to join, schools, associations etc. whoever has something to celebrate. No need to say that it is colorful gathering.

Cusco (link, enlace, lien)

Train to Cusco part 2

Train to Cusco part2 (link, enlace, lien)

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Hope it is not too overwhelming. 10 hours crossing the Andes offer so many many shots opportunity!

Train to Cusco part2 (link, enlace, lien)

Puno Cuzco by train

Train to Cusco part1 (link, enlace, lien)

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What a day! 10 hours + in an Orient Express style train! At the back, an open air platform. If you don't mind breathing the train pollution you get an amazing and ongoing entertainment. From street life to grandiose landscapes. I took a hell of snapshots. It's been hard to make a selection. So I decided to split it in 2 parts. Again the idea is sharing this unique experience with you hoping you'll enjoy it as we did.

We had 2 groups of Andean musicians performing in the morning and in the afternoon in the train.

We had a 20 minutes stop half way to allow the 2 trains to cross (Cuzco-Puno and vice versa). A small market was also expecting us.

Train to Cuszo part1 (link, enlace, lien)

Going to Tiwanaku

From Puno to Bolivia (link, enlace, lien)
Tiwanaku archeological site (link, enlace, lien)

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From Puno to Bolivia is a trip that you won't forget. It's like you are in a movie. A lot of the photographs are taken from the moving bus. The pictures in the slideshow are intended to share the feeling I perceived and make you travel like we did.

The second slideshow is the archeological site of Tiwanaku. It was important within our trip in Peru to better understand the Inca Empire.

Tiwanaku is a Pre-Columbian archaeological site in western Bolivia.

Tiwanaku is recognized by Andean scholars as one of the most important precursors to the Inca Empire, flourishing as the ritual and administrative capital of a major state power for approximately five hundred years. The ruins of the ancient city state are about 72 km (45 mi) west of La Paz.

From Puno to Bolivia (link, enlace, lien)

Tiwanaku archeological site (link, enlace, lien)

Suasi Island and back to Puno

Suasi Island (link, enlace, lien)

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Suasi is remote, in the northeastern extreme of Lake Titicaca, and reachable by fast lancha (motorized speedboat), which makes the trip in about 3 hours.
Isla Suasi is in the midst of Lake Titicaca, at an altitude of 3,800m (12,500 ft.).
It occupies just 43 hectares, or 106 acres, and has no automobiles, no electricity, no television – and no permanent human habitants. It is privately owned and rented to Casa Andina that manages the eco-lodge!
The island is a haven of tranquility it showed us the beauty of Titicaca.
The following morning the guide Raoul shows us the private collection of the owner, Marta, and the other side of the island.

We left around by 2:30pm had a lunch box on the boat, arrived at Puno by 5 something pm. The final pic of the day is Puno's cathedral by night!

Suasi Island (link, enlace, lien)

Going to Suasi island, Lake Titicaca

Lake Titicaca (link, enlace, lien)

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Again an early get up! We boarded at around 7am. What a freezing morning!

Lake Titicaca is a lake in the Andes on the border of Peru and Bolivia. By volume of water, it is the largest lake in South America.

It is often called the highest navigable lake in the world, with a surface elevation of 3,812 m (12,507 ft). At least two dozen bodies of water around the world are at higher elevations, but all are much smaller and shallower.

On the way we first stop to one of the Uros 44 artificial floating islands made of reeds (totora, a reed that abounds in the shallows of the lake). Their original purpose was defensive, and they could be moved if a threat arose.

Second stop was on Taquile Island

It is a hilly island located 45 kilometers east of Puno with an area of 5.72 km²!. It is narrow and long and was used as a prison during the Spanish Colony and into the 20th century. In 1970 it became property of the Taquile people, who have inhabited the island since then (current population around 2,200. Life on Taquile is still largely unchanged by mainland modernities. There are no cars on the island and no hotels. We were explained their way of living with a demonstration of their music and dances.
With finally arrived at Suasi Island, a little paradise in the middle of our frenetic trip thru Peru. More on it tomorrow.

Lake Titicaca (link, enlace, lien)

From Colca Canyon to Puno

Colca Cañon - Puno (link, enlace, lien)

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So hop we go, not too early though 7am. Last view over the Mitsi volcano and a first stop at Chivay market. A real one not for tourists!

Half way to Puno we change transportation and guide. A special thanks to our guide Patricia who has been a fantastic guide and Edgar our chauffeur who drives very well.

Two hours later we stopped for a picnic at 4000 meters above sea level. The soroche (altitude sickness) still strikes us a little.

Two more hours and we reached the archeological site of Sillustani, 20 kms from Puno, it 4:30pm, light is already getting low. Sillustani is a pre-Incan burial ground on the shores of Lake Umayo near Puno in Peru. The tombs, which are built above ground in tower-like structures called chullpas, are the vestiges of the Colla people, Aymara who were conquered by the Inca in the 15th century. The structures housed the remains of complete family groups, although they were probably limited to nobility. Many of the tombs have been dynamited by grave robbers, while others were left unfinished.

Just outside the archeological site we stopped to visit a house where local people live.

We arrived at Puno around 7pm and of course it was night already. An 11 hours on the road well worth it.

Colca Cañon - Puno (link, enlace, lien)

Colca Canyon

Colca Cañon (link, enlace, lien)

6:30am, already seated in the car, 6:40am first stop at the village square where some schoolboys and girls were dancing for tourists to raise money for a trip to the sea!
Today destination is Colca Canyon with final spot, Cruz del Condor, a long way to go, i.e. more than 2 hours of 80% off road.
Colca Canyon is a canyon of the Colca River in southern Peru, located about 100 miles northwest of Arequipa. It is Peru's third most-visited tourist destination with about 120,000 visitors annually. It is more than twice as deep as the Grand Canyon in the United States at 13,650 ft (4,160 m) depth. It is still inhabited by people of the Collagua and the Cabana cultures.
The canyon is home to the Andean Condor (Vultur gryphus), a species that has been the focus of worldwide conservation efforts. The condors can be seen at close range as they fly past the canyon walls but still to far away for my 280mm lens! At this point the canyon floor is 3,960 feet (1,200 m) below the rim of the canyon.
Condors fly high at around 9 am when temperatures get warm but that day was cold and they were flying low. We decided to be patient and wait. 45 minutes later it finally got warmer and they started to fly higher.

Other notable bird species present in the Colca include the Giant Colibri, the largest member of the hummingbird family. I was lucky enough to capture two good shots.

Colca Cañon (link, enlace, lien)

From Arequipa to Colca Canyon with lodging at Colca Lodge.

From Arequipa to Colca Lodge part 1 (link, enlace, lien)
From Arequipa to Colca Lodge part 2 (link, enlace, lien)

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This has been a long day ride. Leaving Arequipa at the altitude of 2500 m and going through the maximum altitude of 4910 m on the way which is a lot of stress for your body! Surely you can't run :) The recipe? Just take it easy, walk very slowly, breath deeply and don't forget to drink coca leaves tea and or coca leaves sweets. 

The following photos are intended to show you the atmosphere during the ride. Most pics are taken from the mini bus windows, they may not be all as sharp as it should be.

From Arequipa to Colca Lodge part 1 (link, enlace, lien)

From Arequipa to Colca Lodge part 2 (link, enlace, lien

Santa Catalina Monastery

Monasterio de Santa Catalina (link, enlace, lien)

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The Monastery of Saint Catherine (Spanish: Santa Catalina) is a monastery of nuns of the Dominican Second Order, located in Arequipa, Peru. It was built in 1579 and was enlarged in the 17th century. The over 20,000-square-meter monastery was built predominantly in the Mudéjar style, and is characterized by its vividly painted walls.

At its height, the monastery housed approximately 450 people (about a third of them nuns and the rest servants) in a cloistered community. In the 1960s, it was struck twice by earthquakes, severely damaging the structures, and forcing the nuns to build new accommodation next door. It was then restored in stages by groups including Promociones Turisticas del Sur S.A. and World Monuments Fund and opened to the public. This also helped pay for the installation of electricity and running water, as required by law.

Monasterio de Santa Catalina (link, enlace, lien)

Lima Arequipa

End afternoon in Arequipa (link, enlace, lien)

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Friday morning leaving Lima to Arequipa. One hour 10 minutes flight along the desert Pacific coast then flying over the desert mountains.

The city is located at an altitude of 2,328 meters (7,638 ft), the lowest part of the city lies at an altitude of 2,041 meters (6,696ft) in the area called the Huayco Uchumayo District and the highest is located at 2,810 meters (9,220 ft).

The global solar radiation recorded in the city ranges from 850–950 W / m 2 (watts / square meter), considered one of the highest levels of radiation in South America and the highest recorded in Peru. So wear a hat and protect your skin! This phenomenon is due to its proximity to the area of influence of the Atacama Desert and pollution at every stage. It's cold at night.

Saturday we will visit the monastery of Santa Catalina.

End afternoon in Arequipa (link, enlace, lien)

Peruvian Folklore

Peruvian Folklore in Lima (link, enlace, lien) 

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Peruvian folklore is probably the most varied and rich in South America. This is because the country is located exactlywhere the oldest and rich native cultures of South America inhabited.

Peruvian Folklore in Lima (link, enlace, lien) 

Lima downtown

Lima (link, enlace, lien)

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Lima (link, enlace, lien)

Museo Nacional de Archeologia - Museo Oro del Peru

Museum of archeology and the gold Museum of Lima (link, enlace, lien)

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Today we visited two museums, the archaeologic one and the gold museum.
To give you a flavor of the interesting things we saw, I've tried to capture, what appeared to me, few of the most interesting pieces.

Weather is still cold and grey, flat light. Hope tomorrow will be nicer since we will be finally visiting the city.

Museum of archeology and the gold Museum of Lima (link, enlace, lien)

The famous erotic archaeological collection of Larco Museum

www.bcramponphoto.com/trips/2013-08-5_lim2 (link, enlace, lien)

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Here goes the famous erotic archaeological collection. Be aware though it is very explicit! Not recommended for people under 18 years!

Estas imágenes son de carácter sexual y muy gráficas por lo tanto no son recomendables para menores de edad.

Ces images son de caractère sexuel très explicite et par conséquent destiné à un public majeur d'âge.

www.bcramponphoto.com/trips/2013-08-5_lim2 (link, enlace, lien)

The Larco Museum

a quick visit to Larco's Museum (enlace, lien, link)

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Founded in 1926 by Rafael Larco Hoyle, the Larco Museum showcases remarkable chronological galleries providing an excellent overview on 3000 years of development of Peruvian pre-Columbian history.

The Larco Museum is a privately owned museum of pre-Columbian art, located in the Pueblo Libre District of Lima, Peru. The museum is housed in an 18th-century vice-royal building built over a 7th-century pre-Columbian pyramid.

Features the finest gold and silver collection from Ancient Peru and the famous erotic archaeological collection.
For more info visit their website at http://www.museolarco.org/

a quick visit to Larco's Museum (enlace, lien, link)

First hours in Lima Perou

neighborhood of Miraflores Lima (link, enlace, liens)

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neighborhood of Miraflores Lima (link, enlace, liens)