Manu and Quechua village
I have a little free time now, so I thought Id try to post some pictures, and a brief description of what Ive been doing. Im in Mancora now, on the north coast of Peru. Its a popular surf town, but unfortunately there is no surf now. Went kitesurfing the last 2 days at a place called Cabo Blanco. Its where Hemmingway wrote the Old Man and the Sea, but the hotel where he stayed is abandoned now, and is the only building in the town. Before coming here I did an 8 day trip to Manu National Park, near Cusco. We managed to see quite a few animals – see pictures. Almost saw a jaguar – the guide saw it, but by the time the boat stopped all that remained were the tracks.
After Manu, I did a fairly frightening mt bike ride down from a pass at about 14,ooo ft to about 11,000, then a much more relaxed but still challenging ride nearby. My partner was an Australian guy who mt bikes every week, while Ive done it once in 3 years. I managed not to fall, but it was very sketchy in several spots.
After that, I visited a Quechua village called Umabamba, near Cusco. I thought it might be a typical tourist trip, but it was quite different. My guide Wilfredo Huallpayunca arranged it with the president of the town, Lucho. It turned out I was the first tourist who had come to their village, and they kept referring to me as Patronera, which I think means something like a cross between employer and VIP. They took me to their fields where we built an earth oven and dug up and roasted 3 types of potatoes and beans, then had a meal with other foods, including Cuy – guinea pig and Quechuan soup. At the end they had a really sweeet ceremony, where they had constructed an arch covered with flowers and hung a cup from the top. I was told that I was good luck, and I had to break the cup with a ceremonial hammer after they had poured Coca Cola into it. I really hope it brings them good luck in some way – they were really sweet people and the trip was very interesting. The family I was visiting also showed me how to spin dye wool yarn – they are called the Association of Artesanos or Felix Puma. I think anyone who visits Cusco, should do this trip or one like it. So many people visit the area and leave without learning about how these people – the descendents of the original Incas – live. It was quite amazing. The guide Wilfredo can be reached at incaswill_04@hotmail.com
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