Lake Titicaca

Lake Titicaca is very beautiful and very very big. It's around 180 km long and 60 km wide. In some places it looks like a sea. It is at an altitude of 3,820 meters (12,533 feet) and it left me completely breathless. I though that after my stay in Cuzco and the Inca Trail I am accommodated to the high altitude but I am really not. I wake several times during the night feeling as if I was suffocating and I have the strangest dreams connected to all I heard about the Incas - I dream of them, the pumas, condors and snakes, but also about the people I know, the people I don't know... maybe it's the fact that I visit all these sacred places and hear so many legends and various myths or maybe it's just lack of oxygen. Apart form the altitude sickness all is well.

I bought a tour to the islands of the Lake Titicaca because it's really the only way to see them. It would be hard to do it alone as there's not much traffic between the islands and Puno - fishermen come to Puno on various days of the week and there's no regular boat service. The tour was very inexpensive ($12 for two days and it included everything: the boat, the guide, the food, the overnight stay at Atamani) and it's mostly for people who are backpackers and enjoy adventure so it was really nice. We first visited the floating islands of the Uros Indians. They live on platforms made of tortora reeds which are anchored to the mud by wooden poles. They started living on the lake in the pre-Inca times, during the reign of the Colla culture. There are 42 islands and about 120,000 people live on them. Everything on these islands is made of tortora reeds, the "ground" on which the village is built, the houses, the boats they use for taking their catch (they are a tribe of fishermen) to the shore to exchange for goods they need in daily life. Walking on the tortora bed is funny - you can actually feel you are walking on something soft that is floating on water.

After visitng the floating islands we went to the Island of Amantani. The Island is basically a mountain so everywhere you go, you either go up or down. Only tarrases on which crops are grown are leveled. It's a very peaceful island: there's no tv and no machinery of any kind. It's completely quiet. There are a few solar panels and a few stores and a few houses have electricity. When we arrived a group of young women greeted us. We were assigned to them to spend the night with their families. This is the only way to spend a night on the island. All the women were wearing white richly embroidered blouses, very puffy skirts of various bright colors (they were unmarried; the married women wear black skirts), black showls on their hads, and black sandals). This is what they always wear and have been wearing for centuries... Women always weave, knit or spinn wool on spindles they carry with them, even when walking. According to the Inca's tradition one should follow three principles of not stealing, not lying and not being lazy. They take great care not to be lazy... There are eight communites living on the island. The houses are made of clay and grass bricks and they are very clean, inside and outside. Bathrooms are outside, there's no shower or anything like that - baths are taken in the lake. I was assigned to the house of Ruth together with Ai, a Japanese girl who is also travelling alone. We got to the house and the altitude made us totally exhausted - we just dropped on our beds and took a nap until dinnertime... complete laziness... After dinner we went with the rest of our group to the sacred temple of Pacha Tata - Father Earth. I walked around it three times anti-clockwise for my wishes to come true... What is interesting about all these Indian cultures of Peru is that even though most of them were converted to Christianity and consider themselves Catholics, they never stopped worshiping the gods their ancestor worshipped long time ago - they never abonded the ancient temples which were built long before the Christianity was brought to them. Pacha Mama and Pacha Tata (Mother Earth and Father Earth) and all the sacred animals and places, and equinoxes and full moons, are as important as traditional Christian holidays. When we returned from the temple (a very old, basic round structure of stones with an arch leading to it) we were presented with traditional clothing to wear during the dance in the evening. I got a green skirt and Ai a red one. The mother of the house dressed us: first she put on us the long white embroidered blouses, then underskirts, then the skirts (wool, thick and layered), and last wide bands around our waists to support the skirts. She was a strong woman and she tied the bands so tightly that we could hardly breathe... It was alreday dark (the sun sets at 6.00 pm there) and Ruth took us in complete darkness to the dance house. There we met with all other people from our group and local people. There were two bands playing wonderful music. The girls showed us how to dance the traditional dance; it's not hard - you just have to get the rhythm witch is always the same - and we were dancing till breathless... We danced in pairs and did all kinds of conga lines. It was a lot of fun. I have a few really nice pictures from the dance - you will see them one day - and of Ai and myself in the very feminine outfit. The Amantani women looked very beatufiul in it. They are all short and plump, their hair tied in braids. They look and feel beautiful. There's no tv here so the western idea of a tall anorectic blonde as an ideal of beauty to aspire to didn't reach them yet... They are happy with the way Pacha Mama created them. The next morning we ate breakfast with the family, thanked them for their hospitality and left to join the rest of the group who already collected on the shore to go to the island of Taquile.

Taquile island belonged to a Spaniard named Taquile during the Spaniards' reign and the name remained. There are 2,000 people living on the island and they speak Quechua (the Amantanis speak Aymara). The outfits are slightly different. For women they are almost the same as for Amantani women (the blacks showls are not embroidered but have tossles attached to them) but men wear specific hats resembling nightcaps - the married ones wear hats in one color, the single men's hats are half color half white. Marriage is very important to Taquileans. The guide told us that men and women live together for a few years before they get married but when they marry it's for life and the entire island is invited to the wedding - it's a huge celebration. Here women and also men! weave and knit everywhere they go. It was such a peculiar sight to see men knitting hats using five needles!

It took us 3 hours to come back to Puno from Taquile because the boat was very slow - it looked like a fishing boat made to accommodate people. I came back tired because of the altitude and the heat. I will rest till the end of the day and tomorrow I will head to Bolivia. I asked around and the yellow fever vaccine is not necessary in Bolivia (and I won't go to the jungle so I should be fine). Claudio, I sent you an e-mail some time ago asking about the vaccine (I am reluctant to get it because I heard that it's really tough and has many side effects) and I haven't heard from you - did you get it? I lost my e-mail address book in my o2.pl account so I am writing here hoping that you will read it. All other friends: I respond to all e-mails I get from you so those who write to me regulary - I have your e-mails, but all other persons - I don't have all e-mail addresses in my memory so please write to me if you would like to get a personal letter from me. I have a printed list of e-mail addresses but I left it in Lima...

Puno

I came to Puno yesterday at 6:30 and the 10,5 hours trip on the train was very nice. It went very fast, the train was very comfortable and the views magnificent. We passed through a few larger towns (and the train was basically going through the local markets so I could observe what people were selling), many little villages, fields of various plants and plains on which alpaca, lama and vacuna were grazing. We made one ten-minute stop in the highest point which was again above 3,000 meters above sea level. We went out to admire the artwork the local people were selling and the scenery. I could see here what I saw in various documentary movies about Peru - women dressed in puffy skirts and wearing a variety of peculiar hats which are mostly tiny and sit on the very top of their heads.

There is nothing particular about Puno and that makes it a very interesting town. There are very few tourists. I suspected that everything will be closed because it's Easter but it seems everything is open and the market is the biggest I have seen. It's a market to which people from around Puno come with things to sell. It's not a market with artwork; it's everything needed for daily life and lot's of food, cooked and raw. Zapatos, zapatos! Chicha morada! Articulos escuelas! Lubricantes por autos! I spend the entire morning on the market because it's so interesting but I am barely alive now. I think today is the worst I have felt in the mountains so far: it's not only that the altitude is great, it's also very hot. It's really hard to breathe. I got a double portion of coca tea but it didn't help this time. I am going to go back to the hostel and just linger in bed... until it cools down in the evening. Tomorrow I am going to visit three islands on the Lake Titicaca. I will stay overnight on one of them. I will write when I come back.

Easter and Puno

To all my friends celebrating Easter: have a wonderful and spiritual Easter. Spend time with your loved ones, rest and do things you like doing most and rejuvenate - above all Easter is about resurection and every day is a resurection and a new beginning so celebrate the new beginnings, which make everything possible, during Easter and all other days of the year.

Tomorrow at 8 am I am going by train to Puno. I heard that it is the train service operating on the highest altitude in the world and views are magnificient so I decided to go by train instead of bus. It's a 10 hour trip but it shouldn't be tiring because there's space to streach out.

Today I bought a long sweather made of alpaca. I have to mention this because I think what saved me from getting a cold during the Inca trail (and most people did get sick) were my alpaca socks. I got them on the market and I was amazed how warm and water repelent they were. I could feel the water moving in my shoes but my feet were not cold. The alpaca hair seems to be the best fiber in the world. All the goretexes, polars, and other synthetics are nothing in comparison. Why do people struggle inventing things instead of using what nature created for them?!

Much love and hugs to all, I will write from Puno.

Camino del Inca

I came back from the Inca's trail but before I get to the details I have to tell you about the meeting with a Shaman. I was wondering around the Church of San Blas today, resting from the tough trek and admiring stores with the folk art. I wanted to open the door of one of the places which looked like a store with jewelry but the door was locked. I was ready to leave but a man came to the door and opened it. I said that if it was his lunch break or siesta I could come back later but he said "No, you are welcome - I open only for certain people". Hm... I went inside and he closed the door. He started showing me the different types of jewerly which was all very unique. We were talking about nature and he was saying how it's sad for him to see how the influx of turists is changing his homeland, how it's being robbed of its sancticity. .. I said that it's not possible to turn the hands of the clock - certain places were discovered and called extraordinary and people want to see them. But I understand what he means. Machu Pichu is a sacred place. The fact that there's an expensive hotel right next to it and a fast food restaurant makes it less sacred... At one point he grabbed my hands and looked deep into my eyes, he held my head in his hands, put his hands on my shoulders and said: "This is your last incarnation. You were born eight times before. You will live a long life and can be of help to others if you choose to." He also told me I was sick and I am not fully recovered, that I needed three or four months for my chakras to be fully balanced. Among the eight incarnations in one I was a medicine woman burned at the stake for my "witchcraft" and in another one I was a very bad man, particularly bad for women and treated them very badly. These two incarnations have the most effect on my present life - I am confused because my karma comes from being very good and very bad to people. But I have the power to heal people, especially in my hands. He gave me two amulets: one to help myself and turn the bad energy to a pure good one - to open my third chakra. The other is to make me able to help people with my mind, without having to touch them. This one consists of seven materials, each representing a different thing - and the combination of them will also serve as my guardian angel, to protect me from bad boys ;) since it is my karma to meet them as I was so bad to women before... He told me a certain ritual to perform every month at full moon for the next 10 months to become a medicine woman again. He asked me many times if I really wanted to get that talisman and I said yes, I will stick to the ritual (no sacrifices needed ;). The Shaman is a traditional medicine doctor and also heals with alternative medicinal procedures, herbs, and the power of his hands. He has a store and also a clinic where he treats people of various diseases of body and mind. His father was a North American Navajo Indian (and was also a Shaman) and his mother was a Quechua Indian. He lived to be 113 and she to be 112. The Shaman is 58 but looks my age. It is unbelievably good to see a person who looks at you and you know that he knows your thoughts and who you exactly are but has so much compassion for you that he will not judge you - he will help you mend whatever is not good in you to make you connect with other beings and with higher power. During our talk there were many people who were knocking at the door and he would tell them sorry, it's closed - he explained that he knew whom he could help and whom he could not by looking at people's aura. The ones he has no ability to help, he sends away. I said I will visit him after the 10 months to show him my power. He said "Don't promise, do what you feel is good at the time. You are a free being - decide what is best and needed."

About the trail. Two girls which I met during the trek but who where not in my group said on our way back: "Inca Trail is like life. It's constantly going up and going down. Climbing up you sometimes think you won't do it, you will just sit and ask to be finished off. But then you move one leg and force the other to follow and you keep walking. You reach the peak, you are exhausted but extatic and you start descending and the descend is often not easy and then you start climbing up again..." We decided that to realize this, while climbing mountains, is to accept life/the trail the way it is, with all its difficult ascents and descends and occasional euphoria of reaching the peak. So, the trail is about the beauty of the mountains, the changing scenery of the humid and hot subtropical jungle, with hummingbirds and orchideas, the bare high peaks and the snow, hail and cold, but it is also about dealing with one's thoughts, the pain of the body pushed to the limits, the uncomfortable backpack, however light it may be, and the comradership of the fellow trackers and porters. The first day isn't so hard but the second day is a killer - first six hours of constant climb, in some places of a very steep slope, to the highest point of 4,200 meters (13,773 feet). The temperature drops tremendously at the peak and everyone starts to put on everything one has in one's backpack, including hats and mittens. Some feel dizzy and need the bottled oxygen which the guides carry with them. Then there's the descend along a beautiful valley, full of waterfalls, streams, and singing frogs. The track is mostly steps, hundreds and hundres of steps. When it rains they get very slipery and the descend is slow and cautious. Some places on the trail were so hard I was asking myself why, in my free will, I subjected myself to this torture, but then I looked around, saw the beautiful, most beautiful, mountains, the valleys, the trail, the founa and flora, the ruins, and I thought that whatever I had to do in life to bring me to this point was worth it... Our group consisted of six people: a couple Arnoud and Muriel and Arnoud's sister Emilie from France, and Laura and Miriam from Argentina, and also our guide Selso and six porters. We all immediately became friends and remained a very good team throughout the trip. Sometimes we walked as a group and sometimes we spreaded out to enjoy walking in solitude. A few times we stayed at the various ruins of Inca palaces, sacred places, and watchtowers after dusk to feel the spirit of the Incas... We walked to campsites with fleshlights and when we arrived the porters already put up tents for us and had the supper ready. We usually woke up at 4 or 5 am and went to bed at around 8 or 9, totally exhausted, without even washing our faces or teeth. The porters carried all the food, the tents and cooking utensils. The cook was great - the food was simple but very good and nutricious. We eate like horses... every time a three course meal, and snacks and chocolate along the way... And I still have to tight my pants with a rope because they are totally loose... In the morning of the third day we woke up to the pouring rain. We were sitting in a big tent which served as a sleeping place for porters and our "cafeteria". We were waiting for the rain to stop, after an hour decided to find a volunteer to be sacrificed for the God of Rain, no one volunteered so we decided to walk. We were totally drenched after an hour of walk, plop, plop, water in our "waterproof" shoes. I think nothing is waterproof in such rain. Muriel started to cry (she was the least fit of us and it was very difficult for her...) and we started to joke around to cheer her up and we eventually all got into this mode of silly laughter for no reason - you get into that state when it seems that it cannot be any worse than this and it can only be better. And it did clear up and when we reached the campsite we spreaded out everything to dry. The last third evening was spent in a big campsite with all other groups and there was a Last Supper which consisted of 7 dishes and there was a disco afterwards. This was also the first evening when we got to shower so all fresh and happy, even though extremally sore and tired, we sat to supper and enjoyed the evening. We also thanked our porters tremendously and gave them generous tip for their very hard work. The girls and I also went to the nearby ruins at night. The next morning we woke up at 5 am and walked for an 1,5 to the Sun Gate and from there to Machu Pichu. We saw it at the crack of down and how it nicely revealed itself to the world of the day. We then left our backpacs at a storage place and explored the ruins, first with Selso and then alone. The ruins are beautiful, yes of course, but I have to say that without walking the trail they would not mean much to me. By walking the trail we learned about the whole system of communication, about the Inca's religion, agriculture, architecture, the peoples they conquered, etc. The places which are accessible only by foot are more sacred to me then Machu Pichu because they just stand alone, in the midst of nowhere, completely isolated, completely quiet... In Machu Pichu, after 10 am, there are so many tourists that it is hard to concentrate and imagine what the life was there during Inca's times. Our group thought that the best feeling we had when watching Machu Pichu from the Sun Gate. I agree with the Shaman - it is hard for a place to remain a sacred place when it becomes a tourist attraction. Afterwards we went by bus to Aquas Calientes (Hot Springs), a town below Machu Pichu where we had the Last Dinner, and from there at 5:30 am the next morning we went by train to Ollaytambo - the train ride was beautiful - and took a collectivo bus to Cuzco. I came back to Hostal Felix and greeted the friendly people who run it and their five dogs: mom, dad and three puppies. The dogs threw themselves at me, barking and wagging their tails - that was the most beautiful "welcome back".

Tomorrow I will see if I can get a ticket for the train going to Puno, to lake Titicaca, for Saturday.

Iglesia La Merced

I checked the trail situation to Machu Pichu and the only one available at the moment is the Inca Trail (for the two other trails there are no people and to go alone with a guide I would have to spend $300). I am then going on the Inca Trail tomorrow at 7:00 am. It will be a four day trek. I will spend the last night in Aquas Calientes to soak after the trail in thermal bath. I will be back on Thursday morning so I will put new info then. I got water purification tablets and glucose pills and the rest should be provided the the guides. I am only taking my sleeping bag and a few pieces of clothing. I was told that at this time of the year, low season, there are about 100 people on the trek daily as opposed to 500 in high season.

Today I visited Iglesia y Convento La Merced (Church and Convent of the Mercy) and I saw many interesting works of art again. One of them was the hosteria (I think that's the name in English?) made of pure 24-carat gold incrusted with a few hundred diamonds, pearls, rubies and other precious stones. The main pearl is in the form of a mermaid - the shape is natural, only the head is made of gold and attached to the body-the pearl. It's unbelievable how nature made this pearl grow in this shape. I have also seen more Madonnas de la Leche. Karla has also encountered Madonnas with exposed boobs, feeding the infant, painted around the same time the Madonnas here were painted, in Sicily and along the Amalfi Coast. That is very interesting. I told the guide who was giving me the tour around La Merced how unusual it was for me to see the paintings of the breastfeeding Madonna and he said: "Wait till you see this" and he led me to a huge painting, overlooking the atrium, one of the main paintings of the convent, portraying the Virgin breastfeeding the infant and St. Peter! I saw this and I was... gasping for air, ready to faint, holding on to the guide... Just kidding! But it is the most unusual thing I have ever seen in sacral art.

I also wanted to visit Museo de Arte y Monasterio de Santa Catalina but the nuns closed earlier. I knocked and knocked because according to the schedule it was supposed to be open but a tiny elderly nun opened the heavy doors a crack and told me they were closed for the day. Rats! Maybe I will have the chance to see it when I return. In most of the places I visited I was the only vistor so I don't blame the nuns for taking off since there's no one to admire their art...

In the evening I went to Centro Qosqo (Cuzco in Quechua) de Arte Nativo Danzas Folkloricas and saw an hour of beautful folk dances and songs from the regions around Cuzco. It was a great performance in a very nice theater. Lots of beautiful costumes and beautiful music. During the intermission everyone was given mate de coca tea.

I forgot to report on the big protest which took place a few days ago in Cuzco and which I witnessed but I will tell more about this when I return because it touches the subject of modern anthropology and what I was writing about earlier - the survival of the indigenous people. Details tk (to come).

I will be in touch on Thursday and until then much love to you all.

Pisaq market

Today I visited the Pisaq market for the fun of riding the bus and seeing the beautiful views again and for the fun of enjoying all the beautiful works of folk art. I spent there a few hours and I picked the things that I most liked: another smaller blanket which is like coffee, deep brown with just a little of other colors; a bronze pin which is a replica of the Inca pin in the form of a condor used for putting together the ends of a poncho; a hand-painted, oil on canvas, replica of La Virgen di la Leche (Matka Boska mleczna?) or The Virgin Mary of Milk originally painted by one of the painters of the Cusquenian School - one of the paintings of the breast-feeding Mary which I so admired at the Museo Regional. I also bought the knitted finger puppets of many animals among them lama, vacuna, alpaca and sheep. Lama is the tallest and biggest of them. Alpaca looks like a smaller lama, vacuna is a mix of lama and alpaca, and sheep is, well, a sheep. They all give wool from which all the wonderful blankets, sweathers, socks, hats and mittens are made. And, I bought these amazing birds made of some kind of a dried fruit, wider at the base and narrower at the neck. They are birds but the base is carved to present the life of the people living in the villages. I bought five of them because each of them represents a different scene: there's a woman weaving, a man loading burden on lama's back, people cultivating land, etc. "The birds" are most amazing pieces of folk art that I have ever seen. You will see them one day. I talked to many people on the market, mostly about their art - because many of them sell what they make - and about the pre-columbian art because they are also selling many replicas which are made with the use of the same materials used so long ago.

I came back exhausted because it was very hot today but I met on my way back Rosemary who is a Peruvian from Lima (I met her during the tour to the three villages on my second day in Cuzco) and we went for dinner together. We ended up talking for two hours. I took her to my favorite restaurant which serves dinnner for $1 and she loved the food. I find that the cheapest restaurants serve the best food and the atmosphere is really nice. Rosemary is a very nice and interesting person. We exchanged addresses and I will visit her when I go back to Lima. Rosmary doesn't speak a word in English so the conversation in Spanish wiped me out - it requires amazing amount of energy on my part still to converse in Spanish about subjects more difficult than daily life.

I see that I didn't finish my thought about the movie yesterday... about stepping into the pain. What I wanted to say is that the whole movie was really about it. It was about doing what you have to do, no matter how hard and scary it may be, because no one will do it for you. It's about getting the courage to do what has to be done, and not avoiding it, till the end, literaly. And that it doesn't matter how long life is but how good it is.

Well, with that thought I will say good bye for today and step into... the cold shower and that, I have to say, is painful... but I am getting used to it. I am grateful for any water, even if it's freezing cold... brrrrr. I designed a system: first a big toe of the right leg, then the foot, the the other toe, the other foot, then one arm, the other arm, and that's about it... Just kidding! I occasionally get my whole body washed at one time but it's tough because evenings and mornings in Cuzco are cold, cold, cold.

More about Cuzco and vicinity

Yesterday I say four places connected with the Inca culture. First I went to the church of Santo Domingo which was built on the greatest Inca temple Qoricancha, the Temple of the Sun. Nowadays the two cultures, the Hispanic and the Inca's, are cohabitaing the space - the baroque catholic church in some places, the Inca chambers devoted to different dieties in others. The guide said that the walls of the Inca chambers were covered with gold plate half an inch thick. Later they were taken down and melted, they were covered with plaster and painted. Later still, they was cleaned of the plaster and revealed for all to see.

Later I went to Sacsayhuaman (which is pronounced almost like Sexywoman and so that's how the guides call it for easy remembering). Most sacred and admired animals to Incas were puma, snake, and condor. Cuzco was build in the shape of a puma and the puma's head was Sacsayhuaman. It was a huge object believed by the conquistadores to be a fortress but now it's believed it was a sanctuary and the temple of the Sun. In 1982 graves of priests were found and that enforced this belief. There are only remains of that huge complex because after the conquest all the catholic churches were built with the use of the stones from the site. What remains, however, is still very impressive. There can still be seen huge blocks of stone (some weighing 130 tons) fitted perfectly without the use of mortar.

Down the road I came across Qenqo which means a maze in Quechua. It is basically a stone carved out inside in which there are narrow corridors and an offering altar. It was very interesting to walk through this cave-like structure. A kilometer away there's a checkpoint called Puka Pukara and Tambo Machay which is another Inca's bath - it's a spring shrine and the water is supposed to be potable and give health and longevity to those who drink it. It's amazing how many interesting buildings, or remains of them, are around Cuzco.

Today I visited Museo de Historia Regional and saw many paintings from XVI, XVII and XVIII centuries of the school called the Cuzco school. They definately present a very specific style although they were influenced by the European art of that time. I really enjoyed the sacral art - it is very different from the usual "Madonnas", more down to earth, more real. Some Madonnas are breastfeeding the baby Jesuses and I haven't seen it in European paintings.

I also visited the Cathedral, Palacio Arzobispal, the Museum of the Inca, church San Blas and Museo de Arte Precolumbiano - Museum of the Precolombian art. The last one was the most interesting one. It's absolutely stunning. If you ever go to Cuzco, I highly recommend visiting it. The objects are not crammed together in glass cases. They were carefuly chosen to represent the cultures of the various peoples who lived in the area of Peru: Nazca, Mochina, Huari, Chimu, Chancey, Viru, Paracas, Salinar and Cupisnique. Katarina probably knows about these cultures. I learned a little about them today. The artifacts are wonderfully presented. You walk into a dark room and as you walk in the niches in the walls are illuminated and you see the objects. There's the museum of gold, silver, sculpture, textile and ceramics. The interior is usually white, the floor is made of brick. I enjoyed the objects, the way they were displayed and the architecture of the building.

I learned that it is too dangerous to go the mountains at the moment because of risk of avalanches so I will have to find out if there's still a different route to Machu Pichu. If there isn't I will probably go to see it in one or two days and I will go trekking somewhere else. I heard that the Colca canyon is nice.

And, I also saw today The One Million Dollar Baby (it seems like days here are really streeeeeeeeeched and so many things can be done in one day, maybe because the city is small and everything is so close). I really enjoyed the movie. I was always trying to find the right wording for why boxing is so great and I think the man in the movie explained it right. He said that in boxing everything is reversed so instead of running away from pain a boxer gets right into it. And he also said that boxing is about respect, respect for yourself. Perhaps other sports can teach this too, but I learned that from boxing, even though I only did it as an exercise and never was thinking of actually getting into fights. So, Curtis and Chafia, I so miss the classes! Once I settle somewhere I will look for a boxing gym, for sure!!!

Ollantaytambo, Chinchero, Pisaq - The Sacred Valley

I couldn't open my e-mail account yesterday nor today. I will try a little later. In the meantime I can write about yesterday which was a beautiful day. Every day of my life is the best day of my life and yesterday was another best day. I bought a tour to the Sacred Valley because I wanted to see what's there to see and then later I can go back to the places I most like on my own. The people on the tour were wonderful - a very mixed group and totally different from the one I encountered before. On the bus I was sitting next to Samantha and I really enjoyed her company. She is from NYC but for the past three years she has been living in a small village in Costa Rica. She is a teacher and is very happy with her life there. First we went to Pisaq (30 km away from Cuzco) to see the ruins of an Inca fortress and the Sunday market. First we went to the market and I entered with a firm decision not to buy anything (because I want to travel light) but it was the best market I have seen in my life so I had to get something! The markets I have seen before in different countries and places were full of cheap mass produced stuff and occasionally good hand-made works. In this market there's nothing that is not beautiful and original. I especially like textiles and the blankets I saw at the Pisaq market are absolutely amazing - each is a story, about the people, culture, animals, farming, nature in general. I stopped by one stand and there was this blanket which looked like a field of corn: yellow and green, with red and brown edges. I immediately fell in love with it. I asked for the price and when the seller said $15 I didn't even bargain - I just handed the woman the money and snatched if from her and wrapped it around myself. Whosoever hands made this blanket, they made it for me - the blanket and me are destined for each other... It's thick and heavy and I will have to ship it. Before I do this I will return to the market next Sunday for more beautiful artwork... Next we went to visit the fortress. We had to climb 1km up the hill and were quite tired when we got there. The altitude made us walk slowly and not talk very much... The scenery around the fortress was amazing. The fortress itself is magnificent. The guide gave us a lot of information about Inca culture. I knew it was extraordinary but I didn't think it was so organized and so sophisticated. It would take me many pages to write all about it so it will be better if I tell you about it while having beer at Bohemian Hall and around Masurian Lakes one day. The Inca's way of life must have been amazing. I see a great resemblance in their religion and philosophy to Buddhism. A great stress was put on work, learning, and love and the idea that work is done not for oneself but for the community. Incas believed in circularity of life and rebirth. The bodies were buried in the fetal position, to be prepared for the next life and to symbolize the new beginning. From Pisaq we went to Ollantaytambo which was an Inca town. There we could see the temple, the remains of the houses of the clergy, the observation places for the astronomers, the houses for the common people. Also, there is a very well preserved Bano de la Nusta (bath of the princess). It's a set of small waterfals for the people to "shower" before visiting the temple. There is a complete irrigation system still used by the modern town. And there are terraces, flights and flights of them. From Ollantaytambo it took us an hour to get to Chinchero and this was one of the most beautiful roads ever taken by me. Andes are the most beautiful mountains I have ever seen so far. We were climbing up (Chinchero is 3,762 meters above the sea level) and in the distance we saw all the patches of farm land and further still the gray higher mountains, their peaks covered with snow. Blue sky above and narrow road amidst this beauty... It's not heard to see why the Incas, and the peoples who inhabited it before them, though that it was a sacred place - it is so beautiful that one immediately thinks the power which created it must be mighty... It seems to be too beautiful to be true... Chinchero is a small town, with typical very narrow streets and stairs leading to what was before an Inca temple but what is now a Catholic church because the Spaniards had the habit of destroying the temples and building churches on their remains. The Church is nice but the surroundings of it are much more beautiful. There is also a small market around the church and women and children in traditional clothes sell the artesanas which are as wonderful as the ones on the Pisaq market. We visited a small museum with artifacts excavated from around the town. We got on the bus and went home, tired and happy. During the entire trip we passed many small villages which looked good. The people who live there are farmers and their life must be hard, as farming is hard work, but no poverty can be seen. There are even playgrounds for kids and full soccer fields and in some cases even basketball fields. I was glad to see this. If the inhabitants may think that this is not a beautiful way of life that is because we the tourists make them feel our culture is better, with our luxurious goods, cars, mtv, cameras, hotels, etc. Part of the market in Pisaq is the food and everyday use goods market and goods are exchanged there - the people from the villages around Pisaq don't use money - it is a foreign idea to them. Samantha and I agreed that a life without car insurance, coffee to go, credit cards, cubicles, tv and disposable utensil can be a really good life... She is leading such a life so she knows... And my grandma Victoria, who lived in a village which resembles the ones here in the Sacred Valley, said so... that her life was hard but beautiful...

Cuzco in the evening

I see that I didn't say anything that I was going to Cuzco. Well, when I woke up at 5:30 in the morning at that horrible hostel I decided to just go to Nazca and take the flight over the Nazca lines at 8:00 am. After 8 it gets really hot. I got there a little later and I felt so roasted by the heat that I just decided to take a day off, sipping mate de coca tea and resting in the atrium of a local museum. After the two weeks of oppressive heat, especially in the desert, my body just said no to any activity. So I decided to skip the flight over the lines - which are the mysteriuos lines which can be seen in full beauty only from the plane - and go to Cuzco. Nazca is relatively close to Lima so I can see them some other time. I boarded the bus to Cuzco at 5 pm and got here at 9 am the next morning. 14 hours on the bus totally killed me. I will not do this again. Or if I do this, it will have to be a more comfortable bus. This wasn't a chicken bus but not much better, really. At 7 am we encountered a river which overflew and destroyed part of the road. I thought "great, we will be stuck here until they repair it" but no, the people got off the bus, the men quickly made stepping stones for the people to pass to the other side and the bus driver skillfully navigated the bus through the river. I was full of admiration for him. I told one of the passangers how it seemed the bus was ready to tip over at one point and he said that well, yes, sometimes it happens... All the buses going to Cuzco travel at night. But I could see the beautiful mountains before it got dark yesterday and then today in the morning from 5:30 am. The whole 14-hour trip was basically going up and up the hills. It's good I wasn't sitting on the window side - the road is narrow and there are no railings of any kind. Even from where I was sitting it looked like we would dive into the abyss any moment... The villages we passed looked much better than the ones I saw in Chiapas and Guatemala. Once the mountains started being covered with fertile soil I could see patches of farm land. Every piece of land is cultivated. These people must be really hard-working: to cultivate the land they must be constantly going up and down the hills. From the distance the mountains and the farmland looked amazingly beautiful. At one point in the evening yesterday we stopped at a road-side restaurant and I had some supper and then I talked to kids, six of them, and I couldn't believe how smart and serious they were, and what a great sense of humor they had! One of girls was five years old and she was carying her one-year old brother on her back in the traditional sack. They asked me if I would stay in their town and see it because it's beautiful and I was tempted to do this. I love these little sleepy towns, more than the famous bigger towns like Cuzco. Cuzco is bautiful: very beautfiul architecture, nice restaurants and little cafes, stores with artesanas, jewerly, etc. Very nice but revolving around tourists... I prefer places like the port of St. Andres and the little town the name of which I don't even know (the kids told me but I fell asleep and I forgot...). I can really get friendly to the people who live there and see their daily life. In places like Cuzco it's hard to become a friend to the local people since I am the source of their main income... Tomorrow I am going to go to four little towns and some markets since it's Sunday and the markets are supposed to be good. Gene, I will look for mushrooms for you! I almost booked a trekking expedition for six days to Machu Pichu on Monday but I talked to the guide and he suggested I give myself some time to accommodate to the altitude. Today I feel dizzy and can't really breathe so I think he is right - I should drink coca tea and eat glucose pills - that is his recommendation. The highest point during the trek is over 6,000 meters so one should be prepared. And I will have to find a place which rents down jackets - it's very cold up in the mountains. Good, I need something to cool me down after the hot weather of the past weeks. The trek I decided to do is not the Inca Trail. I would hate to be stompeded by the tourists on the Inca Trail who go there by truckloads so I chose a different route which is totally not popular but I heard equally beautiful if not more beautiful. And then the small group of people and I will be able to admire the beauty of the mountains, valleys, streams and waterfalls in peace and quietness... Thank you for your e-mails! I will respond to them tomorrow. I will go to bed early to rest still from that tough bus ride... Much love to all!

Bus trip to Cuzco

ended two hours ago and I am so tired that this is just a short note to let everyone know that I have arrived and I will be in touch with details later in the evening. I am going to take a long, long nap...

Paracas, Ica & Nasca

First of all, the computers are slow in this part of Peru. When I try to respond to your e-mail messages they tell me the time to contact the server to send a message has ran out so I don't think you are getting my messages... I will look for faster connections in Cuzco. Rosana, I am going to Cuzco today at 5:00 pm. It will take me 15 hours to get there - I will try to e-mail you once I get there, or call you, if I am unsuccessful.

On Wednesday I went to Paracas National Park. I was supposed to go to Islas Ballestas but there was a strong wind and the waves were high so no ships were allowed to go out to the ocean that day. I took a tour to Paracas (because there's no other way to get there) and I went, with a few other tourists, to see beautiful beaches, long and sandy with beautiful rock formations called La Catedral. It's called the Cathedral because you can walk inside the cave and its like walking inside a church. To get to the beaches we had to drive in the desert. It was awfully hot there but very beautiful because there's absolutely nothing there except nature. No human intervention of any kind. One of the girls was laughing that we should find a skeleton like the ones seen in movies and we did! We saw a skull of a horse or a donkey, remains of a sea lion and a carcass of a bird being eaten by a bird belonging to the condor family. Later that day I went to St. Andres again since I liked it so much. I had an amazing dish in a local restaurant. It was right next to the mercado des pescadores so the cook said: "You wait here a minute, I will go get the fish you want and I will prepare it for you". I don't think it can get any more fresh than that! It was ready in 20 minutes. And very delicious. Steamed fish in ginger and onion broth with potatoes. Mniam, mniam.

On Thursday the weather was better and at 7:20 I went with the same guide to Islas Bollestas. The islands are called by the locals "The islands of bird poop" and it becomes obvious why when you get close to it - you can immediately smell it... There are so many birds sitting on the rocks (the islands are called "Little Galapagos" because there's a great variety of migrating birds and fish inhabitating it) that they produce incredible amounts of poop. The islands are then white. The only industry on the island is well, poop. People scrape it off the rock (literally with shovels) and sell it as fertilizers. We got to the islands by a speed boat (I know what you think Kura but there are no sailboats available...). The good thing about it was that we could get very close to the rocks. We saw thousands of birds: pelicans, various kinds of seagulls, Humboltd penguins, some kind of a hawk y mucho mas. Also, and most interestigly for me, we saw sealions. We saw "the nursery" - the beach where the young are born. The guide told us there were 1,500 sealions on that beach, babies and moms, and about 4,000 seagulls total on the islands. We saw how males were fighting for females, how the mothers were teaching their babies how to swim, how they were resting on the rocks scratching, sleeping, yawning... We also saw how the "teenagers" were playing in the water. It was amazing to see how great was their sense of humor! I couldn't take my eyes off them. I very much enjoyed that trip. On our way back I talked to the guide who is a professional ornitologist. We talked about nature preservation. He was telling me how the foreign companies who come to Pisco and Paracas and establish their plants pollute the waters by disposing caustic soda into the ocean and how it kills plankton and so there's less marine life around this area since the fish who feed on plankton, and then in turn the bigger fish feeding on the smaller, stay away from the shores. The fishermen have to go further out to the ocean (instad of 2 hours away, it takes them 6 hours) to find fish. We both decided that there's nothing wrong with profit the companies make but there's a huge problem with "maximum profit" which doesn't take into consideration the wellbeing of the native people. I told him about the non-governmental organizations and marine policy programs which deal exactly with finding solutions for foreign capital and local populations. In this case finding a safer way to clean the tanks used for fish processing than caustic soda (or disposing the chemicals away from the shore). Later that day I got on the bus to Ica, 2 hours away. I got there in the afternoon and took a taxi to Huacachina - a small resort in the middle of the desert. It is famous for a natural lake with sulphur waters which are supposed to have curative abilities. I asked the driver for an economic hostel and he drove me to Casita de Arena. I didn't like it much but I was so hot and so tired that I decided to stay there. I left my backpack and I went straight to the lake. It was very nice, with palm trees around it. I soaked in the warm green and muddy water for an hour. The lake and the few hotels and restaurants are in a small valley and around are the sand dunes. It is amazing that the valley is not swallowed by the desert. The owner of the hotel was organizing an outing to vineyards of Ica (famous in Peru) as it was the celebration of the end of the harvest and I decided to go with the group. And I regretter it very much afterwards. I would have much preferred to go alone. The tourists from the hostel were of the worst kind - a bunch of girls and boys in their 30s who acted as if they were let loose of the leash. Their behaviour was so horrible (they basically got drunk during the first half an hour of wine tasting and were acting incredibly stupid) that I slowly separated myself from them and went to explore the wine bodegas on my own. It was much better. I went to one where people were sitting at long tables, enjoying the various kinds of wine and picso and having dinner. There were also dances performed by kids and teenagers - very nice. I left the hostel today at 6:00 am, totally disgusted with the amount of broken bottles on the floors. I came to Nasca and more about it soon.

Pisco

I boarded a bus in Lima at 10 am and headed for Pisco. I saw many interesting sights during the 4-hour trip. Basically on my right there were long and sandy beaches and on my left the desert and mountains in the distance. Sometime we passed small towns. Some of them are very poor shantytowns build by a group of people who came from the center of Peru - that's what I learned from a person running a travel agency in Pisco. The vastness of the desert is amazing. Miles and miles of sand and the beach and just a road cutting in between. In some places it got mountainous and duneous. It looked like the road number 1 in California except there were no cows grazing and no green color of any vegetation in vicinity. Only sand. Occasionally there was a chicken farm. I got to Pisco at 2 pm, got into a hostel, went for lunch and then to visit the church of San Francisco. It seems the most beautiful churches are those built for the San Francisco order (these in Pisco were also Jesuits). It's not functional. There's only what remains of the interior but there are no benches or any services going on there. The church undergoes restoration - it doesn't look like it but that is what I was told by a person collecting money for visit. He was napping outside under the tree and I had the whole church to myself. It's not a big church. Its altar and side altars are beautifully carved, beautifully. It's really disintegrating but there's so much charm in that disintegration. The gold peals off, the brick floor is chipped, the paintings are dark with age. It's quiet and musky (I tried to go down to the small catacumbs but the smell was so pungent that I turned back, it was also dark there so...). The only noise is the sound of, excuse me, copulating pigeons. Lots and lots of them, sitting everywhere - on the top of the altar, the main cross, the frames of the paintings (so the musky smell of an aging building is accompanied by the smell of bird poop...)... doing their amorous dance... Perhaps it's their "park of love" or maybe they are inspired by the frivolity of the sculptures of breasted angels. Have you ever seen an angel with breasts? I haven't. This is the first time. I would never suspect Jesuits would allow this... But there are other peculiar things in this church. The base of the main altar looks as if it was influenced by art from Bali - the color and style of the carvings and the little mirrors embedded into geometrical shapes very much resemble it.

I then took a collectivo to St. Andres which is not listed in my guidebook and that's why I precisely wanted to go there - local people told me about it. I most love the places off the beaten track. It's 15 minutes away from Pisco. It's a fishing port so I went to the fish market, looked at different fish and shellfish, talked to the fishermen, looked at their boats (very small ones), watched kids swimming and playing soccer on the beach. I watched the sunset on a beautiful beach and had cerveza Cristal at a local cantina. I learned that the fishermen are not doing as well as they were a few years ago because the consumption of frutti di mare dropped in favor of chicken, hence the chicken farms on the coast. What a pity. Frutti di mare is so much healthier.

Tomorrow at 7:20 am I will be picked up by a collectivo which will take me to Paracas National Park and Islas Ballestas where I am most likely going to swim with sea lions and maybe even dolphins, see various migrating birds, grotos, arches and caves on the coast.

Museum of Gold

I was sick like a dog on Thursday but I did go to see the museum of gold and it was very interesting. The building itself is not very impressive and the jewerely and other artifacts could be displayed better - they are now very cramped together and it would be nicer to be able to contemplate them a little spaced out. The gold objects were amazing, especially the necklaces and pre-Inca table utensils. It is usually very difficult for me to find a piece of jewerly which I consider interesting - mostly all modern pieces are alike. I could easily wear the pieces displayed in the museum - they are beautiful, whether they are delicate and full of details or big and simple - they are beautiful. There were also a few very well preserved mummies there and a part of the museum was dedicated to memorabilia connected to military and various wars, which wasn't so interesting to me so I passed through it quickly. The entire trip to the museum was interesting because I took a bus which took me through different districts of Lima. Some were very poor ones, others, like Montericco where the museum is located, is in a way a suburb with big expensive houses and high walls around them. I was just sitting on the bus (it took me 1.5 hours each way), inhaled exhaust and watched. The only bad thing about Antigua, Panama City and Lima is the air pollution. I can literaly see what I breath in and it is a little scary...

I also went to the Museum of Anthropology and History of Peru. It is located in a beautiful building with a big courtyard and everything is very nicely displayed. I saw the history of the first settlers, and all the different groups of people which inhabited Peru over thousands of years. There were many amazing pieces of pottery, fabrics (very beautiful designs and textures), all kinds of spears and farming tools of those who were not hunters-gatherers but settled on the land and became farmers. It was nice to sit on a bench in the couryard and digest all the interesting things I learned there.

Now about last night... It is hard for me to leave Lima because I made so many friends here. First I met a group of Polacos, the first Polish people I met during my trip. They went to Cuzco. If they were going to take the Inca trail I would go with them but they decided four days` walk up the hill was not something they could do because of various health issues. They will reach the ruins by taking a shortcut. And my buddies at the hotel Espania are another group I like to spend time with. Yesterday evening, still with a fever but I couldn't miss that, I joined them for dancing. It was a disco to which people from Ayahucho (I don't remember the spelling exactly but it's the town between Lima and Cuzco) go. They were mostly Quechua Indians and the live music was partly sung in Spanish and partly in Quechua. So I learned that Aristoteles and Aristofenes are Quechua Indians. Which brought back to my mind my conversation with Russell, the person from Panama who gave me a lift and showed me around the area. I was telling him about my mixed opinions regarding the future of indigenous peoples and whether they should assimilate or separate to survive. His opinion was that the only way for them to survive is to join the market society. Which brings me back to A&A and their six brothers and sisters. All of them graduated from universities. Some studied law, others business management, education, or anthropology. Their aunts and uncles helped to support them while they studied. The entire family helps to pay the tuition. They joined the market society but at the same time they didn't loose their roots at all. Yesterday at the disco I saw people of various ages but mostly young people who were telling me their first love is the Quechuan language and Quechuan tradition, including music and dance. I don't know how strong is this trend to move forward and take from the market society what may be of benefit but to keep what is best from the culture of the ancestors, but, it seems, there's hope that there's a middle way. So last night I listened to really great live music and watched people dance the dances they most like. It was very nice. However... lot's of Sangria was drunk that evening... but I am Polish so I understand. It seems the best conversations happen when aqua de fuega is running freely like a river...

Another hangover!

I know it becomes to sound silly... but I overdosed on Sangria yesterday. It tasted sweet and juice-like and I didn't realize its voltage until it kicked me... And I have been sick since Thursday. Nothing serious, just common cold. But I have been running with the cold, like Maggi, and here are the results... I am a little knocked out. I will be in touch with details about Museo de Oro y Museo Anthropologico y last night's party soon. Just wanted to post a short note to say that I am alive, barely, but nonetheless still alive... I will remember Lima as a party town... becuase earlier I also overdosed on Pisco sour because that too didn't taste like alcohol... hm. Dearest Eloise from New York! Thank you for the advice regarding hangovers - it came just in the right time! I used it and I think it works. Karolina! Thank you for your note kochana! Muchos besos pari ti, Heloise y todos otras amigas y amigos!

Dzieci and Museum of Gold

I got an e-mail from Theatre Group Dzieci which is an invitation to their Feast of Fools and I want to send this to you because they are one of my favorite theater groups in NYC. If you have the time and want to be part of something outrageously great, please go. I suggest you sit in the Oblong of Peasants - they provide excellent abuse. Here's the invitation:

You are cordially invited to attendthe Sixth and FINALFEAST OF FOOLS benefit for Theatre Group DzieciFriday, April the First,in the year of Our Lord, 20057:00 until 10:00 in the eveningJan Hus Presbyterian Church351 East 74th Street(between First & Second Avenues)in the municipality of New York$250 Sphere of Royalty: Stage seating & worshipful adoration$100 Circle of Nobility: Banquet seating & incessant doting$50 Ring of Gentry: Table seating & deferential treatment$25 Oblong of Peasants: Floor seating & constant abuseFood, drink, music, food, idiot sports,Auction of Holy Relics, & food!***Please RSVP by March 21st***Call 718 638 6037 or reply to this e-mail.http://dziecitheatre.org/dzfiles/feast2005.html-----Dzieci is currently raising funds to particpate in the InternationalGathering of the Heart of the Healer Foundation in September 2005.Follow this link for more details:http://dziecitheatre.org/dzfiles/heartofhealer2005.html-----Peace,Dzieci

I woke up rather tired and a little burned by the sun so I decided just to stay in town and go to the Museum of Gold today. Tomorrow I will venutre out of the town to one of the places Rosana recommended. I went with Rosana's brother Willy to see Barranco at night and it was very nice and lively. We walked to the place where before I went with Consuelo - the tip of the cliff from which there's a beautiful panorama of the ocean, beaches and the waves coming to the shore can be heard. We walked around the town and got home about 2 am.

I have to add a few words about Rosana's mom. I so enjoyed the day with her because she is a very gentle and compassionate person. Walking on the beach we met many people who were selling various things. They are the people who come from the poor parts of the city and are trying to make a living any way possible. Consuelo told them we couldn't buy what they were selling but talked to them and the respect she showed to all these people is something they very much appreciate. What makes this city so special is the respect people have for each other. And also that they are not afraid of showing their emotions. I missed seeing this during the past seven years... Young couples walk embraced and when they kiss on the streets and in the parks older people look at them gently, happy for their love. Grandpas and grandmas are held by their hands by their children and grandchildren. I am very much enjoying all the architecture, beaches, churches and museums but what I most like in Lima is this atmosphere of kindness, love, and mutual respect.

Hangover

I just read what I wrote yesterday and that fact that it is not very grammatical and not entirely readable is due to the fact that I was writing it under the influence of Cristal cerveza which I drank in great quantities the night before... I have never been really drunk in my life but that was close... It all started with going for "one beer" with my new friends from Hostal Espana: Aristoteles and Aristofeles (twins whose father loves philosophy), their friend Cecylia and Marco. A&A study law and help their uncle and aunt to run Hostal Espana during their break from school and Marco is a Peruvian who lives in Switzerland and is visiting his homeland for a few weeks. So went for that one beer but then a whole new group of people joined us and conversation started to flow and we finished it at 4am. At one point one of the new people who joined us said jokingly: "After that soccer match during mundial ´81 I hated you Polish people." And I said: "Did you watch that game?!" I remember it very well. Peru lost to Poland 0 to 10 and I remember every goal. He remembered it well too. He told me the names of the entire Polish representation. Grzegorz Lato was the most famous, of course, and Boniek, Dayna and Szarmach. That was amazing. It was nice knowing that he and I (and lot's of other people) shared the emotions of that game so many years ago and we still remember it. So we had this amazing bond, you see, and the beer then started flowing strongly. I woke up with a headache but remembered well what happened but the rest of my friends didn't. I had to escort them home... to Hostal Espana. It was a great evening. I think my Spanish was really good that night.

Earlier that day I went to see the museum of the Inquisition and Peruvian senate. A guide took us through the catacumbs (the holly officium held the hearings and tortures in that building) and the thoughts came back to me which came to me while watching The Passion of Christ: that the history repeats itself many times and people, it seems, never keep their promise not to kill and torture. Jesus was tortured and killed because he commited blasphemy and then later his followers, the followers of his words of endless love for other human beings, tortued and killed so many people for exactly the same thing: blasphemy. Homo homini lupus. It's unbelievable what a human being can do to another human being, how deliberately and with what cruelty...

Today I met with Rosana's mom Consuelo. She picked me up at Hostal Espana at 9 am. We went to Rosana's aunt's apartment and after breakfast we went to Barranco - the bohemian part of the city. We walked through really nice old streets located on the hill along the coast. Then we went down to the beach and we walked and walked and walked, passing through different beaches. Then we just sat down and napped. It was very nice and relaxing. We then walked to the Playa des Pescadores. It's the beach to which fishers come with their catch and there's a fish market there and many tiny shacks and restaurants selling fish, fried, sauted and raw. The raw seafood marinated in lime juice, served with onion, corn and sweet potatoes, called ceviche, is an amazing dish. We had ceviche, fried fish and cooked fish and I ate so much I think I will eat something the day after tomorrow the soonest... We walked through the fish market, looking at the amazing choice of fish and everything else coming from the ocean. Huge pelicanos were walking by our side. "Ladron!" and a happy pelicano steps out happy after stealing a fish. The are huge and are everywhere. Some are waiting patiently to get what is not wanted and some steal. I took many pictures of them because they are very photogenic. Rosana's mom is an amazing person. I very much enjoyed spending the day with her. We were happy like puppies, playing with the waves, enjoying the sand, walking on the rocks, taking pictures of pelicanos, talking to the people on the market. On the bus back home we were both dozzing off, really tired. Consuelo went home and I will go with Willy, Rosana's brother, to Barranco again to see it at night because at night it is a totally transformed place, full of bars, cafes, dancing and music. I am half asleep but I will have some coffee and I will be ready to party tonight.

San Franciso convent

The Church of San Franciso is huge. It was built in the 16th century. Part of it was destroyed during the various earthquakes but they were restored. Right now there are 50 monks living there and they are separated from the part of the church available for visitors. The main nave is magnificent. It contains amazing tiles from Spain and wood carvings from wood brought from Nicaragua. But what makes this church so special to me are the catacumbs and the library. The catacums contains remains of skeletons of about 25,000 people. Since Lima was founded until 1800s people were "buried" in catacumbs below churches, so that they would be closer to God. From what I remember, in Europe only priests and dignitaries were burried in churches and the common people were burried in the cementaries. However, in Lima every body was put into a kind od well 4 meters deep. Bodies were piled on top of each other, separated by lime and earth to prevent spread of diseases. What mostly remains of them now are sculls and femurs because they are the strongest bones in the body. We walked and walked in these catacumbs - I have never seen so many bones in my life. And so close. Everywhere there was this musky smell... I felt as if I was trasported in time to medieval times... The library is equaly interesting. It contains 25,000 of volumes brought by the Franciscan monks from Europe. Some were copied by them. Have you seen the movie The Name of the Rose? Well, the library looks exactly like the one in the movie. There are skylights in the celeing because candles were not permitted for fear of fire. The walls are stocked with rows and rows of books... there are two winding staircases leading to the gallery where there are still more books... It is an amazing feeling to be walking so close to these works or art, so old. It`s unbelievable that they still exist...

I have also visited the Cathedral which was founded in 1535 by Francisco Pizzaro (my Polish friends: do you remember this great book Krolestwo zlotych lez o podbiciu Inkow przez konkwistadorow?) and it is a replica of the cathedral in Sevilla in Spain. Pizzarro´s tomb is inside the church. Its interior is very beautiful as well. It´s amazing what people are able to create to celebrate their deity... and how much work they had to do to support all these monks, feed, cloth and lounder them... And how much work on the part of the common people was done to erect the building. What comes to my mind is the building of the cathedral in Jose Saramago`s book Balthasar and Blimunda.