Last Adventures for Peru and 2008

Another episode with stories about what's happening in Merry Land:

So I drove down to the coast after this great party in de mountains.

At this party I had met many people. Two couples lived in Chimbote and of course I found the restaurant one couple owned, El Chauchy, where I ate the best ceviche ever, with fresh fish, camote and cancha. The first night I slept in an office there, the second night (cause I had to stay one more day) I had to sleep with the other couple: Henry and Kelly. Henry drove us up the mountain beside the town to have a far overview of the city and Islas Blanca and Negro. The church up here was very interesting too.

On to Trujillo.
The Moche culture has build their structures here many years before the Inca and Huacas del Sol y de la Luna are huge structures made of sand bricks. Each dinasty would build a new tempel over the old one, filling the old structure entirely with those sand bricks against collaps. The walls are very decorative with carved faces and figures, many still with original color. As wel in Trujillo I met Miguel (who spoke Dutch!) and Ernesto in the street. They had created a 'living room' for friends in the form of a very nice bar called 'Bohemios'. Here I stayed a few nights, sleeping in a room upstairs, enjoying my new friends, spinning some poi for entertainment and one afternoon we went to the beach to drink bears, play a lot of music with the guitars and I managed to take a fresh dive in the cold sea.
Super small salamander. Cute no?
Also near Trujillo are the ruins of Chan Chan. The structures here of the coastal cultures are very different then in the mountains. Of course it's in a desert environment and other aspects play a role.
Interesting wall formations, new to me, typical for this civilazation.
In the beachtown of Huanchaco you can see 'Caballitos del Totora'. Those long small boats are made of totora reed and ridden with both legs on the sides (hence the name: little horses). This is how the man still fish, often in the dark night, big balls of coca in their cheecks to 'forget' about the cold.
In the town of Celendin I met a super friendly family. I really liked Tania and Carlos. Carlos told me with so much passion about how his life came to this point. Being an artist, really believing he would make it one day, the begining was really tough for his family. With emotion in his eyes he told me that enough love and willpower have made things like a dream come tru.

Their cousin drove me around town on the back of his motor and I ate and slept in their family house that night, with grandma.

A good example how elaborate some houses make their Christmas stands. Fresh mountains and hot valleys during the hitch hiking.
The valley of Chachapoyas. With his green, suddle hills/mountains, super friendly people, humid climate, many walking paths, many ruins, small towns and no tourists, it became my favorite place in Peru (together with Cañon Cotahuasi).
In the town of Leymebamba you find a very good museum. The Chachapoyas reigned many years before the Incas, AD 1000 until 1400, and build typical round houses with high pointy roofs. Many sites have been found and they contained well preserved artifacts and mummies, an importand tradition. The museum contains many of those found objects and many mummies in their original casc. This one was already open and covered in fishing nets.
At a local market I ate the most delicious fruit ever: Pitajaya. It comes from a cactus.
I did many hikes in this valley, some in the drizzle rain, crossing many rivers which would flud my shoes and make me sog through untill the sun came through and made it a little less dramatic.

So as well I hiked up to Kuelap, the biggest structure of the Chachapoyas. A huge fort build ontop a ridge with incredible views to all valleys around. I had a whole misty morning to myself on top of this fort where many foundaitions of houses and ceremonial structures are still found. To me the site was just as impressive as Machu Picchu (without the crowds).

The entrance, there are three narrow passageways like these, to force attacers in single file.
They say more stones have been used in this fort then in the pyramids of Egypt!

Ever seen a weaving of ten meters?
Next hike to some Sarcofagos (stone cribs made for their mummies). They are always build high into a cliff face, impossible to reach. This place you could not find if you would not speak Spanish and have a good sence of direction.
On to Valle de Belen. Through the drizzle it was a super pleasant sight to see this fluorescent green grass in the sun with a sneaking river. I could wash away the sweat and laze in the grass.
A lonely car passed and took me in. The super muddy road made us slip up the mountain, with nine people in this station, two big bags of cowshit on the roof (for fertilization), some other big luggage and very sweet wine we did make it to Cohechan. I slept at their place.

I had not planned to stay here much longer then one night, visiting other sarcofagos (how the heck do they get up there). But I met Exsilda who ordered me to her house where I could taste some traditional towns food (beefjerky, hit soft with a stone after you heat it by the fire, with mote).
It was the 24th of December, so Christmas eve. And many told me I should stay to be warm with their family and the town, it would be a great feast.

Well, it was. Just like with the big patrons party a week ago, it was a real towns party where several people were assigned to take care of the food for this year. In five houses (two were prived baptisms) everybody could take a seat and watch the patrons dance and eat the food that was served.

First a miss in the church after which 12 little girls in traditional dress and three boys dressed like figures from the bible would dance and sing ........... about 100 couplets! Starting in the church, making a round through town and ending at one of those houses. This 'song', accompanied by a band with drums, trumpets, flutes and bells, would take untill after midnight.

There would be a break and tables would be carried into the room. Tablecloths would be spread and mote (a sort corn) would be dropped on the table to be eaten with your hands. The first course would arrive: a soup. Then a plate would be offered to be shoveled into your empty soupbowl, yucca and meat. Then a third plate with rice and trigo and finally a plate with potatoes, cole and pork. Some people would end with a huge mix in their bowl which would go into plastic bags for home. All would be washed away with chicha (fermented corn beer) and normal beer. Of course I visited all parties (normally you stay with one), so I could have eaten a lot ..... impossible. The poncho all man wear here.
More breaks with snacks, chicha, homemade sweet liqour and cocktails of eggs and milk (eggnog/advokaat). And then, when the kids are done with their play, the band charges again and plays untill the morning. I kept strong untill 4am.

It was the most tradicional and family-like Christmas I could have wished for, absolutely awesome that I ended up here and was so welcome by everybody. The whole town knew me after those days and it was hard to leave.

Paneton is the product I'm gonna import next year to Europe. Those delicious Christmas cakes are eaten by everyone with hot chocolate, I think I ate three entirely in those weeks. A perfect gift as well. After visiting the city of Chachapoyas I started the long long hitch hike down to Bolivia. Being in the north of Peru, I had to go a long way to get to the South and into Bolivia.

Underway I crossed a few towns I had been to before, Chimbote being one of them. Again I was super welcome and Henry and Kelly dragged me to a baptism party one night and Chauchy and Shabela to mums birthday party the next afternoon.

Amigos, muchas besos a ustedes, que energia en sus presencias, que sonrisas, gracias por su hospitalidad y alegria. Long rides with trucks through desert landscapes. Passing the Nazca lines once again.
And then suddenly a sea of green rice.
One of my rides was with Wanter who drove a big, beautiful, yellow Gloria truck (condenced milk). I drove 24 hours with him and he showed me lots of things along the way. I knotted a scarf for his bulldog.
Just in time in Arequipa, my favorite city in Peru. I had hoped to be here for the new years celebration and had written Juana (a teacher I had met during a hike in Cañon Cotahuasi) that I would pass through. I was super welcome to stay with her and her family.

There are many traditions with the bang of twelve. First of all you wear yellow underwear for good luck, yes everyone does so. Then you make a man of your old clothes which get drenched with gas and lit on fire at twelve, old trousers, shoes, my old underwear and whatever else you don't want anymore gets burned. Just throw in a few firecrackers as well and it's a real party. Of course you toast and kiss and shoot off more fireworks. Then you grab your travel bag and make a round around the block to inspire a year with good travels. Of course Juana and I did this. Upon return we ate our twelve grapes, and with every grape you can do a wish. Boy, so many wishes, I had to think hard. And don't forget the paneton and hot chocolet. And then? Then you go dance. Young and old will look for a salsateca, a private party, a disco or a concert and dance untill 2009 has long started.

We as well dove into a nice disco where I luckily got asked to dance by Jimmy who knew how to dance and made me swing in many different dance-styles. He turned out to be super good conversation as well and relaxed company untill I would leave Arequipa. Having danced untill 7am, wandering the streets after for a fruitshake and a hamburger with Jimmy untill 9am, it was time to think about my newyears-dive. With luck a long-lost cousin came to Juanas house and with him and some others we went to an open-air swimmingpool. Arequipa lacks a river, lake or the sea, so this was the only fresh, not so exciting option. But all with good intention.
And we just kept going. After a nice lunch at Juanas house I got everyone together to go to a Cumbia concert with a band who played lots of Grupo 5, then came Los Hermanos Yaimen and as final Papillon. It's my favorite latin music and so I danced a lot.

Juana, her husband, daughter and the cousin.Jimmy and I
It drizzled the whole night and we were soaking wet at the shoulders, but it did not dare anything. It was ABSOLUTELY GREAT!
Finally at 2am I could hit the pillow for the first time in 2009, what a start, it can only get better no?

It was a short sleep before I had to start hitch hiking to Bolivia the next day. And who comes driving around the corner at my first place of hitching? Wanter in his big yellow truck. The first ride was arranged.

I arrived late that night in La Paz, crossing the boarder in the night and having to pay a $50 fine because I overstayed 40 days. Ah well, an extention would have been the same price. Another short sleep before I hopped into an early colectivo to get my dad at the airport........