Machu Picchu

Here is the first test of the Blog. Is the above photo Machu Picchu? Most people would not recognize the shot of the mountain as Machu Picchu, but it is! The ruins of Machu Picchu are set in the saddle between the two mountains of Wayna Picchu and Machu Pichu. All the famous photos are taken from the slopes of Machu Picchu of the ruins with Wayna Picchu as the backdrop.




I made it! I can cross one thing off my ¨bucket list¨ This photo was taken earlier in the morning before the tour, after my first peek at the ruins.



One of my first detailed photos of the northeast side in the early morning sunshine.



Another early morning shot of the northeast side. There are some agricultural terraces before the drop off down the steep mountain slope.



This shows the amazing Inca masonry. Cement does not hold the stone work together, they are cut and shaped to fit perfectly together. All the stone was quarried from the top of the mountain, which is good news for the workers who came for a month or two a year, to pay their taxes through labor. There is still a major field with rocks available for expansion. (which they may need to use, as so many people have robbed rocks from this important site.)



Machu Picchu seems to be created for the ruling and comercial class, though actual facts and historical data are absent. The ornamentation and high quality of stonework point to Machu Picchu being a royal retreat or important cermonial center. People lived there for about 100 years, which looked to have been abandoned when the Spanish invaded the region. The above photo is taken of the industrial center, with the residential sector to the left fading into the distance.



My new friends from Argentina who were in my tour group. Very international group, people were from 7 different countries. My new friends asked lots of great questions, such as where did all the workers live? They atually did not live above in the ruins but further below, closer to the river, though ruins of their houses were not on the tour. Issues revolving around migrant labor are not a modern issue but ancient in existence.




These huts were located at the edge of the agricultural terraces. They have been restored as far as the thatched roofs are concerned to give a feel of what it may have been like, very few roofs in the ruins have actually been restored. (the view is looking toward southeast)




As I ended my day, I hung out on the southwestern side, many people had left and it was much quieter. Above is a detail (of the below photo) of more agricultural terraces at the edge of the community. I had never noticed before in the classical postcard shots, until a Peruvian pointed out that the mountain of Wayna Picchu looks like the profile of a head in repose. I couldn't help but notice this, it is most obvious in the photo of me and the Agentinians.

Monasterio de Santa Catalina

One of the highlights of Arequipa was the self guided tour of the Monasterio de Santa Catalina de Siena. The immensity of this historic convent was incredible. Much of the cloister was open for the public to wander around (at a significant entrance fee!) I have over 170 photo, it is quite a photogenic place, though I somehow uploaded the less colorful ones. It felt like visiting a whole separate town within the city. It seemed to go on for blocks, there are at least 6 major streets, orchards, chapels, various cloisters, common areas, individual cells, bath house, clay jar laundry and much more.



The convent was founded in 1597 and constructed of Sillar, white volcanic stone quarried locally. The first, fourth and fifth photos show the use of this stone. It is considered on of the most important and impressive colonial structures of Arequipa.



This bedroom chamber is located in the (old) novices cloister. Certainly upscale to most of my bedrooms in my life time. The original nuns that entered the cloister came from rich Spanish colonial families. They lived upscale lives within the cloister walls, each having a cell that consisted of a bedroom, sitting room (with eating area) and a kitchen. Some even had a bathroom (a room with a commode). One of the historical plaques referred to the sale of one of these "cells" from one nun to another. This rich life continued for almost three centuries, until a strict group of Dominican nuns entered and restructured the convent. I can't recall if this was the time when the indigenous nuns were allowed to enter the cloister or this happened at a later date.



All the cells had kitchens that seemed large for one person. The kitchens were darkened by wood smoke (this is not a back and white photo!) and were mostly out of doors. Later the great kitchen was created and the nuns ate communally in the refectory.



Earthquakes hit Arequipa in 1958 and 1960 (again this is not a black and white photo!), destroying parts of the convent. My inderstanding is that the second story was ruined in many places, thus exists many staircases that seem to go no where. In the above photo, this section shows the earthquake damage, an entire area was left in this condition. The new convent takes up only about 15% of the space within the cloister walls. I hope the nuns can wander the historic part when it is closed to the public.



I have spoke of the immensity, it was just a maze of one room after another and then popping back onto the street. It felt like a mini retreat, very tranquil, because few people were wandering around. It was like the spirits of the ancient nuns were still hanging around and praying. There were so many flowering plants, religious artifacts, blooming trees, the light filtering through various windows, or over walls and through gates. Some cells even had little private outside prayer areas, with small altars, crosses and plants. I felt there was so much to see, at the same time I just wanted to stay put, sit and soak in the spirit. I could see why someone would choose to enter the cloister and stay without returning to life outside the walls. A very peaceful place.

Vacation 2011

Here I am with one of the many new friends I met on vacation. Luckily this is the only one who wanted to kiss me! I saw many llamas, vicuñas, and guanacos all throughout my trip.Some were at tourist locations, but the majority were in the countryside as I passed in buses. Vicuñas and guanacos are wild animals taht roam around like deer. Most llamas were in groups being shepherded around by campesinos.



I have dozens of flower photos, this one was taken near the Butterfly House, just outside Agua Calientes. The Butterfly House is an interesting environmental project, they only capture and release butterflies of the same altitude.

The below photo was taken during a tour of Arequipa. I can't remember if it is actually a mountain or a volcano!