TRujillo-ruin trailhead

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Now sitting in Trujillo-i am soon off to the highlands for some trekking.
Trujillo is mostly known for its surrounding arttractions-the ancient ruins. I started my ruincircuit at Chan Chan just outside the city. It is the remains of the capital of the Chimuempire. Today it is only walls and mounds covering a huge area, wandering among the silent remains of what was once a lively city with more than 60 000 inhabitants fantasying about things like who lived just there? Who was the guy having his workshop there? I stand with a piece of pottery in my hand-who was the person making it? What did he/she think about that day centuries go? I wil never know-the ruins are silent, ruled by heat and lizzards. WARNING: I did wander around the unguarded ruins-but thieves sometimes wait for tourists there-and it is not at all officially recommended doing so.
What people go there to see is the Tchudicomplex-palaces and temples. The walls and some of the decorations are restored, and restoration still go on full speed. One truly get an impression of the grandeur this place once must have had. But it was plundered by the spaniards. The incas who captured the city before the arrival of the spaniards did little in the way of looting-they wanted imperial control-not riches.

A true must see site is Huaca de luna-the moontemple. It belongs to the mocheempire and date back 1500 years. Actually it concist of several buildings outside eachother, every ruler buildt his own temple, completely covering that of his predecessor. That way all the magnificent frieses on the walls have been preserved. Archaologists has removed parts of the different layers so it is possible to see. Excavations still go on there-every year new treasures are uncovered. The visit is acopagnied by a guide, and he-or she-has some gruesome details to tell about what went on there. This was the place of human sacrifice, and the poor victims were dismembered and skinned alive before beeing allowed to die. Their blood was taken to the mainaltar by the highpriestess. The victims were the loosers in a man to man fight where the point was to cut off the hair of the oponent-the hair was sacred in the mocheculture. If you got your hair cut-you were doomed. You would be taken to a cell next to the platform of horror, held there without food for 15 days. Then you would be given san oedro cactus juice to purify the body and then it would be a terrible end.

Very easilly reached from the city is two small temples- Huaca de Dragon and Huaca de Esperaldas. Far from as spectacular as the moontemple, they are still very mutch worth a visit because they are very well preserved. It is good places for a travel back in time.

Trujillo itself is a bustling modern city, but it has a collection of nice colonial buildings. Its jewel must be the big Plaza de armas-citysquare-lined by beautifull buidings. Every sunday this is the place of a flagrisingeremony with a parade. The army and the schools in diffferent paradeuniforms and several orchestras participate. Well worth to get out of bed for.

One of the afternoons in Trujillo, my destination was a gasstation. In its basement there is the private Casselinicollection showing ancient pottery-it is really interresting. There is a collection of faces-all with different features. It is real people they show. Another group of pottery show people with differnt diseases and physical malfunctions. There is a cocaleaftewer, siamese twins, figures with clear negroid features-a proof of two way contact with Polynesia in very ancient times. There is also a collection of erotic pottery showing people having a good time. You find annimals, fruit and some ancient musicinstruments. Exitingly enough-there is the mummy of a human fethus near the entrance.

Trujillo?Recommended.

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