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Published: March 19th 2010
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Feb 4th 2010 Puno, Inka Explorer tour to Puno
The following morning we had a great breakfast in the Cross Keys pub where the baked beans are real, you don't come across that often here, It s a traditional English pub though somewhat quiet that may be because we always were there at odd times.
I have made an observation here that I find amusing if not a wee bit revolting, Spitting, I think it might be a national pastime, Men Women and children participate with gusto, it is not socially unacceptable to cough up a lungful and launch in in any chosen directional regardless of any unfortunate who may be unlucky enough to be standing in its path, mind your boots I tell you.
Puno has a festival which is one of the most popular in this area about an 8 hour drive south, We decided since there are a few interesting sight between here and there we would take a guided bus with a company called Inka explorer, well worth the money.
We boarded around 7.30am with a small group of other passengers, Cusco is still quiet due to the recent floods, Miquel our driver,
Cynithia our charming hostess and the lovely Hugo our guide, I particularly liked him because he got my humor which can be a wee bit unforgiving, off we went as Cynithia served us hot coffee, lovely since it was pissing down.
Leaving Cusco we pass into the valley to Puno and witness first hand the devastating effects of the flood, collapsed houses, dilapidated villages and always nearby the unfortunate former residences of these houses living in tarpaulin tents, this area needs help.
The fields of blue plastic tents is a sobering sight as we sat on our cosy bus on our way to a festival.
The felled houses are mostly adobe and I wonder do they absorb the rain, It might explain why they are used in the desert so much.
We arrived in a wee town called Anduhvayillas where the spanish influence is all around, first sight in the main square is the beautiful Spanish oaks, obviously they have seen many moons and the old mans beard clings to its branches as some of the older branches almost kiss the ground but we were here to see the Church de la apostate de San Pedro. The site
of the church is Incan evident by the familiar foundation of Incan stonework supporting the Spanish stonework, the talents of the 2 stonemasons from the different times is clear here, again the Incas win hands down.
The Church is in a bad shape when you enter but it is in the process of restoration,Enormous Goldleaf framed Paintings assault the eye on entering but there is an untidiness that lies underneath that makes the whole thing confusing but it soon is explained when you study the walls, What transpired here was to me a catholic class conflict.
The Spanish arrived around 1580 bringing with them the Jesuit priests who scattered to places like this, a modest church erected they set about converting the heathens as they saw the indigenous people who lived in the area, bearing in mind a language barrier, social difference, an unwillingness to covert and a general mistrust of these strange white people, the jesuits painted the walls with scenes of paradise, heaven, good deeds, but of course the consequences of badness, the people respond and christianity was embraced, Many years later the Dominicans came, after effectively dismissing the jesuits they adorned the church with elaborate
scenes of hell and redemption fire and wrath, again the people responded, the church thrived as the terrified Christians gave up their worldly goods on a promise that in this paradise a place was held for them.
For many years the church functioned with its over the top paintings and gold encrusted alters until recent time when the long forgotten simple murals were rediscovered, This is a little confusing because today there are both right down to 2 pulpits, one used by each order, the Jesuits murals have the local people featured in rural farming scenes and a familiar landscape, the gaudy oils of the dominicans show expensively dressed dignitaries and priests and confusing depiction's, The church itself is worth a look and I think it will be a major tourist attraction because of its conflicts and most interesting art if not its mix of Incan and spanish building styles.
We travelled on to the ruins of Raqchi an Incan temple which was once one of the most audacious projects of their empire, It stands 100m long and 20 m wide, built from adobe with a foundation of volcanic stone, it is believed to have been a temple
of worship as well as a storage area for food stuffs as it it surrounded by cylindrical structures which where built to aid ventilation in this wet climate, the remains of residential housing scatter the outskirts defined by laneways in between, Outside the local people also known as Raqchi sell wares, its an unusual place unlike other structures in the area.
We stopped for lunch in a ranch style place called Sicvani, Local food, Filling and hearty, This is where we met Claire a woman from Australia who was doing a whirlwind trip in the area, we shared a beer and so began a happy union. (at least we didn't crack open a bottle of Vodka with lunch like the Czechs who had the next table)
I achieved another goal by stopping at La Raya, I believe its the highest altitude I have been to at 4335m, the air is thin and cold but the surrounding snow capped mountains are glorious, the area is also known as Alto Plano (High Plains) This is a barren windswept place yet people live and thrive here, herds of llama and Alpaca are everywhere as well as modest dwellings.
Our last
stop before Puno was a small museum where we saw stone carvings of Hatun Naquk an Incan king who's name means fierce decapitator, the numerous images always portrayed him proudly holding aloft a human head, I suppose it was one way of keeping the people in line.
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