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Pirwa Puno is pumped for this year’s Virgen of Candelaria Festival!

This festival in honor of Puno’s patron saint is one of the year’s most spectacular festivals of Peru and South America. Considered the folkloric capital of the country, Puno offers a vibrant display of costume, music, and dance in honor of the Mamacha Carmen. Folkloric dance competitions and parades create a spectacle involving more than 40,000 dancers and 5,000 dancers as well as tens of thousands of more indirectly involved embroiderers, boot makers, sponsors, and others.

Dancing Through History

Puno has almost 300 different classified dances with distinct music, dress, and choreography and charged with symbolism and significance. Different neighborhoods of the city and communities of the countryside train well in advance to represent their area and dances, investing heavily in elaborate folkloric costumes that pertain to each dance. To watch them perform is as if you were watching the millennial history of Puno dance past you.

Dances like the Phusa Morenos or Siku Morenos emerged from the black slave community of Puno after the conquest. They are danced in costumes of the devil, angel and Afro-Peruvian. These dances led to the famous Morenada (Black Dance) and Diablada (Devil’s Dance). Other dances, like the happy mestizo dance known as the Pandilla Puneña date back to the post-colonial Republican era. With the women clad in braids, bowler hats, many-petticoated skirts, shawls, and little boots they represent the typical Andean women.

Its pre-Columbian dances of Aymara and Quechua roots include the Los Maris or Cahuiris, in honor of the gods of lightning and thunder of the same name, the Llullmitha with its long dragging dresses and representation of the sown fields, the alternating male and female circles of the Markheta, and the Inca Huallatha. Ancient dances like the Llamerada and Llameritos were some of the oldest, danced by the shepherds and llama drivers of the Andean altiplano.

Programmed Events of Virgen of Candelaria 2012

Jan 26^th the Queen of Folklore will be elected and crowned. On Feb 1^st the actual statue of the Virgen of Candelaria will be transferred in procession from the San Juan Bautista Sanctuary where it normally resides to Puno’s Cathedral. The procession in honor of the Mamacha Carmen is on February 2^nd, when the dancers from the countryside descend upon Puno with their instruments and vibrant costumes (studded with gems for the Morenada, with feather caps, or as Condors and Llamas.

The Indigenous Dance Contest, with dances performed in native and typical dress, will be on Feb 5^th at 7:00am at the Enrique Torres Belón Stadium. Afterwards, they will take to the streets and continue dancing in parade. The “Urban Festival” on the Octava showcases Colonial and Republican Era (‘Mestizo’) dances, mostly performed in bullfighters’ dress. This is when the barrios of Puno present their own troupes. The competition will take place on Feb 12^th at 7:00am in the Enrique Torres Belón Stadium. On the following day the dancers all participate in the Folkloric Parade to the Virgen of Candelaria. After dancing before the Virgen they will continue on to the cemetery. Feb 14^th is the concert of the musical bands, and Feb 15^th is the Parade of the Sicuris and Zampoñas. The festival finishes with separate parties and dances of the groups in their respective neighborhoods on February 16^th through 18^th, although prizes will not be awarded until March 25^th.

Remember that for this festival PUNO FILLS UP FAST! Try and make your plans as far in advance as possible to make sure to get the most of your trip. Pirwa Travel Service can help with transport, excursions and tours (after all, you can’t go to Puno without visiting the world’s highest navigable lake, Lake Titicaca, and its famous Floating Islands of Uros!), and Pirwa Puno Backpackers can provide comfy and cheap lodging within walking distance of the main square and the harbor.

Matador Assistant by Jorge Vera

Although bullfights take place in Peru throughout the year, it is during the October/November bullfighting season that the most prestigious bullfighters of Spain and the Americas come together to compete in the world’s second-oldest bullring, the 244 year old Lima’s Plaza de Acho. This year the Feria begins on Nov. 2^nd and ends in December, with 05 scheduled events featuring the world’s best bullfighters each Sunday afternoon at 3:30pm. The bullfighter executing the best moves wins the 18k Escapulario de Oro and the best bull wins the Escapulario de Plata.

Bullfighting’s popularity in Peru is rising alongside rising protests on the grounds of animal cruelty. For a unique look into Peruvian culture, you can join in with the spectators or with the protestors according to your personal conviction. Those interested in watching a match, though, should be aware that in Peru it is to the death (and, as always, the bull has the disadvantage.)

Passageway in the Plaza de Acho

How to Get There

Tickets are sold at Teleticket shops at the Wong and Metro Supermarkets chain. You’ll have the option of sol, sun, and sombra, shade. Sol is cheaper at around US$20, with prices climbing up to US$120 for first-row sombra.

You can check newspapers for restaurant offers, as varius locales offer special pre-event menus and then bus their clients to the bullring, a good option for those worried about going to the Rímac neighborhood and the Plaza de Acho bullring by themselves. (The area around the bullring is not the best, and anytime there are .)

Ancient Ceremonies, Camping & Festivities in Lima this October

Thousands are expected to visit the sacred city of Caral this October as it celebrates the 17^th anniversary of its archeological study. Several celebratory activities have been planned, including the traditional offering, and new findings will be unvieled. The Sacred City of Caral was an architecturally complex urban center whose inhabitants today are the most ancient civilization in the Americas and on the of the three oldest in the world. This adobe city has withstood the ravages of time and nature for 5,000 years. Located in the Lima neighborhood of Barranca, it was declared a Unesco World Heritage Site in 1991.

Friday, October 28^th

Events kick off at 7:00pm with a pilgrimage along a path lit by the illuminated buildings of Caral to nearby Gozne Hill, at whose foot their will be an “Offering to the Pachamama” (Mother Earth) ceremony at the foot of the hill, in thanksgiving of fruits received throughout the year. The ceremony will last until 9:00pm, afterwhich we will camp and have a bonfire along Gozne hill near the House of the Archeologist.

Saturday, October 29^th

The anniversary festival has been christianed “Caral Raymi” will last from 9:00am to 4:00pm. The festitivities will seek to revive the traditions of ancestral Andean gatherings through music, dance, and food and drink. In the morning a guided tour of the city will be offered to the attendees, during which the archeological team (PEACS- the Special Caral-Supe Archeological Project) will present in the buildings of the city its latest findings and conservation and research advances, including a palace or elite residence built of quincha, a timber or reed framework stuffed and rendered with mud. Throughout the day in the reception center there will be catu, or Andean Market, through which you’ll be able to experience the customs of the Andean market, where not only products but also knowledge were exchange.

Nearby Accomodations with Pirwa!

For a budget-friendly place to stay near Caral, which is in Barranco, you needn’t look any further than Pirwa, which offers two different hostels in neighboring Miraflores, a relaxed oceanside neighborhood that many consider the best base for travelers from which to explore Lima. This is due to it being a safer and greener area than much of Lima, with gardens and parks (including lively Parque Kennedy), nightlife, banks, and the beach all nearby. Relax in our common areas with travelers from all over the world, take advantage of communal kitchens and grilling areas, and enjoy the security of your own safety lockers and the comfort of cozy rooms with comfortable beds and 24hr access to hot water. For more information on Pirwa’s Lima accomodations, click here. Or, for those wondering what other sights to see in Lima, visit Pirwa Travel Service.

What is it?

Sacred Mt Pachatusan, whose name is quechua for “He Who Sustains the Earth”, has the honor of being a preferred site for traditional pre-Columbian rites- such as offerings to the Apu (Mountain Deity) or Pachamama (Earth Mother), purifications, and Ayahuasca ceremonies- as well as the site of one of Peru’s largest pilgrimages, the Lord of Huanca. The Huanca shrine is nestled in a spot of great natural beauty along the flank of Pachatusan almost at the Río Vilcanota River shore near Chinchero.

On September 14^th each year Peruvians and foreign devotees undertake the cold 4-6hr hike to the Lord of Huanca, to be greeted by the wounded Christ painted on the shrine’s rock walls centuries ago and make their petitions, cleanse themselves in the curative waters of its spring, and leave with renewed optimism for the year ahead. About halfway along the route up to the Sanctuary, you’ll come across vendors selling religious items and miniature representations of desires (houses, cars, legal papers) to leave at the base of the image. Prized items like the car at right are brought to be blessed. The 14^th is the central day, but festivities are ongoing for a week. San Salvador, 2km from the village, puts on an artisan handicrafts fair during the Lord of Huanca feast.

Much like the Q’ollur Rit’i pilgrimage, the site began as a sacred stone cluster, like many pre-Columbian huacas, or natural shrines, and then the painted Christ appeared, providing the veneer of Christianity, and finally a traditional temple built around it. Like Q’ollur Rit’i, its origin legend shows Christ appearing to a humble Quechua from the countryside, in the case of Huanca, showing the wounds that showed his solidarity with the maltreated and Quechua population.

The Legend

Under Spanish dominance, conditions in Cusco and the Sacred Valley declined rapidly. Mining was a prominent activity, and the Viceroy imposed forced labor to extract the resources. The origin legend of Lord of Huanca says that in 1675, when the Marquis of Valleumbroso discovered a rich vein, Yasos mine was created and among the forced laborers was Diego Quispe, from Chinchero. After defending a fellow indigenous worker being whipped by the foreman, he was imprisoned for a severe punishment the following day. Fearing the next day’s pain, Diego opted for escape, taking the path to Chinchero across the mountains of Huanca. When daylight came he took refuge in a cavern of rocks piled together, praying throughout the day as he listened to the steps of passing Spaniards. During the moonless night he was dazzled by an apparition of Jesus Christ, wounds from his final whipping still fresh. Christ said to him to depart in the morning for Chinchero and present himself to the priest for communion and then return. Beaten by fatigue, hunger, and a cluster of emotions, Diego slept until being awoken by Christ’s voice “Diego…arise…” Leaving a humble silver cross at Christ’s feet, Diego did as told. When he returned later, it was with a small group including the local priest, the only people he trusted to give away his unauthorized presence in Chinchero. In the presence of these other witnesses, there appeared Christ again, and the first pilgrimage to the Lord of Huanca was undertaken.

How to Get There?

Mt Pachatusan is located in Calca Province, about 48km from Cusco, and is accessible from Cusco’s San Jerónimo district or San Salvador (from Cusco it’s 20 minutes by car to Pisaq and an additional 10 minutes from Pisaq to San Salvador). From San Salvador one begins the hike to the Sanctuary on Pachatusan. If you begin the hike from San Jerónimo you can expect about a 4-6 hour hike.

Remember that Pirwa Travel Service has information desks in all Pirwa Hostels and B&Bs (of which Cusco has four!) The friendly staff at Pirwa Travel is always ready to help you organize your travel plans or help arrange transport or tours.

If you’re not sure you want to undertake the hike due to the altitude or cold, you can watch the festivities in Cusco´s Plaza de Armas, where costumed dancers are hardly ever in short supply. (Yes, that’s Cusco’s main square at left.) Grab a set at a balcony table in Pirwa Corregidor´s in-house restaurant Plus Café and you can watch the show without jostling with the crowds.

Sanctuary Garden is an area of privately-owned property within the Historic Sanctuary of Machu Picchu zone. It boasts recently discovered archeological sites including Inca terraces, irrigation canals, shrines, storehouses, towers, tunnels, and more, in an area that still has not been fully explored. Part of the Inca Trail Network crosses this area as well. Not many agencies are permitted to operate within the Sanctuary Garden, and Pirwa Travel´s 3-day route is exclusive! Here, in an area bordered by sacred peaks, you´ll traverse mountainous terrain and lowland tropical rainforest in an uncommon experience, finding mysterious Inca ruins nestled in lush surroundings. In this trek through time you´ll come to know the mystery, nature and history of the Andes as you journey to the Lost City of the Incas.

On the first day we´ll travel to Piscacucho (2720m above sea level) at Km 82 along the railroad tracks. From here we´ll begin the trek along the Urubamba Riverside, following it downstream to the Salapunku ruins (Reception Gate; 2623m), whose walls of massive stone resembling those of Sacsayhuamán defended the entrance to the Sacred Valley. We´ll also stop by the Q´anabamba (Green Meadow) enclosures and Q´oriwayrachina (Where the Wind Refines Gold; 2520m), where a massive rock extending into the Vilcanota River and sustains the remains of a circular watch- or communication-tower and stone stair. After crossing the river we´ll arrive at our Q´ente campsite for lunch and a rest, having traveled about 7km in 4hrs with a “light to moderate” degree of difficulty.

After resting we´ll walk along the Vilcanota and cross the Cusichaca River to the community of Chamana (Shaman´s Land). We´ll follow an original Inca Trail to the Inca Trail of Willkaraqay, (Sacred Storehouse;2790m), a possible military base as well as rest stop and trading post. Inside the egg-shaped outer wall you´ll find more than 30 rooms and a semicircular watchtower overlooking the western Cusichaca River Valley. From here it´s downhill to Patallaqta (Village in the Heights), also called Q’entemarka (Place of the Hummingbird), a daunting complex of more than 100 buildings organized into blocks complete with streets and alleys. Along the eastern strip of Patallaqta we´ll continue in the direction of our final stop of the day, Pulpitutyoq (2500m), an Inca shrine which we´ll reach through a round stair.  Then it´s back to our Q´ente campsite for dinner, having traveled around 4.5km over 4hrs. The degree of difficulty is slight, with a short arduous stretch which is the ascent to Willka Rakay.

The abundant flora and fauna of the 2^nd day´s route will astound you as we follow the left riverbank, passing the extensive Andean terraces whose layout in the shape of a hummingbird earned it the name Machuq´ente, “Old Hummingbird”. Continuing in the direction of the Vilcanota River, we´ll find one of the Sanctuary Garden´s most stunning archeological complexes “Young Hummingbird”, Waynaq´ente, whose master stonework, best represented in its finely carved double-jammed gate, suggests that the site had a ceremonial purpose. The grade of difficulty until Waynaq´ente is high, with a 300m ascent, but from there the trail levels and the degree of difficulty is light.

On the 3^rd and final day we´ll have an early breakfast and catch a train, switching to bus at Machu Picchu Pueblo (colloquially known as Aguas Calientes) before arriving to Machu Picchu Archeological Complex, the legendary Lost City of the Incas. The guide will explain what is known and what is theorized about the site´s purpose, construction, and abandonment as well as give you some basic insight into the Inca civiliazation. Some of the key areas that the guide will highlight are the main plaza, circular tower, cemeteries, royal rooms, and the Temple of the Three Window. The tour will culminate at the spiritual center of every Inca city: the Intihuatana, the shrine to the sun god, which aligns with the sun during the equinoxes and the winter solstice, appearing to temporarily hitch the sun. After a 2 hour tour of the site, there´ll be free time to explore independently and take photos before returning to Machu Picchu Pueblo (Aguas Calientes) for lunch and the return trip to Cusco.