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The Andean town of Andamarca in Peru’s Ayacucho region receives 1000s of visitors during Qatun Yaku Raymi (Big Water Festival) on August 20^th-26^th. Andamarca was the historic capital of the Rucanas (Working People) from 700AD up to their conquest by Incas.  In this dry climate, the pre-Inca agricultural terraces rely on an underground irrigating system and water is not only precious but still revered as a deity in pre-Columbian rituals.

The Water Festival begins after the annual cleaning of the water canals in preparation for the coming of the rains. It kicks off the September`s agricultural activities and brings communities together in a celebration of the fertility of the soil. Throughout the celebrations there will be artisan and food fairs as well as dance contests, though the central day of the festivities is August 24^th, when the traditional Water Festival is held and a famous execution is reenacted. During the ancient rite of Pagapu, which never fell from practice, offerings are given to the Pachamama (Mother Earth) and other natural deities such as the Apu mountain divinities. It all unfolds amid the sights and sounds of qarawi songs and Technicolor scissor dancers.

Reenacting the Death of an Inca

More than 160 students and artists recreat the capture and death of Inca Huàscar, who vied for the Inca throne against his brother Atalhualpa for 5 years, only to be captured in Andamarca in 1532, the same year Atahualpa himself was captured by the newly arrived Spanish conquistadors. Atahualpa ordered Huáscar´s execution from captivity to avoid an alliance between Huáscar and his Spanish captors.

The Blessing the New Water

In August communities unite in a colorful jubilee to celebrate the blessing of the water, which in fertilizing the Pachamama and renews life in the staggered Andean terraces and the community itself. During the Water Festival the image of San Isidro Labrador is processed along the Negro Mayo and Vizca Rivers and the water canals until reaching Tortora Pond for the blessing of the water. At the same time, Pagapu ceremonies are carried out to honor and ask the natural pre-Inca and Inca deities for strength and fortune. Offerings are rendered and symbolic dances performed by an innumerable cast of traditional characters.

SCISSOR DANCING!

In its enthusiastic attempt to highlight and protect endangered aspects of the world´s cultural heritage, UNESCO surprised many the week it declared, along with French Cuisine, the importance of Croatian Throat-Warbling and the Peruvian Scissor Dance. To the doubters out there: get yourself to northern Peru and see something you´ll never forget!

The Scissor Dance (Danza de las Tijeras or Galas) originated deep in the Peruvian highlands and is marked by the enthusiastic acrobatics of dancers who, snapping scissors in hand, move to music of violins and harps. The movements and steps honor natural deities such as apus or wamanis and the pachamama and were originally danced by the holy men of the day, the “Tusuq Laylas”, whom the Spaniards considered the devil`s spawn, forcing them to flee into the mountains to escape persecution. Their reintegration into their villages was dependent on the condition that their dances honor Catholic deities.

Legend says that their skill and ability to engage in dance competitions of 10, 12 hours where they dance intermittently with their competitors, comes from a pact with the devil. (They must pass the devil´s tests in the related Atipanacuy ritual which takes place in December. In Atipanacuy, along with the scissor dances come spectacles in which these “sons of the devil” spill their own blood in the name of Christ, running metal spikes through their bodies and engaging in other bloody feats until reaching masochistic ecstasis.)

Pucará´s Throat Slasher Ceremony

Despite the fascinating nature of the spectacle, it´s hard to find information online about Pucará´s Jatun Ñakaq Festival, otherwise known as the Throat-Slasher Festival or El Gran Degollador (The Great Decapitator). But if you´re in Puno between the 16th and 18th of June, maybe you´ll be lucky enough to witness it firsthand!

Much as the Inti Raymi festival is based around a theatrical ritual reenactment of ancient rites, locals in Pucará present an extraordinary scene as they reenact an ancient rite in a theatrical production involving hundreds of young actors directed by Ñaupa Riqchari (Let the Past Awake) Cultural Group. It takes place at the Kalasaya Ceremonial Center and Archeological Site in the Pucará District of Lampa Province in Puno.

You´ll notice that the pyramid site is decorated with carved stone trophy head borders- human sacrifices occurred in the ceremonial patio as offerings to the supreme god of the Pucará Civilization, the Decapitator. Long before the reign of the Inca, human sacrifices had a great value in society, although they were only resorted to in severe cases like drought. Today, locals congregate from Puno´s Quechua-speaking zone to enjoy the 4 hour theatrical show, which reaches its apex with a simulted human sacrifice.

Afterwards, all the blood cleaned up, there´ll be general partying and native dances will be on display. One of the most well-known is the beautiful Puli Puli, whose large smooth steps and leaps represent the stages of Quinua cultivation from sowing through flowering to harvest. Another typical dance is the Ayarachi (Soul Which Cries), a dance rising from the violent transitional period of the Spanish Conquest, when the Imperial City of Cusco tragically fell to Pizarro´s troops.

What To Bring Home

You´ll see them on rooftops all over the Andean High Plateau: the Pucará Bulls described by Puno writer Enrique Cuentas Ormachea as “an expression of baroque art and, at the same time, a manifestation of the magical religious spirit of the Qolla peasant.” An estimated 80% of locals are potters in addition to subsistence farmers, and the bulls are the most prized ceramics from Puno.

I couldn´t pick just one….and so we end with a herd of bulls….

Originally a ritual flask filled with chicha and cattle blood and drunk by the head priest during the cattle-branding ceremony, you´ll find guardian bulls adorning rooftops and providing luck for their residents.

After Pucará: Exploring the Rest of Puno

The Plan: Walk along the Ecotouristic Inca Seafront Bay (Malecón Ecoturístico Bahía de los Incas), a pedestrian path showcasing views of Lake Titicaca and pre-Inca solar clocks, or hitching posts of the sun known as sukankas or intihuatanas. Once at the harbor, stop into the Yaraví Ship Naval Museum, located inside the oldest single-propeller iron ship in the world, built in Britain, crossed the Andes in pieces on mule-back and then reassembled again in the Lake. When you´re ready to hit the waters of the lake itself, board a motorboat and stop by the traditional Quechua-speaking Islands of Amantani and Taquile, whose colorful weavings are considered the best in Peru and were proclaimed by UNESCO as “Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity” and the Floating Islands of Uros, whose Aymara-speaking Uros tribe (known as kot-suña, people of the lake) depend on the lake´s tortora reeds for housing, sustenance, and transport in addition to using them to build and maintain the islands themselves.

Just a 15 minute walk away from Lake Titicaca Harbor you´ll find Pirwa Hostel in Puno, managed by husband and wife team Jenny and Carlos.  It´s also located only a couple blocks from the city center. For the same low prices available at Pirwa Hostels and B&Bs throughout Peru, you´ll have access to comfortable beds in cheery rooms, 24hr hot water, wifi throughout, reference maps and information as well as an in-house travel desk where you can get detailed answers to your questions and arrange tours or transport.  While you´re out exploring Puno you can be sure that your possessions are secure and that someone from reception will be waiting for you- no matter the hour.

Photo Credit: Salome Ziermann

Today the celebrations for Machu Picchu´s Centennial have begun- Happy 100 years MaPi!  National Geographic´s Mark Adams published an excellent article entitled “Top 10 Machu Picchu Secrets” for the magazine, whose involvement with early expeditions and excavations at the site are legendary.  The list is summarized below, although you´ll need to check the National Geographic site if you would like to read the original text.

1. It’s not really the Lost City of the Incas. When Hiram Bingham first arrived in Machu Picchu in 1911, he was searching for the Lost City of Vilcabamba, a hidden capital where the Inca took refuge during the Spanish Conquest.  Machu Picchu became known as “The Lost City” because of Bingham´s erroneous belief that it was Vilcabamba- but, as it was inhabited when Bingham arrived, many contend that Machu Picchu was never forgotten.
    

   

 

2. It´s buildings have survived being built atop 2 fault lines. While cities like Lima and Cusco have been leveled by earthquakes, Machu Picchu, straddling two fault lines, has survived seismic movements due to the precise polygonalstonework of its walls, whose stones shift during quakes and then fall back into place without the benefit of mortar.
   

   Photo Credit: Salome Ziermann

3. Most of the site´s construction work is underground. Much of the work for constructing Machu Picchu involvedleveling ground between two mountain peaks, which involved the movement of stone and earth and means that 60% of the site´s construction is underground, setting the foundation and providing drainage with crushed rocks.
4. You can avoid train and entry costs by walking. You can avoid expensive train tickets and the bus and entry fees by walking along HiramBingham´s 1911 route overlooking Machu Picchu.  This somewhat arduous trip back in time will take about 90minutes.
5. There’s an ignored but excellent museum. About a ½ hour walkfrom Machu Picchu Pueblo/Aguas Calientes you´ll find the small butoutstanding Museo de Sitio Manuel Chávez Ballón (the Manuel Chávez Ballón Site Museum).  For $8 you can tour exhibits explaining the reasons for and method of construction of Machu Picchu. 
6. There’s an alternative to Huayna Picchu Peak. Visitors frequently overnight in Machu Picchu Pueblo/Aguas Calientes in order to rise before the sun and be among those receiving limited entry to the trail climbing Huayna Picchu and win (after the fog clears) an overhead view of the site.  However, on the opposite side of the
    
   
    
   Sanctuary of Machu Picchu is another, almost always overlooked peak known as Machu Picchu Mountain.  Its twice as tall (1640ft) but will earn you stunning views overlooking the Urubamba River looping around Machu Picchu.
7. There’s an overlooked temple. Once you´ve reached the peak of Huayna Picchu, you can take the longer route for your descent, crossing the far side of the mountain where you´ll find an Incan ceremonial shrine known as the Temple of the Moon.
   

   Photo Credit: Salome Ziermann

8. There´s still much to discover. Machu Picchu´s surrounding cloud forests obscure side paths within the foliage, wherethere may be unknown trails and ruins- several recently fixed-up terraces are only just now being made available to the public.
9. Its orientation was divinely inspired. Many visitors have understood the importance of the site´s orientation, which allows the intihuatana, or sun stone, to align with an arrow stone on Huana Picchu´s Peak to the north and with Salcantay´s Peak in the south as well as with solar movements- no small coincidence considering that the sun and mountains were important deities to the Incas.
10. It might be a pilgrimage site. Italian archeoastronomer Giulio Magli has introduced a new theory hypothesizing that Machu Picchu was pilgrimage site, the end of a long journey beginning at the Island of the Sun in Lake Titicaca, echoing the journey of the mythical founder of the Inca Empire, Manco Capác, took.

“From this moment on Peru is free and independent by the free will of its peoples and by the justice of its cause which the Lord defends.  Long live the fatherland!  Long live Liberty!  Long live Independence!”

-Jose de San Martín, 28 July 1821

The National Holidays

All during July homes, offices, schools and restaurants all over the country proudly display the Peruvian flags and festoon buildings with red and white banners and streamers.  Things kick off on the night before the 28^th with serenades of folkloric and Creole music in the plazas and parks.  The next day, which commemorates San Martín´s declaration of independence in Lima, kicks off with a 21 gun salute and flag raising ceremonies.  Newly elected president Ollanta Humala will assume his duties and address the nation for the first time.  On the 29^th, following the Archbishop´s Te Deum in Lima´s Cathedral, there´s the famous military parade of the Armed Forces and National Police, with the country´s weaponry on display.

Beyond the flag raising, military parades and political speeches in the capital, the whole country celebrates its independence with traditional foods, fairs, bullfights, fireworks, music and folklore spectacles meant to honor national heroes like San Martín and Bolívar and a host of revolutionaries and patriots throughout the centuries.  Many Peruvians take advantage of the weeklong vacation to travel within the country or throw festive parties with the family.

Join in the Celebration!

No matter which city you´re in, you´ll probably be close to one of the many agricultural and livestock fairs taking place all over the country along with 3 celebrations full of creole history: cockfights, bullfights and Peruvian Paso Horse Shows.  If you want to get into the holiday spirit, make sure to wear your Peruvian flag pin, decorate a bit with some red and white streamers, and maybe attend a traditional bullfight.  Prepare your Pisco Sours for toasting, and sit down to a spread of national plates depending on your region:

Lima

Do it right with Ceviche!  Maybe switch it out for Causa Limeña if you´re not a fan, with some picarones or mazamorra morada for desert.  Pisco day happens to land during Indepence Week Celebrations, so if you´re in town on the 25th grab a glass (or pitcher) and head over to the FOUNTAIN OF BOOZE- the fountain in the Plaza de Armas will be filled with Pisco!- and toast to independence.  (Last year more than 2000 liters of pisco flowed through the fountain!)  After the parade on the main day try and make it to a traditional bullfight or watch some Marinera Limeña.

Arequipa

Treat yourself to a whole fried guinea pig, shrimp stew, or stuffed chili pepper.  Peru´s 2^nd most populous city likes to give the capital a run for its money, so expect brightly costumed dances and colorful floats on parade, with music and dancing continuing late into the night.  The bullfights in Arequipa are not of the Lima variety…these are actually two bulls fighting!

Cuzco

If you want a traditional meal for the holidays, you can´t go wrong with roast guinea pig, alpaca and potatoes in a spicy yellow chili sauce (papa a la huancaína).  Cusco doesn´t know when to stop with the explosives, so there´ll be endless fireworks, street parties filled with domestic and international travelers united in revelry, and plenty of drink.

The North

Goat Stew is a very traditional option, as is Rice with Duck (prepared with black beer), and a bean stew known as Shámbar.  Here, you´ll find the major livestock and agricultural fairs with bullfighting, cockfighting and the Peruvian Paso horse shows.  Make sure to catch a Marinera Norteña dance show….if you´re in Trujillo, you might even get to see the Marinera and Peruvian Paso horse show combined!:

The Amazon

Definitely try the smoked pork with balls of fried green plantain and pork skin (tacacho con cecina), plantain stuffed with meat and ground peanut, or the ground peanut, corn and chicken stew (Inchicapi), or the great varieties of Juanes which prove that there´s little you can´t cook in a plantain leaf.  Enjoy your stay dancing to music of the jungle, whose happy beats are reminiscent of the cumbia.

When the Saints Come Marching In…

The best place to celebrate Corpus Christi is in Cusco, where the event takes on a character not found anywhere else.  Saints and Virgins lavishly adorned in elaborate clothing and ornaments process along the same streets where, in the time of the Inca Empire, richly attired and bejeweled mummies once processed.  For Cusco, this is the year´s most important and extravagant religious festival.

The day before the main event, patron saints from the 15 parish districts head towards the Main Square´s Cathedral in separate processions to the Cathedral to greet the Body of Christ (Corpus Christi).  They´ll arrive showing off their newest ornate clothing and adornments and accompanied by musicians and parishioners.  They´ll spend the night in the Cathedral.  The next morning they´ll find their way to large altars in the Main Square decked out with flowers and tree branches, spiritual images, standards, mirrors, and more.  The morning of the main day, Thursday the 23^rd of this month, the Arch Bishop will lead the Te-Deum.  Then the Golden Sun of Custody which holds the Sacred Host will be paraded around the Square in a silver carriage.  (An 18^th century piece, the Golden Custody weighs in at 26.7kg and is 1.2m in height.  It´s made of gold and adorned with 331 pearls, 263 diamonds, 221 green emeralds, 89 amethysts, 62 rubies, 43 topazes, 17 diamonds, 5 sapphires and an agate.)

Once the Holy Sacrament finishes its procession, it´s time for the Saints and Virgins to parade together to the sounds of Peru´s largest church bell, the 16^th century María Angola, and traditional music while dancers perform.  Some of the dances you´ll be able to see are the Mestiza Qoyacha and Capaq Qoya.  In typical Andean fashion, costumed characters representing different aspects of Andean and/or Incan mythology will be in attendance entertaining the crowds, such as qollas, chauchos, pabluchas, and ukukus among them.  Afterwards, they´ll stay in the Cathedral for seven days.  On the Octava, they´re will be another parade before the Saints and Virgins separate to parade back to their respective home parishes.

A Place to Watch the Show…

The next two weeks are full of events in the Imperial city.  Corpus Christi is on the same day that the night serenades to Cusco will take place in the Main Square, and the very next day is the principal day of Inti Raymi, the Festival of the Sun.  Cusco is also celebrating its anniversary and Machu Picchu´s Centenary.  The city´s streets have become an animated stage for colorfully costumed dancers, musicians, and revelers.  Give some thought to securing a comfortable spot from which to watch the action, because thousands will congregate in the Main Square in the next several days.  Pirwa´s Posada del Corregidor Bed & Breakfast has an in-house restaurant with a balcony overlooking the Main Square.  You can sit in the shade and enjoy a drink without missing the spectacle or having to jostle for a spot.  Unlike most of the tourism sector here in the city, we offer the same low price throughout the year- there´ll be no price hikes during the festivities.

What to eat…

During the Wednesday night vigil while the Saints and Virgins are in the Cathedral, families will prepare and share 12 traditional dishes.  On Thursday, one of these dishes is preeminent- you´ll see it everywhere you go: Chiriuchu (Cold Chili Pepper).  It´s a cold dish assembled with pieces of guinea pig, and other meats alongside Andean cheese, toasted corn kernels, tortillas, bread, and more.  The dancing and music don´t stop once the patron saints enter the Cathedral, but the eating and drinking definitely starts.