¿Museography and Museology...?

October 8, 2009

Location: Cusco, Peru

The past week has been an exploration of the cultural museums and experiences that Cusco has to offer. Some, of course, have been better than others, but the ones that aren´t so great are still entertaining...

Take for instance, the Qarikancha Sitio Museo, which claims to have many old artifacts predating the Incan times. Upon arriving to the museum, you find yourself in a dark room without any lights, and you have to squint to see what is within the glass cases. There are all sorts of crazy items in the display, yet none of them explain what in the world the items are! I found this extremely entertaining, and without labels or explanations, you can allow yourself to use your imagination to depict the reason the artifact was originally created. In many of the cases, the item was labeled, but the label would read something like ¨This is not real, it is a recreation of the artifact...¨

Another highly entertaining part of the museum was this little flow chart....if you can zoom in, I recommend that you do. The flow chart goes something like this: ¨Inkas Metalurgic-Formas-Women Idols- Nobels Men Idols- Celebreties-Twin Persons- Physical Defect Persons- Fauna- Flora.¨ Now, how these are related I may never know. Other parts of the museum were interesting as well, like these mummies and the ¨cabezas largas¨, which are seen above. It was a custom that the skull would be bound so that the forehead would be huge- I am not sure how this custom affected the brain of the person, or how exactly they did this, but the people with the bound skulls would be those in higher classes.

These kids I met in one of the markets in Cusco. Kids here are lovely, and they wanted to pose for pictures. They love looking at the picture in the display box of the camera after it is taken, and they asked me to take more, so here is a series of 3 in succession, and in each picture a new friend would come along and want to be in the picture.

Another cool cultural experience was a display of typical Andean dances and songs. The women and men wore these amazing colorful customes and sang as they danced with the men. The picture below was taken at the performance.

This is the Qarikancha church lit up at night. So beautiful...
My hard-earned breakfast....complete after 40 minutes!

I am really excited for the coming week. The mom of the children I met in the San Blas Plaza (Dayana, Rodrigo, Fabriana) last week and I have become friends. I told her about wanted to go into schools and so next week I´ll be going to school with Rodrigo, my 8 year old buddy. I may also get the chance to go to Ollyntaytambo, which is in the Sacred Valley, about 3 hours away from Cusco. This village is small and mountainous, and kids must walk up to 5!!!! hours to get to school. Many kids here skip school to stay at home and help out the family or to sell things in the market to make money, but since there is less tourism in Ollyntaytambo, more kids go to school, even with the crazy walk. One man has started a soup kitchen in the town so that the kids will be able to get food before they begin their descent home after school. This soup kitchen is a work in progress, and it is still unknown how much this food affects the children´s nutrition and ability to walk 10 hours a day for school. I am hoping to visit this location on Monday, both the school and the soup kitchen, and get a glimpse on how it all is working.

In addition to these 2 trips, I will also be going with an organization called BrucePeru, for a day or two to observe the schools. BrucePeru is an NGO that tries to give kids in Peru who have dropped out a second chance. The students stay in these special schools and get lessons on hygiene as well as education in the major subjects and after a few years they try to pass out so they can move on to the regular schools. Thus far, I am not sure about how the students are recruited or how the schools work exactly, but I am excited to visit them. Those are the plans for the following week and hopefully my Spanish will be good enough to really get a glimpse of some of the educational facilities here.

Sexy woman?

October 3, 2009

Locations: Cusco, Peru and the Sacred Valley (Chincero)

So, the Incas were super strong fellows. I admit I'm no historian, but they were able to lift up these ridiculously heavy rocks to build forts, baths, and villages. As you can see, these rocks are ENORMOUS!!! The hadn't yet invented the wheel (the wheel, the wheel, the wheel the wheel the wheel- shout out to the family and A Brief History of Time)...but somehow they were able to fit these rocks together perfectly to form walls that have lasted through the test of time (except, of course when the Spanish came and destroyed most of what they had created). All around Cusco there are ruins, which used to be Incan fortresses, and you can go visit what is left of them.

I went with my new friends, Alonso, and Veronica (my friend from Argentina who I shared a bus ride with) to go view the ruins around Cusco. We started by taking a bus to Tambomachay, which is a place where the Incans used to bathe. Then, from there, you can walk to 3 other ruins over the course of a day. We went to Puca Pucara, and then to Q'enko, and finally to Sacsayhuaman....which is pronounced SEXY WOMAN, which I think is a funny joke. We walked from the first ruin through the mountains, and met with these giant looming clouds that roared. We were far away from any protection, and hoped that it didn't rain too hard. We got lucky during our nice hike- got the sound effects without too much rain. We arrived at the final ruin, Sacsayhuaman, and were overcome by how massive it was!

Here we are the vista from the top of Sacsayhuaman, where you can see all of Cusco- these pictures don't do the view justice, but you have to just imagine looking at the top of hundreds of roofs.

After out nice day of hiking and checking out the ruins, we headed back into Cusco and I moved my stuff into an apartment, where I'll stay for the next 2 weeks. I had a nice homemade quinoa dinner with my friends and then went to bed.

Today was another day of exploration. My friends and I woke up early and headed to the bus station to go to Chincero, another part of the Sacred Valley. On the way to the station, we tried to change our money (dollars to Soles), and every vendor was telling us that our American money was falso (fake) and would not change it for us. They are super suspicious of fake money here, and refuse to change it if a bill looks too crisp. Another reason they won't change money is if it's ripped- and I don't mean torn to shreds- if the side of the bill is ripped the tiniest bit, even without having ripped any part off, they refuse. It's the oddest thing....so changing money today was a failure.

What wasn't a failure was the excitement that today brought.

After our bus ride, we headed into Chincero, a tiny pueblo with a church and a giant Sunday market. Chincero is about 400 meters higher than Cusco, so needless to say, we were tired today. After I paid one sole (30 cents) to use the bathroom :) we hiked up to the church, which was hosting Mass. The church sits atop the mountain, and from there you can see more ruins and snowcapped peaks. We hiked around the church and then the ruins (which looked like they were built as terraces for agriculture) and then came across the oddest sight.

There were men holding giant sticks racing up the mountain and yelling at donkeys....these men keep coming and we had no idea what was going on. Apparently, there was some sort of competition to get as much lumbar into the town as possible.

After we explored the ruins, we headed down to the market, where you can buy anything from paint dye to haircuts. These markets are incredible and it is so fun just to chat with the locals and play with the children there.

On the way home today as I was boarding the bus, I noticed that there was only one seat open, which was in the back of the bus, which is a long row of seats, and seats 5. The school kids sitting there didn't seem too keen that I join them, but I told there there were 5 seats and I was going to sit in the 5th. They kind of moved over, but I soon realized that the girl next to me wanted her boyfriend to sit next to her, so he sat down as well and then there were 6.....5 squished students and one squished gringa. It wasn't the most comfortable situation...it got even less comfortable a bit later when the children started making fun of me. As an adult, I can't really remember the last time someone made fun of me, almost to my face....the kids even went so far as to use their phone to take a picture of me, which was interesting, and odd, and awkward....I guess being made fun of translates in any language. There is so much more I want to say, but my time here is up and I need to go. Tomorrow, or sometime soon, I want to address my thoughts on a lunch I had with a Chincero local today- if I don't write it soon, email me and remind me!

This one's for you, Jackie...A special, special treat: arroz con leche con fruitas (rice with milk and fruit)!!! Que rico! I bought this from a woman who sells this yummy treat all night- she just sits there, freezing and smiling and selling this delish treat for 60 cents. Bedtime snack :)

Love to all :)

"You know a place where you can go to pet puppies???"

Location...Cusco, Peru

Wow! I have already been here for a week...it certainly doesn't feel that way. This week was a blast and I met so many new people. I find that traveling solo gives me the opportunity to partake in a little sociologiocal experiment...I watch others and how they interact with each other. German and Dutch tourists here seem to be the majority of the gringos. Funny, though, they seem to stick with their own language group and don't seem to branch out much, which interests me. I just don't get why you would travel all the way to Peru to hang out with people who look and sound just like you. I know it must be a comfort, but I just can't imagine spending my time that way. Anyway, some updates!

Today I woke up refreshed and ready to continue my exploration. I woke up too late and missed my 30 minute window for showering. Not sure if I mentioned this or not, but there is no water in San Blas, the neighborhood I am staying in, from 9 in the morning until about 8 at night. And even at 8pm, it only spits out a little bit of water and then by 9 no water is left. If I am lucky, I get one flush on the toilet a day, so I have to be smart about when I flush...hehehe. gross. So, anyway, I missed my shower, which usually consists of me racing the hot water. Basically, it's a real treat if there is water, and if it's tepid, that's even better! If the water is hot, you feel as though you've struck gold. Usually, I get about a minute and a half in before it turns frigid, and I try to have the majority of the cleansing done by then. Just so you know, Dad, I am showering, so I hope that makes you happy :)


On Wednesday, I got to go to a ¨partido de futbol,¨AKA a soccer match. The stadium here is just gorgeous, and as the game went on, I got the watch the sun make shadowns on the mountains. Cusquena is a miserable team, and I guess they lose almost all of their games, but it was definitely fun to go. I bought a jersey for the game and the ticket to enter...all for $9! Crazy, huh! On the way into the game, vendors are selling all kinds of foods, like potatoes and meat on a stick, hamburgers with sausage in the middle, and my favorite, CHURROS!!! I was so excited by this.

Since I am not the biggest sports fan, I spent most of the time watching a little boy play with a marble in the seats below me. He was so happy to entertain himself, and threw the marble in the air with great excitement. Unfortunately, after a few throws, the marble rolled down the aisle in front of him, and though he tried, he just couldn´t get it back. A few minutes later, he returned with a straw, and spent the second half of the game playing with it.

La Plaza de Armas, the main plaza in Peru, lit up at night.

During the week, I got the pleasure of making many new friends, one of which is the girl pictured above, Jackie. Her mom is a vendor and she wanted to sell me a belt. We got some time to chat and watch Jackie play. She was just adorable! I also got the chance to meet Dayana´s family, the girl I met the other night on the park benches. I met her little sister, Fabria, and her mom invited me to come by her shop soon and watch her make her goods by hand. The people here are so lovely, and I could spend all day just chatting with them.

Last night, I went to go eat at Govinda´s, a vegetarian restaurant led by the Hare Krishna. There was one more person in the room, and he asked if I´d like to eat with him. That´s one of the cool things about traveling by yourself- you are so open to meet new people where ever you go- it´s a very different feeling than traveling with a buddy or a group, which definitely limits your options for meeting new people. Anyway, my friend, Alonso (he is originally from Peru and doing a bit of traveling), and I got to chatting, and he told me that he had found a place to pet puppies that day! I couldn´t believe my ears- a place to go and pet puppies!!!! Alonso and I tried to go today, but sadly, there were no more free puppies to pet. We hope they found good homes.

This is Josefina, who I met this morning. Like the vendor yesterday, she wanted me to buy a belt. I asked her how she made them, and she got down on the ground and got out all of her supplies and started to work. Basically, she cuts the hair from a llama, and then puts it on a spool-like thing and then spends hours thinning the string. Then, she dyes the string different colors, most of which are natural and made from different plants. She ties a knot at the end and places the loop over her foot for security. Then she puts these wooden things on the string and pushes them back and forth, and somehow, magically, this process forms a beautiful belt.

This is a market outside of Cusco, where you can get fresh fruit drinks....yum yum!

Today was an exciting day. I got to walk up to Christo Blanco, which is a gigantic white Jesus that overlooks the city of Cusco. To get there, you must walk up steps which go straight up for about 30 minutes. It is exhausting because you start at 3346 meters and just go UP! About half way up, there is a basketball court, where kids play. This court overlooks the whole city, and it amazes me that people can play and run around at such high elevation. When I got to Christo Blanco, the sky opened and the rain came down! A little puppy was running around and playing, so I got a little doggie time in. Here, there are dogs everywhere! For some reason, most of them right now seem to be puppies. Most of them are friendly, and they are owned by someone, and just range free during the day, picking through trash for food, and then return to their houses at night. Me gustan perritos!!!!

On the way down from Christo Blanco, I ran in to Karin, a girl I knew from 4 years ago! Amazingly, she remembered me and we got to spend a little time together. Karin is now 11 and she sells things in the plaza until 1 at night. Her cousin, Maria, who I also knew 4 years ago, sells items in the plaza as well, so I get to be reunited with these chicas.

Ok, I´ve overstayed my welcome in this internet cafe- please forgive the boring post. I am happy and well and hope all of you are, too.

Buenos noches.

!Que un buen dia!

September 28, 2009

I feel like so much happens everyday that I am here. It is hard to put into words the kind of beauty I experience everyday. I am kicking myself for forgetting to bring my journal to the internet cafe with me so I could give some details. I'll do my best...

Yesterday, I took a bus to a place called the Sacred Valley, which is the area of land that surrounds Cusco. There are many towns and villages within 2 or 3 hours by bus and I decided to visit Pisac, a town with a population of 100 families, and a giant market on Sundays. Peruvian markets leave me breathless- the depth of color and variety that is sold in these markets just astounds me and I have a tough time not buying everything. One of my favorite things to do at these markets is chat with the vendors. They sit all day in their outdoor shops and just hang, coaxing "Senoritas" and "Caballeros" alike to exmaine their goods. Frequently, the children of the vendors are nearby, whether playing with a ball under the table or slung on the backs of their mothers. These children are absolutely gorgeous, and although many of them look as though they have endured a lot for being so young, they continue to possess a certain sparkle in their eyes. They are just lovely and I enjoy spending time with them. In my final minutes at the market, while chatting with a boy who was flicking rocks with a plastic spoon, the father of the boy came up to me and asked if I was married and if I was Catholic, and he announced promptly that he'd like me to return the next weekend so we could go to the church with his father and get married. Sadly, I had to refuse the request, seeing as I wasn't Catholic. haha. (my first attempt at blog humor-how'd I do?)

Quick pause- have to announce that Whole New World, the Aladdin theme song, just came on in the internet cafe- how precious!

I left the market feeling refreshed and find my way to the crazy rambling bus that would take me home to Cusco. None of the buses are labeled, and you must find them by listening to hear if someone is calling out, Cusco, Cusco!!!! Luckily, I got a seat next to a sleeping hombre, but the Quechua woman who got on after me wasn't so lucky, so she used my shoulder as a pillow. Oddly enough, I find the closeness comforting. There's no wriggling to get free from someone- you just are where you are and you must be content with that. I quite adore this state of just being- whether its kissing a cheek when you meet a new person or sharing a shoulder with a Quechua woman on the bus.

Today was a glorious day! My best yet- I have to admit that I have had some feelings of being lonely, but today really helped me get back on track and take it all in. Cusco is a "small" town, 300, 000 people, including the surrounding Sacred Valley. However, the downtown itself is this wonder that was built by the Incas way back when. There are GIANT stones that create the walls and the plazas and no one really knows how the Incas, without any help frm machinery, built the town with 2000+ lb rocks. There are two main Plazas: the Plaza de Armas (the main Plaza downtown that has surrounding restaurants and cafes) and the Plaza de San Blas (a Plaza up the hill that is the artesan center and has markets every weekend). There are other places to go, but these plazas and the streets in between are theost popular places to go. Anyway, on my little break from my Spanish classes, I ran into the son of the family I lived with 4 years ago! I was so excited and immediately Neto invited me for lunch. Not two minutes later as I was walking back into class, I ran into his mother, Dina, my host mom from 4 years ago. This family hosts so many students, but for some reason, they both recognized me and meeting back with them was magical.

Although I had this amazing morning, I have to admit that my favorite part of the day happened just 2 hours ago. After I left Dina's house, I headed back to the Plaza de San Blas to meet someone I had met yesterday for a movie. She never came and so I just took in the sights around me. Since the Plaza is on top of a hill, you can see part of the city and the changing colors of the night. I just sat there, watching these children play on the fountain, and this young girl came to me to sell me a hat or doll. She just came and sat down next to me, which is unusual for vendors once they know you are not interested in buying something. She started asking me questions, and we ended up chatting for awhile until another little girl, Dayana, came up to me as well. The girls were so sweet and we just chatted, watching the sun set. After a while, I asked if the girls had eaten and both said no, so I offered them something to eat. Dayana ran to tell her brother she was going (she's 5) and he came with us as well. We bought some pastries and we sat in the Plaza enjoying the night. Dayana told me that she was learning to write, and so she wrote me her name in print and then in cursive, followed by Rodrigo and Natalia. I am looking forward to seeing my friends again soon.

It's getting late so I must retire to my quarters, to my nighttime routine of headlamp, journal, Lonesome Dove, and Bush Baby.

Sweet dreams to all from Peru.

Señorita, abroche su cinturon...

September 26, 2009

I have arrived in Cusco! Got into Lima late Thursday night and managed to find a safe taxi to my hostal. Getting into bed Thursday night I was overcome with emotions- I felt sadness, excitement and utter relief all at the same time. I felt grateful for the amazing support system I had at home and knew I would be able to undertake this journey. I decided to spend the first few days in Cusco living with a family so that I can improve my Spanish.

A few highlights:
1. Getting lost on the way back to my hostel: Raring to go, I strolled the streets of Lima yesterday, equipped with my money belt and gringa style clothes. I felt unstoppable. Touring Lima was fun but heading home turned out to be the real adventure. I could not find the hostal! I didn´t take the address with me and I thought I knew where it was, but I was wrong. I ended up circling the nearby blocks for about an hour. Along the way, I asked multiple people if they knew where ¨Mire Tagla Torre¨cuadra 2 was...of course, I was mixing up the words since the true address was Marquez de Torre Tagle 107 (and it was on the 1st block, not the second). Anyway, I came to meet some wonderful strangers. A taxi driver got out of his car to walk me to where he thought it was, a woman took me to a policeman so he could direct me, and a man in a small shop tried to point the way. Everyone I encountered was kind (and patient with my Spanish) and it was the sort of kindness I did not think I´d find in Lima. Eventually, I crossed a street after nearly getting hit by a taxi, and I saw a door open and my hostel host was standing there, waving me inside. He said he had seen me pass the hostel quite a few times but had thought I wanted to get to knew the neighborhood...

2. Buckle up: First, let me start with this: Taxi drivers in Lima are notorious for asking gringos for more money. When I was in Peru before, I think it happened almost every time I took one, so getting into one this morning, I started to think about how I would approach the situation if the driver were to ask for more money. En route, the driver blasted Peruvian music and sang along. At this point, it was only 7:00am and the music started to wake me up. At a stop light, the driver turned down the music and turned around. He touched my belt and asked me to put the shoulder strap part of the belt on. Now, just to give a little belt background: when I got into the car, the seatbelt was one of the type that would not fit in the buckle, nor would it tighten up, so that the entire thing was completely floppy around my stomach and would not have stayed on my shoulder...I thought the request was completely endearing and I was ready to pay whatever he asked for since I didn´t feel like it was worth it to argue. Yet, to my surprise, we got to the airport, and he gave me change for the exact fare he had quoted earlier.

3. POLLO!!! Ok, here´s a shout out to those men in my life who want me to knaw on some meat. Well today was the day. I was served a giant chunk of chicken for lunch and I did what I had to do: I scarfed it down! After 4 years of being a vegetarian, I guess my body craved the protein. I did not want to disappoint the family, and I was eased into meatfulness by being served chicken. Here´s hoping that they don´t decide to serve guinea pig for dinner...

4. El desfile: After my flight into Cusco, my host mom Chila, picked me up. She told me that she was going to watch her grandson in a parade of customes....I wasn´t sure what this meant but I was extremely excited to get to go with her. We drove to her grandson´s school, which schooled kids preschool age through kindergarten. The room was set up with a giant runway stage in the middle and there were teachers dressed alike at the front of the room. There were chairs all along the side of the stage where parents were sitting. Basically, the school was hosting a fashion show for the students. Five year olds were paired with 2 year old and they would walk down the giant runway and blow kisses and twirl. It was just the cutest, most unexpected thing to walk into. During the intermission, the teachers called lottery numbers and the parents won perfumes. Then they continued the fashion show with the 3 year olds. It was a sight to see!

That´s all for now. At 3346 meters I get exhausted walking up the cobbled stone streets, so I have to leave now if I want to make it back for dinner.

Love to everyone. Thanks to those of you who gave me a little something to look forward to reading on the plane- I enjoyed the notes immensely and had to wipe away a few tears.

Chao!

Preparing to go!

Welcome! Blogging is a new thing for me so along the way I would appreciate any comments/advice you have for me!

Countdown to departure: 26 days to go! On September 23rd, I will be flying into Lima, Peru, and making my way to Cusco, Peru. It's been a great summer of planning, happy hour with friends, training for half-marathons, and all around gaiety! I feel like a very lucky lady to have received this amazing opportunity and to have had the support I needed during throughout this process. Thanks to all of you who've helped- I love you much!

Let the journey begin!!!