Peru

I always hated history. Three months in Peru changed me. I researched on Peruvian native history and cultures while visiting numerous archeological sites all along the coastal desert and the Andes, such as the Valley of the Tomb of the Moche culture (100 AD - 800 AD), Chan Chan Adobe City of the Chimu culture (800 AD - 1492), and the famous Machu Picchu and a series of other not-so-famous Inca sites of the Quecha people. At first I was sympathetic towards the Quechua (more commonly known as the Incas), for the malicious conquer of their empire and the merciless rape of their culture by the Spaniards in 1533. History reveals that the Quechua had viciously destroyed the Chimu, which had smashed the Moche before them with similar brutality. The rise and fall of these ancient warrior cultures were as natural as the flood and ebb of the tides.

My favorite destination in Peru has to be Cuzco. I

spent 16 days there and never had a dull moment. It is the hub to dozens of Inca sites in the Sacred Valley, incluing Machu Picchu, which was a 4-day mountain-biking and hiking excursion. We began with descending almost 3000 m in 5 hours on the mountain bike, followed by two days of hiking on the Inca Trail. On the 4th day we got up at 4 a.m. and climbed 1400 steps to make the prigrimage. But once you got to see it, the magnificence of Machu Picchu was worth every step. With the dramatic mountains and valleys and precipitation in the cloud forests, there are many excellent locations for kayaking and white water rafting. Horseback riding gave my legs a break but did not save my butt. Fortunately, you could get a massage for about US$8. In the mountain villages, for about 30 cents, you could try Chicha, an indigenous beer prepared by collecting fresh maize in the morning, chewing it up and spitting the mush into a pot and letting it brew for a day. By evening, it turns into something that looks like a beer but taste nowhere near it, a flat, stagnant, and murky liquid with a revolting layer of spit-like foam on top. Try it if you are really committed to sampling beers around the world or in need of a serious purge of your system.
My life-long dream of being a beach bum was realized when I stayed in Huanchaco, a surfer's hotspot, for 5 weeks. I surfed in the first 2 weeks. Then the current turned and the water became cold so I found a new hobby, Totora Seahorse. For 2000 years, these kayak-shaped watercrafts, made with a reed called totora, have been used by native fishermen. Huanchaco is one of the only three sites in South America where real fishermen still fish with the Totora Seahorse. Most days I got up early in the morning and ran along the beach, watching the fishermen brave 3-foot swells and breaking waves on their Totora Seahorses. There were buyers waiting on the beach to pick the best catch, while the leftovers were handed out to elderly people or whoever needed it. Even I, the professional beach bum, was offered free fish several times. Getting free fish: $0. Experiencing kindness and good human nature: priceless.
I ran into another kind soul in Colca Canyon, where distance is measured by days' hike and time is observed by the change of the seasons. Fabio, a Quechua man, proudly showed me his estate and all his assets: a small adobe hut, fully equiped with a straw bed, a stove, a guinea pig enclosure, and a few rocks completed the furnishing. A small plot of quinoa field cheerfully greeted us on the other side of the foot path. His sun-burnt face glistened with contentment and his wind-chapped lips spoke liberty. What else does one need to be free and happy?

This is an abstract from my travel journal. Go to my Peru Album to see 300 photos of colorful Peru.