Friday 29 October 2010

One Incredibly Scared Llama - Zoe in Peru

Elaborate costumes, ritual llama sacrifice and fire breathing – that´s right, we went to a local school play. It seems that the school health and safety rules are a lot more relaxed over here. I should probably mention that the sacrifice was acted with a large cut of meat, an incredibly scared llama and a bowl of thick red dye. By the end of the performance my host mother delighted in pointing out that I was EVEN whiter than I usually am!

We were invited to view this Luna Festival see two of our younger host brothers perform – one for the first time. Each year the whole school trots out in their costumes performing dances and carrying amazing props including cloth whips, bowls of smoke, offerings of fresh harvests to the gods and upholding the Inca King and Queen.
The whole dance went for three and a half hours, culminating in the fire dance in which the eldest year created moving patterns and imitated fight scenes with lit torches and fire breathers. I remember saying that if Peru could offer anything more beautiful or exciting I would be delightfully shocked. It was only a week later that we visited Nazca.

The first stop was the Inca salt lines. These are lines carved 15cm into the earth in perfect abstract designs of a monkey, tree, fox, humming bird and quite a few others. Many people have questioned how the lines were formed in such perfect shapes considering the Incas had no access to a bird eye view and also no one knows for what reason the lines were created rendering them an age-old mystery. Spiraling over these beautiful designs in a light plane was an astounding experience and this was only the beginning of our four day trip away.

A short bus ride took us to Ica where we took a boat to ´Islas Ballestas´. Swooping through the air and diving in the wind were hundreds of birds signaling our arrival at the famous islands. Shortly penguins appeared waddling around, much to the amusement of their Australian audience. Within a couple of hours we also saw dolphins frolicking in the water and sea lions sun baking on the rocks.. it was spectacular how many species of animal inhabited this tiny island!

Absolutely exhausted we were taken to our hotel, which we expected to be a small dorm-style place with showers and with luck the internet. We walked into a hidden oasis in Huacachina, complete with sparkling pool nestled at the foot of an enormous sand dune. I couldn´t imagine how this place could get any better until one of the parrots in the hotel squawked ´hola´ at us! This was truly the hotel of our dreams!

We concluded our trip by rocketing down Arabian-style Mountains of sand in both buggies and on sandboard!
Another thing of note actually happened in Cusco upon our return which I feel it is my duty to report you. This is a story of danger, heroics and thievery, the birth of the crime-fighting duo, Hustle and Rage,.

It was a cool September Evening in Cusco, Katherine ´Hustle´ Evans and Rachel ´Rage Raymond were just two ordinary girls on the way to a late night volleyball game. The atmosphere was tense with excitement and anticipation and Rachel scarcely noticed the small boy push past her in the crowd. Suddenly she felt the empty space in her pocket. ´my camera!’ she exclaims. Without hesitation they dive into the crowd, hot on the heels of the assailant. Catching up, Katherine accosts the boy in question while Rachel swings round and demands her possessions be returned. Cameras can be replaced but she was damned if she was going to let her memory card go without a fight. After a moments struggle the boy relinquished the goods and was carried away by a crowd of bystanders.
Wherever thieves may strike or cameras are in danger, Hustle and Rage will be here – fighting for Justice, truth and a month´s worth of photos.
Until next time,
Zoe.

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