Caballitos de totora - Reed horses

These unique boats are made from totora reeds. They have been made for over 1000 years. They are ridden like a horse - through the sea - for the fishermen to go out to cast their nets.

Huanchaco - seaside village outside Trujillo

We enjoyed lunch at a neat seaside town. Our restaurant overlooked the ocean. The sea bass was wonderful - and beautifully presented!

Chan Chan - the interior of Tschudi

A Swiss explorer originally reported on Chan Chan - His name was Tshudi - so that is why the complex bears the name.

The far rear and highest part of the complex is the funerary area. The king would have been positioned in an upright fetal position - wrapped with textiles and buried with things needed in the afterlife.

The lagoon provided much needed water in the desert and was also used in ceremonies. The Moche guard stands ready to protect the complex.

Extensive restoration continues.

Chan Chan - inside Tschudi citadel

The individual palace complex of Tschudi is huge. Many of the corridors are lined with friezes with anthropormorphic figures with features of the sea and sky (birds). Most of the color has faded but some of the complex shaping of the sculpture has been recreated.
The criss cross is to represent fishing nets and the importance of the sea to the Chimu people.

Chan Chan - Archeaology site in Northern Peru

Chan Chan is a huge complex of adobe brick palaces built by the Chimu culture. It covers 11 square miles and is located in the desert - but near the ocean. Chan Chan was built in 1100 AD to 1300 AD. At one time over 100,000 people lived in Chan Chan.

Their are 9 palace or citidels in the complex area. We visited Tshudi - which has been partially reconstructed. Again - the rains from the phenonomen El Nino has greatly damaged Chan Chan and other important locations in the northern desert.

Hotel el Golf, Trujillo

We are ready for a round of golf. But no such luck - I think they meant gulf - because it the hotel is outside of the city of Trujillo near the ocean - who know. But anyway - it was a nice place with a patio and pool and nice grounds.

Huaca de la Luna - Temple of the Moon - Reliefs

These photos show how the temple was expanded just by adding bricks on top of the existing walls. The reliefs are amazing. The main colors used are red, yellow, white and black. These are mineral based colors

The two temples are consider to be a religious complex.

Huaca de la Luna - Temple of the Moon

The Temple of the Moon is being extensively excavated. It is also built with adobe bricks. It contains 6 levels. The Moche just built over the first temple to make it larger. This rebuilding occurred over 600 years. Much of the paintings on the wall with the vivid colors have been found in the excavation. The symbols were the writing of the history of the people.

The Moche ruled the land in the North part of Peru from AD 100 to AD 700. The Temple complex is located at the foot of the mountian Cerro Blanco - which they worshiped.

The anthropormorphic figure "Ai Apaek" - El Degollador - The decapitator appears in many of the reliefs. He has the hair of the seas and the eyes of the owl.

Huaca del Sol - Temple of the Sun

Huaca del Sol - in Trujillo,Peru - An adobe brick pyramid built by the Moche Culture to worship the sun. The archeaology site has both the Temple of the Sun and the Temple of the Moon. Between the two temple - they are excavating the royal city.

The Huaca del Sol is 148 feet tall and is the tallest adobe building in the Americas. Built with over 140 million bricks by 200,000 workers. It was built around 500 ad as part of the Moche culture.

The phenonomen El Nino - great rains have come with more frequency in recent years and has tremendously damaged the structure.

Biringo - Peruvian Hairless Dog

"Perro"(dog) - this type of dog is native to Peru. The only thing I can say is UGLY.

Pottery Factory in Trujillo - Part 2

The brothers gave a demonstration on how the Moche actually made pottery - using both shaping by hand as well as using molds.

Pottery in Peru is the sources for information about the life of the people. Everything is included in pottery - farming, houses, war, prisioners, ceremonies, etc. Archeaologists have pieced together much of the history of the ancient culture by cross referencing different pieces of pottery.

The Brothers have performed in several ceremonies in Trujillo - their home is just outside the archeaology site of Huaca del Sol and Huaca del y Luna - the Temples of the Sun and Moon.

Pottery Factory in Trujillo

Our guide Miguel tells us he is taking to a Potter Factory. Ok... We know the drill. However when we arrived in the courtyard - we started hearing music. First the conch shell being blown with its distintive sound. Then the flute, drums and guitar. The music was beautiful and quite moving. The performance continued as we entered the store. They were dressed in Moche costumes - which we later saw replicated in pottery from that era. (They could have stepped out from back in time.)

The pottery shop is owned by a group of 9 brothers. They have very clear blood lines going back to the original Moche culture with the wide noses and oriental eyes and face. They added the shaking of a string of shells to the performance. Our guide Miguel - translated as they told us the story of their people.

Shoe Market in Trujillo

One of the markets in Trujillo is only for shoes. There were over 50 shops featuring every kind of shoe imaginable. Some quite beatuiful leather work.

Trujillo History Museum

The History Museum of Trujillo is housed in an old colonial home. The courtyard features an ancient "Moche" culture stone head. The Moche dominated much of the North part of Peru before the Inca empire. The home was built using trees brought from the Amazon basin as Trujillo is very much like a desert with few trees.

Trujillo - Northern Coast of Peru

We visited several sites in the historic center of Trujillo, Peru - located on the North Coast.

Darrell and Lanny Scholes are listening to our guide - Miguel.

Downtown Trujillo retains much of its colonial influences in its architecture. Wooden balconies are a fashionable addition to the home. The coverings allowed the people inside to see out but not be seen, during the colonial age.

We also saw: Iglesia la Merced (Catholic Church) - built in 1636. The church suffered great damage in 1970 by an earthquake. Peru as well as the western coast of South America is a very active earthquake region.

Poinciana Trees - Trujillo,Peru

Beautiful Poinciana Trees are found in many places in the city of Trujillo.

Plaza de Armas - Trujillo, Peru

June 13, 2010 The historic center of Trjillo surrounds the Plaza de Armas - the town's main square. The park has a fountain with a statute for victory in the center of the square. The mustard yellow color of the main Cathedral - Basicila Menor -built around 1647 - anchors the square. Many coloful volkswagon "bugs" are gathered at the plaza in a touring group. The colonial era homes with their vivid colors surround the plaza.

Huaca Pucllana - Pyramid and restaurant

We had a wonderful dinner in a lovely setting on our first full day in Lima. Huaca Pucllana is an adobe pyramid dating back over 1500 years. The restaurant has a splendid view of the Huaca (Pyramid) and amazing food!!

Maria Teresa Milla - owner of Peru Hands On Travel joined us at the restaurant. I had my first "Pisco Sour" - the most famous drink of Peru. Pisco is made from grapes and is like a grappa. Then a lime juice mixture is added then topped with frothy egg whites with a dash of nutmeg. It is actually wonderful. It tastes a lot like a margarita.

We are traveling with our friend from Naples -Lanny Scholes. Our dinner was wonderful. Ceviche is the famous dish of Peru - it is pieces of fresh raw fish marinated in a lime juice.

I couldn't pass up the photo of the "cotton tree." Having grown up on a farm - I know cotton very well. The cotton in Peru is a much taller stalk. It has been domesticated in Peru for thousands of years. But this tree is an arrangement of tall stalks.