The Choquequirao Trek
I was in Pisac, it was pretty hard to leave, myself and Benjamin AKA monkey heard about a teleferica being planned to bring gringos to Choquequirao, now i´ve already been to Choquequirao before and i like treking, its seemed like a message from the gods to go,
The only reason i was back in Pisac was to introduce Benjamine to a Shaman, i brought him to Loco, a very good guy!
After looking at what i posted six years ago from the last trek to Choquequirao, i´m not entirely sure i captured the moments, maybe there were none?
I forgot to blog about the Salkantay trek, here is the post from the last time
From what i remember there was an English guy, i remember him telling me when it came to food in South America, you need to:
Guinea pig Noir, leave him!!!!
The last time when we came back to Cusco after Choquequirao, there was a Guinea pig festival, lots of Guinea pigs being eaten, lots of drunk guys pissing everywhere, the whole place smelled of pee, ok? Are you with me, or do you need a picture?
The last guide didn't know much about the ruins, he was about 18 years young, this time the guide did know a little, something is always better than nothing.
Its all about the journey
The local guide Alfredo (a cool guy) price in Pisac was a little too high, so i went back to Cusco and booked the trip, then the locals price came down, but i was already paid up, so to cut a long story short, i was off!!
Monkey stayed behind, we had Nachos, a massage, said goodbye as he was getting his Inca hot stones massage.
I did get some good advice from the Pisac guide, i think his name might have been Antonio? Going to Choquequirao is about the journey, and i will say this, we had some good interesting people.
I offered coca leaves to ask permission to the spirits to climb the mountain, as per Alfresos advice, we had a ceramony with the guide at the bottom of the valley and up we went.
Some of us used our legs to get there, some opted for biblical epics, more about that later.
Doc Holiday
Close to the top, we met an old woman that ran a shop, i met a French guy that was staying there, he helped her the day before to kill a pig, she was frying it up when we got there
Our guide on the right, horse man on the left
Finally after getting up all the hills, we get to the camp ground
Top of my game?
The Incas brought water 30kms for this water feature for ceremonies, now due to landslides, the water no longer comes
A nice water feature, maybe you could have one for your garden?
The crew, and to be honest, i did like them all, how strange is that?
Only 15 percent of this place is cleaned
There are 15 small terraces here going down in this photo, my theory is that the Incas would trial crops out here and sit around like the actors in the photo
Did the Incas enjoy football too?
Actually they sacraficed black Llamas up there on the flat ground
Horses like views too, the teleferica will be coming from across the valley, its the future baby, even the horses can see it!!!
Good views
Myself and the Virgin Mary, like i said, some of us had legs, and we used them
Sanwiched between 4 mountains
I met this woman from Blackrock on the way back, just divorced after 30 odd years of marriage to an American she met outside the country club, Cork
Up Da Rebels
Actually the last night was pretty good, i was high from all the walking up the hills, it took me ages to calm down, i don't think will ever calm down!!
Shiny happy people?
Homeward bound
I was in Pisac, it was pretty hard to leave, myself and Benjamin AKA monkey heard about a teleferica being planned to bring gringos to Choquequirao, now i´ve already been to Choquequirao before and i like treking, its seemed like a message from the gods to go,
The only reason i was back in Pisac was to introduce Benjamine to a Shaman, i brought him to Loco, a very good guy!
After looking at what i posted six years ago from the last trek to Choquequirao, i´m not entirely sure i captured the moments, maybe there were none?
I forgot to blog about the Salkantay trek, here is the post from the last time
From what i remember there was an English guy, i remember him telling me when it came to food in South America, you need to:
- Cook it or
- Peal it or
- Leave it
Guinea pig Noir, leave him!!!!
The last time when we came back to Cusco after Choquequirao, there was a Guinea pig festival, lots of Guinea pigs being eaten, lots of drunk guys pissing everywhere, the whole place smelled of pee, ok? Are you with me, or do you need a picture?
The last guide didn't know much about the ruins, he was about 18 years young, this time the guide did know a little, something is always better than nothing.
Its all about the journey
The local guide Alfredo (a cool guy) price in Pisac was a little too high, so i went back to Cusco and booked the trip, then the locals price came down, but i was already paid up, so to cut a long story short, i was off!!
Monkey stayed behind, we had Nachos, a massage, said goodbye as he was getting his Inca hot stones massage.
I did get some good advice from the Pisac guide, i think his name might have been Antonio? Going to Choquequirao is about the journey, and i will say this, we had some good interesting people.
I offered coca leaves to ask permission to the spirits to climb the mountain, as per Alfresos advice, we had a ceramony with the guide at the bottom of the valley and up we went.
Source:
An Aymaran legend tells how Khono, the god of snow and storm, burned the land of all vegetation in a fit of anger. The only plant left was the coca plant. The hungry Aymaran people ate it, and discovered that coca leaves also helped them to endure the cold.
However, the spiritual significance of the coca leaf remains. Coca leaves are still used to give thanks for blessings or to make offerings to the gods. Farming communities gather together before starting work to share coca, drinks, and cigarettes. The owner of the farm pays homage to the ancestors and to Mother Earth by burying some of the coca in the ground.
Finally, all give thanks for the gift and chew coca together. Coca leaves are offered to Mother Earth for safe travels and passages. Births, death, marriages and more are all solidified with rituals and/or exchanges involving coca leaves.
Some of us used our legs to get there, some opted for biblical epics, more about that later.
Doc Holiday
Close to the top, we met an old woman that ran a shop, i met a French guy that was staying there, he helped her the day before to kill a pig, she was frying it up when we got there
Our guide on the right, horse man on the left
Finally after getting up all the hills, we get to the camp ground
Top of my game?
The Incas brought water 30kms for this water feature for ceremonies, now due to landslides, the water no longer comes
A nice water feature, maybe you could have one for your garden?
The crew, and to be honest, i did like them all, how strange is that?
Only 15 percent of this place is cleaned
There are 15 small terraces here going down in this photo, my theory is that the Incas would trial crops out here and sit around like the actors in the photo
Did the Incas enjoy football too?
Actually they sacraficed black Llamas up there on the flat ground
Horses like views too, the teleferica will be coming from across the valley, its the future baby, even the horses can see it!!!
Good views
Myself and the Virgin Mary, like i said, some of us had legs, and we used them
Sanwiched between 4 mountains
I met this woman from Blackrock on the way back, just divorced after 30 odd years of marriage to an American she met outside the country club, Cork
Up Da Rebels
Actually the last night was pretty good, i was high from all the walking up the hills, it took me ages to calm down, i don't think will ever calm down!!
Shiny happy people?
Homeward bound
1 comment:
Incredible trip! And amazing trekking group!
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