Cartagena, Colombia

Friday March 19, 2010 and we are sailing to Cartagena, Columbia, first settled by the Spanish in 1533. Much of the great wealth in silver and gold that was shipped from South America to Spain came through Cartagena. Because of this, the city was continually attacked by pirates including the legendary Sir Francis Drake. To protect the citizens and the wealth, a great stone fortification was built, the greatest in all South America. Today much of the walled fortification remains, a testament to the quality of the work of the architects and builders. Cartagena was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1984.

We began our tour at the Castillo San Felipe Barajas, a huge stone fort that proved to be impenetrable to either pirates or forces of opposing countries during the early colonial days. We walked up to the top of the fort to see a commanding view of the entire area. The fort was built with a maze of tunnels and special built gun mounts to defend the city from land or sea attack. It is in remarkable condition and may have been the most important military structure in all South America.

Next we drove up the switchback road to the top of another hill to see La Popa, a monastery that is still in use today. It was constructed in the 17th century. The view from this vantage point is breathtaking. You can see all of the neighboring islands, the harbor and the entire city new and old.

Down the hill we rode and headed toward the old part of the city. We stopped at Las Bovedas “the dungeons,” which in the past were used as military barracks, and later after independence they served as jails. Today they are a network of bustling handicraft shops with a very active group of vendors hawking their wares. Colorful and vibrant it reflected the multicultural and multiethnic traditions of the Columbian people.

The next stop was to visit the Church of San Pedro Claver, patron saint of Cartagena. The building is beautifully restored and reflects the influence of the French and Spanish style or architecture.

Last stop on the tour was the best. First, we were treated to an ice cold local beer and then we were entertained by a folklore dance and traditional music group. The young dancers were colorfully dressed and danced with great expression and enthusiasm to the beat of the drums and other percussion instruments that had their origins in Africa. The African influence in the dance was clear and the show was among the best I’ve seen.

Spanish:
Viernes 19 de marzo 2010 y estamos navegando a Cartagena, Colombia, colonizada por los españoles en 1533. Gran parte de la gran riqueza en plata y oro que fue enviado desde Sudamérica a España llegó a través de Cartagena. Debido a esto, la ciudad fue continuamente atacado por piratas como el legendario Sir Francis Drake. Para proteger a los ciudadanos y la riqueza, una fortificación de piedra fue construido, el más grande en toda América del Sur. Hoy en día gran parte de la fortificación amurallada sigue siendo, un testamento a la calidad de la obra de los arquitectos y constructores. Cartagena fue declarada sitio del Patrimonio Mundial de la UNESCO en 1984.

El tiempo hoy es perfecto para el Caribe tropical, cerca del 80% de humedad y las temperaturas en los 80 a mediados con una agradable brisa. Vamos a hacer puerto en alrededor de la 1:00 pm El tour abarcará los aspectos más destacados de Cartagena.

Comenzamos nuestro recorrido en el Castillo de San Felipe de Barajas, una fortaleza de piedra que resultó ser impenetrable para cualquiera de los piratas o las fuerzas de países enfrentados durante la época colonial temprana. Subimos a la cima de la fortaleza para ver una vista de toda la zona. La fortaleza fue construida con un laberinto de túneles y cañones construido monturas especiales para defender la ciudad de la tierra o un ataque al mar. Se encuentra en condición de notable y pudo haber sido la estructura militar más importante en toda América del Sur.

Siguiente nos dirigimos por la carretera en zigzag a lo alto de otra colina para ver la Popa, un monasterio que todavía está en uso hoy en día. Fue construida en el siglo 17. La vista desde este punto de vista es impresionante. Usted puede ver todas las islas vecinas, el puerto y toda la ciudad nueva y vieja.

Bajando la colina nos dirigimos y se dirigió hacia la parte antigua de la ciudad. Nos detuvimos en Las Bóvedas "las mazmorras", que en el pasado se utilizaron como cuarteles militares, y más tarde después de la independencia que servían como cárceles. Hoy en día son una red de tiendas de artesanía animada con un grupo muy activo de ambulantes vendiendo. Coloridos y vibrantes que reflejan la tradición multicultural y multiétnica de la población colombiana.

La siguiente parada fue para visitar la Iglesia de San Pedro Claver, patrono de Cartagena. El edificio está restaurado y refleja la influencia del estilo francés y español o la arquitectura.

La última parada de la gira fue el mejor. Primero fueron invitados a una cerveza bien fría y locales fueron agasajados por un grupo de danza folklórica y la música tradicional. Los jóvenes bailarines fueron colorido vestido y bailó con gran expresividad y entusiasmo al ritmo de los tambores y otros instrumentos de percusión que tienen sus orígenes en África. La influencia africana en la danza era clara y el show fue uno de los mejores que he visto.

Canal de Panamá

Today is March 18, 2010, a historic day for us and highly anticipated. The captain announced that we had taken on two senior pilots from the Panama Canal navigation department to guide us through the locks and the lakes. We also had an experienced commentator on the ship’s bridge to describe the entire process of locks.

Essentially there are three locks on each side of the Canal. The purpose is to raise the level of the ship by about 85 feet above sea level to reach Lake Gatun, the man made lake that crosses the continental divide. The locks are about 1500 feet long and about 150 feet wide, able to accommodate most of the world’s ship traffic. They use small electric locomotives called mules to gently pull the ships through the locks once the level of water reaches the required depth. Sort of like three steps each being about 28 feet in height. A magnificent engineering achievement especially when you consider that in a few years the Canal will be celebrating its 100th year of operation.

During the transit, the channels in the lake are wide enough to allow ships to pass by each other as they travel in opposite directions. When you see the size of the container ships you realize how much time and money is saved by crossing at the Panama Canal instead of having to sail all the way around the southern tip of South America to go from San Francisco to New York for instance.

The canal is operated 24 hours a day, 365 days a year with hardly any stoppage. Yesterday our tour guide said that the profit margin for the canal operations is about 50%. No wonder the city looks so modern in the new part of town.

Spanish version:

Hoy es 18 de marzo 2010, un día histórico para nosotros y muy esperado. El capitán anunció que había adquirido dos pilotos de alto nivel de departamento de la navegación del Canal de Panamá para guiarnos a través de las esclusas y los lagos. También tuvimos un comentarista con experiencia en el puente del barco para describir todo el proceso de esclusas.

Esencialmente, hay tres bloqueos de cada lado del Canal. El propósito es elevar el nivel de la nave de unos 85 metros sobre el nivel del mar hasta llegar al Lago Gatún, el lago artificial del hombre que cruza la divisoria continental. Las esclusas son cerca de 1500 pies de largo y cerca de 150 pies de ancho, con capacidad para más de tráfico de buques del mundo. Ellos usan pequeñas locomotoras eléctricas llamadas mulas para tire con cuidado de los buques por las esclusas una vez que el nivel de agua llega a la profundidad requerida. Algo así como tres pasos de cada ser de unos 28 pies de altura. Un logro magnífico de ingeniería, especialmente cuando se considera que en pocos años el Canal estará celebrando sus 100 años de operación.

Durante el tránsito, los canales en el lago son lo suficientemente amplia como para permitir que los buques que pasan por la otra a medida que viajan en direcciones opuestas. Al ver el tamaño de los buques portacontenedores te das cuenta de cuánto tiempo y dinero es guardado por el cruce en el Canal de Panamá en vez de tener que navegar todo el camino alrededor de la punta sur de Sudamérica para ir de San Francisco a Nueva York, por ejemplo.

El canal funciona las 24 horas al día, 365 días al año sin apenas paro. Ayer nuestro guía dijo que el margen de beneficio para las operaciones del canal es de aproximadamente 50%. No es extraño que la ciudad se ve tan moderno en la parte nueva de la ciudad.

Ciudad de Panamá, República de Panamá

Early this morning we arrived at Fuerte Amador, Panama. One look at the skyline of the city of Panama and I knew we were no longer in Ecuador. Judge for yourself by the photos. The contrast in wealth and power between Ecuador and Panama is like night and day. The economic engine of Panama is the Canal and there is never a slowdown in the economy because of it.

We took a tour of the old colonial city with its very narrow streets and buildings in various states of decay. Some of the poor people continue to live in the old part of the city in the midst of an enormous restoration project that is sponsored by the United Nation’s UNESCO. Many of the buildings have been designated as part of the worldwide heritage program.

The newer part of the city is filled with beautiful high rise office buildings, condominiums and apartment complexes that will rival any first class city in the world. We were told that the largest construction project was the new “Trump Towers” expected to be completed next year. The number of new high rise buildings under construction is staggering.

We returned to the dock, had a light lunch and a few local “Panama Beers” and headed back to the ship. Later tonight the ship will be repositioned to get in line for entry to begin the transit of the Panama Canal. Before dinner we got to see a documentary on the history of the Canal on the big screen in the ship’s lounge.The digging of the canal was started by the French, after they had successfully dug the Suez Canal. They abandoned the job after spending millions of dollars and the loss of tens of thousands of lives due to accidents and disease.

President Roosevelt in 1904 committed the American’s to finish the task. It took ten years and millions of dollars and again loss of many lives but the canal was successfully completed. It is a great story of ingenuity, human endurance and determination.

Temprano en la mañana llegamos a Fuerte Amador, Panamá. Una mirada en el horizonte de la ciudad de Panamá y sabía que ya no estaban en Ecuador. Juzgue usted mismo por las fotos. El contraste de la riqueza y el poder entre el Ecuador y Panamá es como la noche y el día. El motor económico de Panamá es el Canal, y nunca hay una desaceleración de la economía a causa de ella.

Hicimos un tour por la antigua ciudad colonial, con sus calles muy estrechas y edificios en diversos estados de descomposición. Algunas de las personas pobres siguen viviendo en la parte antigua de la ciudad en medio de un enorme proyecto de restauración que está patrocinado por la UNESCO de las Naciones Unidas. Muchos de los edificios han sido designados como parte del programa de patrimonio mundial.

La parte más nueva de la ciudad está llena de bellos edificios de oficinas de gran altura, condominios y complejos de apartamentos que competirán con una ciudad de primera clase en el mundo. Se nos dijo que el mayor proyecto de construcción del nuevo "Trump Towers" espera que se complete el próximo año. El número de nuevos edificios de gran altura en construcción es impresionante.

Regresamos al muelle, había un almuerzo ligero y unos pocos locales "Panamá Beers" y se dirigió a la nave. Más tarde, esta noche el barco para llegar a situarse en la línea de entrada para iniciar el tránsito del Canal de Panamá. Antes de la cena pudimos ver un documental sobre la historia del canal en la pantalla grande en la excavación de lounge.The del barco del canal fue fundado por los franceses, después de que habían cavado con éxito el Canal de Suez. Ellos abandonaron el trabajo después de gastar millones de dólares y la pérdida de decenas de miles de vidas debido a los accidentes y enfermedades.

El Presidente Roosevelt en 1904 cometió el de Estados Unidos a terminar la tarea. Tomó diez años y millones de dólares y de nuevo la pérdida de muchas vidas, pero el canal fue completado con éxito. Es una gran historia de ingenio, la resistencia humana y determinación.

Manta, Montecristi y Educador

Today we arrived in Manta, Ecuador. It is Ecuador’s second largest port city; dominating the country’s Central Pacific coast and is along the “Ruta del Sol,” the route of the sun. Primarily it is an industrial town whose main industry is fishing; more specifically it is the capital of the tuna fishing industry in South America.

We stopped at a very interesting factory that uses a palm tree native to Ecuador to make buttons.The tree is called the Ivory Nut Palm and the nut is used to create buttons. We watched as the workers cut the nuts, which are about the size of a golf ball, into small slices. The slices are then further cut into small round shapes and finally holes are drilled into them. The final processes include dying to give them color and polishing in huge tumbling tubs. There is a market out there for these beautiful handcrafted buttons.

Montecristi was founded in the early 17th century after the early settlers fled from repeated pirate attacks on the coast. The most significant colonial structure is the town’s hilltop white church as can be seen from the main plaza. Under the shelter of a gazebo in the square we had a demonstration of the making by hand of the classic “Panama Hat,” which was actually developed here in Ecuador. We were told that the hat got its name and became famous when President Theodore Roosevelt came to inspect the building of the Panama Canal. He received a gift of one of the hats and everyone referred to it from that time on as the “Panama Hat.” The hats take considerable time to make and sell for anywhere between $20 and $150 depending on the quality of the straw and the detail woven into it.

While we were at the plaza we were continually approached by little boys and girls begging for money. This is the only place in South America where we have come upon begging children.

Spanish version:

Hoy llegamos a Manta, Ecuador. Es la ciudad el segundo puerto más grande de Ecuador, dominando Central del país, la costa del Pacífico y se lo largo de la "Ruta del Sol," la ruta del sol. Principalmente se trata de una ciudad industrial cuya principal industria es la pesca, más específicamente, es la capital de la industria de la pesca de atún en América del Sur.

Nos detuvimos en una fábrica muy interesante que utiliza una palma nativa de Ecuador para hacer buttons.The árbol se llama la Palma de tagua y la nuez se utiliza para crear botones. Vimos como los trabajadores cortaban las nueces, que son aproximadamente del tamaño de una pelota de golf, en rodajas. Las rodajas se luego se cortan en forma más pequeño, redondo y, finalmente, los agujeros son taladrados en ellas. Los procesos finales incluyen morir para darles color y pulido en grandes tinas de caer. Hay un mercado ahí fuera para estos botones hermosos hechos a mano.

De Montecristi fue fundada en el siglo 17 poco después de los primeros pobladores huyeron de repetidos ataques de piratas en la costa. De la estructura colonial más importante es la iglesia blanca de la ciudad colina como puede verse en la plaza principal. Bajo el amparo de una glorieta en la plaza que había una demostración de la toma de la mano de la clásica "Sombrero de Panamá", que fue desarrollado aquí en el Ecuador. Se nos dijo que el sombrero tomó su nombre y se hizo famoso cuando el Presidente Theodore Roosevelt fue a inspeccionar la construcción del Canal de Panamá. Él recibió un regalo de uno de los sombreros y todo el mundo se refiere a ella desde ese momento como el sombrero "Panamá". Los sombreros de llevar un tiempo considerable para fabricar y vender por entre $ 20 y $ 150 dependiendo de la calidad de la paja y el detalle tejidas en ella.

Mientras estábamos en la plaza que estaban continuamente abordado por niños y niñas pidiendo dinero. Este es el único lugar de Sudamérica, donde hemos llegado a los niños que mendigan.

Salaverry y Trujillo, Perú

Saturday, March 13, 2010 we arrived at the commercial port city of Salaverry, Peru near to our next tour city of Trujillo.The sun was shining and the temperature was in the low 80’s. The area at first it appears as a barren, rocky desert like landscape, but as the tour bus made its way towards the mountains we could see a network of small water channels that have been used for thousands of years by the local Moche people. The source of the water is high in the Andes Mountains and provides an uninterrupted supply for fresh water all year long. The water is used for irrigation of crops and provides good quality drinking water.

Our destinations this afternoon are the Temples of the Sun and the Moon, located just a few miles from the coast at the foot of the mountains. The first temple we visited was the Temple of the Sun. It is made from mud bricks that are stacked upon one another in a pyramid like shape. It is estimated that this temple or “Huaca” was built between 10 and 650 A.D. during the Mochica era. There has been no major excavation of this temple yet, and although there is very little rain in this area there is evidence of some exterior deterioration caused by the occasional heavy rain and water runoff, carrying away a little of the pyramid each time.

The guide then took us to the Temple of the Moon, which is in the process of being excavated. Words cannot sufficiently describe the beauty we saw at this “Huaca de la Luna." It was built as an extension to the foothills of the mountains uncovering the secrets of the Mochica civilization through the walls with vibrantly painted relief’s carved from the adobe structure. Much excavation has taken place over the years and most of it has been protected by the construction of shelters made from corrugated steel roofs and glass and bamboo reed walls.

The Temple of the Moon is not a complete pyramid, because it is constructed as a sort of attachment to the mountain. To me the most amazing feature is the fact that over the centuries of construction the Mochica’s were never satisfied with their completed construction. They would build another layer of temple over the existing temple, completely covering the painted walls and the carved symbols. It is this process that has allowed the nearly two thousand year old work of artisans to be nearly as bright and colorful today as when it was originally created.

The excavations over the years, have uncovered quite a few bones and skulls near the area that would be the top of the structure. It is suspected that because of the depictions on the reliefs, the skulls and bones are from human sacrifice of the Moche people. It was also the burial site for the people. The ordinary citizens were buried in graves and placed in a fetal position. The high ranking citizens, probably leaders and priests, were buried in a very large clay pot and placed in the fetal position as well.

Much work yet needs to be done at this archeological site. Our guide told us that the expense of excavation is easy to handle. The real expense is in the preservation. For this reason, through the years continued excavation has been halted because of lack of funds to pay for the preservation. This was one of the most interesting of our entire South American adventure. We left the “Huacas” and headed to the city or Trujillo.

Trujillo contains much of its original colonial period charm. As with every city we have visited in South America the city square is the center of most important activity, and Trujillo is no exception. The Plaza de Armas is spacious with a monument celebrating its independence from Spain at the center. The Plaza is clean and has plenty of benches to relax and take in the view. Government buildings surround the Plaza and as is customary a Cathedral has a prominent place along the avenue.

The little side streets were filled with bustling shops and the sound of the beeping horns of the taxi’s filled the air. I took advantage of the time we had by visiting an internet shop and was able to spend next to no money for a long time on the web. I visited a super market and picked up a few bottles of Peruvian wine. The US Dollar goes a long way here in Peru and visiting is a real bargain.

It was getting dark as we made our way back and the city takes on a much different look at night. The modest homes are all lit up with a few light bulbs or surprisingly a television for both entertainment and illumination in the family or living room of the little houses along the roadside.

Unlike Chile and Argentina which has a growing middle class, Peru seems to be largely made up to two groups of people; a modest working class and a well to do group of professionals and business owners. I hope to visit Peru again, and the next time I plan to visit more of the archeological sites such as Machu Picchu and Cusco

(SPANISH VERSION)
Sábado, 13 de marzo 2010 llegamos a la ciudad puerto de Salaverry, Perú, cerca a nuestra ciudad la próxima gira de Trujillo. Llegamos a las 11:00 am y de nuestra visita era empezar a la 1:00 de la tarde. El sol brillaba y la temperatura era baja en los 80's. El área en un principio aparece como un paisaje yermo, desierto rocoso como paisaje, pero como el autobús hizo su camino hacia las montañas, podríamos ver una red de pequeños canales de agua que se han utilizado durante miles de años por la población local de Moche. La fuente del agua es alto en la cordillera de los Andes y proporciona un suministro ininterrumpido de agua potable durante todo el año. El agua se utiliza para el riego de los cultivos y provee agua potable de buena calidad.

Nuestros destinos de esta tarde son los Templos del Sol y la Luna, ubicado a pocos kilómetros de la costa, al pie de las montañas. El primer templo que visitamos fue el templo del sol. Está hecha de ladrillos de barro que se apilan una sobre otra en una pirámide como la forma. Se estima que este templo o "Huaca" fue construido entre el 10 y el 650 dC en la época Mochica. No ha habido una gran excavación de este templo, sin embargo, y aunque hay muy poca lluvia en esta zona hay evidencias de cierto deterioro exterior causada por la fuerte lluvia y los escurrimientos de agua de vez en cuando, llevándose un poco de la pirámide cada vez.

La guía nos llevó al Templo de la Luna, que está en proceso de ser excavado. Las palabras no bastan para describir la belleza que vimos en este "Huaca de la Luna". Fue construido como una extensión a las estribaciones de las montañas de descubrir los secretos de la civilización mochica través de las paredes pintadas con alivio vibrante esculpida en la estructura de adobe. Gran parte de excavación se ha producido en los últimos años y la mayor parte ha sido protegido por la construcción de refugios hechos de acero corrugado y techos de cristal y paredes de caña de bambú.

El Templo de la Luna no es una pirámide completa, ya que se construye como una especie de apego a la montaña. Para mí, la característica más sorprendente es el hecho de que durante los siglos de construcción de la Mochica nunca estaban satisfechos con su construcción terminada. Se construirá una nueva capa de templo sobre el templo actual, cubriendo las paredes pintadas y los símbolos tallados. Es este proceso que ha permitido que el trabajo casi dos mil años de los artesanos que hoy en día casi tan brillante y colorido, como cuando se creó originalmente.

Las excavaciones en los últimos años, han descubierto un gran algunos huesos y cráneos, cerca de la zona que sería la parte superior de la estructura. Se sospecha que a causa de las representaciones en los relieves, los cráneos y huesos de los sacrificios humanos del pueblo de Moche. También fue el sitio de entierro para el pueblo. La gente común fueron enterrados en tumbas y se coloca en una posición fetal. La gente de alto rango, probablemente los líderes y sacerdotes fueron enterrados en una olla de barro muy grande y se coloca en la posición fetal, así.

Gran parte del trabajo todavía se necesita hacer en este sitio arqueológico. Nuestro guía nos dijo que los gastos de la excavación es fácil de manejar. El gasto real en la preservación. Por esta razón, a través de los años continuó la excavación se ha detenido debido a la falta de fondos para pagar por la conservación.

Al visitar este sitio fue increíble, uno de los más interesantes de toda nuestra aventura de América del Sur. Salimos de la "huacas" y se dirigió a la ciudad o Trujillo.

Trujillo contiene gran parte de su encanto original de su época colonial. Como en todas las ciudades que hemos visitado en América del Sur de la plaza de la ciudad es el centro de la actividad más importante, y Trujillo no es la excepción. La Plaza de Armas es amplio con un monumento que celebra su independencia de España en el centro. La Plaza es limpio y tiene un montón de bancos para descansar y disfrutar de la vista. Edificios del gobierno, alrededor de la plaza y como es habitual, a la Catedral ocupa un lugar destacado a lo largo de la avenida.

Las callejuelas estaban llenas de tiendas animadas y el sonido de los cuernos pitido del taxi llenó el aire. Aproveché el momento en que había visitando una tienda de internet y fue capaz de pasar junto a ningún dinero para un largo tiempo en la web. Visité a un supermercado y recogió unas cuantas botellas de vino peruano. El dólar de EE.UU. va un largo camino aquí en el Perú y la visita es una verdadera ganga.

El Mares Puesta del sol nos proporcionó un autobús para volver a la nave de la Plaza y yo tomamos el último autobús de vuelta a las 6:45 pm Estaba oscureciendo cuando hicimos el camino de regreso y la ciudad adquiere un aspecto muy diferente en la noche. Las casas son modestas todo iluminado con bombillas de pocos o sorprendentemente un televisor para el entretenimiento y la iluminación en la familia o en la sala de las casitas a lo largo de la carretera.

A diferencia de Chile y Argentina, que tiene una creciente clase media, el Perú parece estar compuesto en gran parte a dos grupos de personas, una clase obrera modestos y un bien para hacer grupo de profesionales y propietarios de negocios. Espero que a visitar el Perú de nuevo, y la próxima vez que planea visitar varios de los sitios arqueológicos, como Machu Picchu y Cusco

Callao y Lima, Perú

Our stop in Callao and Lima continued on Friday, March 12, 2010 and we were given the opportunity to do some sight seeing on our own. We were told that many of the café’s and bars offered free WiFi for its customers so Alice and I took the shuttle and headed to the shopping center. Our drive to the center was by a different route than yesterday and gave us a chance to see another side of the city.

The government is making a major effort to create a park like atmosphere at the coastline. A new road runs along the shoreline for miles. In an effort to fill in the land and make parks for walking, biking etc., fill dirt and rocks are being added to extend the level areas adjacent to the roadway. Long lines of huge dump trucks are bringing fill and depositing it along the edge of the hillside and bulldozers are pushing it around and making it sort of level. A closer look at the fill material was quite a revelation. Mixed in with the rocks and sand were plastic bags and bottles, clothing, shoes and even some small automobile tires.

I’m guessing that a landfill somewhere else was being emptied to provide the new fill required to create the new Coastline Park. Some day the archeologists will have an interesting time exploring the coastline beneath the grass and the walkways.

We arrived at the shopping center and went directly to the arcade of shops and restaurants. We found the Sofa Café, took at seat outside on the shaded patio, ordered a couple of beers and set up the computer. Luckily the power outlet available was a standard North American style so I did not have to drain the battery.

Cusquena, is a local dark beer that is full bodied and a little sweet, very enjoyable on a hot day. We sat there for a few hours taking advantage of the WiFi and ordered a few more beers and some sandwiches. Soon it was time to meet the shuttle bus to return to the ship.

As we were walking up the steps to the street level we noticed that there were a half dozen hang gliders in the air above the beach. The strong prevailing winds of the Pacific made a near perfect setting for this interesting sport. Some of the gliders had two people riding on the wind. It was a beautiful site.

The bus arrived on time and we went back to the ship one more time. Early in the evening the ship sailed north from the Port of Callao. Next stop is expected to be Salaverry, Peru, which is the commercial port for the city of Trujillo.

Perú

We have arrived at the port of Callao, Peru, which is the commercial port for the City of Lima. No where near as busy as the port of Valparaiso, Chile and somewhat smaller. There appears to be some construction to extend one of the cargo loading docks so there is an expectation of growth. As the Sunset Seas is nestled into its dock by the tugs a welcome party of brown pelicans too numerous to count are flying about the jetties where they make their home. Quite a site when combined with the unrelenting screech of the other sea birds that live in the area too. Shortly after docking the ship is cleared and we are on our way to a five hour tour of the city.

Our narrator for the tour is Rubin, a handsome man in his 30’s with an interesting accent and very good English. He knows the city well and does an excellent job of pointing out the most important attractions along the way. We have several stops scheduled on this tour and it should be interesting. The first fact that Rubin shares with us is that the area receives very little rainfall during the year and is dependent on the water from rivers flowing from the Andes Mountains for all its water supply. Everything looks parched, except for the planted areas in the squares and along the roadways that must be watered almost daily to give some greenery to the area. The sidewalks and the building have a grimy appearance and look like they could all use a good wash.

The most apparent difference comparing Lima to Santiago is the style of construction for homes. Most are very small and many appear to be constructed by the owners rather than a construction company. This area is also earthquake prone and I would imagine that in the event of a severe shock many of the building will collapse. The most striking thing I noticed is that many of the buildings are incomplete. The tops of the square style houses are unfinished with “rebar” poking up like wild hairs. Building materials are stacked on the roof as though the project will be finished sometime in the undetermined future. We saw a similar situation while traveling in the Middle East. Rubin explained that the reason for the incomplete construction is taxation. Evidently no or low real estate taxes apply during the period of construction of a residential building, thus if you take forever to complete the construction you can defer forever the taxes that would otherwise apply if it were finished. Sounds like a great idea to avoid taxes, but it really looks like hell.

Our first stop in the city was The Plaza de Armas, beautiful square in the historic area surrounded by the Government Palace, a century’s old Lima Cathedral and other government buildings including Lima City Hall. Military and police guards armed to the teeth were very evident. A little cluster of police officers were off to one side of the city hall and they were standing behind their clear plastic crowd control shields. A beautiful fountain was the center piece of the Plaza and many colorful gardens of flowers made it very attractive.

The tour of the cathedral was magnificent. Unlike other cathedral's we’ve recently visited this was made of wood and was covered with stucco to make it look like limestone. It has succumbed to earthquakes several times in the past as was most recently restored about 40 years ago. A notable side altar for devotion is dedicated to the Patron Saint of Lima, “Rose.” I am never surprised by the amount wealth on display in these old churches and cathedrals. In some of the poorest countries in the world, untold amounts of gold, silver and precious gems are on display. The feature that captured my attention the most was a mosaic said to contain more than 5 million pieces of colored stone and tiles. A beautiful work of art depicting the abandonment of the mission by some of Francisco Pizarro’s men. He allowed them to return to other parts of South America rather than stay with him and earn a fortune. It turned out the Pizarro was right. Gold and silver had been mined and collected by the Inca Indians for centuries. Pizarro and the rest of his men overpowered the Inca’s and took the precious metals and jewels for themselves with much of it being.

Next stop on the tour was to visit Casa Aliagra, a former colonial mansion that is now a museum and open to the public. It is said to be the oldest mansion in the Western Hemisphere to be continually owned by the same family. The beauty of the woodwork in the house build in the 16th century is amazing. The craftsmen who constructed it were without question the best of their time. There was an atrium garden in the open courtyard in the center of the house which was beautiful. The wealth of some of the early settlers was extraordinary, no doubt some of the Inca’s stolen gold and silver put to use.

While we were visiting we were served a choice of cold beverages. Coca Cola, an international favorite, and Inka Cola, a local popular soft drink, that is sort of like a mild Mello Yellow.

We walked to see the San Francisco Monastery, a beautiful old building currently in the process of restoration. Significant use of tiles on the wall as an art form which was very interesting, the style was very crude and the artist’s hand did not display a lot of skill, but being more than 300 years old they certainly have stood the test of time.

We continued out tour toward the coast and drove through the residential districts of San Isidro and Miraflores. At first the style of the buildings, which were built in the 60’s and 70’s looked as though they were designed and constructed by the same builders who put up the ugly brown and grey apartment buildings of eastern Europe during the Communist era. It seems that they fired all the architects before they decided to build them. Serviceable no doubt, but absolutely awful to look at. The newer construction of the 1990s and later began to show some style and better use of glass and more modern materials. We arrived at a beautiful shopping center overlooking the Pacific Ocean, had a chance to walk around for a brief time and planned to come back the next day. We took the Ocean Highway road back to the ship, and had a terrific dinner on board in one of the special restaurants.