The oldest man in South America.

Madeline is always  asking to get into a mototaxi for a wild ride.

The city of Huanta from the lookout . We got there by mototaxi and what a ride that was.
The driver  said he'll charge me 10 soles, i told him that if we get back unscathed i would
give him 15 soles but if anything would happen he'll get nothing. He agreed.

Madeline and her side kick.

Ready for the procession.

We stayed at a hostel that was build in 1711 complete with under floor hiding rooms.
The owner of the place told us the story of how the Spanish would be bringing about
20 to 30 donkeys  full loaded each with 80 to 100 kilos of gold from far up in the
Andes of Peru and Bolivia then they would rest the donkeys for up to 2 months and
continue the journey to the coastal port of Callao ready to be ship in Spanish
galleons  to Spain.

The Hostel is called  "La posada del Marques" .
It originally belong to the Marques  of  the city of Huanta.

The walls are about 1 metre thick and the steps just amazing.

We were made to feel at home by the owners .

Koala style

Near Huanta, nobody seem to knows exactly when this bridge was build but it sort of dates back to
colonial times 200 or 400 years ago.

Legend says that criminals were hanged and left there as an example.

Pikimachay or Cave of the flees.
No human remains were ever found here but they found tools made out of volcanic rock and animal bones
such as extinct giant rodents and sable tooth tiger  dating back 23,000 years BC

The 3 of us and the cave of Pikimachay in the Andes of Ayacucho, Peru.

Good Friday in Ayacucho

Procession carriers

Wari civilisation.
The Waris were a pre-Inca civilisation dating back 550 to 1200 years AC.
Here the main city of Wari was 1500 hectares and it could have had up to 100,000 people.
The city had under ground water and sewage

Ceremonial rock where the Waries did carry animals and human sacrifices.
Animals sacrifices were done to please Pachamama (Mother Earth) or ask for more rain or better animal production.
Human sacrifices were done to the king's wives and his generals as the king died to accompanied him in the later life.

Only 5 %  of the Wari city has been excavated due to fundings. This is the place where the representatives of the city's
district would meet to make their decisions .

Under ground pipes for water or sewage

Do i look fat?

Some old dude.

Right after the battle of Ayacucho on the 9 of december 1824 the Spanish surrender to the Patriots for the last time
in the whole of the Americas.

Smoko

The Patriot  Generals of  the Batlle of Ayacucho from left to right .
Cordoba from Colombia; La Mar from Ecuador; Sucre from Venezuela; Gamarra from Peru; Lara from Venezuela and Miller from England

Monument remembering the last battle for independence

The batlle fields of Ayacucho.

She is always happy to do the cloths washing.

5000 mt above sea level

After 3 months it was time to hit the road again, this time we headed into the Andes to the

city of Huanta, 43 Kms north of the city of Ayacucho but we didn't made it                                     there without any hassles Madeline and Louise were

hit hard by  "soroche" altitude sickness when the bus crossed a 5000 mt above sea level pass.

Our heads were aching and our guts turning that put us into physical restrictions for the next

3 days while our bodies adjusted slowly, it was all worth it at the end. We are eating the local 

cuisine, witnessing epic traditions and meting amazing friendly people.

The tennis boys.
They get together for a good hit out once a week after work, late at night .
Thank you guys for sharing the fun.

Madeline had to get over her nerves to meet Carlos the eldest member of the family.
And he still with us.

Humitas.
A ground corn cake like wrapped in corn husk made with butter, cinnamon, milk, sugar
and sultanas. Beats corn-flakes by a mile.

This was at the front of the meat market section just in case you did not see it.

Coca leaves section.
Coca leaves is the main ingredient for the making of cocaine, in the highlands the selling of coca leaves is legal in small quantities for making tea or for chewing.

Bored sticky beaks wouldn't let me do my blog.

It was all fun and games until Pepito the bird pooped on Madeline's shoulder.

Forget your late night Kebabs and hot dogs.  Nothing beats a good hen soup (Caldo de Gallina) before bed at the local.

 

These blocks of home made Fetta cheeses are lovely to look at but might be deadly for a Gringa to eat. We don`t know.

These markets went for streets and streets. Obviously the main shopping day for the village of Huanta. And we were the only foreigners to be seen. It kinda of felt like we were the attraction.

Yes she is asleep on the job. Notice the bunch of Coca Leaves in her pocket. She`s probably been chewing those leaves all morning.  She is probably "fully chilled"

Louise said "that guy is selling blood".  No.  It is tree sap. Good for everything including cancer.

Catching a lift in the highlands.

Yep you guess it!. Guinea Pig or Cuy as it is known here. Complete with head and feet.  The fried potatoes were yummy.

My lovely gringa at the Barbosa country club.

Must be something in the water

This is Madeline actually having a conversation in Spanish with this indigenous lady about fruit trees. It blew me away. Give it a few more months and I reckon she will be fluent.

Palm Sunday parade in Huanta. These guys were scratching their heads on how to get through the crowd that was forming.

You can`t have a parade in Peru without fire crackers.

"Where`s Wally"  

Palm Sunday in Huanta where the tradition is for young and old.

This is as close as i could get to the statue of Jesus been carried by a donkey

.