Archive for February, 2007
Probably Peru’s most renowned musician, Susana Baca will be offering two live recitals in Miraflores’ Jazz Zone next March, Friday 2nd and Saturday 3rd. As usual, she will be enchanting the audience with a repertory of beautiful and melancholic Afro Peruvian songs, inparticular those from her most recent album, Espiritu Vivo.
Susana Baca builds on her Afro Peruvian roots and nourishes from the sounds of blues, reggae, and jazz to create a very personal and distinctive style that has gained her a much deserved status of World Music Diva.
Although Susana Baca’s artistic career started more than 30 years ago, success only arrived at the turn of the 20th century, after she was discovered by David Byrne’s Luaka Bop label. The initial years were particularly hard, her music neither understood nor comprehended. “Music industry people asked me why I sang poetry -she recalls-. They proposed me to sing pop tunes”. She has recorded three albums -Susana Baca, Eco de Sombras and Espíritu Vivo-, all of which have been acclaimed both by the critics and public.
The recitals will be held at Jazz Zone (Av. La Paz 656, Pasaje El Suche, Miraflores, phone 241-8139). Cover 40 soles (aprox. $12). Friday 2nd and Saturday 3rd, 10.30pm.
February 28th, 2007
The Humane Society International and Mundo Azul, a Peruvian NGO dedicated to the conservation of the marine and aquatic biodiversity of Peru, will be hosting the International Conference “Whale and Dolphin Watching: An Oportunity for Sustainable Coastal Development and Conservation”. The conference counts with the participation of national and international speakers from Peruvian and US-Government, tourism and fisheries sector, scientists and conservationists. Renowned participants include Dr. Erich Hoyt and Dr. Carol Carlson ( specialists on whale and dolphin watching) and Dr. Brigit Winning, President of the Oceanic Society.
To be held this 27th and 28th of February at the Double Tree El Pardo Hotel, in Lima, the conference is part of the “Dolphin Conservation in Peru” project, whose main objectives are to strengthen the implementation of laws for the conservation of cetaceans in Peru; and to promote dolphin and whale watching as an economic and sustainable alternative for artisan fishermen.
Alas, participation to the conference is free but only possible by personal invitation. If you are anyway interested in making yourself useful to the cetaceans cause, Mundo Azul gives you a wide array of Wildlife Volunteering Alternatives.
February 27th, 2007
Mundo Azul is a Peruvian NGO that contributes since 1999 to the conservation of biological diversity and nature in Peru -particularly regarding marine and aquatic biodiversity-, to sustainable development, to poverty reduction and to an improved human and animal welfare.
Mundo Azul, as part of their varied conservation programs, offers some exciting opportunities for wildlife volunteering to people from all over the world. It’s not necessary to be a biologist or natural science student; all you need is a strong interest in nature and the willingness to dedicate your time and effort.
Sperm whales (top) can be seen in Pisco (south of Lima) and Paita (Piura department, Peru’s North). Bottle-nose Dolphins (bottom) are the most widespread cetacean in Peru.
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If you are attracted to direct action, you could Study and Monitor Local Populations of Coastal Bottle-nose Dolphins with Mundo Azul’s research team. You will be trained to photo-identify individual dolphins, record data on the location and behaviour of local dolphin populations, and observe other marine wildlife such as sea lions, sea turtles, Humbolt penguins, and marine otters. This program currently covers 140 kms of the central Peruvian coastline and aims to extend its coverage to 240 kms during the year 2007, stretching out from Lima to the national Reserve of Paracas.
If you are an expert diver (certified with at least 60 logged open water dives) and have a strong interest in marine biology, you could become a Submarine Research Diver. This program studies Peruvian marine fish and invertebrate species, and implies the identification and underwater location of species, as well as underwater fish count.
If you’re not an open ocean type, but rather a potential Tarzan, Mundo Azul offers a unique opportunity to spend a few days in one of the World’s most amazing and pristine rainforests. Their rainforest research program, just south of the Manu National Park, is a great chance to Research Giant River Otters, Tapirs, Makaws and many other mammal, bird, reptile and amphibian species.
Finally, if you’re not sure to embark yet in such thrilling activities, go ahead and Adopt a Dolphin.
February 27th, 2007
Curiously, the most prestigious literary awards won by Peruvians were both obtained in 1994.
In April 1994, Mario Vargas Llosa was awarded the Cervantes, convoked by Spain’s Culture and Education ministry and considered by large the most prestigious prize of all Spanish Literatures.
And in November that same year, just one month before his death, the great storyteller Julio Ramón Riberyro won the Juan Rulfo. Probably the most prestigious of all Latin American Literary awards, the Rulfo is convoked, among other institutions, by the Mexican Congress for Culture and Arts.
February 25th, 2007
Jorge Zegarra, director of Cuzco’s branch of the National Institute of Culture (INC), said they are evaluating new guidelines for the opening of Machu Picchu to the public. The measurements, currently under study, aim at preserving and protecting Peru’s prime tourist destination.
Limiting the visits to the Inca citadel, as well as avoiding that visitors stay all day in the ruins, should bring a double benefit. On the one hand, it’ll save Machu Picchu from extended (and excessive) exposition to visitors, and the inevitable “wearing”. On the other, it will reduce the congestion inside the Inca site, thus improving the experience for visitors (even if, and precisely because of, the length of visits is reduced).
February 21st, 2007
As of today, The Peru Guide will start posting a series of curious -and sometimes bare- data about Peru, ranging from the trivia to the indispensable, and thus called Indispensable Trivia. The first one is dedicated, why not, to coffee.
Coffee is grown in a large area of Peru, comprising 10 of the country’s 24 departments. It grows in high jungle areas, between 600 and 1.800 masl (although most above 1000 masl). Coffee in Peru is mostly arabiga, with the most valued varieties being the Good Hard Bean (central jungle), Hard Bean (north-eastern jungle) and Medium Hard Bean (south east).
According to the International Coffee Organization (2006 crop year data), Peru is the World’s 9th producer of coffee, with some 210 million kilos. The top ten is conformed as follows:
Country -Production (60-kilo bags)
1. Brazil -42.512.000
2. Vietnam -15.000.000
3. Colombia -11.600.000
4. Indonesia -6.850.000
5. Ethiopia -5.500.000
6. India -5.005.000
7. Mexico -4.500.000
8. Guatemala -4.000.000
9. Peru -3.500.000
10. Honduras -2.700.000
February 20th, 2007
The Peru Guide has added a new group of t-shirts that commemorate some of the most important Icons of Peruvian Popular Culture. The first 4 legends featured in this series include a poet, a musician, and 2 saints (one though not recognized by the Catholic Church). Follows a short biography of the celebrated personalities (with excerpts from Wikipedia).
César Vallejo
Peru’s first poet, César Vallejo was born the youngest of eleven children in Santiago de Chuco, a remote village in the Northern Andes of Peru. Although during his lifetime he published only three books of poetry, he is nonetheless considered one of the great poetic innovators of the 20th century. Always a step ahead of the literary currents, each of his books was distinct from the others and, in its own sense, revolutionary.
His first book, Los heraldos negros (The black heralds) is a transitional book which blends modernismo, posmodernismo and the beginnings of the avant-garde in the structure and language of its poems. The poet confronts existential anguish, personal guilt, and pain, writing famously, Hay golpes en la vida tan fuertes…, yo no sé (”There are blows in life, so hard… I don’t know”).
Trilce, his second book, published in 1922, anticipated much of the avant-garde movement that would develop in the 1920s and 30s. Vallejo’s book takes language to a radical extreme, inventing words, stretching syntax, using automatic writing and other techniques now known as “surrealist” (though he did this before the Surrealist movement began). The book put Latin America at the center of the Avant-garde.
Sarita Colonia
Although not recognised by the Catholic Church, Sarita Colonia is the unofficial saint of the forgotten and the pauper. Her grave, in the popular port of Callao, is a sanctuary of marginal popular religiosity. It’s visited by prostitutes, homosexuals, transvestites, and criminals who, ready to face death every day, ask Sarita to help them through their dangerous jobs, pray her for a safe return home.
Born in 1914 in Huaraz (in the Andean department of Ancash), Sarita Colonia migrated with her family to Lima, as many Andean families did during the first decades of the 20th century. The fervour and myth around Sarita began after two men raped her (or tried to). Indeed, there are contradictory versions about this event. One of these suggests that, after tearing her clothes apart, the rapists found no sexual organ: it had disappeared. According to Ernesto Vásquez (Sarita Colonia: Popular Resistance in the everyday life of Transnational Migrants), it is precisely because of this ambiguity that she currently represents the most important popular religious icon in Peru
The cult for Sarita Colonia started in the 70s, first confined to the marginal, then gradually extending to more prosper and mainstream strata of society.
Felipe Pinglo
Known as the father of Peruvian Musica criolla, Pinglo (July 18, 1899 - May 13, 1936) was an influential and prolific poet and songwriter best known for his often covered “El Plebeyo” (The Commoner).
In Peru and Latin America, Pinglo’s name is most often associated with the Peruvian vals criollo, which is a uniquely Peruvian music, characterized by the 3/4 time, elaborate guitar work and lyrics about lost love or the Lima of yesteryear.
Pinglo was born in one of the oldest sections of Lima, (Barrios Altos), known as an historical district with a working class population. The poverty in which young Felipe was raised as well as the instruction received by his father and aunts created a young mind that was both learned and socially conscious. During his lifetime, Pinglo was known as a Bohemian, sickly and frail. In 1917, he produced his first vals, “Amelia” at the age of 18, which instantly became a popular and respected song. For the next 19 years until his untimely death in 1936 he composed approximately 300 songs, many of them lost forever or surviving in fragments only.
Fray Martín de Porres
Born in Lima (December 9, 1579), he was the illegitimate son of a Spanish nobleman and a young Afro-Peruvian woman. He grew up in poverty, and at the age of 11 was taken in by the Dominicans as a servant. As his duties grew he was promoted to almoner, and then put in charge of the infirmary. His piety and miraculous cures led his superiors to drop the racial limits on admission to the Order and he was made a full Dominican brother.
His work on behalf of the poor was tireless: he established an orphanage and a children’s hospital. He maintained an austere lifestyle, which included fasting and forswearing meat. Among the many miracles attributed to him were those of levitation, bilocation, miraculous knowledge, instantaneous cures and an ability to communicate with animals. It is said that he also was able to feed a dog, a cat, and a mouse together from a same dish; the three didn’t fight among themselves.
Sain Martin was beatified in 1837 by Pope Gregory XVI and canonized on May 6, 1962 by Pope John XXIII. His feast day is November 3.
As part of a special edition, the Peruvian Icons t-shirts only come in a limited array of models/colours, including the following:
Add to del.icio.us
February 15th, 2007
GOL Linhas Aereas Inteligentes, Brazil’s low-cost, low-fare airline, started yesterday (February 12th) its daily flights to Lima. “The new route connecting Brazil and Peru -reads the press release-, is an important part of GOL’s expansion plans in South America“. On the one hand, business between Brazil and Peru has increased from US$1.4 billion in 2005 to US$2.3 billion in 2006 (with 12 bilateral agreements signed to further strengthen the relationship between the two countries). On the other, Peru’s strong tourism market makes it a much attractive destination in South America.
Daily flights will depart from Galeao Airport, in Rio de Janeiro, making one stop at Sao Paulo’s Guarulhos airport. Below is the flight schedule:
| Origin |
Destination |
Freq. |
Departure |
Arrival |
| Sao Paulo (Guarulhos) |
Lima |
daily |
10pm |
12.10am |
| Lima |
Sao Paulo (Guarulhos) |
daily |
12.50am |
8.20am |
| Rio (Galeão) |
Lima (via Sao Paulo) |
daily |
8.30pm |
12.10am |
| Lima (via Sao Paulo) |
Rio (Galeão) |
daily |
12.50am |
9.50am |
February 13th, 2007
Carnivals in the Peruvian Andes are signed by a festive atmosphere and a refusal of every solemnity. Although every city or town has its own interpretation of the festivity, some are shared country-wide -or at least region-wide.
In the coast, for example, the youth have fun throwing water-balloons to the pedestrians. In the Andes -and in many rural areas of the coast- the yunza ritual is quite common. The yunza consists in artificially planting a gift-loaded tree, and then to dance around it while hitting the trunk with a machete, until the tree falls.
Though carnivals are celebrated everywhere, some of the most peculiar and fun are to be found in Cajamarca, Puno, Ayacucho and Huarás.
February 10th, 2007
After quite a few requests, we have published our brand new Glossary of Peruvian Cuisine, including culinary terms, local ingredients and traditional dishes. Now you’ll know what we talk about when we talk about huacatay, charqui, ají mirasol, conchas negras… or carapulcra, which is the typical Andean pork and dry-potato stew you seen on this post’s photo.
February 1st, 2007
