A) book the train well in advance (perurail.com) B) book an afternoon train from Ollantaytambo (it is cheaper than from Cuzco and you can go early and see the town and its own ruins) C) book an evening return for the following day to Ollantaytambo D) there are cheap places to stay in Aguas Calientes (Machu Picchu Pueblo) E) you can`t take a pack over 20 litres into MP with you so pack light – you won`t need layers of clothes F) get up at 4.15 G) either walk to Machu Picchu (over an hour, with lots of stairs) or H) get in line early for the 5.30 buses (say 4.30 or before)and sit at the front of the bus you get on I) when you get off the bus at Machu Picchu, start running J) run to Huayna Picchu and put your name down (only 400 allowed to climb per day) K) now relax and walk back to the Hut of the Caretaker of the Funerary Rock L) take great pics from there before the thousands arrive M) enjoy... N) catch a taxi or bus back from Ollantaytambo to Cuzco at a fraction of the rail cost
We are not world heritage tourists, the (mythical?) types who travel to places inscribed on the UNESCO list just to notch up the numbers, but... It came to my attention that Monastery de Santa Catalina, which we visited yesterday, was on the World Heritage List (as part of the “historical centre of Arequipa” and as my interest had already been tweaked, I did a little online research and found out that the list incoporates 878 sites (679 cultural 174 natural and 25 mixed), twenty of which we have been to in the 8 months we have been away.
The World Heritage List is supposed to be of places with outstanding universal value, though the system – in which countries nominate their own sites – is open to manipulation. A look at the map shows that Europe dominates and, if I counted right, 368 of the sites are on the smallest continent, not including Russian or Turkish Europe. Anyway, though I claimed not to ne a number-notcher, I am sure it will not be long before I go through the whole list and count where I`ve been... In the meantime, these are the 20 we have been to in the last eight months, and the three more in Peru we will see when our friend Julie arrives in a couple of days.
The evidence of the depth of political conflict in Peru abounds. As soon as we crossed the border – even before we had got to the first town, Tacna – I was surprised by “Fujimori innocent” slogans and even more by painted “Fujimori 2011” campaign propaganda. I know very little about Peruvian politics but was aware that six weeks previously ex-president Alberto Fujimori had been sentenced to 25 years in prison for being the intellectual author of “dirty war” killings in the early 1990s. This, after all, was a fantastic victory for human rights given the number of Latin American “strong men” who have escaped justice for their crimes. True, the number of dead or disappeared he was accused of being responsible for was tiny in comparison to the military regimes in Argentina or Chile during the 1970s and 1980s, but – after all – murder is murder.
The campaign material turned out to be for the daughter of murderer Fujimori, Keiko. She has vowed to pardon her father if elected in two years and is currently looking likely to be able to do just that. Perhaps surprisingly, it is the rural “have nots” of the divided country that still support “chino” Fujimori. (Despite his surname being obviously Japanese (second-generation Nihonjins exist in relatively large numbers in Brazil and Peru, though there are twenty times as many in the Portugese-speaking nation), the nickname of the ex-president apparently plays on the idea of thrifty, hard-working chinese restaurant chefs.) This may be because the Shining Path guerilla group that Fujimori´s government went after so violently was more of a threat in the countryside.
It is the jungle where the contemporary murder is happening though. Just a few days before I arrived, President Alan Garcia had ordered the violent repression of an indigenous blockade in the north of the country. Between 50 and 150 people had died as a result, including about 25 policemen. There were reports that the bodies of some Amazonians (protesting Law 1090, which allows the exploitation of their traditional lands without adequate compensation) had been burned or carried away by security forces intent on hiding the extent of the massacre. This DOES sound like the continent in the 1970s.
In Arequipa, hand-written posters adorn the gates and fence of the cathedral. They tell of solidarity with the people of La Selva (the lowland Amazonian regions) and the desire for peace. There is also a clear line in references to Garcia as a thief and a murderer. He had Shining Path blood on his hands in his stint as president before Fujimori, and now has that of Amazonian Awajun and Aguarunas too. His prosecution should not be too far off.
As the president blamed outside forces (read Bolivia and Venezuela), nationwide protests were organised and today I went to the rally in the Plaza de Armas in Arequipa. Thousands turned out to show their support, demanding a new constitution, a new president, and the repeal of 1090, which – to allow more dialogue - was suspended by the Congress for 90 days last night. I spoke to a guy who said he worked in construction but sounded well-educated and even broke into English. He expressed the fear that the suspension was just a lull before the storm whilst also seeming positive that real change could occur.
I am left doubting that this divided society is going to be healed anytime soon. Despite the hopes of the protesters today, Garcia seems likely to see out his term and that could mean the death of more indigenous people as well as the beginning of the loss of their land and rights such as clean air and water. Come 2011, it currently looks less probable that Peru will be part of the socialist-indigenous South American bloc, and more probable that it will be re-visiting past fights.
The five of us in the 4x4 probably could have done a little better at finding ways to try to describe the Uyuni Salt Plains: "like Mars", "like the Moon" and "otherworldly" won out.
Just when we may have thought we had a manager with whom we might be going places, he goes to a place without us: the news (a message on my Facebook page - I am adrift 4000 feet above sea level) that Brendan Rogers has taken the Reading managerial vacancy 192 days after joining us is bad for the Horns and I never even got to sing one song with his name in (still, I found something to laugh about later). Early favourite to replace him is Malky Mackay, who I hope does not get the post. Where is Peter Taylor these days? Always liked him...
