…en Perú - Travel Culture History News

Trucha, or trout in English, are found throughout the waters of Andean Peru but are not a native species. They were introduced from Canada to supplement the food supply and provide poor Andean communities with a much needed boost of protein in their diets.
Despite not being native, trout have not only survived, but thrived in many places across the country. It seems there’s not an Andean lake or river in which they were introduced where the trout aren’t doing well.

I haven’t visited Canada or tasted fresh Canadian trout, but the soft pink meat of a freshly fried Peruvian trucha is delicious. If you can eat one just seconds after being plucked from the water, all the better, as I found out in the Chillon valley.

Fish farms exist along the banks of many Andean rivers and lakes, mass breeding yet more of this tasty fish species. This one (see photo) in the Chillon valley is typical of those found on rivers. Using the river water itself to fill and filter various tanks for fish of various stages of development, costs are low and fish yield is high.

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It was the largest city that had existed in South America and remained that way even when it lay in ruins during part of the Spanish colonial period. At 18km2 by some measurements and more than 20km2 including its surrounding agricultural districts, this gigantic city formed the capital of the Chimor kingdom of the Chimú civilisation.

Located 5km west of modern Trujillo, out-sizing it until modern expansion, the ruins of Chan Chan are an extraordinary sight. Consisting of 10 citadels constructed by 10 generations of rulers, it would be impossible to visit it all.

Chan Chan now lays in a dilapidated state. Damage caused by El Niño rains have left the once towering walls of Chan Chan looking like melted snow. The most recent and most sever damage took place early last century when most of the remaining details on the walls were washed away.

Of the massive archaeological site, one small part, in itself huge, has been saved from the elements with careful restoration. Known as the Tschudi Complex, it is one of the last of 10 urban complexes constructed. In Chan Chan the Chimor rulers were expected to construct their own living and administrative centres to manage the kingdom. When a ruler dies, he and all his administrative staff are buried with him inside his complex. The complex is then sealed and a new one constructed by the following ruler.

Exploring the entire site can be done on foot, but there’s not much to see other than melted walls. In the Tschudi Complex however, you get an idea of how spectacular Chan Chan was.

The walls are constructed with adobe bricks, and covered with a smooth  surface on which images were carved. These images had a maritime theme of fish, waves and pelican birds, a bird they also used to help them fish. Think bird on a string.

The Tschudi complex consists of 3 plazas, increasingly less exquisitely decorated as you move closer and closer to the residential areas. There was less need to show off to chieftains bringing tribute in these areas as they would not be visited. Other significant parts of the complex are the administration and taxation areas. In this part of the city there are many booths to which representatives from specific parts of the kingdom would bring their tributes to be accounted for. In this area, filled with people surrounded by baking mud walls, the Chimú made ventilation a priority. Here the walls were designed with holes in the form of fishing nets. All these areas are connected by corridors with towering decorated walls leading, eventually, towards the area of the ruling elite and the king himself. Here you will also find the one of the city’s water supplies, a deep pool dug down below the ground water level.

In the palace area of the city is the tomb of the ruler of this time, buried with many others to accompany him in the afterlife. With all the political elite killed off, the next generation took control of the kingdom.

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Huanchaco is a friendly beach town popular during the summer months with the people of Trujillo and known as a excellent surf spot. It is also a popular spot to eat ceviche.

By far it’s greatest attraction, however, is as a place that preserves a fishing tradition dating back thousands of years. Local fishermen still ride the waves on their Caballitos de Totora. Literaly meaning little reed horses because of the way they are straddled when ridden, these rafts are used by the fishermen to drag their nets out into the water, eventually collecting the fish and putting them in the cavity in the back of the raft. These are the same types of reeds that the people of Los Uros use to construct their artificial islands in the lake Titicaca. Due to their shape, and the fact that the beach faces the setting sun, these rafts are extremely photogenic.

Lots of photos attached.

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Barranco, long since swallowed up by the huge city of Lima, was once a tiny distant fishing village. Legend has it that one winter, while out fishing, a group of fishermen were lost in Lima’s legendary sea mist. After praying and searching in vain for hours in the darkness they noticed a glittering light in the distance. Rowing towards it, they ran ashore and were saved. They climbed the cliff to where they had seen the light and found nothing but a wooden cross in the sand.
It was here, as the legend goes, they built the Church of La Ermita, where it still stands to this day.

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I’ve seen coastal scenes in the UK, in France and in Chile, all of which, although mostly the same, I feel give some insight into the country in which they are located.
I am familiar with seeing fishing boats coming ashore with their catch, birds flocking around harbours looking for dropped fish and all the sites you would expect on the coast. I’ve seen these scenes every year in my life and was interested to see the Peruvian version - and I did on my recent trip to the beach.
You can see my photos attached to this blog. More from Explorando Lima.
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