Cusco’s Señor de los Temblores [Featured]

Señor de los Temblores is celebrated in Cusco during Holy Week, or Semana Santa. On Easter Monday the image of Señor de los Temblores is carried through the city in a procession that ends in front of the Cusco Cathedral on the Plaza de Armas, or main square, of Cusco. Tens of thousands gather on the Plaza de Armas and surrounding streets to see the procession.

April 11, 2009 | Culture & History

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Lima – Weekend Getaways

So, what is the tourist, with more time in Lima then they’d prefer and no interest in a city experience, to do?

The truth is, Peru is such a magical place that you do not need to go too far outside the city of Lima to find attractions that rival those elsewhere in the country. From desert oases, pretty Andean villages and ancient pyramids to hiking trails, white water rafting and horseback riding – here’s the run down of nearby weekend getaways.

January 26, 2009 | Lima City Guide, Nature

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Ruins of Pachacamac

The history of pre-Hispanic Lima is deeply entwined with Pachacamac. Worshipped across the central Andes since before the Inca conquest, the powerful creator god Pacha Kamaq is even revered today, almost 500 years after the Spanish conquest by Catholics in Lima. Today this powerful being has taken shape as the Cristo Morado and has been absorbed into Catholicism, and just as he is today, this ancient figure was also known as the Lord of the Earthquakes.

October 29, 2008 | Archaeology, Culture & History, Lima City Guide

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Maranga and the Lima Culture

In the heart of Pre-Columbian Lima, at the time of the arrival of the Spanish, a vast city was found south of the Rimac River between modern day Lima and Callao. Certainly the administrative centre of power in northern part of the Inca province of Ischma, with Pachacamac an important centre of the south, this city was built long before by the native “Lima Culture” who lived here. Today most of this important complex has been destroyed through the efforts of the Peruvian Government, the University of San Marcos and the Peruvian people in the earlier part of the last century – a time when Peruvians couldn’t care less about their ancient past. Remaining though, and some now finally being restored, are several large huacas, pyramidal mounds, that bare testament to Lima’s long history.

September 11, 2008 | Archaeology, Culture & History, Lima City Guide, Opinion

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Cordillera de la Viuda

The Cordillera of the Widow may get its name from its black colour, or from a complex story passed down from pre-Hispanic and pre-Inca beliefs involving the death of creator-God Pachacamac (Pacha Kamaq), wife of mother-earth Pachamama.

April 7, 2008 | Culture & History

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