To Northern Marinera is a typical couple dance of the coastal regions of Peru. This is a beautiful and stylized representation of the entourage of a gentleman and a lady.

The role that is carry out by the two dancers is very well defined: the lady flirts to the suitor with a lot of grace and mischief being approached and moving away from him, while the second one advances are responded with pride by its counterpart. In both cases, the dancers agitate elegantly handkerchiefs during the dance.

The Northern Marinera is a dance of notable elegance and style. This dance has a notable variation that involves a gentlemen riding on top of a Peruvian Stepping Horse and directs himself the dance that is performed by the equine.

The music that accompanies the Marinera is a dynamic piece played in compass of 3/4 (as the waltzes) interpreted in most cases by military bands with tarolas and bass drums.

The pieces are comprised of two identical sections that are played in succession of the other and they are called “First” and “Second” (and is exactly from here that the say “there is not first without second” is used to be exclaimed in the small interlude between the two movements.

The first marinera that has been registered is the famous piece titled “La Conchaperla” expressed in score as a group by Abelardo Gamarra and José Alvarado, but composed by the great Rosa Mercedes Ayarza de Morales, at the beginning of the 20th century.

The origin of the Northern Marinera and the other variations (the limean and the mountain one, of these ones we will speak in another occasion) is unknown. What we know for certain is that its name was changed from the old one “Chilena” to the current one, in full war with Chile, in honor of the heroic feat of the immortal Admiral Miguel Grau Seminario.

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• San Blas:

This church is located in the Plazoleta of the neighborhood previously named T’oqokachi in the XVI century, and today it is San Blas. Its initial construction was ordered by the Viceroy Francisco de Toledo and it was one of the first parishes in Cusco, which was ravaged by the 1650 earthquake.

Its construction was created through adobe, its roof is ridgy and its façade is covered in simplicity with plateresque characteristics. The ornamentation is found in its interior, where there is a platform in the shape of a Spanish Cross.  Its largest altar is golden in the Baroque style; here you can also find a retalbo of the Our Lady of Great Success.

This temple is recognized by its pulpit, which has been carved in one piece of cedar that looks to be the work of indigenous hands and dates back to the last third of the XVII century, approximately.

• San Pedro of Andahuaylillas:

This is church is considered as the “Sistine Chapel of America” because it is one of the most astounding examples of Andean religious art and dates back to the middle of the XVI century, approximately.

The façade is Renaissance type and the interior is Baroque.  The ceiling is practically full of Mudejar ornaments, with themes such as flowers and fruits, that have been covered in gold leaf. A lot of linens are a witness to this, also being marked by gold leaf.

We find an arch that leads to the baptistry with the following inscription: “I baptize in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen”, in Latin, Quechua, Aimara, Spanish and in the Puquina tongue, due to the fact that this language was also spoken here.

Other temples, convents and churches that you may visit throughout Cusco are:

• San Francisco.
• San Cristobal.
• San Sebastian.
• Santa Teresa.
• Santa Clara.
• San Antonio de Abad.
• Santa Ana.
• La Recoleta.
• Iglesia de Belén.

Technorati Tags: tourism, tours, places, trips, cusco , religion, faith.

Images: Qoyllur-Tours, SkyscraperCity.

Kusikay, will present its second season of the play, Paukartanpu, which is inspired by the traditional feast of the Virgin of Carmen or  Mamacha Carmen, which is celebrated every year from July 15 to 19 in the Cusco city of  Paucartambo.

Paukartanpu, recreates an imaginary voyage in which the tourist, a drunkard and a pair of bakers, shows us the feast in honor of Mamacha Carmen deeply penetrating with her life experiences into the heart of the land.  These characters relate scenes of emotion and discovery of Andean roots, where can be seen a mixture of Incan and Spanish elements.

Through dance and music, the drunkard meets  the Sagras – or devils-, who change him into the juggler of the feast, forcing him to defy the laws of gravity with his pirouettes.  Meanwhile, the bakers interact with the audience and dancers; while the tourist, in order to get better photos of his trip, does the unthinkable and winds up distracted in the middle of the Waca Wacas.

The retinues- of pre-Spanish, colonial or mestizo  origin – follow one after the other and relate the traditions.  The dance of the  Majeños represent the merchants who brought firewater to Arequipa; the dance of the Qhapaq Qollas was created by the merchants to honor Mamacha Carmen; the one of the  K’achampas, in exchange, symbolizes the Incan warrior in his struggle of expansion and conquest; and the one of the Wacas Wacas satirizes the Spanish taurine feast.  Meanwhile, the Sagras escape with rhythmic movements from the Virgin,  adorned with lavish garments inspired by the multi-colored rays of the spectacular sunrise in Tres Cruces, which is, coincidentally, where the feast begins.

Aside from the dances, one discovers the meeting of two cultures and the religious syncretism between the Andean and the Spanish; the fusion of two worlds that have resulted in a mestizo Peru and rich in traditions.  Kusikay ,musicalizes and enriches the play with original pieces and traditional themes, mixing ancestral and modern instruments.

You are invited to display your imagination through the characters, music and scenery, which will amaze and entertain you, with the humor and fantasy of a live culture.  Get near to the spirit of the Andes with this wonderful play, Paukartanpu, a spectacle that will become the best complement to your visit to Peru.

Remember that  Paukartanpu is presented in a few blocks of the Plaza de Armas in Cusco, at the Kusikay Theatre, with the latest technology and with seating for 455 people.  The cast is composed of almost 30 top level artists. Do not miss this production and enjoy the nightlife of Cusco, since the Paukartanpu night is a magical night.

Pertinent information:

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Images: Kusikay

Technorati Tags: tourism, trips, places, Cusco, Peru, tourism Peru, Kusikay.

This city is the owner of an astounding and rich culture in all of its aspects and of one of the world’s wonders: Machu Picchu.

Cusco is a city in the Peruvian southeast, which is located in the oriental zone of the Andes Range and is found in a valley which was formed thanks to the  Huatanay River and  the adjacent mountains.

This city’s population s found distributed in five districts:  Cusco, San Jeronimo, San Sebastian, Santiago and Wanchaq. It borders on the north with Junin and Ucayali; on the south with  Arequipa and Puno; on the east with  Madre de Dios; and on the west with Apurimac and Ayacucho.

It presents an altitude of 3,350 msnm (meters below sea level), approximately, which is why it is considered as one of the highest cities in the world and one should take precautions because of this.

The climate of Cusco varies between dry and temperate.  The maximum temperature is approximately  20º C counting with two seasons:

• April to October: the average temperature is  13º C and the dry season, with many cold nights that go approximately below  5º C.
• November to March: the average temperature is 12º C and is the rainy season, with nights whose temperature drops to approximately  5ºC or 6ºC.

Cusco’s founding  has been given a mythological explanation, based on the legend of Manco Capac and Mama Ocllo, and those of the Ayar Brothers. Furthermore, it is known that this was Incan territory and the capital of its empire and kingdom, which was conquered by the Spanish and founded by Francisco Pizarro on March 23, 1534, who named it “Cusco, noble and grand city”.

Cusco is one of the best tourist destinations; the place enjoys exotic flora and fauna, typical dancing and food; aside from its already recognized architecture, history and culture.

Images: Peru.hi.pe
Technorati Tags: tourism, tours, trips, places, Cusco, Peru.

Born as the City of the Kings, the current capital of Peru was not only the center of the Spanish administration in America for more than 300 years, but it was also an oasis of European culture inside the New World.  Capital of a great empire that was born in Nicaragua and finished in the Strait of Magellan, iit was the headquarters and promoter of an architectural and religious cultural development imitated by the remainder cities founded by the Spaniards in American lands. 

The history of Lima begins in its foundation in 1535, under the command of Francisco Pizarro, leader of the conquest of the Empire of the Inca.  After the division of the city in sections, the beginning of constructions of the social institutions and the civil war among the conquerors, arrived the first Virrey of the colony:  Blasco Núñez de Vela.

The Virrey was the representative of the king of Spain and he was chosen among the nobility.  He entered Lima with all the honors and he established policies that his followers would continue for 300 years.

The importance of the Virrey in Lima

In the old House of Pizarro, at present called Palace of Government, was the dwelling of the Virrey for the time of his stay as the leader of the Colony, which should not exceed 4 years.  This was found in the main square, which was decorated every year according to the social and religious festivities that were celebrated in Spain.

With the stable presence of the virrey, the adjoining sectors to the main square became the most important social center of the capital.  Because of it, the nobility native lived in the closest sector to the Plaza, doing gala of their wealth adorning their houses with fine engraved stone details and promoting the construction of wood balconies that gave view to the street.

What does the Virrey do?

As we had said before, the Virrey was the representative of the king of Spain in the colony.  He had five main responsibilities: political, military, judicial, economic and religious.  In the first years of the Colony, there was a virrey in Mexico and another in Lima.  After the Bourbon Reforms of the 18th century, the extensive viceroyalty of Peru was subdivided in two more divisions, being added the political power to the virrey of new Granada – current Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador and Panama – and of Rio de Plata – current Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay -.

Inside the colonial administration system, an promotion was considered if a virrey was elevated of its position to Virrey of Peru.

The Colonial Lima and its relationship with Peru

Being its capital, Lima was one of the political divisions of the extensive viceroyalty of Peru.  It was divided into small towns since 1550, that were the gem of the current political division of the country.  From it departed the legislations towards the other small towns and the administration of natural and economic resources.

Furthermore, Lima was the highest seat of the Real Audience, the court of virreinal justice, whose jurisdiction covered all the other viceroyalties as last instance in case some legal dispute.  Because of it, in view of their importance, it was the first city elected by the king of Spain to be the headquarters of the first university of America:  la Universidad Nacional de San Marcos, from where delegations of American intellectuals  left to found similar capitals in the remainder of the Spanish kingdoms of the New World.

Image: Skyscraper

Blogalaxia Tags: Lima, History, Peru, Colony, Viceroyalty of Peru, Tourism, Architecture, Spain

There are several figures who are associated with colonial Lima, owing to its architectural, cultural, and social features. When we think about Lima, we recall the great boulevards, the exquisite constructions, her carvings in high relief and the sensuality of the Covered Woman of LimaÑ the prototype of beauty for the Peruvian woman.

Origin and use

The cloak and the smock, distinctive garments of the Covered Woman of Lima, appeared in the city around 1560. It is suspected that they are of Moorish origin, since they resemble the full-body garments of Muslim women. However, the Catholic community rejected this idea as an “offense to God”.

This type of clothing would emanate insinuation, flirtation, sensuality, and prohibition. The smock outlines the hips and delineates the bodies of young Liman women, while the cloak would cover the head and would leave only a single eye visible. Beneath the cloak could hide a beautiful woman, an elderly lady, a young girl, or a woman infected with smallpox. This mystery led the young men of Lima to squander their galant verses on the veiled women, because they didn’t know if they corresponded to the individual beneath the garments.

A prohibition and a curiosity

Tradition holds it that San Toribio of Mogrovejo, archbishop of Lima during colonial times, promulgated a decree in 1583 in which the custom of the women of Lima to wear a cloak over the face, then considered normal, was to be henceforth prohibited. This prohibition was confirmed by King Felipe II and it was declared that whomever was found guilty must pay a fine of 3 thousand maravedies.

What was the reason for this prohibition? If we read the previous phrases carefully, we will see that whomever was “found guilty” would pay a fine which in those days was not possible for anyone to pay. That is to say, the fact that the cloak covers the woman’s face in its entirety could faciliate the propagation of homosexuality and transvestism, which was considered a sin worthy of the Inquisition, at least according to the priests.

Blogalaxia Tags: Peru, History, Religion, Beauty, Covered Woman of Lima, Cloak, Smock

While all of these processions are going on with the countless decorated carts, the people entertain themselves in a big party. The music and the dances are accompanied by typical games involving water, streamers, perforated paper, and talc, among many other elements. It all depends only on the creativity of each person.

What is highlighted the most during this celebration is the creativity of the participants to create the lyrics to the improvised songs. Among these creations we find the matarinas, bawdy verses which lovers sing to their women. One of the most awaited activities is the competition between the five neighborhoods of Cajamarca, in which each one presents the best of their musical repertoires.

Among the typical products of the region are: wine from Cascas, hydrangeas from Chugur, custard apples from Cunish, guitars from Namore, limes and oranges from Coyna, healers from Corisogorna, and the unparalleled sombreros from Celendin and Asuncion, which are presented during the festival. Each one of these products is a small sample of the tradition and culture of the area.

The arrival of the Ño Carnavalón is a very famous part of this celebration. It is nothing other than the representation of the spirit of the carnival. The doll, accompanied by a happy and entertaining crowd as well as their songs and dances, is paraded through the streets of the city amidst an atmosphere of joy at the beginning of the carnival. According to tradition, during this celebration, Ño carnavalón ends the festivity by being burned, veiled, and buried by the villagers.

This celebration is full of the culture and tradition of the customs of Cajamarca, as stated so well by Jose María Arguedas, a recognized Peruvian author who made great contributions to indigenous literature: “It is the greatest festival of the Peruvian Indians (…) and their music is the most beautiful of all Peruvian folklore (…)”

Each of the different festivities of the carnival reflect the mix of cultures and above all the cordiality, creativity, and happiness that the Peruvians put into the celebrations in order to celebrate the carnivals to the fullest.

Blogalaxia Tags: Peru, Cajamarca, Carnival, Party, Tourism