The Ruins

In Trujillo I also visited two pre-Inca archaeological sites.  I find it fascinating that archaeologists here in Perú manage to create popular tourist attractions while maintaining an active dig site.

First was a visit to Chan Chan.  Chan Chan was the capital city of the Chimú civilization, which flourished from the middle of the 14th century until they were conquered by the Incas in 1470.  It was a large, beautiful city whose walls were decorated with ornate adobe carvings:

These represent river otters

This is a depiction of the meeting of the Humbolt and El niño currents

The Chimú were dependent on the sea, so it is not surprising that many of their shapes represent fishing nets

I think this geometrical design represented some sort of gestalt image of a fish and a pelican

Pelicans

The Chimú worshiped the moon, so there were many rooms that were decorated with carvings of the full moon

This video is our guide demonstrating the acoustics.  She sang beautifully, but unfortunately it was very windy.

Here is a reservoir where priestesses and devotees would bathe in the light of the moon 

The Chimú used reed boats like these to fish

I also visited the Huaca del Sol y la Luna (Temple of the Sun and Moon). These ruins date to an even earlier culture, the Moche, who flourished between 100-800 AD.  Like the Chimú, the Moche worshiped the moon.  Due to the number and condition of the skeletons found at the site, it is believed that they captured their opponents in battle specifically to use them as human sacrifices in their religious rituals.  Unfortunately for me, this tour was in Spanish, so I didn't understand as much as I did in Chan Chan.

The Huaca del Sol is in the background with the urban nucleus in the foreground

We did manage to have some fun, despite the gristly history of the place:

Trujillo

Since my last trip to the south was a bit of a bust, this time I decided to head north, about 8 hours, to another city on the coast, Trujillo.  Not only was the weather expected to be better (no wind!) but I also had the advantage of meeting up with one of our students and letting him play tour guide.

I got to see many places-the ruins (more about these in the next post);

the main square;

and the beach

-but I was more excited to be able to try some new foods!

First was a new fruit called mamey (MAH-MAY).

It reminded me of an orange coconut, but tasted like (and had the texture of) a dried apricot.

Next, lunch was a specialty made here on Mondays called shambar.

It's basically a lentil soup that you add pork, red onions and yucca to.  I find it interesting that the name is so close to the Indian version of a lentil stew: sambar.  I'll have to  do some investigating to see if it is more than just coincidence!

I also had a chance to try chicha de jora, a fermented drink made of corn, which I had been wanting to try for a while.

Supposedly it packs quite the punch, but we didn't drink enough to test that out.  It definitely smells fermented, but tastes more like a nice, crisp, unpasteurized apple cider.  

Then, I tried a new fish preparation, sudado de pescado.

This was a fish soup-with the whole fish (including the head!)

Last but not least, I tried a dessert called KingKong.

Who knew that caramel, pineapple and peanut butter in one dessert could be so good?