Arequipa and the Sacred Valley, Peru

When I was 17, I was blessed enough to have parents that supported and fed into my fascination with South American archaeology.  My daddy took his sabbatical in Arequipa, Peru so I could have the experience of a lifetime and become completely obsessed with this country.  All these fotos were taken with a 35mm film camera from the 90's! Not too shabby.  

El Misti is one of the three volcanos surrounding Arequipa, the second largest city in Peru.

The view leaving my gated neighborhood. It never got old.

I have never met an animal so ready for a photo shoot. So smug.

Vilcanota mountain range near the Maras salt flats.

This street in Cusco was part of the original Inca road.

Colca Canyon - from peak to bottom is almost twice as deep as the Grand Canyon...

Why not have a pet falcon?

Iconic Machu Picchu shot, with not a single person in it : )

Ranging Llamas at Machu Picchu. 

Could you imagine stumbling upon this place thanks to the locals who knew it well?

You know the happy place in your mind where you go when you need to escape and relax? This is one of the views from mine.

Colorado State Flower Garden, Fort Collins, Colorado

Went on a foto safari today and although macro shots of flowers aren't my forte, the garden was beautiful!

Lima, Peru

Lima may not be my favorite place in Peru, but after spending three days there at the end of my trip, it sure was doing a great job at trying to convince me that this city isn't all that bad.

I have a fascination with cool window treatments and doors... which Lima definitely fulfilled.

Country pride all the way to the lamp posts.

Gringas are not the only tourists here.

Do you wonder what he was thinking about too?

Lomo Saltado = Pure Bliss. Wash it down with an Inca Cola = happy Sarah.

The view leaving the city is just as colorful as what you see in the city.

I heart museums and artifacts.

Gotta love the driveways of the rich colonial families.

Raphael Larco Moche ceramic collection.  Four huge store rooms with shelves upon shelves of ceramic vessels organized by what they depict.  How about a self portrait in these?

Chavin de Huantar, Ancash, Peru

 I was fortunate enough to meet John Rick, one of the main archaeologists at Chavin de Huantar and hear from him what they are currently working on at Chavin.  Turns out there is another big plaza extending on the other side of the main plaza that has yet to be excavated and so much depth to the occupations in this area making it occupied as early at 1,500 B.C.  Love getting the inside scoop, just one of the perks of being an archaeologist!

 

Raimondi Stela with the image of a staff god that is seen throughout Andean cultures. 

 

 

Quechua women have more stamina than I have ever seen.

Excavations began in 1920, but everything had to start over after a landslide in 1945 recovered all these structures and plazas.

El Castillo or the main temple whose height of use was 800 BC.

A llama?

Doble Mensula gallery - there are over 2 km of walkable tunnels plus another 5 km of drains and vents under this complex.

The circular plaza built in a later phase of occupation.

Tenon heads adorned the outside of El Castillo all portraying different fierce images.

Ceremonial thrombus shells were found in caches within the temple.

Don't need much of an imagination to see what this vessel was portraying.