I am currently on my fourth day in Lima! In the time we’ve had so far, I’ve already been through so many experiences.
I arrived in Lima at about 6:00 am on May 23rd.
Scratch that- I arrived in Callao at about 6:00 am on May 23rd. Even though it is the Lima International Airport, I was not in Lima when I got to Lima – does that make sense? I mean, the Vancouver Airport is in Richmond, so it should.
Well anyways, we spent our first day resting for a while, until we went out on our very first activity as a class – a walking tour of San Isidro. San Isidro is a very nice neighbourhood, and I am very much enjoying my stay here. What struck me most about our tour of San Isidro, however, was the Huaca we visited. In Quechua, Huaca means “sacred place.” Considering that Huaca Huallamarca was a reconstruction of something that existed long ago, its very presence got me to question what deserves to be sacred and who decides it. We were told that some aspects of the Huaca were not accurate to how that area appeared when it was actually used- some aspects were added based on the imagination of whoever reconstructed it. The reconstruction occurred in the fifties, but the burial ground that was originally there actually belonged to a pre-Incan society. Upon further research about Huaca Huallamarca, I discovered that there is another Huaca, Huaca Pucllana, not too far away in Miraflores. The Huaca in Miraflores apparently includes a restaurant and dining experience. Sure, the imposition of a restaurant in that space makes something new out of it – but it also unmakes and/or takes away from the very reason that area was considered to be sacred to begin with. Although Huaca Huallamarca does not include a restaurant, the fact that it was rebuilt with new, fabricated editions means that it was made into something it wasn’t supposed to be. In that case, perhaps aspects of Indigeneity are “made,” but that doesn’t mean they are real.
I got a proper sleep after two nights in a row of red-eye flights, and embarked on day two. This day was heavy, but enjoyable. We visited Lugar de la Memoria (of which I am still waiting to hear Jon’s thoughts on the matter), and heard about the Senderos Luminosos. The Museo Larco, later in the day, was incredible. The representation of gods as animals in many Ancient Peruvian cultures was news to me, particularly because I did not know too much to begin with about those cultures. To see everything we saw at the Museo Larco was a great way to learn about them. Of course, our day 3 treks through the city centre and to the Brisas de Titicaca complimented this knowledge of Peru, present and past.
Next stop: Cusco! I can’t wait!
3 replies on “Experience Blog 1: Sacredness in San Isidro”
Hi Yasmin! You bring up an interesting question about what is sacred and who decides this? Considering there are many new “remakings” of indigeneity in Peru, this may colour our view of the degree of significance of certain practices and memorials in these cultures. I’m glad you have rested up though, I am also very excited for Cusco!
You are so right! What makes a sacred place? I often think of questions like this: Is it the person or people who envisioned it, those who built it, or the people who use the space and believe in its sacredness? It is not always easy for people who are from outside a particular culture to embrace the sacredness of a space that is outside of their own belief system.
All of those questions are quite appropriate. I will only leave you a quote from someone who perhaps gives us more to think about: “Everything solid dissolves in air, everything sacred is profaned…” within capitalism.