Tipon - The Water Temple - August 24th, 2013

       The last place we would visit would be Tipon, which is another Water Temple. When we arrived the place was still covered in rain and mist draped over the surrounding, which given our second dose of San Pedro felt like walking into a dream. We walked along while Puma gave us some more history of the place. The place was for ceremony and was a fertility Temple.

   We eventually stopped at the fountain which is pulled from many sources so that there will always be water running at the fountain in case of drought. It was an emergency area which the priests controlled. How the fountain was designed was symbolic and was meant to represent infinite. After Puma explained this we were given free reign to explore the area.

      The first thing I did was take the nearest path up. It was here I could see the main Temple area and what was going on as others explored them. From there I took off down the path that was the most empty and stumbled upon the priests houses.

    I would describe this San Pedro experience as not having much creative stimulation it was mostly just an experience of happiness and feeling warm, even though it was rainy and cold. 

     The houses were huge and I hung out in them for a while just thinking and letting the San Pedro stimulate my mind. I felt like a kid again on an adventure. It was quite cool. After a while I made to rejoin the group once my solitude was upset. On the way I met and talked to my youngest sister and we talked about school and life. It was awesome and a great conversation.

      Lastly I talked to Puma for a bit about the location and learned what the different locations were (such as the houses I'd discovered) and also another area where ceremonies were done.

Religious Tensions in Peru - Saqsayhuaman - August 23rd, 2013

      Saqsayhuaman, here was a site that had been torn apart for the building of cathedrals and the fighting of the Incas after the conquest of Cuzco. It was here the Inca resisted for a month before all the underground tunnels were finally discovered by the Spanish. In a way it became a symbol of resistance. Like most of the other places we'd been to this place also had religion signifigant to the Inca. The first was the "Giant Head" of the Ancestor. It looked like it had one eye and represented wisdom and the masters who had come before. It was really cool. On the sides were carved chairs in which the priests could sit.

   After Puma told us this about the place we played a quick game of hide and seek (the area is huge) before making our way to the area that once an artificial lake. To get there we had to pass through the darkest cave I have ever gone through.

    After leaving the cave and entering the bright day once more it felt amazing. It was waking up almost since the darkness had been so confining. It was a pretty neat experience.

    Once we got the artificial lake we walked over it to the main area. In the main area there were llamas grazing and a volcanic altar across from the terraces where the llamas were eating. The area was huge and it was here we learned about all the stones that had been taken from the site to build the cathedrals. It was interesting how the old religion became building blocks for the new here and how even those buildings in the context of colonialism could not destroy the amazingness of the site. As much as has been lost, all the more remains strong and expansive.

     It was here Puma told us the story of how Pope John Paul II had come here and given a speech and placed a cross on the site that had been struck by lightning later on due to metal below the surface. He also talked about how the cross had angered the elders who saw it infringing upon a place sacred to them and their ancestors.

     As part of Saqsayhuaman a large White Jesus Christ was built. By Rebi, Puma and others it has been nicknamed "The Sexy Women" another name for the site. It is beautiful, which is where I think the name might come from. The Jesus and the history of this site show the tension that very much still exists between Christianity and the native religions in the area...and given the history, it understandably will probably never fully go away.

The Sacred Valley, Peru - August 18th, 2013

                                                               The Sacred Valley

The next day we would travel to a site where the Inca were able to shape crops. The location was called the Sacred Valley on our ticket and each area of the site was made of circular terraces were the crops were planted and the water levels controlled for the different types of crops. It was a genius invention considering that it was made to grow plants that could not usually grow at those types of altitudes (the Andies).

    Part of the terrace had broke and the government was not able to repair it. How the Incas had built the site was lost to time. 

    It was here our guide Puma did another ceremony. It was a ceremony in honor of women since this site was dedicated to them historically. A forgiveness exercise and blessing was done. It was powerful and made me realize once more just how much a bully I had been to my sisters growing up, and any other time I'd been hurtful.

   After the ceremony I could see that others had found what they were looking for. There were many happy tears and moments of self realization.

                                                         Me and our guide Puma     
This would be a huge part of the experience that defined my time here (as well as the natural beauty of nature and the brilliant architecture of the Inca Temples and sites). I was with a group who it was okay to be vulnerable with and vice versa. Whatever time I needed for myself, I could easily get...this was true throughout the entire trip.