Hamburg

After the game i met some French guys who were dressed with the France's uniform of the 80's (high and tight shorts) they were also wearing some red wigs. They pretended to look like Platini.One of the classic French players of those years. Streets were closed and everybody was drinking away. The one thing that surprised me was the cool police squad. They even posed with everybody for pictures. A female police officer allowed one of the french guys to give her a kiss on her cheek when the other took the picture. I met on the same block with the friend who gave me the ticket and told me she was heading to Passau the next two days with her brother and friends. So I spent the next day in Munich visiting other venues. I met the group on the train station and then left to Passau. One hour and a half south of Munich. I used this time also to relax and watch the German game against Portugal for the third place and the final between Italy and France. It was a beer garden where we went. One of my souveniers from Passau was a mark on my head done by one of the speakers that somebody tripped over. The german guy behind me got the worst part i got the rebound. Time in Passau was nice and relaxing and my friend Uta showed me around lakes, bavarian castles, and we even rode bikes to Austria for a beer. Passau is mainly a college town and sorrounded by the rivers Danou and Inn. At was surprised as the friends Uta introduced me to spoke Spanish, mainly with Argentinian accent since they were exchange students on that country. We also attended a night of classical music performed by the students of the school. I have never been transported to different emotional stages by music. This is my best definition of classical music after hearing it live for the first time.
I moved then to Hamburg to meet another friend, this time a friend from High School who I hadn't seen in nineteen years. Cecilia.

Germany with friends.

After the game i met some French guys who were dressed with the France's uniform of the 80's (high and tight shorts) they were also wearing some red wigs. They pretended to look like Platini.One of the classic French players of those years. Streets were closed and everybody was drinking away. The one thing that surprised me was the cool police squad. They even posed with everybody for pictures. A female police officer allowed one of the french guys to give her a kiss on her cheek when the other took the picture. I met on the same block with the friend who gave me the ticket and told me she was heading to Passau the next two days with her brother and friends. So I spent the next day in Munich visiting other venues. I met the group on the train station and then left to Passau. One hour and a half south of Munich. I used this time also to relax and watch the German game against Portugal for the third place and the final between Italy and France. It was a beer garden where we went. One of my souveniers from Passau was a mark on my head done by one of the speakers that somebody tripped over. The german guy behind me got the worst part i got the rebound. Time in Passau was nice and relaxing and my friend Uta showed me around lakes, bavarian castles, and we even rode bikes to Austria for a beer. Passau is mainly a college town and sorrounded by the rivers Danou and Inn. At was surprised as the friends Uta introduced me to spoke Spanish, mainly with Argentinian accent since they were exchange students on that country. We also attended a night of classical music performed by the students of the school. I have never been transported to different emotional stages by music. This is my best definition of classical music after hearing it live for the first time.
I moved then to Hamburg to meet another friend, this time a friend from High School who I hadn't seen in nineteen years. Cecilia. Time in Hamburg was also relaxed and different. I stayed with Cecilia and she introduced me to a lot of her friends so I felt a little bit connected with the people. We even went to a couple of small concerts. "Panteon Rococo" was a good show. Towards the end of the show the singers allowed some of the audience to climb to the stage from where many let themselves carried through the crowd as if there were being dragged by the current of the many hands on the air. I highly recomend this group if you like progressive songs in Spanish. No need to understand the lyrics just follow and feel the music. Most of my rounds in Hamburg were in St Pauli. A strip with plenty of bars and shops and pubs that resembled a little bit like Las Vegas but no big buildings. I was there the day Harley Davidson had a event so all the people who had these bikes went out to show off. I admit I am not a big fan of these motorcycles, especially because of the noise they make, but there were some designs that really caught my attention. The spiderman bike, the leopard one, etc. After spending a week in Hamburg I decided to go to leave Germany and go to Denmark. A friend of mine who I met in Sao Paulo talked there about working while in summer time. I caught the train for 32 Euros, on special, and headed out on July 22.

Zizu (zee-zoo)

I think I will return to Spain to spend more time. My focus was now in Berlin and the World Cup. This massive event categorized as the biggest sport event captivates more than 2 billion people around the globe every four years. In Berlin the atmosphere was enthusiastic, I got there when Germany beat Argentina and advanced to the third round (there are four rounds before reaching the final game). As I emerged from the subway cars, bicycles and motorcycles were driving around the city blowing their horns and waving their germans flags. After booking in the hostel I decided to go out a couple of blocks and the streets were still celebrating. A bar had put a big screen on the sidewalk so people watched the game again as we all drank beers on the street, which by the way it is also allowed anyday and anytime in Germany. The following days I went to other bars to watch other games the atmosphere was a lot different when Germany lost agains Italy on the 4th round putting the Italians on the final game and Germany for the game for the third place, there were no waving flags this time. I did some tourism as well so I went and visited the Berlin wall and a concentration camp, Sacsenhausen. I pictured the Berlin wall as a thick, tall wall, but it was thin and apparently easy to climb. Of course things changed when you have two walls (an internal and an external one) before trying to cross and guards that monitor the walls. Sacsenhausen was though a lote more intriguing and I felt a cold wind on the 32 celsius (96 F)degree weather going through my body while standing and watching the camp, the guards towers, the rests of the electrical cables used as fence around the camp, the torture sites, the "hospital" and the exhibition of pictures and biographies of people who lived here either as workers or prisoners. I think though that the Germans have done a great job putting this past behind to build a new society.
A friend who I met in Sao Paolo told me she was working with the ticketing office in Munich so she knew I was coming to Germany. She told me she would try to get me a ticket but it was nt for sure so I decided to left Berlin and took a bus to Munich. The day had a great return on my investment. I got in for the France-Portugal game...for free. The winner of this game would go to the final game and play the Italians. I couldn't believe my eyes when watching these star players on the pitch. I was used to see them on TV. Zinedane (Zizu) , Henry, Ronaldo, Figo, Vieira, Makalele, Deco...

Europe

I came to Europe through Spain. I never thought I could be here and travel around although I thought to myself that I was just completing my wish of travel for at least six months. In an rate I knew I was not to get back to work anytime soon. Being in Spain was...nice. Going to the Ramblas and some of the tourist spots, the beach, and staying at my friend' house. A friend who was my neighbor since we were fifteen in Peru. It was nice to see her and see the life she has in Barcelona. I only spent three days in Barca as the football team is known. The one which won the Champions League. I knew I wanted to finish in Germany after those three days so I hurried and bought a ticket to Barcelona, since I arrived to Madrid from Lima. My first experience as a new comer to Europe was the accurate times. I forgot i was not in Bolivia where they wait until the bus is full. This time I was on time but not in time for the train. It left at the time they said 11:32. I got to the door at 11:32 so I missed it. Hmm. I paid an extra 6 Euros to take another train at 4:30pm. This was late to arrive to Bacelona so they said they will return the money because of that. Yes!!! I said, bu to my surprise they only gave me back the 6 extra I paid for the later train, "the one at 11:32 got there on time" they said....I bought a plane ticket to Berlin and I made sure I was one hour earlier before the flight. The flight to Berlin was late though, so they made us wait one and a half hour. "Sorry about that. Have a nice flight" they said. Hmmm. I was punished for not being on time at the train station but a simple sorry was what the airline attendant gave me when they were late. "So this is my first impression of Europe". I thought.

Time to fly again.

Back in Trujillo to keep eating the great diversity of Peruvian cuisine I spent the last days watching with my brother, who was in standby of his job due to a workers' strike, the World Cup. They were played in regular channel so we just had to wake up early enough to have our marathonic sessions of futbol. Yes, I think I gained some weight. All the restaurants and bars had them on but we chose to stay and watch them at home. Since Peru didn't qualify AGAIN!! we believed the ambiance on these bars where just not there. We saw through TV news a lot of bars in Lima with a lot more life since there were many Brasilians and Ecuadorians in that city so they went out to support their national colors.
Otuzco was the last city outside of Trujillo I visited. It is a two hour ride into the mountains side and a place I never went when I lived inTrujillo. I was just entertained and at awe when i saw some equally beatiful landscapes that I saw in Cusco and some cities in Bolivia and maybe even prettier. "And this was so close to where I used to live?" I asked myself. The town itself is small and at 2,627 meters (8,618 feet) above sea level I felt again the short of breath when walking around and meeting some kids, a drunk and a group of young man getting ready for a party and using a donkey to carry the three cages of beer. (I have the picture, I promise I will post it...). The one plate I was trying to eat and on a proper way was Guinea Pig. I found it here. The entire animal is cooked with cylantro and potatoes and it is served with white rice. It doesn't have a lot of meat but enough to use a fork and knife and then take it with your hands. Yes, some of you may get disgusted or even heart broken for this little animals which are kept as pets but since it is a rodent original from South America, the Incas used them also as food and that custom has remained in this country. All I have to say is that it is nice tasting. As I waited on the intersection of roads along with some vendors to go to yet another higher city I started thinking about the ticket I bought to Spain a couple of days earlier. My mother was to depart to Tampa, Florida USA where one of my brothers is studying English, my other brother was interviewing for a new job in a mine in Lima, my dad trying to stay busy selling his late mother's apartment since he was on advanced retirement but still looking for another job. Europe was to be the next part of my trip. Spain was the cheapest route to Europe, I thought about skipping the traditional tourist road of Spain, France and Italy. I kept thinking about Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Netherlands...

More of the rest

Trujillo was perfect to rest and talk a lot with my family. I hadn´t spent a lot of time on my travels back to this city before. Two weeks of vacation sometimes is not enough when you are some thousands miles away. The other city I always wanted to visit was Chincha. This small town south of Lima is mainly known because the biggest population of black peruvians live here. This time I went with my brother and two friends from high school. We went on one of my friend's car so we had a lot more flexibility to go to different places quickly, besides it was just a weekend we were using since my friends had to work monday so it worked perfectly. Asking a lady in Chincha for the parties that the locals give she stated that it is only during carnival when one can hear and attend the parties with the music of this region. Peruvian music with african roots, instruments like cajon, guitarra, quijada that the artists use to create a sort of 'tap' dancing. And literally I think I counted about four black peruvians on the street. Oh well, next time I go straigh to the neighborhood of Barranco in Lima and dance until dawn with this music that has a lot of energy and make you sweat like you were in an aerobic class: Festejo.
We also went to a ranch that used to belong to a family that grew cotton, Hacienda San Jose. It is surprising how this ranches had even a chapel so the workers didn't have to go to the closest town to mass. The priest would come to the ranch and celebrate mass there. I saw the same sructure in the Colpas in Cajamarca. These farms date about the 1,600's I believe.
We visited the pre-Inca ruins of Centinela, at the arrival of the Spaniards they turned it into a kind of fortress since it is about 4 km of the ocean and its high construction allows you to have a good sight of incoming ships. We also went to visit Melchorita, a woman who according to the locals made miracles and she is on the 'waiting' list to be canonized. It is incredible the amount of followers she has. Walking around the isles of this house I felt heavy air, people totally convinced that if they pray hard enough she can give them the wish they want. From what I saw, they were parents with kids and old people accompanied by their sons or daughters. I just assumed they were ill and the wishes were merely for their healthy being.
After eating 'manchapecho' a sort of noodles with red sauce and pork we headed to Pisco. (If I translate spanish manchapecho to english it would be 'staining to the chest'...because the sauce can do that to your shirt...).
Pisco is a small town, where The Pisco, a tequila type of drink with 44% grade of alcohol made of grapes is produced, and where we were to spend the night before going to Paracas next day. We drank at the main square the bottle of wine we bought on the road so we felt like we were on a place where we could enjoy freely and hang with the locals and watch some kids going to their parties. Until the police came and quicked us and the rest of the 'free spirit' drinkers out of the plaza. Nothing major, they just told us. "Please don't drink here, it is prohibited to drink on the main square you know".
So we went to a club and drank and danced until 4 am.
Paracas was our final stop so we payed with the rest of the tourists for a ride to the islands where the Humboldt Penguin (the Peruvian penguin) lives. This is an amazing island where the guano http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guano of these birds is extracted to fertilize lands. Our trip to these islands was not to know more about the business of guano in Peru but to watch the many animals like sea lions, penguins, pelicans and seagulls that habitate on these not cold areas of the world.

The rest of Peru?

As I left Arequipa, and visiting some members of my mother family I decided to go to Trujillo, the city where I grew up until high school, to stay there for some time and take a break from my travellings. I write this long after my stay in Trujillo. I saw some friends, walked around the halls of the house, walked around downtown recognizing stores and places. I do the same thing anytime I come to visit. I pay attention when walking around or going to the pubs or restaurants. There is always somebody I recognize, perhaps with less hair or more weight. So it is inevitable to talk and ask about people we used to hang out when I lived in this city. I find out that some people died, or moved out or have business or had plastic surgery.
I wanted to travel a bit too, so I went with my youngest brother to Cajamarca to visit a friend of mine who has been working there for almost four years already. Cajamarca is the city where the Spaniards walked in when they started the conquest of the Inca Empire. It is the city which was the turning point for what Peru is now.
We went to watch the Cumbemayo ruins, then with my friend Richard to the Inca's hot springs. This hot springs are similar to the ones I went in Oruro and Santa Teresa and Calera, although they have built three big pools wich is filled by these natural waters. We got a beer and relaxed around seven on the evening. My brother had to go to work to Chiclayo after our second day so I Richard prepared the grill and had an easy Sunday. Next day I did some hiking by myself. The sky was blue and the cottonish clouds above the andes and the meadows were just the perfect companions for the silence and tranquility I breathed that morning. I also went to a graveyard used by the pre-incas. They used this hill and made a bunch of holes where the placed the body's bones, sometimes these holes were for a specific family so a hole could have inside different and smaller cavities for all the member of the family. When one stands away from the hill, the holes look like small windows (ventana in Spanish), hence the name for the graveyard: "Ventanillas de Otuzco". On the afternoon I went to The Colpas, a big farm, almost a ranch, where it used to be one of the main producer of milk for the region. The record for one cow was of 46 liters of milk in one day. Now they barely make it to 20. In the seventies there were some reforms in the Peru that affected the efficiency of these type of farms. The attraction now is that when is time to milk the cows the farmers call them by their name and they walked one by one when hearing their name. I couldn't leave Cajamarca without visiting the "Rescue Room". The last Inca Atahualpa was captured by the Spaniards on 1532 and he was promised freedom if he filled this room with gold and silver. He did what he promised but the Spaniards killed him anyways. Standing by the door of this room I wanted to describe what I was feeling. It has happened so long ago but the Spaniards didn't do what they promised, Atahualpa's freedom. So I sensed treachery and dishonesty, which I can't stand. Of course when in war you can not make your enemies your allies so I guess history has been repeating itself along the centuries. So I sensed logic. Now being so far away from Peru and in a country that has gone through much more I think the Rescue Room is just a piece of history which made a deep mark in Peru and I will use that to understand that things of the past are gone for good or for worse but that's what they are. Just marks, not the end of our present lives.