Peru - Lonely Planet Publications [273]
Further north, the village of Huaura, opposite Huacho, is where José de San Martín proclaimed Peru’s independence. Ask for someone to show you the building where it occurred. There is an inconsequential museum (admission S2.50; 9am-5pm) and a Spanish-speaking guide who’ll show you the balcony from where the desire for self-rule was decreed.
BARRANCA
01 / pop 54,000
Barranca, located 195km north of Lima, has a relaxed, fountain-spouting plaza and a cacophony of traffic plowing through on the Carretera Panamericana, which dissects the town. Neighboring Pativilca, located 10km further north, is where the road branches off to Huaraz and the Cordillera Blanca. This spectacular route climbs inland through cactus-laden cliff faces, and you can watch the cathedrals of sheer rock slowly turn into a carpet of greenery as the road climbs up to Huaraz.
Sights
PARAMONGA
The adobe temple of Paramonga (admission S3) is situated 4km beyond the turnoff for the Huaraz road and was built by the Chimú culture, which was the ruling power on the north coast before it was conquered by the Incas (Click here). The fine details of the massive temple have long been eroded, yet the multi-tiered construction is nonetheless impressive and affords fantastic panoramas of the lush valley. Local buses from Barranca (S3, 25 minutes) will drop you off at a spot 3km from the entrance, or a taxi here will cost about S10.
CARAL
About 25km inland from Barranca lie the monumental ruins of Caral (adult S11; 9am-5pm), which confounded Peruvian archaeologists when they proved to be part of the oldest civilization in all of South America. Before Caral’s discovery, the city of Chavín de Huántar near Huaraz, built around 900 BC, held that particular title. Caral culture arose in the Supe valley between an incredible 4500 and 5000 years ago, making it one of the earliest large cities, alongside those in Mesopotamia, Egypt, India and China. This ancient culture was a conglomeration of 18 city-states and controlled the three valleys of Supe, Pativilca and Fortaleza, with the main seat of government at Caral. At the site, six stone-built pyramids (most of which have been excavated) were found alongside amphitheaters, ceremonial rooms, altars, adobe complexes and several sunken circular plazas. Most of the pyramids have stairways leading to their peaks, where offerings were once made; the stairs can be climbed for great views of the lush Supe River valley.
The people of Caral-Supe were experts in agriculture, construction, public administration and making calendars and musical instruments. Evidence of elaborate religious ceremonies among elites suggests a highly stratified culture in which classes were organized according to their labor in society; archaeologists at Caral believe that men and women may have enjoyed considerable equality. Among the many artifacts you’ll see at the sites are millennia-old bone flutes and Peru’s oldest quipus (a system among Andean cultures of tying cords and knots to convey information). A large geoglyph – a design carved into earth – called Chupacigaro attests to the Caral people’s sophisticated measurements of the movements of the stars. Unesco declared the Sacred City of Caral a World Heritage site in 2009.
Considering how few people visit Caral, and how even fewer know about it, the site is well set out for visitors. There are plaques in both Spanish and English illustrating points of interest. Proyecto Especial Arqueológico Caral (www.caralperu.gob.pe) is in charge here, and its Lima office (205-2500, 495-1516; Av Las Lomas de La Molina 327, Lima 12) has tons of information and