Chiclayo and Pyramids

Spent the weekend in Chiclayo, the first real city down the coast from here (500,000 or so people, 5 hours away by bus). We went to Sipán and saw tombs from 100 AD and walked on and inside a fire temple pyramid from 2000 BC. Pretty cool weekend.

The pyramid at Sipán. It was built from adobe bricks in the 1st and 2nd centuries and has eroded over time.

The same pyramid up close, with excavations underway. This isn't the pyramid the tombs were in, it's an administrative
 pyramid next to the burial pyramid.

The view from on top of the burial pyramid.

Excavations of the burial pyramid. These pyramids were built of adobe bricks in freestanding stacks (you can see the stacks in the cut out side of the pyramid) to make them earthquake resistant.

One of the smaller tombs in the burial pyramid (there are 14 in total). This is the original tomb with a recreation of the
 bodies and artifacts found here. The deodorant stick in the middle is not original.

Another tomb.

The tomb of "The Priest", who was buried around the same time as the Lord.

The Lord of Sipan. His tomb was found undisturbed by grave robbers. He was buried with a sentry, a guard, his military
chief, 3 women, a child, a dog, and a llama.

This guy is from tombs at Sipán. 

The kids selling necklaces were sad to see us go.

Just getting around.

Me at the museum where the Sipan artifacts are held. I don't have any pictures from inside because they don't allow
 cameras, or any kind of electronics, in case of theft. To give you some idea of why, one single stolen artifact was
 recovered by the FBI from a guy who had pain $1.8 million for it.

From left, Christian, Nathaly, Freddie, and me.

Jesus.

4,000 year old fire temple.

Shadow people.

The base of the fire temple.

The paintings at this site are the oldest paintings anywhere in South America. They were preserved because the people
 who built this temple buried it when they were finished with it.

The door leading inside the temple.

Foundations of temple outbuildings.

The inside of the temple. We literally just wandered around inside (we walked on top of walls to get around).

Of course, people still live here.

The view from the fire temple.

Paintings like these two (this one shows a deer in  net) were actually stolen off the walls by grave robbers. These two are
 the only ones known to have survived, because they were in a hidden staircase. These were painted around 2,000 BC.

The main room of the temple.

The road back to Chiclayo.

Church in Plaza de Armas in Chiclayo.

Church with birds.

Church.

Church with birds.

This guy (I didn't get his name) died in battle defending Chiclayo. We debated whether he is holding a telescope or a
 bottle. I come down on the side of the bottle, because if the enemy's far enough away to need a telescope, why would he
 have his sword out?

The plaza with the statue.

Next: Was going to be Trujillo this weekend, but we missed the bus so I have no idea what will be next.

Fishing off the Negritos Pier

We've been fishing off this pier a few times already. It's a large pier in the middle of the desert between two towns, with no way to get onto it except climbing up some pieces of shattered concrete and metal pipe. Only in Peru. Next time we go, I'll try to remember to get a picture of the climb onto the pier. Click the pictures for high-res.

The Pacific.

Looking north up the coast toward Talara.

Ship traffic coming out of "El Puerto" (Talara harbour).

Looking south toward Negritos.

Looking south toward Negritos. At the right you can see the Punta Parinas lighthouse. Negritos is behind the cliffs to the
 left.

Such a Peruvian place to put a deep-water pier.

Peru's northern coast is known for its sandy bluffs.

Looking across the desert toward Talara.

Fishing the traditional Peruvian way, with a line and a length of PVC tube instead of a rod.

Pelican.

Sunset over the Pacific.

Sunset over the Pacific.

Sunset over the Pacific.

Sunset over the Pacific.

Sunset over the Pacific.

Me.

Next: Wherever I go this weekend.

Punta Balcones, Peru

Punta Balcones, the western tip of South America - although some people say it's Punta Pariñas, the next point over with the lighthouse on it. Balcones is about 10 minutes away from my house by taxi ($2 per person because the road is so rough - normal fare is 50 cents or so). Click the pictures for high-res versions.

The Pacific goes all the way to Papua New Guinea from here.

The beach is uninhabited for 50km to the south.

There are thousands of oil platforms off South America's Pacific coast.

Negritos, the fishing village to the north of Punta Balcones.

Punta Pariñas, the other possible western tip of South America. It's only separated from Balcones by a small bay,
 so it's really splitting hairs to say one is more west than the other.

The wind is so intense that birds can stay in the air without moving.

There is a giant rock in the ocean off the western tip of South America where sea lions live. Somebody tell David Attenborough.

Sea lions.

Sea lions.

Sea Lions.

This is what a tourist spot looks like in the North Peruvian desert (the parking lot and sign for Punta Balcones). The parking lot is paved
 and the road leading out from it starts out paved but turns into a potholed dirt track long before it gets to Negritos.
That kind of thing is pretty common in Peru.

Bird. It would be cool if I knew what kind, but I don't.

Next: Fishing off the Negritos Pier.