Sep 4 - Oct 9, 2016: Peru

Kuelap

Sep. 5, 2016. Hotel Johumaji, Chachapoyas, Peru.

Strolled down to the Terra Mia Cafe for a breakfast of delicious organic coffee, cut up fruit, and... Waffles! Yum. Strolled back to the hotel, where I was told they were booked for the night - oh well, will look for another hotel after the day's adventure.
The day's adventure consisted of getting to and from Kuelap, an Inca citadel city second only to Machu Picchu - although first in size. But getting there, unless you take a tour, is no easy task. When I got to the bus station, I was informed that the bus that leaves you closest to Kuelap didn't leave until 2 in the afternoon - five hours later - and then I would have to hike an additional 2 hours, getting to Kuelap too late. The alternative: take a bus to Tingo - leaving right away - then hiking for 5 hours on a straight-up trail. Met another German couple at Tingo, and off we went, with a Kuelap guide also coming along.
A very tough five hours it was, up all the way, gaining over 3,000 feet in altitude, to reach Kuelap at around 9,500 feet, just as real rain began - the first since I arrived in South America. OK, time to test my waterproof ultralight backpack, containing passport, Kindle, hat, water, mandarin oranges, snacks - including a bag of "mini kraps", chosen of course for the name - and some Oreo cookies. (At the end of the day I can attest that it is indeed waterproof). Lots of orchids on the trail, of two varieties - lots of pictures, of course.
Constructed between AD 500 and 1493, and rediscovered in 1843, Kuelap is made up of millions of cubic feet of remarkably preserved stone. The 700m-long fortress is surrounded by a wall averaging 20m high. Entrance is via three deep, leaning gates - once believed to be a security system, but now shown that earthquakes, erosion, rain, and destroyed mortar have caused the walls to move closer together.
Inside are two levels scattered with the remnants of more than 400 circular dwellings, once topped with conical thatched roofs. Kuelap housed around 3,500 people. One structure, named El Tintero (inkpot) is a large inverted cone, maybe a religious building, maybe a solar calendar. With the rain, and the swirling clouds and mist, surrounded by greenery, bromeliad-covered trees, it was a terrific, eerie visit.
Now, how to return to Chachapoyas? The answer: beg seats on a minibus already full of Industrial Engineering students on holiday. Fortunately, they were very accepting of the three of us, and made room for the trip back, arriving early evening. Never would have happened in the States.
Retrieved my backpack, found another hostel closer to the main plaza, tried out three of the local Amazonian liqueurs - mora (blackberry}, maracuya (passion fruit), and chuchuhuasi (from the bark of a jungle tree, reputed to be an aphrodisiac} - at three bars along the street to my new hotel, then bed by 11. Slept very well indeed.