There were many opportunities to relax at the campground, such as in one of the many available hammocks.
Our last stop in Peru was the city of Cajamarca, elevation 9000 feet. To reach the city, we traveled 158 miles on an overnight sleeper bus from Chiclayo into the Andes. Dinner was served on board and our seats fully reclined for sleep. Cajamarca is known for the Inca Baths (Los Banos del Inca), hot springs where the last Inca chief, Atawallpa, bathed. In 1532, Francisco Pizarro led a small Spanish force and by several ruses was able to capture Atawallpa. He was later murdered after delivering large quantities of gold and silver to Pizarro. Modern Cajamarca is an important Peruvian city and the home to many ethnic Quechuans, descendants of the Incas. Adults still speak the language and attempt to preserve their traditional life and culture. Although there are about 30,000 speakers of Cajamarca Quechua according to Wikipedia, the language is endangered due to a lack of written material for educating children. There are still attempts to preserve the language as we learned from a visit to a school in Cajamarca that taught Quechua. We often saw Quechuan women street venders in downtown Cajamarca, dressed in the traditional tall hat and colorful clothes as in this photo.
Many Quechuans live in the vicinity of Cajarmarca. Others live in communities at some distance. On the advice of an acquaintance, we traveled to one of these small communities on market day. It was an adventure, with about 15 passengers in a van; no complaints about personal space. Although we arrived late, many Quechuans were still there, giving us a glimpse of their life. This photo and others in this gallery show them in their market environment.
